#021: You're Not Better Than Hitler

📱 TL;DR

You're not better than Hitler. You're not holier than Hitler. From heaven's perspective, the only thing distinguishing you from history's greatest monster is the blood of Jesus. And that changes everything.

Welcome, Family

Here's the most uncomfortable truth you'll hear today:

You are not better than Adolf Hitler.

You are not holier than Hitler. You are not more worthy of heaven than Hitler.

From heaven's perspective, you and Hitler start at exactly the same place.

The only thing—THE ONLY THING—that recommends you to heaven is the blood of Jesus Christ.

Some of us need to get brutally honest about what really saves us, because until you understand that you're no different from history's greatest monster without grace, you'll never understand your desperate need for the cross.

Your understanding of what really saves you is directly connected to your understanding of your purpose here.

And with Christ's Second Coming on the horizon, we need to get clear about both the manner and purpose of His return—because when every eye sees Him, including the eyes of those who thought they were good enough on their own, the playing field gets leveled forever.

If this message makes you uncomfortable, good. It should. Comfortable Christianity never saved anyone.

Reserve your spot for Friday's Bible study where we're examining whether Christ's Second Coming is a secret rapture or a visible return that every eye will see. This isn't theoretical—it's about readiness.

🍞 This Week's Bread

• ⏳ The Sign: Why Hitler claimed "Positive Christianity" while orchestrating genocide

• 📖 The Word: How Christ's visible return exposes every false hope

• 🌍 The Witness: The Nazi who found Christ and the Christian who found Hitler

• 🔥 The Work: Three questions about what really makes you different from evil

• ⚡ Midweek Power: Wednesday prayer for those who think they're good enough

• 🙏 Prayer Corner: Breaking down the pride that keeps us from the cross

📚 This Week's (Virtual) Bible Study

Friday, September 19th (8-10 PM ET):

[🔗 Join Live Study] | [📱 Request Replay Link]

Can't make it live? We'll send you the recording!

⏳ The Sign

Here's what should terrify every comfortable Christian: Adolf Hitler claimed to be a Christian.

The Nazi Party platform of 1920 explicitly endorsed "Positive Christianity" as their religious position. Hitler wasn't just pandering—historians debate whether he genuinely believed his twisted version of Christianity, at least in his early years.

Even more disturbing: The "German Christians" movement within German Protestant churches actively worked to align traditional Christian teachings with Nazi ideology. They didn't reject Christianity—they perverted it.

When Hitler rose to power in 1933, 95% of Germans were Christian—63% Protestant, 32% Catholic. The majority didn't resist. They didn't fight. They adapted their faith to accommodate evil.

Think about that: The same people who sang hymns on Sunday participated in genocide on Monday. They prayed to Jesus while supporting the slaughter of His chosen people.

They called themselves Christians while enabling the most systematic evil in human history.

What made them different from you?

Nothing.

They had the same capacity for self-deception. The same ability to rationalize evil. The same tendency to prioritize comfort over conviction. The same pride that whispers, "I would never..."

But you would. And without the blood of Jesus, you will.

The Holocaust didn't happen because millions of people woke up one day and decided to be monsters. It happened because millions of people convinced themselves they were still the good guys.

Sound familiar?

📖 The Word

Why is Jesus coming back?

Because He made a promise. "I will come again and receive you to Myself."

How is Jesus coming back?

The same way He left—visibly, bodily, undeniably. Like lightning that flashes across the entire sky. Every eye will see Him. Not some eyes. Not the spiritual eyes of the prepared. Every. Single. Eye.

This isn't a secret rapture. This isn't a mystical, invisible return. This is Jesus Christ breaking through the sky in such undeniable glory that even those who pierced Him will see and mourn.

Including Hitler.

Including every Nazi who claimed Christ while committing atrocities.

Including every comfortable Christian who thought their moral superiority saved them.

When Christ returns, the playing field gets leveled forever. The religious performance ends. The self-righteousness crumbles. The comfortable theology disintegrates.

On that day, there will be two groups:

1. Those covered by the blood—regardless of how terrible they were before grace found them

2. Those trusting in their own goodness—regardless of how moral they appeared

Your church attendance won't save you. Your moral superiority won't save you. Your theological knowledge won't save you. Your good intentions won't save you.

Only the blood of Jesus saves you.

And when every eye sees Him coming, that truth will be undeniable. The Hitler who found Christ will be welcomed home. The "good person" who rejected the cross will face judgment.

Grace doesn't make sense. That's what makes it grace.

🌍 The Witness

Franz Stangl was a Nazi SS officer who commanded the Sobibor and Treblinka extermination camps. Under his leadership, approximately 900,000 Jews were murdered. He was responsible for some of the most efficient killing operations in human history.

Corrie ten Boom was a Dutch Christian who helped Jewish families escape the Holocaust. She was arrested by the Nazis and sent to Ravensbrück concentration camp, where her sister died. She survived and spent the rest of her life preaching forgiveness.

Here's what should shake you to your core:

Franz Stangl, before his death in prison, reportedly expressed remorse for his actions and showed signs of spiritual awakening during interviews with historian Gitta Sereny.

Corrie ten Boom, despite her heroic resistance to evil, wrote extensively about her own capacity for hatred and her desperate need for Christ's forgiveness.

Both recognized the same truth: they were sinners in need of grace.

