THE CERTAINTY OF HEAVEN
I recently
saw an app on face book that determines whether or not people will go to heaven
or hell and my first reaction was “wow, this is funny”. It was funny to me
because it didn’t make sense that an app could determine our eternal
destination. Well that was just a face book app and believe me, many who will
take the test will add emotions to it and believe what the app would predict
about their eternal destination. Why not? People aren’t sure where they are
heading after this life on earth is over.
I have had discussions in the past with
a number of believers regarding this issue of eternal destination and I was
amazed to find out that a greater percentage of Christians cannot tell with
certainty if they will go to heaven or not. They say stuffs like “only God
knows those who will go to heaven or hell”.
My unuttered questions to them is “if
you are not certain of heaven, then why do you go for evangelism and ask people
to accept Jesus?” Why would you want unbelievers to join you in your
uncertainty? If I were not born again and someone comes preaching to me to
accept Jesus Christ and says to me that he is not sure if this Jesus could
guarantee my eternal destination but that I should just accept Him; I would
frankly not accept Him.
Most people who are truly born again
accepted Jesus because they needed a saviour, they needed help. They needed an
assurance of eternal salvation. They knew they couldn’t ever think of going to
heaven without the help of God. When I saw how evil and sinful I was and how
that I was heading straight for hell without Jesus in my life, I surrendered my
life to the only one who is able to save to the uttermost, Jesus Christ the
righteous. I was 100% certain that accepting Jesus in my life would guarantee
me heaven. I don’t know if my case was different but I believe that most
Christians had the same experience and trusted Christ to save them too.
If this is true with most Christians,
then one cannot but wonder what happened to that certainty, that hope of
eternal salvation; the hope of glory that made people surrender their lives to
Christ. How come Christians can no longer tell for sure if they will make
heaven or not? At what point did this probability set in? I feel so shocked to
hear Christians say its 50-50 chance to make heaven.
Most people reading this article will
have a hard time believing the truths I am about to reveal from God’s word and
this article may perhaps be one of the most controversial Christian literature
they will ever read but let God be true and all men liars. I am going to share
with you some verses that will help you believe again with all certainty that heaven
is your home once you accept Jesus Christ as your saviour.
1.
Why are most Christians uncertain of heaven? Because they don’t
know the way to heaven.
I know it sounds foolish to call them
Christians and yet say that they don’t know the way to heaven. Yes, they go to
church every Sunday and listen to the messages but they are still ignorant of
the way to heaven. Well! I am not surprised. Even the disciples that were with
Jesus for about 3years and a half didn’t know the way to heaven nor how to get
there. They were troubled just like most Christians today and uncertain of
their eternal destination. Thankfully, Jesus resolved their ignorance.
“Let not your
heart be troubled. You are trusting God, now trust in me. 2-3 There are many
homes up there where my Father lives, and I am going to prepare them for your
coming. When everything is ready, then I will come and get you, so that you can
always be with me where I am. If this weren’t so, I would tell you plainly. 4 And you know
where I am going and how to get there.”
5 “No, we don’t,”
Thomas said. “We haven’t any idea where you are going, so how can we know the
way?”
6 Jesus told him, “I am the Way—yes, and the Truth and the
Life. No one can get to the Father except by means of me. {John 14:1-6 TLB}
Did
you notice that Jesus has gone to prepare for our arrival into heaven? There
are enough rooms in heaven for everyone who would believe that Christ can save
them and take them to heaven. It is a pity that the people for whom the rooms
of heaven are prepared do not believe with unwavering certainty that they are
going to make heaven. JESUS IS THE WAY, THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE.ANYONE WHO MUST
GET TO HEAVEN MUST ACCEPT AND TRUST HIM.
2. Why
can’t most Christians trust in Jesus as the only way to heaven?
Seriously, this is an
important question that needs to be answered regarding this entry into heaven.
How can a people accept a saviour and still not trust His ability to fulfil His
promise of salvation to them? The reason is because many Christians think that
it is pretty too cheap to just enter heaven by just one way. Just accepting
Jesus is really too easy a criteria to entering a place as eternal and glorious
as heaven, many Christians would say. Man always wants to do something else to
show how strong or wise he is even though we are all weak without God and God’s
foolishness is wiser than the wisdom of all of us put together. Man is always
trying to complement what God has already completed and by so doing
complicating issues for himself. God has made salvation discrete-just one
narrow way; who is Christ Jesus but man would rather chase after Ten
Commandments and many Jewish laws. Man prefers the broad way, the sweat- it-
out- route, the flex -your –muscles- route, the self- righteousness- route. It
seems easier to man to try to save himself. Only few have truly found the
narrow way that leads to life though we may have ten thousand people in church.
