Can you earn your way into heaven?

Christianity can often be a tricky thing. There are so many questions that arise from the Bible and God's teaching that can leave a person so confused. Sometimes the Bible lays it straight out before us. The 10 commandments are a perfect example of this. God clearly states honor your father and mother, do not commit adultery, etc. Then there are those things like tithing, worship, sanctification, etc. that create yet more questions in the mind of Christians.

Most Christians believe that when you accept Christ as you're savior you are accepted into heaven. But do we have to maintain a certain standards and live a certain way to keep our "acceptance into heaven"? I strongly believe that the only way into heaven is through Jesus Christ. Accepting him as your Savior and choosing to follow Him above all else is your golden ticket into heaven. For those who do not accept Christian beliefs and do not honor Jesus as their Savior cannot make it into heaven. This is not meant to be brutal to those who don't believe, but rather re-iterate the amazing promise and saving grace that God gives to believers.

I had a close friend in high school who did not claim she was a Christian yet believed she would someday be in heaven. She would talk about heaven as this wonderful place and she even knew what the Bible preached about it. She made comments to me about how she could wait to see me in heaven someday. It almost broke my heart because she was so optimistic about her afterlife yet she was missing one thing, acceptance of Christ. She had this idea that as long as she maintained normal moral standards such as loving people, respecting others, not stealing, lying, or cheating that she would still be able to live for eternity in heaven. It almost didn't make sense to me. It is people like my friend Beth who need Christians to pour their lives into them. They are almost there and they just need that little push of encouragement to open their eyes to God's saving grace.