The Good Sinner
The Bible
tells us we all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God, but when
Christ comes to dwell in our hearts, we are forgiven and our life changes. When I was young, I was worried about where I
would go when I died. I was told that I
was a good person and good people go to heaven.
Even though I trusted that person who told me that, it didn’t ease the
fear of death for me.
The day that I was saved [born again], God set me free
from those fears. I read in Psalm
34:5 “I sought the LORD, and He heard me, and
delivered me from all my fears.” I will never forget the day I read this verse;
I was totally set free from the fears that plagued me all my life. My life changed so much since that day, that
people who knew me before wouldn’t recognize me. My desires changed from being selfish and all
about me, to one main goal; following Jesus and wanting to live my life for
him.
If you stopped people out on the street and asked them
why they should go to heaven when they die, many will tell you, “Because I’m a
good person. I never killed anyone or
stole anything.” Some will tell you they
go to church almost every Sunday. Some
will say they give to missions and work wherever they can help in their
church. Ask people if they are a sinner
and they will quickly say, “No”. Others
may tell you that they do sin, but it doesn’t matter because God is love and
that means they will go to heaven anyway.
In spite of all the troubles in the world, there are a
lot of good people out there. Do all of
those good people believe that Jesus is their Savior? Probably not.
I have found that almost everyone is religious in one way or another. Those who claim to be religious are probably
good sinners. They have missed the point
that having a religion and being a true Christian are two different
things. Anyone can have a religion, but
only those who have received Jesus as their Savior are Christians. Going to church does not make you a Christian;
neither does being baptized. You become
saved first and then baptized.
The news is filled with comments about Christians. Ask our President if he is a Christian and he
most definitely will say yes, because he has already stated that. Yet, he doesn’t show any signs of a believer;
doesn’t attend any church, never openly prays, believes in promoting several
things that are against the Word of God.
I do know he tends to promote Islam above Christianity. I do think he’s a good husband and a good
father to his girls, but is he a good sinner?
I can’t answer that question.
I am not judging or being critical about others. I honestly don’t know who is saved and who
isn’t, but the Bible says we will know them by their fruit. The Bible says it the best, “Yes, just
as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their
actions.” [Matthew 7:20] As
far as doing good works, yes, we certainly should. It must be the works that we do in God’s name
and under his direction.
There is one
big difference between the ‘good’ and the ‘sinner’; one verse in the Bible tells
it all. Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to
you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the
It is so easy
to say the words, “Jesus, come into my heart”, but not so easy to live the life
of a Christian. There must be a change
in the person’s life. “This means
that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is
gone; a new life has begun!” 2
Corinthians 5:17
(NLT ) Are any of us perfect? Absolutely no! However, as Christians, our desires must be
to strive towards being all that God wants us to be. Will we ever reach perfection? Not until we leave this earth and live in
heaven.
As for me, I
thank God I am not the good sinner I was, but follow what the apostle Paul said
in 
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