Most of my blog posts are about legal topics. But, this Christmas, when we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, I'll blog a much more important topic -- How to Find Hope in Jesus.
The following article, "How to Make It to Heaven" was written by Joshua Tapp of True Words Christian Church. I've reposted it, with a few adaptations:
How To Go To Heaven According to God, The Authority
Right Now, I want to talk about HOW TO MAKE IT TO HEAVEN according to the Bible. And look, this will take 10 to 15 minutes and it’s very easy to understand and it’s very easy to make it to heaven.
The ONE TRUE GOD has given us ONE WAY to make it to heaven for eternity. And it’s not difficult at all. And it’s NOT based on how good you are. Most people think they get to heaven by being a good person. That’s not what the Bible says.
Romans 3:10 As it is written, There is NONE RIGHTEOUS, no, NOT ONE.
Righteous means doing right all the time. There’s no one who does right all the time.
There’s Not ONE Righteous Person On This Earth Today
Jesus Himself in Matthew Chapter 19 says: “There is NONE GOOD but ONE, that is, GOD.”
So the Bible tells us that there is no good person because good means perfect according to the Bible. The Bible doesn’t lie so that means you and I aren’t good people.
Look, I’ve messed up a lot in my life. I’ve done a lot of bad things. I’ve sinned against God over and over. I’m not righteous. You’re not righteous. I know this because the Bible says so. Our so-called goodness doesn’t get us into heaven.
Our Goodness Doesn’t Get Us To Heaven
So, please, understand today that it’s not our goodness that gets us into heaven. If it were, we’d be in big trouble because we all go against God’s rules every day. This is called sin. Listen to this verse from Revelation 21:8.
Revelation 21:8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
So the Bible lists some pretty bad things there but it also says that all liars will have their part in hell. I’ve lied many times in my life. This makes me a liar and worthy to be sent to hell when I die. Have you lied before? I’ve lied and done things much worse. If you’re truthful, you’ll admit the same. We’re not good.
There’s a Penalty For Doing Wrong In Our Life
The Bible says there is a penalty for doing wrong or sinning against God.
The first part of Romans 6:23 says: “For the wages of sin is death;” This means we must die because of our sin. This is the first death. And we must face death because we sin.
If we were perfect, we wouldn’t die BUT the Bible says ALL HAVE SINNED.
There’s GOOD NEWS for YOU Today
But there’s good news today because the Bible says in Romans 5:8 that:
Romans 5:8 God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Because God loves us, He came to Earth to save us Himself. Jesus Christ is the Son of God and is God. 1 Timothy 3:16 says Jesus is God manifest in the flesh.
Here’s What You Need To Know About Jesus the Son of God
Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, lived a sinless and perfect life.
He never did anything wrong. Not even a bad thought or lie. He was accused if doing wrong, He was beaten, spit on, and nailed to the cross.
When He was on the cross, the Bible says HE took all of our sins onto Himself.
1 Peter 2:24 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.
So Jesus took all of your sins (past, present, and future ALL of them) onto Himself and died for you.
There Were Hundreds of Witnesses
Many witnesses saw Him die on the cross. The people took His body and buried it in a tomb that was guarded by soldiers.
The soul of Jesus went to Hell because He took on the sin of the entire world. 3 days later He arose from the dead in His body. He defeated death and hell for you and I.
There were many witnesses who watched Him die on the cross and there were many witnesses who saw Him after He arose in His body.
Over 500 witnesses at ONE TIME saw Jesus after His death on the cross. His death, burial, and resurrection PROVE He has the power over death and hell.
Jesus DIED for ALL PEOPLE
So did Jesus die for a specific group of people or for everyone? The Bible is very clear that Jesus died for everyone. For you and for me.
1 John 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
It doesn’t matter who you are and what you’ve done.
This Means You Can Be Saved Right Now, In A Moment
If you’re listening right now, you can be saved from death and hell. But there’s one very simple thing we must do to be saved.
A prison keeper in the Bible actually asks the question: “What must I do to be saved?” In Acts 16:31, the answer is given.
“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved and thy house.” That’s it.
Simply Put Your Trust On Jesus To Save You, And He Will
Believe in Jesus to save you. Understand you can’t save yourself. Jesus can.
The answer wasn’t going to church, repent of your sin, being baptized, being a good person, doing good things, or living a holy life to be saved.
The Bible never says you have to do any of those things to be saved because they all depend on you.
Your Works (What You Do In This Life) Do NOT Save You
Those are your works. Your works don’t save you. Jesus does. The most famous verse in the Bible, John 3:16 says:
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.
Jesus, Himself says this. If you believe in Jesus to save you, you receive everlasting life. That means a life that never ends. And you receive it at the moment you believe in Him.
Once You Believe On Him (Trust Him as Your Savior), You RECEIVE Everlasting Life
John 10:28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
Jesus says once you believe, you receive eternal life.
John 6:47 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.
Jesus says, "Believe in Him and you HAVE everlasting life." He can give it to you right now if you simply believe in Jesus to save you.
ALL of the Men and Women Throughout the Bible Weren’t Good People Because They Weren’t Perfect
All of those men are in heaven because they believed in God to save them. They were forgiven.
Believe in Jesus and you’re saved. Don’t believe in Jesus and hell is your destination. And you don’t want to go there.
