When Good isn’t Good Enough!
Little Billie was caught in mischief, while being
scolded he was asked, “How do you expect to get into Heaven?” His answer was,
“I’ll just run in and out of the door until God tells me to either stay in or
out!”
That Old Time
Religion
Give me that old time religion,
Give me that old time religion,
Give me that old time religion,
It's good enough for me.
1 It was good for Paul and Silas,
It was good for Paul and Silas,
It was good for Paul and Silas,
It's good enough for me. [Refrain]
2 It was good for the Hebrew children,
It was good for the Hebrew children,
It was good for the Hebrew children,
It's good enough for me. [Refrain]
3 It was good for our mothers,
It was good for our mothers,
It was good for our mothers,
It's good enough for me. [Refrain]
4 Makes me love ev'ry body,
Makes me love ev'ry body,
Makes me love ev'ry body,
It's good enough for me. [Refrain]
Luke 18:18-30 A certain ruler asked him, "Good teacher, what must I do
to inherit eternal life?" 19
"Why do you call me good?" Jesus
answered. "No one is good—except God alone. 20
You know the commandments: 'You shall not commit
adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false
testimony, honor your father and mother.'" 21 "All these I have kept since I was a
boy," he said. 22 When
Jesus heard this, he said to him, "You still
lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will
have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." 23 When he heard this, he became very sad,
because he was very wealthy. 24
Jesus looked at him and said, "How hard it is
for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! 25
Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the
eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God."
26 Those who heard this asked,
"Who then can be saved?" 27
Jesus replied, "What is impossible with man is
possible with God." 28
Peter said to him, "We have left all we had to follow you!" 29 "Truly I
tell you," Jesus said to them, "no
one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for
the sake of the kingdom of God 30
will fail to receive many times as much in this
age, and in the age to come eternal life."
As we look at this passage, we see that a certain ruler – or
authority approaches Jesus to ask him a question.
This man had one urgent question on his mind; a question that
many never ask, a question that sometimes Christians take for granted.
A military Chaplin said, “I asked several soldiers in my
Battalion – if they could ask God one question what would it be?
They answered with responses like:
• Why is there suffering?
• Is there really a Heaven and Hell?
• Or, Why doesn’t my marriage work?
These are responses that could come from anybody, but this rich
man, sees that Jesus is the very son of God and asks him an all important
question.
He Asks, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”
This is a critical question – a question that all of us must
ask.
Jesus forms his response in a question.
I.
You Will Never Do or Be
Good Enough
Luke 18: 20-21 You know the
commandments: 'You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall
not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and
mother.'" 21 "All these I have kept since I was a boy," he said.
a.
He was quick to give an answer. Yes! I have done those things
all my life.
b.
Much like a response you get when you ask someone if they are a
Christian.
c.
They will say, yes.
d.
Do you go to church … Well I haven’t since I was younger, but my
parents took me every Sunday.
Just because you walk under the
Car Port doesn’t make you a car…
Just because you swim in a river
doesn’t make you a fish!
Going to a library doesn’t make
you a book!
Going to church doesn’t make you
a Christian!
e.
Jesus tells him, “There’s one thing you lack.”
f.
Jesus was making in clear to the man and everybody who was
listing that Your works aren’t good enough!
g.
DOING DOESN”T GET IT!
h.
We as humans try our very best at achieving salvation by doing
good things.
Every other religion in the
world tells you that there are certain things that must be done to achieve
eternal life. And most of them teach to do truly good things and every time you
do something good that gives you a step on your way to heaven.
i.
There is nothing that can be done, so none of us can boast –
none of us can take credit.
j.
And that is a major difference between Christianity and other
Religious.
Bill Hybels characterizes it as
“Do vs. Done”.
k.
When other religions talk about what you must do to receive
eternal life – Christianity talks about what was done by Jesus dying on the
cross to pay the penalty for us.
l.
So there is nothing we can boast about in our works.
Ephesians 2:8-9 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no
one can boast.
m.
There is nothing that can be done, so none of us can boast—none
of us can take any credit.
But Jesus takes it up another notch and says that not even
riches are good enough.
II. Your Works and Riches Aren’t Good enough
Luke 18:22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, "You
still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and
you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
a.
Jesus tells the man to sell everything he owned and follow him.
b.
Jesus was telling him that eternal life can’t be bought.
c.
