I Don’t Need Jesus to be a Good Person
If you follow the news at all, it looks as if there aren’t any good people left in this world. People are hurting people physically and mentally; people are stealing; people are only out for themselves and chasing the mighty dollar.
And while this is absolutely true, there are still a lot of good people out there. I’ve been the recipient of so much kindness. After we lost our home to a wildfire, droves of strangers showed up for us. People donated money and supplies directly to our family, as well as to larger organizations that distributed money and supplies to victims of the fire.
I don’t know where any of these strangers are in their faith journey. I assume that many of them weren’t Christians. They were just good people showing up for their neighbors during their time of need.
I personally know so many good people – Christians and atheists and everything in-between. I think that a lie floating around is that Christians believe that people need Jesus to be a good person.
If I’m being totally honest, I don’t need Jesus to be a good person. And neither does anyone else.
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I Don’t Need Jesus to be a Good Person
So then, if I can be a good person without Jesus, what exactly do I need Jesus for?
To reconcile me to God
Colossians 1:20
20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Reconcile is one of those words that I’ve heard several times, but I don’t think I’ve ever stopped to question what it actually means. So I did some digging. According to Merriam-Webster, reconcile means “to restore to friendship or harmony.”
So in the context of Jesus and the Father, for Jesus to reconcile us to God means that through Jesus, our relationship with God has been restored. Our relationship with God that once was separated by sin (Isaiah 59:2) is now brought back together through Jesus’ work on the cross. Our harmony with God has been restored, and we are no longer eternally separated from God. We can draw near to God, and He will draw near to us (James 4:8).
To provide a path to salvation
Acts 4:12
12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
Jesus provides us a path to salvation, and He is the only one who can do that. When I put my trust and my hope and my faith in Jesus and His redeeming work on the cross, I can rest assured that my eternal salvation is secure (Romans 6:23).
To give me hope of eternity
John 3:16
16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
With salvation comes the hope of eternal life. By believing in Jesus, we are no longer slaves to death. We have eternal life in heaven to live for.
To be my advocate
1 John 2:1
1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
We are called to live righteous lives as children of God, but unfortunately, we live in a fallen world.
Because of that fact, we are going to continue to sin (Romans 3:23) as long as we are here on this earth.
But our advocate, Jesus, stands before us and speaks on our behalf before the father. Without Jesus, we have to speak for our sins ourselves.
I am probably considered a good person here on earth, but I am definitely not without my shortcomings. Sometimes I am selfish, and rude, and hurtful, and prideful, and I’m going to have to account for all of my actions when I stand before the Father. Thank you, Jesus, for advocating on my behalf.
I need Jesus for a lot of different reasons – there are so many more than I’ve listed here. But I don’t need Jesus to be a good person.
When we are truly following Christ, He will lead us to become better people. We will love more (Mark 12:31), judge less (Matthew 7:1-5), and treat others how we want to be treated (Matthew 7:12).
We don’t need Jesus in our lives to do all these things to be good people. But we do need Jesus to reconcile us to God; to provide a path to salvation; to give us hope; and to be our advocate, as well as so many more reasons.
God, I am so grateful that you so loved us that you sent Jesus to save us. I am so grateful that when we believe in Christ and His work on the cross, we have eternal life.
Thank you for providing us with a path of reconciliation through Your beloved son. Through Him, we have hope. In Jesus’ mighty name we pray, amen.
Blessings Friend.
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