Conversation at the Gate 1

Gatekeeper: Where are you going?

Erhun: Heaven. This glorious heaven! I can't believe I'm finally here.

Gatekeeper: You're so sure you made it?

Erhun: Yeah! Check that Book of yours, my name is written in caps.

Gatekeeper: What if I told you your name isn't here?

Erhun: Then you'd be a comedian.

Gatekeeper: Ah! How are you so sure you made it?

Erhun: I'm a good Christian. I lived holy, kept God's commandment, and there's no sin in my life.

Gatekeeper: So one makes heaven by being righteous?

Erhun: Yeah! And I am righteous!

Gatekeeper: But scriptures say there's none righteous.

Erhun: That was in the Old Testament. We operate the new testament. By the grace of God, I lived a holy life.

Gatekeeper: So Enoch, Abraham, Moses, David and others were not righteous because they were of the Old Testament?

Erhun: Erm....I really don't know about that, but those men always obeyed God.

Gatekeeper: That made them righteous?

Erhun: Somehow.

Gatekeeper: But Scriptures say none is righteous, and you claimed that applied to the Old Testament. That means Abraham and co were never righteous

Erhun: That's confusing.

Gatekeeper: And remember, Scriptures says Abraham was counted righteous.

Erhun: I believe Abraham was righteous.

Gatekeeper: And what made him righteous?

Erhun: He obeyed God na. Was willing to sacrifice Isaac and the likes.

Gatekeeper: That's not true, sir. Bible says Abraham believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness.

Erhun: So?

Gatekeeper: Abraham was declared righteous because he believed God. He was not a perfect man.

Erhun: Hmmmmmm

Gatekeeper: So none is righteous. Abraham's obedience could not have made him righteous. He believed in God, and God gave him His righteousness. You should be very familiar with Romans 4.

Erhun: So what about me? Believing in God cannot take me to heaven just like that.

Gatekeeper: Why?

Erhun: I had to live a holy life...

Gatekeeper: To prove to God that you're qualified?

Erhun: Exactly!

Gatekeeper: What if I snow to you that your good life was not good enough to get you a ticket?

.

........to be continued.

PS: Please follow closely, and try not to misconstrue this.
God bless!

ok. just a contribution.

I am righteous because Christ made me righteous. I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus

mzhorlah:
ok. just a contribution.

I am righteous because Christ made me righteous. I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus

Awesome

Please mention me when you post the last part of this story

NigerianScholar:
Please mention me when you post the last part of this story

Okay

Conversation at the Gate 2

Erhun: That is not possible.

Gatekeeper: Why are you so sure?

Erhun: I lived a holy life. I obeyed God all the time. I was not a thief, no adultery. I didn't even smoke.

Gatekeeper: Hmm......and you never said a lie.

Erhun: I did, but I always asked for forgiveness thereafter.

Gatekeeper: That is not very true.

Erhun: How?

Gatekeeper: There are so many lies you told that you never confessed to God and several other sins.

Erhun: That's why I always asked for forgiveness every morning.

Gatekeeper: So you had a strategy: ask for forgiveness in the morning in prep for a day full of sins.

Erhun: That was never my intention. But I am a mere human in a sinful world.

Gatekeeper: So what if you had died the moment you oversped and insulted the traffic officer? Will you make heaven?

Erhun: I don't think so.

Gatekeeper: Because you didn't confess. Am there are billions who died without having a chance to confess

Erhun: Hmmmm.....they sure can't make heaven.

Gatekeeper: Same with you. Because there are some sins you never confessed. You still had grudges in your heart at the moment of your death.

Erhun: Ah! But I did my best.

Gatekeeper: It wasn't good enough. God's standard is very high. No man can meet it.

Erhun: But He is a merciful God.

Gatekeeper: So you know. How then do you believe your making heaven depends on what you did or didn't do?

Erhun: That's what we were told.

Gatekeeper: Why then did Jesus die?

Erhun: To save me.

Gatekeeper: From what and for what?

Erhun: From hell.

Gatekeeper: For what?

