There is NO SUCH THING as a good person!

(This material is not copyrighted; so copy and paste or pass on the link to others. This is a needy message).

This may not be pleasant reading; but I have decided to write this brief article rather urgently entitled, ‘There is no such thing as a good person’ because it is something that we, as believers, constantly face in evangelism and sharing the Gospel. I have sadly noticed that many saints do not realize the importance and clarity of this fundamental biblical doctrine. Futhermore, I don’t see many online ministries offering any type of material to help believers in this area as it is not too popular a topic in a humanistic and man-centred society. God forbid these online ministries might lose some fans for telling the truth for once! One of the greatest needs of the 21st century church is to understand what the Bible REALLY has to say about unsaved men and women.

Ask 95% of ungodly people where they think they’re going when they die; and they will say “heaven”; ask them “why”, and almost 100% will reply, “Because I’m a good person!” The principles I outline here are biblical, so feel free to take note of the Scriptures and try to learn some of them off by heart, and don’t be afraid to use them when talking to the unsaved. It is the power of the Spirit of God who brings conviction of sin, and we know that the Spirit of God always works in harmony with the Word: “and they being filled with the Spirit spoke the Word of the Lord with boldness” (Acts 4:31).

‘I am a good person’ is the biggest lie that Satan has ever sold mankind. This perversion of the truth has sent more people to hell than any other affirmation in world history. How often have you heard statements like these, ‘I’m going to heaven because I’m a good person’; or, ‘I don’t need to repent and put faith in Christ because I’m a good person’; or ‘God loves me because I’m a good person’. Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!

Unbelievers may have wonderful religious views and they may try to impress you with their learning; but the one thing they must know is that they are SINNERS! That was always the Biblical way of preaching; and if you share the Gospel in any other way, your Gospel (I’m afraid to say) is not Scriptural.

Whether we like it or not, every single person is born in iniquity (Psalm 51:5; 58:3); Adam’s sin in Eden has come upon all of his posterity, including us (Romans 5:18-19). But this type of biblical language is not popular nowadays because we want basketball coaches in our pulpits to tell us how good we are and to soothe our egos.

Due to our sinful and depraved state, we are completely perverted in the eyes of God, wicked in every thought and imagination (Genesis 6:5; Job 15:14-16; Psalm 130:3; 143:2; Ecclesiastes 7:20; Jeremiah 13:23; 1 John 1:8). There is absolutely no-one who can say that they have kept themselves clean and never sinned (Proverbs 20:9); and even our good, moral and religious works are an abomination to the Lord (Isaiah 64:6). Light came into this world and we hated it because we loved darkness (John 3:19). And EVERY SINGLE ONE of us is in sin, without exception! Whether it be the holiest pastor or elder in your local church to the serial rapist that faces the lethal injection (Romans 3:9-12). There is none good, NO NOT ONE! And if we say that we haven’t sinned, we are liars! I didn’t say that; the Holy Spirit did (1 John 1:8).

This sinful character means that we hate God by nature; and we would never draw near to Him because our carnal mind is enmity against Him. Romans 8:7 doesn’t just tell us that we are enemies of God; but that our very mind is ENMITY against God. I can reconcile my enemy; but I can never reconcile enmity itself. We are so depraved that Jesus said, “No man CAN come to me!” We cannot understand His Truth because we are, by nature, children of wrath (John 6:44; 6:65; 8:43-45; 10:26; 12:37-41). The spirit of this world cannot receive the truth of Christ (John 14:17; 1 Corinthians 2:14).

So then, natural man is dead in sins towards God. He is not ‘sick’ in sin or ‘half-dead’ in sin. There are no grades of death. You’re either dead or alive; one or the other. And sinful man is dead (Genesis 2:16-17; Colossians 2:13). That’s why we need to be BORN AGAIN because we are dead in trespasses and iniquities (John 3:5-7; Ephesians 2:1-3).

Our life, without Christ, is one of continual evil and spiritual blindness and the carnal heart is completely deceptive (Genesis 8:21; Ecclesiastes 9:3; Jeremiah 17:9; Mark 7:21-23; John 3:19-21; Ephesians 4:17-19; Ephesians 5:8) because in that Christ-less state we are captive to the devil (John 8:34; 8:44; Romans 6:20; 2 Timothy 2:25-26; Titus 3:3; 1 John 5:19). That means then that the whole nature of the unsaved man or woman is wholly evil in the sight of God (Job 14:4; Matthew 7:16-18; 12:33; Mark 7:21-23; James 1:13-14).

There is no such thing as a good person. In the light of so many biblical verses, it hardly remains to be stated how important this teaching is. Why is it so important to understand this truth? Because without it we will never evangelize the lost! Why bother preaching the Gospel if there’s no such thing as a sinner?

If we think that Eskimos in the North Pole or tribes hidden in the Amazon Jungle are good people at heart; and because they’ve never heard the Gospel that they will somehow get to heaven; then why would we waste our time evangelizing? The sweetest old grandmother who ever lived that doesn't know Christ is a sinner, plain and simple, whether we like it or not! The apostles knew that every single man and woman on the face of the earth is completely lost in sin and hell-bound; and the only remedy for that cursed estate is the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ! He came to “save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).

Preach Christ and Him crucified; preach the power of His precious blood! Preach 'Repent! for the kingdom of God is at hand!' like all the prophets of old! Preach the Gospel in season and out; and don’t let anyone deceive you anymore with this damned lie from hell, ‘I’m a good person’.

The next time someone tells you that they’re a good person; reply biblically, ‘There is no such thing as a good person.’