…all our righteousness (our best deeds of rightness and justice) is like filthy rags… – Isaiah 64:6, Amplified Bible (AMP)

Many people – even some who call themselves Christians – adhere to the belief that if they perform more good works than evil ones, they will earn a spot in Heaven when they die. There are so many problems with this belief, but perhaps the one that is most often overlooked is this: without Christ, humanity is incapable of doing one good thing, let alone many.

God (through Isaiah) tells us in Isaiah 64:6 that our righteousness is inherently filthy. Even our best works, done out of human nature, are seen by God as tainted. Why? Until the moment of salvation, when God’s holy nature becomes a part of us (Ephesians 2:3-5, Romans 5:12-19), everything we do rests on a foundation of sin (Luke 18:19, Romans 3:10). As a result, our “righteous” works may look good on the surface, but since they are tied to a sin nature that can only produce wickedness, they are rotten to the core. To illustrate this, imagine a beautiful, million dollar house. On the outside, it is absolutely gorgeous. Underneath the surface, however, the structure is eaten up with termites, and the foundation is built upon shifting sand. Due to both the termites and the weak foundation, the house is absolutely worthless. No one who knows of these problems will buy it – no matter how beautiful it looks – because it is just a matter of time before the whole thing collapses.

God knows about our sin nature, and He’s not buying the pretty facade of “good” works people try to sell Him. The only way to fix the tainted house is to tear it down and build it anew. Likewise, the only way to fix our tainted, human nature is to tear it down and replace it with a new one, which is exactly what Christ does for us at the moment of salvation. Apart from God, not even our most heroic, selfless deeds are good. Therefore, it is impossible to perform enough “good” deeds to earn our way to Heaven. The only way to Heaven is the way that Christ laid out: repent of your sin (turn your back on your sin), ask Christ to forgive you of your sin, and ask Him to save you from the penalty of sin (eternity in Hell). When we do this, Christ puts His own holy nature in us, and that is what God pays attention to when it is time to be admitted into Heaven.

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