Many people have their own ideas about Heaven. Some believe that everyone is going to heaven. Others believe that it is only a “state of mind”. Others still, believe they will go to Heaven because they have done enough “good works” or maybe because they were baptized as a baby. There are many different ideas about Heaven, but there is only one authority on who goes to Heaven and that is God himself! God has left us His word so that we can know for sure that we are going to Heaven when we die. Below is a short summary of what the Bible says concerning God, Man, Sin, Jesus Christ, and Heaven.
God is The Creator
The Bible says In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. (Gen 1:1). All that exists in the universe is the result of God’s creative work. Because He is the creator of everything, He is also the owner of all things.
1 Corinthians 10:26 says, For the earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof. Everything in this world belongs to Him and was created for His pleasure.
Revelation 4:11 says, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.
When the Bible says that God made everything, and everything belongs to Him, that includes all of mankind.
Genesis 1:27 says: So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. Just like the rest of creation, man was created for God’s pleasure.
God is Perfectly Holy
Not only does the Bible show us that God is the creator and owner of everything. It also says that God is holy. God’s holiness means that He is perfectly sinless. He does no wrong nor can he tolerate sin. Habakkuk 1:13 says about God, Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity.
Further, Psalm 5:4 says: For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee. God’s desire is that all of creation, including mankind, would meet up to His standard of holiness. 1 Peter 1:16 says, Be ye holy; for I am holy.
God is Just
Because God is the creator, He is the owner and He is in charge. Psalm 47:2 says, [God] is a great King over all the earth. As the creator, owner and King over all the earth, God is also perfectly just. That means that he will always do right. He will not punish the innocent, nor will he ever fail to punish the guilty.
Nahum 1:3 says, The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked.
Again, Isaiah 13:11 says, And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity.
The God of Heaven is the all-powerful creator of the universe. He is perfectly Holy, meaning He does not commit sin, nor can He tolerate sin. He is also just. That means he must judge all sin. Now look and see what the Bible has to say about man.
All Men Have Sinned
God created men to be holy, yet the Bible says in Romans 3:23, For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;.
And again in Ecclesiastes 7:20, For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.
The Bible teaches that all men, everywhere are sinners. Sin is any disobedience toward God. It is the violation of his perfect standard of holiness. Sin entered the world all the way back in the Garden of Eden when the first man (Adam) sinned against God by disobeying Him.
The Bible says in Romans 5:12, Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:.
Adam’s sin ensured that his children and all of his descendants would also be born sinners. That includes you and I. The Bible says in Romans 3:10, There is none righteous, no, not one:.
We are sinners by our very nature. We sin everyday when we fail to acknowledge God as the holy creator and rightful King over our lives.
All Men Face God’s Judgment Toward Sin
We have learned that God is perfectly holy and that he created all things, including man, for his pleasure. Yet, all men have sinned, falling short of His standard of holiness. The Bible teaches that our sin has separated us from God. We have a broken relationship with Him.
Isaiah 59:2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
Because of our sin, we are separated from God. This is a serious problem. Remember that God is not only holy, but he is also just. That means that He must, and will judge all sin. All men, as sinners, will face God’s holy judgment against their sin.
Romans 6:23 says, For the wages [penalty] of sin is death.
This is not speaking simply of physical death, but an eventual, and eternal death in Hell.
Revelation 20:11-15 describes this final judgment when God executes His wrath toward all sin. It tells us that all men stood before the throne of God to be judged and then death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. This is God’s ultimate judgment toward sin.
Revelation 21:27 says, And there shall in no wise enter into it [heaven] any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
No sin will be allowed to enter Heaven. So then, if all men are sinners and no sin can enter Heaven, how can anyone at all go to Heaven? For the answer to this question, we must look to God’s love.
God is Loving
God is not only a God of holiness and justice. But He is also a God of love.
1 John 4:16 says, And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love;.
Even though God must judge all sin in order to satisfy His justice, and His standard of perfect holiness. He does not want anyone to go to Hell.
2 Peter 3:9 says that God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
For that reason, God made a way that He could maintain His standard of holiness, and judge sin, and be reconciled with sinful men. This could only be done through His own son, Jesus Christ.
