ST ERKENWALD'S

Being a Christian is not like being a member of a club, it is not about what you do, or wear, or coming to church and that being enough. Being a Christian is about what you believe and where you put your trust.

Jesus said, No-one is good except God alone (Mark 10:18). God's standards are perfection and none of us match up to that which means that we are faced with a problem. If God's standards for getting into heaven are perfection, and we are not perfect - we cant get to heaven on our own.

Jesus Christ said, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me (John 14: 6). So it is not just about having a faith in something or anything. It matters who you believe in. You will get to heaven by believing in Christ and him alone as the one who died to pay for our mistakes, our lack of perfection.

When Paul wrote to the church in Rome he said, If you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead you will be saved (Romans 10: 9). Jesus is God's Son and he is the one who reveals to all of us what God is like and it is by trusting in him that we are rescued.

But Christianity is just a set of rules and regulations. That doesnt sound like fun!

Actually, Christianity isnt about what we do but about what has already been done for us. Lots of other religions burden you with what you have to do, how often you have to pray, but we dont have to do, we have to trust and believe. Jesus Christ, who was perfect, offered his life as a sacrifice in our place, so that we can get to heaven. We who are not perfect can do nothing but trust in Christ and believe that his death has rescued us.

In the parable of the Rich Fool, Jesus tells the story of a man who has a plentiful harvest and stores up great wealth for himself. All he thinks about is how he will spend his money and increase his wealth further. "But God says to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?'" (Luke 12:20).

The man was so concerned with living a comfortable life on earth that he wasn't prepared for what would happen when he died. He left it too late. We can be encouraged that God is patiently waiting for those to turn to him, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9) - but none of us should leave it too late like the rich fool.