By Mallory Mattingly
Atlanta Falcons running back Nathan Carter took to his Instagram and shared a common misconception people have when it comes to getting into Heaven.
“What must I do? One of the most common misconceptions about Christianity is that hell is for bad people and heaven is for good people. But the truth is, no one in heaven is a ‘good person,'” Carter began his post.
Related: Atlanta Falcons RB Explains Just How Deadly Sin Is—and the Hope Christ Offers
Carter then quoted Matthew 19: 16-17, “16 Someone came to Jesus with this question: ‘Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?’ 17 ‘Why ask me about what is good?’ Jesus replied. ‘There is only One who is good.'”
“In that moment, Jesus was showing that if He truly is good, then He must be more than a teacher; He is God Himself,” Carter wrote. “Jesus told the man to keep the commandments, and the man confidently said he had. But when Jesus asked him to give up his riches and follow Him, the man walked away sad. Jesus wasn’t just asking him to give up his possessions; He was revealing that the man’s heart trusted more in his wealth and his own work rather than in God.”
Carter continued: “We fall into this same trap. We create our own version of ‘good’ and compare ourselves to others. We trust that our ‘good deeds’ will be sufficient enough to get into heaven. We can be so self-righteous, filled with ignorance, thinking we can save ourselves.”
Carter shared another verse to prove his point.
Isaiah 64:6 reads, “We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind.”
Salvation cannot be earned. Salvation is a free gift from God through his son, Jesus Christ.
“To be saved: Confess and repent, turn from your sin and your self-reliance, and trust fully in Christ. Believe that He died for your sins and rose again. And then live your life serving Christ and loving others as evidence for your salvation,” Carter concluded.
Above all, Carter wants people to understand that heaven cannot be earned. We cannot work our way into heaven. To get to heaven is through one man: Jesus Christ. All we have to do is “openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved,” Paul wrote in Romans 10:9-10.
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