Luke 18: Who Then Can Be Saved?

Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! 
Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” 
Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?” 
Jesus replied, “What is impossible with men is possible with God.” - Luke 18:24-17 NIV

It does seem pretty impossible to enter the kingdom of God. The prophet Isaiah echoed these sentiments when he said, "All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away."  - Isaiah 64:6 NIV

And so we would remain, relying solely on our righteous acts, swept away by the overwhelming flood of our sins, if it were not for God and his provision.  Jesus knew what he was talking about, when he said that with God it was possible, because he knew he was the provision.  He knew that in a few days, he would be going up to Jerusalem where he would become the impossible, become the means for our entry into the kingdom of God.  With his death, he became our salvation, our only salvation.  I am reminded of the old scripture song we used to sing from Titus 3:5, "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost."

 It was God's mercy and God's mercy alone that saved us, that purchased the kingdom of God for us.  If it were not for that love, that mercy, that grace, none of us could be saved.