Jesus said in John 10:1, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.”
And yet, there are so many people that are trying to get into the Kingdom of Heaven some other way. The Scribes and Pharisees of Jesus’ day tried to get in by keeping all kinds of religious customs and washings of hands and vessels. Some people try to get in by their works, such as keeping the Old Covenant laws, or maybe by their giving. They’ll try anything to get in, except what Jesus said to do. And what was that? Jesus said in John 14:21, “He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself unto him.”
To those who would try to justify themselves by keeping the laws, Paul said in Galatians 5:1-3, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Behold, I Paul say unto you, That if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.”

 
 How are we trying to enter the Kingdom of heaven? By keeping the law? By paying our tithe? By being at Church every time the door is open? Or by the blood of Jesus? I plead the blood! I know all my own “righteousness” is as but filthy rags before God. And yet, I can see in my own mind the times when I thought it was necessary to add something to the blood of Jesus, by my works. Then it occurred to me, isn’t that like telling God what Jesus did on the cross wasn’t enough?
How is it that we don’t realize, unless God had taken the initiative to save us in the first place, we all would be lost? Look at it like this; God is number ONE, I am ZERO. One plus zero still equals one. My part is worth zero, zip, nada, nothing. Jesus is saving me by His mercy alone. I can’t climb over the fence into the Kingdom of Heaven because I have nothing to climb with. The only way in is through the door, and the name of that door is JESUS. And I can’t bring anything with me that would cause Him to want to open to me, other than the password, “I PLEAD THE BLOOD OF JESUS” That alone will get me in. Not tithing, not keeping the laws, not my works, not keeping all kinds of rules and rituals. It’s Jesus or nothing.
Jesus said, If you love Me, you will keep my commandments. You shall love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and your neighbor as yourself. You can’t work or buy your way in, but yet, when Jesus is your Lord, you will delight in Him, and He will delight in you. It isn’t your works that make God delight in you. It’s His love. It’s all about Him, not you. Sorry to disappoint you. So, you can quit trying to climb over the wall, and go in by the Door.
He’s waiting there to let you in!

And while there was a measure of righteousness available through the law to people before Jesus came in the flesh, after His resurrection from the dead, it was no longer available. From that point on, the only justification and forgiveness for sin was in the blood of Jesus. For that reason, Jesus said that all trying to enter the sheepfold some other way beside through the door, that is, through Himself, is a thief and a robber. It’s time we examined our heart.