Do we have Absolutes?

I. I do believe in Science proving the existence of God that was the very first message I put on this board.

II. If God is real, "Why are there so many different religions?" It's been well said that "religion" is man’s way of trying to deal with his guilt. Different religions have different ways of attempting to rid their adherents of sin and its consequences. They fast, pray, deny themselves legitimate pleasures, or chasten themselves, often to a point of inflicting pain. They do this because they have a concept of what they think God (or "the gods") is like, so they seek to establish their own righteousness, being "ignorant of God’s righteousness." The Good News of the Christian faith is that no one need suffer the pains of religious works. Christ’s blood can cleanse our conscience from the "dead works" of religion (Hebrews 9:14). Jesus took our punishment upon Himself, and He is the only One who can save us from sin and death. See Acts 4:12 and John 14:6.

V. What do you believe will qualifies you for heaven?

A. "I'm basically a good person" When you say you believe you are a pretty decent person, keep in mind that it is because you are comparing yourself on man's scale, not on God's. If you compare yourself to Hitler or Charles Manson, certainly you seem to be "good". But what if you compared yourself to Mother Teresa? Most people fall somewhere in the middle of these two extremes.

The Bible teaches that no one is good (Romans 3:10). Not you. Not me. Not Mother Teresa. Not the Catholic saints. Not even the Prophets God sent to earth in centuries past. Only God is good. (Luke 18:18-20)

Do you realize that it is impossible for a good, holy, perfect, truthful God to have in His presence anyone who has even made one mistake? Since that is the case, we have a problem: how can we come to live with a Holy God?

Psalm 5:4-5 "For you are not a God that has pleasure in sinful deeds: neither will sin live with you. The foolish will not stand in your sight: you hate all who commit sin." (this verse is not saying God hates sinners, but only those who purposefully commit sin.)

B. "I've never hurt anyone" Are you sure you've never hurt anyone? Have you considered the things you speak to others? Jesus warns in Matthew 5:21-22 that even being unjustly angry with someone puts you in danger of judgment. Also, how many people have you hurt because of things you failed to do?

C. "I've tried to keep the 10 Commandments" First, take a look at this before answering: What does God expect of me? James 2:10 "Anyone who will keep the entire law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of breaking all of them." Now can you honestly say you've never lied--even a "little white lie"? Never stolen--even just a paper clip? Perhaps you've never committed adultery in the physical act, but did you know that Jesus said that lusting after someone is the same as adultery to God? You could say, "Ok, I have broken a few, but nothing serious like murder." 1 John 3:15 says,"If anyone hates his brother is a murderer: and all of you know that no murderer has eternal life(heaven) abiding in him. If you've broken even just one law one time, that makes you a lawbreaker. If you will listen, your own conscience will tell you that you are certainly a law breaker. Do you realize that it is impossible for a good, holy, perfect, truthful God to have in His presence anyone who has even made one mistake? Since that is the case, we have a problem: how can we come to live with a Holy God?

Psalm 5:4-5 "For you are not a God that has pleasure in sinful deeds: neither will sin live with you. The foolish will not stand in your sight: you hate all who commit sin." (this verse is not saying God hates sinners, but only those who purposefully do a sinful act.)

D. "I go to church" Going to church is a good thing. But if you think that just going to church is good enough to earn your way to heaven, take a look at Romans 3:27 and Ephesians 2:8.

Romans 3:27-28 "What then do we have to be proud of? It is excluded. By what law? of works? No: but by the law of faith. For that reason we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law."

Ephesians 2:8-9 "For by grace are all of you saved through faith; and that not of your own doing: it is the gift of God: Not by works, so no one can brag about it. (grace=special favor)

These passages are clear that nothing we can do on earth (like trying to go to church to gain merit with God) can make us righteous in His never-failing sight. Jesus had strong words for the Pharisees of His day. They tried to merit favor with God by acting religious. But Jesus called them "a brood of vipers". See also Matthew 9:11, 12:39, 16:1-4; Luke 7:39, 18:11.

E. "I believe in God" Perhaps you think that belief in God is good enough to get you to heaven. But consider this: since Satan and his demons believe that God is real, does that mean they too will be in heaven? (James 2:19) See also Romans 1:20. Romans 1:20 "For all of God's attributes from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made(nature itself), even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse."

F. "I've done the best I could" Maybe you have tried to do the right thing for the most part. You've made some mistakes, and if God weighs your good deeds vs. your bad deeds, you hope you will come out ok. Again, we have the problem that if you have only sinned once in your life, you've still broken God's law and are a lawbreaker. God sees our righteousness as "filthy rags". When we think of God's standard of holiness, we don't even come close! We have all broken God's laws and stand guilty before a holy God. Just as a human judge must enforce justice and punish evildoers, God, who is completely just, holy and righteous, must also punish sin.

What is the answer? When this life is over, we will each stand before God on Judgment Day and give an account for our life. No matter how good we tried to be, our best efforts will all be as "filthy rags" in God's sight, that is, if the sin separating us from God has not been removed.

God, who is holy and just, and therefore must punish sin, is also loving and merciful and does not want to punish us.

To solve this problem, God sent His only Son Jesus Christ as God incarnate, fully God and fully man, to pay our sin debt for us.

Going to church is a good thing. But if you think that just going to church is good enough to earn your way to heaven, take a look at Romans 3:27 and Ephesians 2:8.

Romans 3:27-28 "What then do we have to be proud of? It is excluded. By what law? of works? No: but by the law of faith. For that reason we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law."

Ephesians 2:8-9 "For by grace are all of you saved through faith; and that not of your own doing: it is the gift of God: Not by works, so no one can brag about it. (grace=special favor)

These passages are clear that nothing we can do on earth (like trying to go to church to gain merit with God) can make us righteous in His never-failing sight.Jesus had strong words for the Pharisees of His day. They tried to merit favor with God by acting religious. But Jesus called them "a brood of vipers". See also Matthew 9:11, 12:39, 16:1-4; Luke 7:39, 18:11.

Going to church is a good thing. But if you think that just going to church is good enough to earn your way to heaven, take a look at Romans 3:27 and Ephesians 2:8.

Romans 3:27-28 "What then do we have to be proud of? It is excluded. By what law? of works? No: but by the law of faith. For that reason we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law."

Ephesians 2:8-9 "For by grace are all of you saved through faith; and that not of your own doing: it is the gift of God: Not by works, so no one can brag about it. (grace=special favor)

These passages are clear that nothing we can do on earth (like trying to go to church to gain merit with God) can make us righteous in His never-failing sight. Jesus had strong words for the Pharisees of His day. They tried to merit favor with God by acting religious. But Jesus called them "a brood of vipers". See also Matthew 9:11, 12:39, 16:1-4; Luke 7:39, 18:11.