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God loves us, he truly loves us. He loves everyone, regardless of their past or present sins and hopes that all of us will join him in heaven. The real reason he doesn't just accept everyone into heaven is because we all sin and he hates sin. We all fall short of His glory and need a sacrifice to erase that sin. Most of the people I hear today think that if they're good enough or if the good out-weighs the bad, they're going to make it to heaven. Some even think that everyone will make it into heaven. But, if God truly hates dirty grimy sin and truly loves us, He isn't going to just say, "Looks like you're tired after that engine overhaul. Lay down here in my bed and rest up a bit." No, He's going to make sure you're clean, first. Then, and only then, you can come in and relax on his furniture. You would do the same, I'm sure. Most of you with kids have probably had to do the same. Why would anyone think that God would do otherwise?
God wants to make sure that we are clean, perfect, and holy before we go into His presence. He wants all of us to be His house guests for eternity. Ponder that for a second. If you have a house guest, your life tends to be different. It's usually nice at first, right? But when it's time for them to leave and you can let things go back to normal, that's great! You get more space, more freedom, more hot water. Do you know what it means for God to even consider sinful people living with him? For eternity? He has considered, and the answer is yes, but we don't get to go in all dirty. And we also can't get cleaned up our own way because he wants us to be spotless.
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God loves us, and he wants us to be with him. God hates sin and won't let us enter into heaven unless we are free from it. What should we do then? That's really not the right question. The right question is, what can God do? And what did He do? Because God loves all of us so much, He cleans us just as a mother or father would make sure their little children are clean, and He also provided the robe to cover us since our own clothes were dirty. His Son's death on the cross was what cleanses our sins; and because we aren't perfect, he clothes us in his righteousness.
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This is what people are saying when you see John 3:16 tacked up around sports arenas. It isn't people saying, "Look at me! I've got a Bible and I'm better than you!" It's people saying, "Look at me, I'm no better than you. I only know that God loved me enough to send His Son to die for me." If they have done their homework, Christians don't just blindly believe that God loves them - they know it. Not only that, but they have allowed God to do the cleansing. If you realized that you've been trying to get to heaven by your own works, I urge you to say a prayer to God, asking Him to cleanse your sins and to clothe you with His righteousness.
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Spiritual
