About a month ago, I wrote my first coronavirus-related post for the ministry. I’ve continued taking slight detours from the original ministry intent as I feel the need to address issues related to this pandemic.
That month-ago post was entitled, “Hope in the Midst of Crisis,” and I spent the lion’s share of the post talking about God’s sovereignty and how THAT is why I’m not panicking through any of this. I wanted you all to see how that sovereignty translates into peace for us.
But over the past week or so, I’ve been feeling like my message was incomplete – and that I did a disservice to some of my readers. Acknowledging powerful characteristics of God like his sovereignty or his holiness or his omniscience (all-knowing) is great, but what everyone needs, especially in these uncertain times, is to answer this question:
Do you know, without a doubt, where you will spend eternity if you must face death?
So, full, upfront disclosure – I want to share a clear Gospel message so everyone can take an inventory, so to speak, and do the necessary soul searching that I pray will lead them to the only true answer for our troubles.
I will be a bit “in your face” and may make many of you uncomfortable. I hope to dispel some dangerous myths and assumptions that are rampant in our society today. You might even decide this is not the kind of blog post you want to be following. I hope that’s not the case. I’m not here to beat anyone up. I’m here to clearly explain how you can have complete assurance of where you will spend eternity.
Everyone will spend eternity SOMEWHERE. There are only two options – Heaven and Hell. While you may believe we simply cease to exist after death, the Bible is clear that we do not. Deep down, I think we all know there is more to life than what we see here. In Ecclesiastes 3:11, it says, “…he has put eternity into man’s heart…” THAT is why we know. God wants us to know.
So, just how do we get to Heaven rather than Hell?
Let me start with all the ways you DON’T get to Heaven. One caveat – these are ALL very good things, but as you’ll see, they aren’t enough to pave your way.
- Believing that God exists. NOT ENOUGH. James 2:19 – You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! Satan and his demons also believe in God’s existence, but Hell is their address.
- Praying to God. NOT ENOUGH. Matthew 6:5 – And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. This is the same Pharisee group that Jesus calls hypocrites, blind guides, white-washed tombs, serpents and brood of vipers. (Matthew 23). Not a pretty picture, is it?
- Doing good deeds. NOT ENOUGH. Isaiah 64:6 – All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags. Really? All those good deeds are dirty rags? They are, compared to a holy God.
- Being a decent person. NOT ENOUGH. Romans 3:23 – For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Not a single one of us in our own goodness has enough to secure a place next to God.
I could go on with more examples, but the point of these scripture texts is clear. There is NOTHING that any of us can do on our own that will get us to Heaven.
“Why not?” you may ask. Because God is holy, we are sinful, and those two cannot co-exist. To which you may now ask, “So how then can ANYONE get to Heaven?”
On our own, we can’t. But here is the Good News (which is exactly what “Gospel” means). Because all sin must be punished (and the punishment is DEATH), God provided a sacrifice to take that punishment for us. It was his only son, Jesus Christ.
We just commemorated this event last Easter weekend. Jesus went to that cross in our place, to die for us and pay the penalty for our sins, once and for all. There isn’t space here to adequately describe the agony he endured SO THAT that door to Heaven could be open to us.
But Jesus didn’t stay in that tomb. He rose again, conquering sin and death for all time. He now sits at the right hand of God in the heavens. Those aren’t just my words. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. 1 Corinthians 15:3-4.
Let me add one more bullet point to the ways we DON’T get into Heaven. It’s not by knowing what Jesus did on the cross – and doing nothing with it. Head knowledge is also NOT ENOUGH.
Here’s what he asks of us: Romans 10:9-10 – Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
WE MUST ACT! It’s a change of heart. It’s acknowledging that we are sinners, turning away from that, and asking Jesus to be Lord of our life.
That’s as clearly as I can state it. Here’s another simple, well-explained presentation of the Gospel message.
When you have acknowledged your sinfulness and your need for Jesus as your Savior, and asked him into your life, he will show up! The gift of his Holy Spirit comes to dwell within you forever. Your entry into heaven is secured! That doesn’t mean you become a perfect person. We all know there are none of those walking around in this world!
But God sees us as “redeemed sinners” because Christ has paid that price for us. We just need to accept this free gift. Ephesians 2:8-9 – For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
Once this work of redemption is complete, you are part of the family of God. NOW you can truly claim the benefits of God’s sovereignty, his power, his omniscience and every one of his characteristics, and every promise he makes in his Word, the Bible.
This is the TRUE SOURCE OF PEACE! Amen!