Heaven or Hell?

If I were to take a walk down main street and asked 100 passers-by how many of them believed in Heaven, I do believe I would get an overwhelming majority. While there would be some that would scoff at such an idea, the vast masses of people believe in Heaven.

Now if I were to take the same walk and ask 100 passers-by how many of them believe in Hell, I believe I would get an entirely different response. Here I would probably dare say that I would be closer to 50%, perhaps even only a third of people believing in Hell. For the sake of argument, let’s assume 50%.

If I posed a second question to these same people, how do you think they would respond? How would you respond?

If I were to ask these people who believe in Heaven whether or not they were going there, I would assume nearly all of them, but not all of them, would tell me that they would go there or think they would go there when they died. Likewise if I were to ask these same people that believe in Hell whether or not they would go there, I would assume most would say no, probably a few would say that they hoped not.

Now the problem herein lies with this. If I were to ask those who believe they were going to Heaven if they believed in a Hell, I believe that it would quickly dive down to the 50% ratio. Now if I were to ask these same people how I would get to Heaven, assuming 85 out of 100 believed in Heaven, I would probably get at least 50 different answers.

How many different answers do you think I would get out of the following questions?

 

1.) How do you get to Heaven?

 

2.) What type of people/who goes to Hell?

 

3.) How many different ways are there to get to Heaven?

 

4.) What religions would be excluded from the Pearly Gates?

 

5.) Is Hell eternal?

 

From experience, I would get several, several different answers. However it is possible to know PRECIOUSLY the answer to ALL of these questions. How? Through God’s Word, the bible, the Holy Scriptures.

Is not Heaven where God lives? Would He not be the Authority to give us the map to get there? Who created Heaven? God, right? The only sensible way to get these answers, THAT WILL MATTER TO EACH PERSON, is through the bible. Let’s take a look…

 

How do you get to Heaven?

 

In order to get to Heaven, an individual must go before God in repentance and believe into Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, plainly put THERE IS NO OTHER WAY.

 

A.) Repentance

“Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord…” Acts 3:19

“Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent…” Acts 17:30

“I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” Luke 13:3

 

B.) Believing that Jesus was God in the flesh, died on the cross for our sins and rose from the dead.

…” that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” Romans 10:9-10

“For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised the third day according to the Scriptures” 1st Corinthians 15:3-4

“Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was accounted to him, but also for us, to whom it shall be accounted, believing in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was delivered up because of our trespasses, and was raised for our justification.” Romans 4:23-25

 

C.) Accepting Jesus as your Savior.

“For everyone, whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:13

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that everyone believing into Him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” John 1:1

 

Here in lies one of the BIGGEST misconceptions and problems in our societies. Everyone thinks they are going to Heaven, but really the vast majority are wrong. In my opinion this is one of the biggest, if not biggest deception that Satan has placed upon the earth. Instead of an individual finding out the truth and simply deciding for themselves of whether or not to accept Jesus as their Savior, following the true method laid out in the bible verses above, the deception is that the person believes they are saved, continues on with their life, dies and goes to Hell.

 

“Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in Heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many works of power in Your name? And then I will declare to them, I never knew you; depart from Me, you who work out lawlessness!” Matthew 7:21-23

 

What type of people/who goes to hell?

 

Many people will proclaim that those who are the most evil, those who do the worst crimes or those who simply follow satanism are the ones who end up in Hell, however this could not be further from the truth.

 

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.” Psalms 51:5

 

…” for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…” Romans 3:23

 

“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23

 

The truth is that EVERYONE has sinned and ALL are doomed to hell UNLESS that individual repents and accepts Jesus Christ as their Savior. Too many times people assume that the ‘good’ people would have a place in Heaven. Getting to Heaven is NOT works based, no matter how much good someone would appear to do, unless they have become rectified with their Creator, they will go to hell, no if’s, and’s or but’s.

 

So yes, that old woman who knitted hats for every newborn baby in the local hospital, the elderly man who donated much money to the local city and provided a food pantry and housing for the poor and desolate will likewise go to hell when he dies. No matter how much good an individual does or appears to do, it makes NO DIFFERENCE. Unless that individual repents and believes into Jesus, there is NO HOPE, NO CHANCE. Hell is the future destination for that person.

 

How many different ways are there to get to Heaven?

 

As addressed above, there is only ONE WAY.

 

“Jesus said to him, I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6

 

What religions would be excluded from the Pearly Gates?

 

Rather the question would be which religions would go to Heaven. Herein is a tough question with a difficult answer for most to bear, nonetheless the truth shall be told.

 

Our societies are pluck full of churches on many corners of our cities around the globe. The United States of America has many different kinds of churches, whereas if one traveled to the European Union you would find predominately Roman Catholic churches. The deception is two-sided. Clearly, and not the purpose of this article (See either of the following books: The Two Babylons, Hislop; A Woman Rides the Beast, Hunt) the Roman Catholic church is a gigantic false religion. However, the vast majority (and I mean vast) of the churches on the corners of our cities in the USA are also false. They are the opposite of the same coin or rather just a newer form of deception that never had but an inkling of truth from their inception.

 

There is a true Church and that is the true body of Jesus Christ.

 

“Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.” 1st Corinthians 12:27

 

This church might go by different names, could be called a Baptist Church, a Bible Church or it might be a group of people meeting in someone’s home with no name.

 

“For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.” Matthew 18:20

 

Would you rather know the truth now, research, pray, read the Holy Scriptures to see whether or not these things are so OR stand before God as He rightfully judges you and sends you to Hell for eternity? The choice is yours.

 

Is Hell eternal?

 

Yes Hell is eternal, in fact it will eventually be the Lake of Fire where those souls who were disobedient to God, those who refused to repent of their sins, those who would not truly believe in Christ will go. There they will spend eternity.

 

“And the devil, who led them astray, was cast into the Lake of Fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.”  Revelation 20:10

“And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one, according to their works.  And Death and Hades were cast into the Lake of Fire. This is the second death.  And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the Lake of Fire.”  Revelation 20:13-15 

“And many of those sleeping in the earth’s dust shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to reproach and everlasting abhorrence.”  Daniel 12:2

 

Summary:

 

Dear Reader,

 

            These things may appear harsh, but how harsh would it be for a Christian to not warn you and present you with the truth? How harsh would it be for you to go through life, die and stand before your Creator, without the truth being presented to you. These are not my truths, but the Truth that is found only in the Holy Scriptures. This is God’s Truth and He gave us His Son to provide an escape from our judgment that is just and due to everyone.

 

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that everyone believing into Him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

 

            Unfortunately men have manipulated God’s Word, for MANY years and continue to do so.

 

“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own lusts, desiring to hear pleasant things, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to myths.” 2nd Timothy 4:3-4

 

            Recall though that God is merciful. Will you come before Him in repentance and accept Jesus Christ as your Savior before it is too late? Eventually, perhaps soon, perhaps today or even at this very moment, time will run out.