Stangl will not rise in the first resurrection (if he will) because he was good—he will rise because grace is bigger than genocide. Ten Boom will not rise in the first resurrection because she was a hero—she will because the blood covers all sin.

From heaven's perspective, they both started at the same place: dead in sin, enemies of God, completely without hope apart from Christ.

The difference wasn't their actions—it was their response to grace.

One discovered that grace could reach even a Nazi commander. The other discovered that grace was necessary even for a Christian hero.

Both were right.

Which brings us to you.

You're not Franz Stangl. You're probably not Corrie ten Boom either. You're somewhere in the middle—which is exactly where most people convince themselves they're good enough.

But from heaven's perspective, you're exactly the same as both of them: a sinner who needs the blood.

The only question is whether you'll admit it.

🔥 The Work

Before you dismiss this as extreme or get defensive about your goodness, let's get honest with three soul-searching questions:

1. What evil am I capable of under the right circumstances?

Be honest. What would it take for you to compromise your convictions? Financial pressure? Social rejection? Physical threats to your family? Government pressure? Cultural acceptance?

The Germans who enabled the Holocaust weren't monsters—they were ordinary people under extraordinary pressure who chose comfort over conviction. They told themselves they were being reasonable, practical, patriotic.

What lies are you already telling yourself about the compromises you've made? What evil are you rationalizing as necessary? What injustice are you ignoring because confronting it would cost you something?

If you think you're incapable of great evil, you've already taken the first step toward committing it.

2. Am I trusting in my moral superiority or in Christ's blood?

Do you secretly believe God is lucky to have you? Do you look at other people's sins and think, "At least I'm not like them"? Do you measure your righteousness against other people instead of against God's holiness?

The Pharisee prayed, "God, I thank You that I am not like other men" (Luke 18:11). The tax collector prayed, "God, be merciful to me a sinner" (Luke 18:13). Jesus said the tax collector went home justified.

Which prayer sounds more like yours?

If the thought "I would never do what Hitler did" has crossed your mind while reading this, you've missed the point entirely. The moment you think you're better than someone else is the moment you prove you need grace just as desperately as they do.

3. How does understanding my depravity change my purpose?

If you truly understand that only grace separates you from history's greatest monsters, everything changes.

You stop judging and start loving. You stop condemning and start rescuing. You stop being proud and start being grateful. You stop trying to earn God's favor and start living from His favor.

You become the kind of person who runs toward the broken instead of away from them because you remember you were just as broken.

You become urgent about the gospel because you know that apart from Christ, that successful neighbor, that difficult coworker, that annoying family member is capable of unspeakable evil.

You live like Christ is coming back because you know that when every eye sees Him, the only thing that will matter is whether we're covered by His blood.

⚡ Midweek Power

This Wednesday night (September 17th, 8-9 PM ET), we're praying specifically for broken hearts that recognize their desperate need for grace—the kind of humility that leads to genuine salvation.

We're interceding for those who think they're good enough, those who've never been confronted with their capacity for evil, and those who've built their hope on moral superiority instead of Christ's blood.

📅 Remember to Set a Reminder for Prayer Night!

Come ready to pray for:

• Hearts that recognize their desperate need for the cross

• Pride that keeps people from admitting their depravity

• Comfortable Christians who've never been shaken by grace

• Those who think they're better than the worst sinners

🙏 PRAYER CORNER

We're interceding for:

• Anyone who's never been confronted with their capacity for evil

• Comfortable Christians who've built their hope on moral superiority

• Those who judge others while ignoring their own desperate need

• People who think grace is for "other people" but not them

• Hearts that have been hardened by religious pride

"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

📅 What's Next

Friday, September 12th (8-10 PM ET): Virtual Bible Study
[🔗 Join Live Study] | [📱 Request Replay Link]

Special Announcement: 🗣️ Last Friday of the Month Q&A: September 26th - "Let's Talk: Singleness & Sexual Purity"

🎯 100 Days of Love in Action Challenge Starting September 23rd through December 31st - Details coming next week!

📣 Take Action:

• Forward this to someone who needs to be shaken out of comfortable Christianity

• Follow @mogakaeventsministry on Instagram for reminders of Grace

• Join our Groupme for encouragement about living from grace, not for grace

✝️ Final Word

Here's what we need to settle: You are not good. You are not righteous. You are not better than anyone.

And that's the most liberating truth you'll ever hear.

Because if your hope is built on your goodness, it will fail. If your confidence comes from your moral superiority, it will crumble. If your salvation depends on being better than other people, you're doomed.

But if your hope is built on the blood of Jesus—if your righteousness comes from His cross—if your salvation depends on His grace instead of your performance—then you're eternally secure.

The same blood that could save Hitler can save you. The same grace that rescued the worst can rescue you. Not because you deserve it, but because He loves you.

When Christ returns and every eye sees Him, there won't be good people and bad people. There will be forgiven people and unforgiven people.

The question isn't whether you're good enough.

The question is whether you've admitted you're not.

That promise isn't for the good people. It's for the broken people who know they need a Savior.

Stop trying to be better than Hitler. Start thanking God that the same grace available to him is available to you.

The blood levels every playing field. Grace reaches every sinner. And when He comes with clouds, every eye will see that salvation was never about being good—it was always about being forgiven.

In His Love,
Mogaka Events Ministry

Come As You Are is a Spirit-led devotional for young adults hungry for God's presence. Written by Ravi Patel and Chriss Mogaka.