Erhun: Eternal life.

Gatekeeper: Good. So Jesus gave you eternal life, and asked you to make heaven?

Erhun: I don't know.

Gatekeeper: Jesus said that your righteousness must exceed that of the Pharisees before you can make heaven. What that means is you must exceed being perfect.

Erhun: I don't get.

Gatekeeper: It means, even if you're perfect, you still cannot make it. Because man's righteousness is as filthy rags before Him.

Erhun: Then nobody can make heaven!

Gatekeeper: Exactly! You can never be good enough for it. Even if you're completely sinless, which definitely you are not, you still are not qualified.

Erhun: So nobody is going to make heaven?

Gatekeeper: Not exactly!

........to be continued.

**
Do well not to misconstrue.

sundayerhun:

Okay

Here is the part two

Conversation at the Gate 3

Erhun: This is really getting confusing. You said we can't make heaven by what you did or didn't do.

Gatekeeper: Yes, because the standard is very high, and no man can ever meet it.

Erhun: Even when we have no sins in our life? Even when we are good and perfect?

Gatekeeper: Yes, because no man is good save God. And you cannot become God or like Him because of your obedience to Him. Besides, you know there's sin in your life.

Erhun: This is serious! Why then did God ask us to obey Him?

Gatekeeper: Your obedience to God was not so you make Heaven. God will be unfair to do that. It's like telling a child to go to space before I gave him chocolate. He'd never meet it.

Erhun: That's true!

Gatekeeper: God is perfect, and demands nothing but perfection. And you know that always confessing your sin never makes you perfect.

Erhun: That's true. Why then did we have to obey God?

Gatekeeper: Did you wash your dad's car when you were growing up so he could give birth to you or not throw you out of the house?

Erhun: No.

Gatekeeper: So why then did you do it?

Erhun: Because he was my father and I had to obey him. Besides I loved him, and I didn't want to disobey him. I also did it for some benefits, though.

Gatekeeper: Awesome! You had to because he was your Father! If your neighbor had asked you, you probably wouldn't have.

Erhun: Yes, that's true.

Gatekeeper: Same way, you were to obey God because He is your Father. Jesus made it so plain, if you love God, you obey Him.

Erhun: I never saw it this way.

Gatekeeper: I know. The sum of all commandments was that you love God and your neighbours. It was that simple. If truly you loved God, you'd simply obey Him, and the best way to do that was to love your neighbours.

Erhun: If I had nothing to lose, I'm not sure I would have obeyed Him.

Gatekeeper: Not exactly! His love was shed abroad in your heart by the Holy Ghost who is the spirit of love. With an accurate knowledge and understanding of this, the love would have flowed out easily.

Erhun: This is profound!

Gatekeeper: Yes, it is! It was easier to obey God out of love for Him, and not because you wanted to make heaven.

Erhun: Why is this so?

Gatekeeper: The human heart has little capacity to love others. So man needs the Spirit of love to work through him. But if making heaven was the purpose of obedience, then selfishness and greed set it. Unavoidably, the love of God can't manifest. Then obeying Him becomes difficult.

Erhun: Hmmmm......I wish I knew this.

Gatekeeper: It's however too late.

Erhun: So I was supposed to obey God simply because He is my Father and I love him not because I wanted to make heaven!

Gatekeeper: Absolutely!

Erhun: And this would not had made me complacent in obeying God and doing His will.

Gatekeeper: Exactly! His love in your heart would have produced good works and even made you more fervent. It's called the works of righteousness.

Erhun: So I would have done more for the Lord if borne out of love, and not fear of Hell?

Gatekeeper: Absolutely!

Erhun: I messed up big time. So I am going to Hell!

Gatekeeper: No, you are not!

Erhun: What? But I was not perfect. I had sin in my life. I didn't obey God completely!

Gatekeeper: Well, that's true. But ever since you accepted Jesus, God stopped seeing you as you.

Erhun: What?

Gatekeeper: That's why your name is not in the Book of Life.

Erhun: I don't understand.

..............to be continued!