God Sent His Son – Jesus Christ
Romans 5:8 says But God commendeth [showed] his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Again, 1 John 4:9 says, In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.
Ever since Adam sinned against God in the Garden of Eden, God put in motion a plan to redeem (save) all men from their sins. God’s plan of salvation was made clear 2000 years ago when His son, Jesus Christ, was born into this world as a baby. The Bible teaches that Jesus was God in the flesh.
Colossians 2:9 says of Jesus, For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. Jesus Christ, as the son of God, was fully God and fully man. He was the only one who ever lived without committing sin.
Hebrews 4:15 says that he was tempted like as we are, yet without sin.
Hebrews 7:26 describes Jesus as separate from sinners.
Jesus Gave Himself Willingly On the Cross
Jesus came to earth for one reason and that was to seek and to save that which was lost (Luke 19:10). When an angel announced to Joseph that Mary would give birth to the Son of God he said, And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins, Matthew 1:21. God’s holiness and justice demand that all sin be judged. Jesus Christ came to earth as a man so that he could bear God’s judgment toward our sin in his own body.
1 Peter 2:24 says, Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
Again, 1 Peter 3:18 says, For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:.
Jesus did not deserve to die. Neither did he deserve God’s wrath. Yet he willingly gave his life for us on the cross and took God’s wrath toward sin on our behalf. More than that, not only did God put our sin on Jesus Christ. But he promised to give us Christ’s righteousness when we believe in Him.
2 Corinthians 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
Jesus Rose From The Dead
The Bible teaches that after Jesus died on the cross he was buried, and three days later he rose from the dead. As the sinless, son of God, death could not hold Him (Acts 2:24). His resurrection was proof that God accepted his sacrifice as the payment for the sins of the world.
Jesus is Saviour, Lord and Judge
When Peter was preaching to a crowd of people who were responsible for having Jesus crucified, he said: Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ (Acts 2:36). The fact that Jesus is Christ means that he is the one that God promised would come to save all men from their sins. The fact that he is Lord means that He is the rightful authority over the lives of men. After the death and resurrection of Jesus, God the Father exalted Him to be Lord and Judge of all men.
John 5:22 says that God has committed all judgment unto the Son.
Philippians 2:9-11 says, Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
We Must Repent and Believe
The Bible says in Romans 10:9, That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. In that verse there is a promise of salvation. Who is it for? For everyone who confesses that Jesus is Lord and believes that he rose from the dead. God has promised that if we believe in His son, we will go to Heaven when we die.
John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. To be saved from our sin we must believe, by faith, that God sent his Son to die on the cross for our sins and that after his death, he rose from the grave. We must also confess him as our Lord, that is, the rightful authority over our lives. Paul summarized the gospel this way in Acts 20:21 Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.
Repentance toward God is turning from our life of sin and rebellion against Him. It is asking His forgiveness and turning to a life where we seek to obey Him. Faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ is believing that Jesus is the only way to be saved. It is believing all that we have already learned about Jesus in the verses above. Will you turn to God in repentance? Pray to Him and ask his forgiveness for your sins. Turn to Him with a willingness to obey Him with your life. Confess Jesus Christ as your Lord and the only way to be saved. The Bible is clear that there is no other way to be saved: Acts 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. Jesus himself said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6.
Heaven can’t be earned because no one is good enough to earn it! No one can do enough “good works” to get to Heaven.
Titus 3:5 (speaking of Christians) says Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us.
Again, Ephesians 2:8-9 says: For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. At this moment, your relationship with God is broken. He is Holy and you are sinful. He created you to worship and obey Him and you have been living life for yourself. But even in the midst of all of your sin, God loves you. He sent His Son to die for you on the cross. God did everything he could to make a way for you to go to Heaven. Now He is commanding you to repent and to believe in Jesus Christ as the only way to be saved.
But How?
Pray to God right now. Ask Him to forgive you for your sin. Tell Him that you are sorry for disobeying Him. Tell Him that you believe He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die for your sins. Tell Him that you believe Jesus rose from the dead and that He is the only way to be saved. Confess Jesus as your Lord and give your life over to him. If you do that, God has promised that you will be saved from your sin and that you will go to Heaven when you die.