He was a good man

[Lamb]

Sometimes when someone dies we might hear "He was a good man. He will be in heaven." Do a lot of people believe in this? That they get to heaven by being good?

 

[psalms 91]

I believe that it is a part although I also mbelieve that the worst stinker can turn at the last minute and still be in heaven

 

[Lamb]

If the good people get to heaven (according to what you wrote), why would a Savior need to die for you?

 

[psalms 91]

Sigh, that means those who accept Christ, once we accept him then doesnt it stand to reason that our actions and life should reflect that

 

[Lamb]

We are only "good" when it's identified through Christ. Not on account of ourselves.

 

[psalms 91]

true

 

[tango]

Sometimes when someone dies we might hear "He was a good man. He will be in heaven." Do a lot of people believe in this? That they get to heaven by being good?

At times like funerals it's hard to know how many people actually believe it to be true, how many people hope it to be true, and how many people use it because it's a lot more situationally appropriate than "he was a (bleep), he'll be burning for sure". I can't imagine very many people would appreciate a theological monologue that concluded their loved one was probably in hell, especially at the funeral.

 

[psalms 91]

I think there are better ways to frame that without actually lying

 

[tango]

I think there are better ways to frame that without actually lying

I'm sure there are, but it's still not particularly helpful to pontificate about someone probably being in hell whatever form of words we use.

It's just like the way at funerals people focus on the good that someone did, it just isn't the time to comment vocally on the fact you never really liked them or that they couldn't be trusted or that they cheated on everyone they ever met or whatever.

Personally I wouldn't see a comment on someone's eternal destination to be appropriate at a funeral, unless it were a Christian funeral for someone I knew to be a Christian and could be confident was going to be in heaven.

 

[psalms 91]

I agree however we can state that we dont know what might have happened on a deathbed and that only God can judge if that is called for but to me the better approach is to offer a salvation message at the funeral which can be done tastefully

 

[visionary]

Yeshua said there are those who are righteous [good] by hearing His voice and obeying it. By grace, I believe He opens the gate for them, considering them friends, and followers, though they might not even know His name.

 

[tango]

I agree however we can state that we dont know what might have happened on a deathbed and that only God can judge if that is called for but to me the better approach is to offer a salvation message at the funeral which can be done tastefully

Sure, a message of salvation is unlikely to hurt, especially in the context of the parable of the landowner who paid the workers who only worked for the last hour the same as the ones who worked all day.

 

[Alithis]

If the good people get to heaven (according to what you wrote), why would a Savior need to die for you?

he died to make them good people .... take the apostles .. review their lives .they changed radically and become good people .. even unto death . they displayed by their action that they had become new creatures in chrsit .peter being an extreme example . they certainly did not go back and carry on committing sin. they were too busy doing righteousness .

i wonder realy .. why resist this good news ? do you actually not beleive that JEsus came to save us from our sin in every aspect ? to change us transform us into his own image ? do you actually not beleive he is able to do this ?

and if you do beleive it , why do you speak against him doing so and deny his ability to do as he promised ?

 

[Alithis]

of course in thre case of the OP it is those who were closest too the person who know if its true or not also .

he was a good man .. .. but .. in reference to what measure ?

 

[Lamb]

I'm reading through the responses and I see that we all agree that we are only good because we are covered in Christ's righteousness. At a funeral, is that ever stated though the majority of times? In front of all the non-believers? I've been to tons of funerals. At the Lutheran ones, Christ is proclaimed. Many others, the man is proclaimed. This leaves non-believers to come to the conclusion that Christ is nothing and man is valuable with being good.

 

[psalms 91]

All funerals should be an occasion for reaching the unsaved

 

[tango]

All funerals should be an occasion for reaching the unsaved

Maybe that would be better written as "All Christian funerals should be..."

Some cemeteries aren't tied to a specific faith, and it's hard to see why a humanist funeral would have any interest in a message other than what a Jolly Good Fellow the deceased was.

 

[Josiah]

Sometimes when someone dies we might hear "He was a good man. He will be in heaven." Do a lot of people believe in this? That they get to heaven by being good?

Even a LOT who call themselves Christians believe that ultimately we save ourselves by becoming good enough (albeit perhaps only because self sufficiently tapped the extra TIME and divine HELP God provided to them). It's actually the soteriology of Bhakti Hinduism with a rare, occasional Christian word thrown in to sound familiar.

See http://www.christianityhaven.com/showthread.php?2020-Muhammad-Ali-(Yes-this-is-a-Theology-thread)





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[psalms 91]

Maybe that would be better written as "All Christian funerals should be..."

Some cemeteries aren't tied to a specific faith, and it's hard to see why a humanist funeral would have any interest in a message other than what a Jolly Good Fellow the deceased was.

Our job is to reach the lost and proclaim the good news, not worry about how it will be received

 

[Cassia]

Some people with whom I have discussed Christianity use the 'being good' card to get into heaven free. It seems to me that they really do believe that. When pressed further about that belief it seems it's because of 'heaven being within'. Sorry that's all I can contribute but maybe others can expand because it's something I don't understand either.