Hit the target mark

I got into a discussion the other day about sin. Hefty topic, I know. But this discussion has sparked my interest so now I'm trying to figure out what I believe and why I believe what I do, while also trying to find "proof" of what is correct. Now with religion I know it's a touchy subject and I may end up not posting this by the time I'm done writing it because I'm afraid I may make someone upset, or I'll end up looking ignorant. So bare with me, this is a thought process.

Now, for me I take the Bible as truth. Granted it was written by men but they were men inspired and touched by God. So for anyone that just simply doesn't believe please feel free to skip this post as it will only incite argument because something I believe to be from God and good and true you might brush off as fiction. This isn't meant to be a discussion about whether God exists or not, but a conversation between those that are believers to get their thoughts on the topic.

My belief is that sin is not weighted. I don't think that God considers one sin "heavier" than another. Obviously here on Earth we believe that murder is worse than lying. Our morals, codes of conduct, and laws lead us to that conclusion. And while I agree that murdering is worse than lying, I believe that God still looks at those who do either in the same manner: they have sinned.

^{Romans 21}But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. ²²This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, ²³for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. ²⁵God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement,^[i] through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— ²⁶he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

For ALL have sinned and come short of the glory of God. None of us deserve admittance into Heaven.

Now my sister drew a diagram like this for me when I webcammed it up with her to ask her about this. After all she does work for Jesus. Ok so Jesus isn't cutting her checks but Young Life is, which is like the same thing. Katie had a good point. God/Jesus is the bulls eye. No one is making it in that ring since we ALL sin. However I do believe that Mother Theresa makes it closer to the target than let's say Hitler. The way Mother Theresa lived her life was vastly different than Hitler's and her good works and deeds get her closer to the mark of perfection.

I believe that if someone believes in Christ, believes he came and gave his life for the salvation of our souls that they will go to Heaven despite all their sins. However, I do not believe that if on their deathbed they take Christ but they don't mean it, God will know what is in their hearts and will not let them enter the Kingdom of Heaven. They have to genuinely ask to be forgiven and to honestly, genuinely believe.

^Romans9That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. ¹¹As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame."^{[e] 12}For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, ¹³for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."^[

This is what I believe and I'm still not sure how I've come to this way of thinking but I'm interested to know what you think. I'll probably end up asking my current preacher, and some past major Christian influences in my life because I'm curious what others, who are more versed than I am, standpoint on this topic are. So...there that is.