When you die your earthly riches stay here – here on earth.
If you study the ancient
civilizations of Egypt and the Pyramids. The rulers of Egypt once believed that
their possessions would follow them to the afterlife – But the only place the
riches followed was with their coffin to a museum somewhere.
d.
Riches do not lead to eternal life. Riches are the root of all
kinds of evil. We are not to trust in our Riches.
Revelation 3:17-19 You say, 'I am rich; I have
acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are
wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18
I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the
fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your
shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.
19 Those
whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest and repent.
e. We are to be like the
woman that Jesus observed in Luke 21:1-4
Luke 21:1-4 As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into
the temple treasury. 2 He also
saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. 3 "Truly I
tell you," he said, "this poor
widow has put in more than all the others. 4 All these people gave their
gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to
live on."
f.
She gave all that she had for the Lord.
g.
Jesus clearly teaches in Matthew 6, that we are to store
our treasures in heaven.
h.
As a matter of fact, this message doesn’t have to do with money or possessions
– while those things to require much of our attention – this message is
about your hearts.
Matthew 6:21 For where your treasure is, there
your heart will be also.
Luke 18:22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, "You
still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and
you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me."
i.
I underlined everything … it means ANYTHING … You
can be so focused on the object of your attention that you take your eyes off
of Jesus!
So where is your heart?
• Do you live and breathe for your
favorite entertainment (music group, tv or movie star…)? Or do you live and
breathe for the world of God.
• Do you live and breathe for your
Phone? Or do you live and breathe on the praises of Almighty God.
• Do you wake up every morning
counting the days until retirement? Or do you anticipate the Glorious return of
the Son coming to take his church home?
None of these are bad– but
perspective is what we need.
j.
Where our treasure is there our heart will be also!”
k.
Jesus desires that we are completely devoted to him. He teaches
us that our works aren’t good enough and our riches aren’t good enough.
l.
Then what is good enough?
III.
What then is Good enough?
a.
This is the same question the disciples had.
Luke 18:26-30 Those who heard this asked,
"Who then can be saved?" 27
Jesus replied, "What is impossible with man is
possible with God." 28
Peter said to him, "We have left all we had to follow you!" 29 "Truly I
tell you," Jesus said to them, "no
one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for
the sake of the kingdom of God 30
will fail to receive many times as much in this
age, and in the age to come eternal life."
b.
Jesus says that some things are possible only with God and
Eternal Life is one of them.
c.
It is impossible for us to earn our way to heaven, It is
impossible for us to buy our way to heaven,
d.
It is only through God that we can have eternal life.
e.
Sounds narrow? Of course it does – because it is?
Matthew 7:13-14 "Enter through the narrow gate. For
wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many
enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to
life, and only a few find it.
f.
We humans try so many ways to get to God, So many ways to have
eternal life but the bible says
John 14:6
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth
and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
g.
It’s not about Works; it’s not about Riches, It’s about
ownership.
It’s about you and I turning everything to Jesus allowing him to
be the
• Savior – Accepting the payment made by Christ who died on the
cross, to pay for our sin.
• Leader—the one who we will follow, apply his teachings to our
lives and truly live them out.
• And Friend – God created each of us to have fellowship with
him. He wants more than just to be our God, or Savior, or Leader – He wants to
be our Friend.
So what about you?
As we think about the many ways
we can be lost, there is only one way that we can be found and that is by
accepting Jesus into our life and following Him.
Where do you live" asked the policeman.
The boy didn't know.
What's your last name? the policeman asked while trying to jog the boy's memory.
Do you know your dad's telephone number?
No response.
By now the policeman had exhausted all the questions. He radioed a message of a missing child to the police headquarters.
In the meantime, the boy was fidgeting and played with his fingers....and suddenly he looked up at a distance and he started to jump...he seemed to be excited.
The policeman thought, maybe the boy remember his address, or it could be the telephone number. He asked the boy: hey buddy, why are you so happy, knowing that you are lost.. and you do not remember your telephone number.
The boy was really excited. He said: I got it...I got it. What did you get? the policeman asked.
Sir, he said. Look at that shining light.
Yes...I see that light.
Sir, do you see that cross?
Yes, I see that cross. It's on the steeple of that Church.
Sir...sir...please please take me to that cross...And I'll find my way home!
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