I wonder how many people have read the title and already thrown this away! They probably think… “Oh no, religion!”, “I already have one religion” Or “I am good enough without religion.” Well you may live a nice, happy life without religion, but the question is: ‘Are you going to heaven?’
Is there really a heaven and hell?
The existence of heaven and hell hardly needs to be proved. The simple fact is that diverse cultures in diverse lands from earliest times have always believed in some kind of heaven and hell. Nevertheless, there are good reasons why there must be a heaven and a hell:
Justice
What is justice? It's the principle that all wrongs must be made right. This is something we all naturally know, especially when justice is delayed or absent. You don’t need to teach a baby to feel sad when his toy is taken. You don’t need to teach a toddler to cry for justice when another boy pushes him over. It comes naturally. The concept of justice is with us from birth. Animals don't have a sense of justice; it is unique to humans. So we don’t get it from nature. Of course, in this life all wrongs and injustices are not made right. So we know that this concept is not something we learn from society. Justice is common to all peoples, though the way it is applied varies greatly. Justice comes from God, it is in our hearts to remind us that although there is little justice in this world, we are to wait for right judgment in the next!
But if there is no heaven or hell, like modern people like to pretend, then there can be no justice. The poor and abused have no hope, the rich and cruel have no need to fear. If death ends it all, we may as well live as selfishly as we like! Right? Wrong. In our hearts we know that this is not true. After we die, we will face the justice of God’s judgment. That is what we all know it in our hearts, even if we deny it with our minds.
Why is it eternal, not temporary?
God is infinitely good. In heaven people can expect to experience unbelievable joy and happiness which will only increase forever. Each heavenly age will no doubt reveal another amazing aspect of God’s greatness and love. How sorrowful would it be to think it would end one day! But in heaven there will be no sorrow, for the joys of the righteous will never end. God will reveal his infinite goodness, which will take all eternity. This should induce a great thankfulness that some one ‘as unworthy as I’ should be able to experience such a beautiful life in heaven.
On the other hand, to sin against an infinitely good God, is infinitely evil. The bible says hell was created for the devil and his angels. How sad that most people follow them in their ignorance and rebellion against such a beautiful, good God. Every time we do what we know in our hearts is wrong, we sin against God. Every time we treat others in a way that we know we shouldn’t, we sin against God. God has given us his law in our hearts. We all have a conscience. We know when we do the wrong thing! Yet if we do it enough times, even the voice in our hearts begins to fade away. Eternal hell is an appropriate punishment for sinning against such a good God. Eternal hell reveals the horrible nature of sin, and also the true and just judgment of God. For God is not able to ignore or overlook sin like we do, God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.
What do I have to do to go to heaven?
That is easy: be perfect! Heaven will be a place of perfect good: no pain, no sadness, and no sin. Unfortunately, no human being, apart from Jesus, has ever lived such a life. If we're honest with ourselves, we would admit that human beings are quite the opposite; though we have moments of kindness and charity, the reality is we are full of pride, arrogance, hypocrisy, lies, lust, and other evil things. A person in such condition cannot enter heaven, lest their evil hearts would corrupt such a perfect place and turn into a living hell! For when something clean touches something dirty, both become dirty. It doesn’t work the other way. Heaven will be perfect forever. So we are left with an impossible requirement: to be without sin. And since no one but God has ever lived such a life, let’s consider plan B: to be forgiven and washed!
How do I know that God will forgive my sins? He has said in His word:
“If we confess our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
~ 1 John 1:9
God can do this because he took our sin when he died on the cross. Christ became the ‘proud, lying, murdering thief,’ in my place by dying on the cross, so that I could be free from the punishment of those crimes. God has both said and done. He said he is willing to forgive, and he took our sins to prove it. What a wonderful God! What great news!However, to be forgiven, first we must ask. He that calls upon the Lord shall be saved. So many people attempt to redeem themselves, to take away their own sins without asking the forgiveness of the God they have sinned against. You can’t sin against one man and ask the forgiveness of another! You can’t eat in McDonalds and pay the bill in KFC, right? People sin against God by breaking His law in their hearts and then seek to be righteous by being sincere in life, helping the poor, doing good works, visiting temples, etc. These things can never take away your sins! What you have done you have done. All we can do is cry out for mercy to the one true living God.
There is another issue which must be discussed though. That is repentance. If I say sorry for doing something but in my heart I intend to do it again, then I am not really sorry am I? You may convince your neighbor, but you won’t convince God who knows the hearts of all men. When a sinner comes to God and cries out for mercy, they must also intend to change their ways:
"God, I have told lies. I mustn’t tell lies anymore."
Or,
"God, I have stolen! Help me not to steal anymore."
So the big question now is: are you prepared to change?Are you prepared to stop doing what is wrong, whatever that might be?
Are you prepared to start doing what is right, which are God's commandments?
God will only accept people with such sincerity. All others are hypocrites. The bible says hypocrites will not enter the kingdom of God, but be cast out to hell.
Are you going to heaven?
Now we come to the original question again. The following people are people who can NOT enter heaven:
- 1. People who refuse to admit their sin before God.
- 2. People who do not ask God for forgiveness, with sincere hearts.
- 3. People who do not trust in Jesus's sacrifice on the Cross, and it's sufficiency, alone, to take away their sins.
- 4. People who will not turn away from their sin (repent) and start a new life.
By contrast, people who can say, "Yes, I know I'm going to heaven." are those who have done the following:
- 1. Confessed their sin to God and acknowledged their guilt.
- 2. Prayed to the living God for forgiveness through Jesus Christ.
- 3. Have determined in their hearts to stop sinning, and to obey God as he gives them the grace to do so.
Our lives ON earth are temporal; our lives AFTER death are not. Heaven, and hell, are eternal. Because God
loves us, he revealed himself to us through the inspired work of the Bible. Included is all knowledge
needed to know him and to live righteously. If you have any questions, about Christianity, God, or the
Bible, please contact me at: gtoole@gmail.com.
Thank you for your time.
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