The Bible even tells us that most people end up in hell and not heaven. The world today tells you different than the Bible. So don’t just laugh this off today.
If You Think It’s Good Works That Get You To Heaven, You’re Not Saved. Here’s Why.
So many churches and religions today believe it’s their good works that get them to heaven.
They say they believe in Jesus but then they say you also need to be good and do good works to make it into heaven. This is an example of NOT putting all your faith in Jesus to save you.
That’s adding works to salvation.
Understand today that 100% of your faith must be on Jesus Christ to be saved. Listen to what Jesus says here in Matthew 7:21-23.
Matthew 7:21-23 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
The majority of this world today doesn’t believe in Jesus at all. Most don’t even believe He existed. The other part believes in Him but they don’t put all their trust in Him.
They think they can do good works that will earn them eternal life. They are trusting in themselves and not 100% Jesus. Faith is 100% Jesus.
Jesus WARNS Us Not To Trust In Our Works. Please HEAR HIM Today.
Jesus warned of this. He says depart from me I NEVER knew you.
If you trust in yourself and your good works, Jesus will say the same thing. He’ll say I never knew you because you never trusted in me 100%.
To make it to heaven, it’s simple, put all your faith in Jesus to save you. He did all the work. That’s GOOD NEWS for you and me.
Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Being saved is a gift from God. Grace is getting this gift when you don’t deserve it. You are saved through faith, through belief in Jesus. It’s not of yourself and not of works.
Being Saved Is A GIFT From God That He Wants You To Have RIGHT NOW
Don’t trust in yourself. If you’re honest with yourself, you’ll know that trusting yourself isn’t good news. We mess up all the time. I do. You do.
We can’t put our trust in anyone else but God Himself. When you do, you’re saved. Past tense. You’re born again into God’s family. It’s a new birth and you can’t change your Father. You have everlasting life.
Thanks For Listening Today, and I Hope To See You At Church
Thanks from the bottom of my heart for listening today. I hope you’ve understood how to get to heaven.
To summarize how to make it to heaven: “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved.”
That simply means to trust HIM completely as YOUR Savior. He says he will save you. Change your mind and believe what he says. If you have, then your soul is forgiven of all sin and you are saved. You have everlasting life that cannot be lost.
That’s it. Yes, it really is that easy because Jesus did all the work for you and for I. He’s given us a free gift! And there is nothing easier or better!
If you have any questions, please let me know. I hope you’ve accepted Jesus Christ as your only Savior today. If so, welcome to God’s family.
I’ll see you in heaven if I don’t see you in this life first. Have a great rest of your day!
The First Step in Obeying God Is Baptism
If you’ve been saved today or another day and you haven’t been baptized, it’s time to be baptized IF you’re ready to choose life for God.
Baptism is saying: “Hey God, I want to obey you and do what you ask BECAUSE you’ve saved me and given me everlasting life.”
Understand, though, that baptism doesn’t save you. None of the good works you can do SAVES YOU. It’s your FAITH ON JESUS.
You’ll go down under the water and be buried as Jesus was buried, and you’ll come up out of the water in the likeness of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Find a BIBLE BELIEVING CHURCH near you (one that believes the word of God is perfect) and be baptized. Do it soon. Don’t wait.
After Baptism, Do This
Come to a Bible-believing church that teaches the Bible. You need preaching from the WORD OF GOD. You need to be reading your Bible to make sure the PREACHER is teaching you correctly.
If not, get away from that church. If a church doesn’t believe that you’re saved by believing in the Lord Jesus Christ ONLY, get away. Jesus didn’t add anything else to salvation. Don’t allow a preacher to add to salvation.
So, be baptized, read the Bible on your own every day, pray to God every day throughout the day, go to a good church every time the doors open. Learn the Bible.
Why? Because you need to know what’s right and wrong. You need to know what’s sin and what isn’t sin. If you don’t know, the Bible says there is no excuse. That’s why you need to learn the Bible.
What Else Does God Want You To Do?
What else? Go out Soul Winning with the church. Be a silent partner. You don’t have to say anything. You can simply listen and learn. The only requirement to go Soul Winning is to be ALIVE and breathing!
You’ll learn how to win souls to Jesus Christ. And when you do, you’re fulfilling God’s commandment to you. He says: “Go out and PREACH THE GOSPEL.” That’s why we go out. If a church doesn’t go out soul winning, find a church that does.
If a church doesn’t do this, they don’t believe the Bible. Jesus says to do this. This shows you that the church isn’t obeying God. You don’t want any part of that. God isn’t happy with that church.
If you want to make God smile, go Soul Winning. He will be very happy with you.
Preach the Gospel. Win souls to Christ.
What’s The Result If You Obey God?
You’re going to experience JOY like you never knew. Peace like you never knew.
You’ll begin to realize what love truly is in this life. You’ll increase your faith in God and realize that NOTHING can shake you in this life. NOTHING.
Obeying God leads to a great life here and an even greater life in heaven.
Obeying God and doing the works that He wants (reading your Bible, praying, going to church, winning souls, preaching the Gospel) leads to ETERNAL REWARDS in heaven.
These aren’t earthly rewards like cars, money, homes, and boats. There are HEAVENLY REWARDS that last for all of eternity! Don’t you want those?
Put away the false preachers, the false churches, the false gods, and COME SEE what God is all about.