Title: Are You Good Enough?
Theme: Are you good enough to get into heaven? Proper 23 (28) 20th Sunday after Pentecost Yr. B
Object: A soccer ball, a musical instrument, etc.
Scripture: "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good-except God alone." Mark 10:18 (NIV)
Is there something that you do really well? Some of you may play a sport like soccer. If I were to ask you, "Are you a good soccer player?" you might say, "Yes, I am a really good soccer player." But are you good enough to make the "All Star Team" at your school? Perhaps someone here may play a musical instrument. If I were to ask you, "Are a good musician?" You might answer, "Yes I am a good musician." But are you good enough to be chosen to play in the "Honor Band" at your school? All of us are probably good at something, but the question is, "Are we good enough?"
One day a young man came running up to Jesus and asked, "Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
"Why do you call me good?" Jesus asked. "Only God is good. But to answer your question, you know the commandments, don't you? 'Don't kill, don't commit adultery, don't steal, don't tell lies, don't cheat anyone, honor your father and your mother.'"
"I'm pretty good," he answered. "I've obeyed the commandments since I was just a little boy."
"That's good," Jesus said, "but not good enough, There is still one thing you must do. Go and sell everything you have and give the money to the poor."
When he heard those words, the young man was very sad, because he had many possessions. Most people would say that the young man was a good man, but being good wasn't good enough to get him into the Kingdom of God. As the young man walked away, Jesus turned to his disciples and said, "It is very hard to enter the Kingdom of God!"
The disciples were amazed. "Then who can be saved?" they asked.
Jesus looked at them and said, "With man it is impossible, but with God anything is possible."
How about me? Do you think I'm good enough to get into heaven? How about you? Are you good enough? Is anyone good enough? The answer to all of those questions is, "No!" Not one of us is good enough to get into heaven on our own.
Then how can we be saved? How can we have eternal life? With God, anything is possible. The Bible tells us that God so loved the world that he sent his only Son so that whoever believes in him will have eternal life. It isn't our goodness that will get us into heaven. It is our faith in Jesus. We are not good enough, but Jesus is!
Father, help us to remember that it is not our goodness that will get us into heaven. It is our faith in your Son, Jesus Christ. In his name we pray. Amen.
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