Jesus said, " I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one can come to the father except through me." (John 14:6) Here he establishes that the only way to get to be right with God, and to be accepted in heaven. Only through his sacrifice, resurrection, and commands can we be saved.

Romans 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
That means that we cannot make it on our own, to heaven or to being in a right relationship with God, not even through doing "good deeds":
Isa 64:6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousness are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
That means that we deserve death because of our sin, which gets in the way of our "good deeds". On the other hand, God wants to give us what we don't deserve... eternal life and a right relationship with him.

Isa 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
In this prophecy, "him" refers to Jesus. Jesus paid the price for our sins, in order that we would be able to receive God's gift.

John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.
That's where the right relation ship with God comes in. When we receive him as who he is, he will receive us, and he will clean us up and make us his own, and then we will be at peace with him, but as long as we remain obedient.

Romans 10:9&11 So you will be saved, if you honestly say, Jesus is Lord," and if you believe with all your heart that God raised him from death... The Scriptures say that no one who has faith will be disappointed."
All you have to do is be honest with God that you were a sinner, and receive him and his ways, saying, "Jesus is Lord," and believe that Jesus was raised from the dead by God. It is also important to recognize that it is one's faith Jesus that pleases God, not just that one simple action. It's a life of faith that God wants.

John 17:3 Now this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
The purpose of Jesus was not necessarily to get us to heaven, but so that we could have a right relationship with him and God, from the time that we believe in him to our physical death, and to the end of eternity, that we may be with them in heaven. Heaven was built to be the setting of our relationship.

Back to the beginning...
When Jesus said "the Way" he meant that we must follow all of his commands, and all of his leadings.
When Jesus said "the Truth" he meant that we must believe ion him, and every word that comes from his mouth, and that he should be the foundation of our lives, as the laws of the universe are the foundations on which it was built.
When Jesus said "the Life" he meant that we must depend on him as if we couldn't live without him.
When he said that he was the only way to God, he meant that he was that he was the only sacrifice that could have been made for us. That we must trust in him before we are to trust anyone else.

It is very important to be a part of a Godly church so that one can grow and be nurtured in his/her faith.