13 “Heaven can be entered only through the narrow gate! The
highway to hell[b] is broad, and its gate is wide enough for all the
multitudes who choose its easy way. 14 But the Gateway to Life is small, and the road is
narrow, and only a few ever find it. {Mathhew 7:13-14 TLB}
3.
They preach about
the narrow way in church but don’t understand what they preach.
You probably would have heard your pastor recite
and teach on the Matthew 7:13-14 quoted above. The truth is that if we truly
understood that Jesus is that narrow gateway to life and that we have found Him
already, we wouldn’t need to worry about our eternal destination anymore.
Heaven can be entered only through the narrow gate. If we believe it with all
certainty, then we would preach to sinners with every boldness and enthusiasm
to accept this narrow gate also. We would cry out to the Jews to stop depending
on the Ten Commandments and the laws of Moses as the criteria to entering
heaven. We would let Muslims know that they don’t need FIVE MUST DO’S before
they can enter heaven. Even the atheist would come to realize that moralism and
being good enough cannot take them to heaven. EVERY MAN WOULD WANT TO ACCEPT
THE NARROW GATE, THE DOOR-JESUS CHRIST THE RIGHTEOUS.
9 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be
saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to
kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may
have it more abundantly. {John 10:9 NKJV}
In the very words of Jesus” I am the door. If anyone enters
by Me, he will be saved” But I am still amazed that many who ought to have
entered through him could not enter because they are trying to carry some extra
luggage {religious rules and rituals, self -righteousness, moralism etc.}Alongside.
Unfortunately for them, the door is so narrow that only FAITH IN CHRIST JESUS
can pass through it.
4.
Pastors are
preaching a different gospel
The average believer thinks that the gospel of
salvation by faith alone in Christ Jesus is a fake gospel. That is why they
attack men of God who preach faith as criteria for salvation. They believe more
in the message of works and self- righteousness as the true gospel. They are
simply ignorant of what the true gospel really is. They forget so soon the
gospel they heard that made them accept Jesus Christ as saviour. They trusted
Christ to save them when they surrendered their lives to Him but now have
turned from that hope in Christ to depend on self-righteousness.
6 I am amazed that
you are turning away so soon from God who, in his love and mercy, invited you
to share the eternal life he gives through Christ; you are already following a
different “way to heaven,” which really doesn’t go to heaven at all. 7 For there is no
other way than the one we showed you; you are being fooled by those who twist
and change the truth concerning Christ.
8 Let God’s curses
fall on anyone, including myself, who preaches any other way to be saved than
the one we told you about; yes, if an angel comes from heaven and preaches any
other message, let him be forever cursed. 9 I will say it
again: if anyone preaches any other gospel than the one you welcomed, let God’s
curse fall upon him. {Galatians 1:6-9 TLB}
They
have all backslidden unknowingly. The moment you turn away from the true gospel
of faith in Christ Jesus to start having confidence in the flesh, you fall away
from grace. Most pastors are preaching the laws of Moses as the way to be
saved. Paul said there is no other way to heaven than through Christ Jesus. Any
pastor, bishop or pope who preaches any other way to be saved is under God’s
curse.
2 Listen
to me, for this is serious: if you are counting on circumcision and keeping
the Jewish laws to make you right with God, then Christ cannot save you. 3 I’ll
say it again. Anyone trying to find favor with God by being circumcised must
always obey every other Jewish law or perish. 4 Christ
is useless to you if you are counting on clearing your debt to God by keeping
those laws; you are lost from God’s grace. {Galatians 5:2-4 TLB}
5. The
believer’s name is registered in heaven
What
if I told you that your name is already registered in heaven? Will that boost
your assurance that heaven is your home? Verily Verily I say unto you that your
name is already written in the lamb’s book of life. If you have accepted the
Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world as your saviour then
congratulations to you. You are registered already and your room has been
prepared in heaven waiting for you. Stop doubting whether or not you will make
heaven. Keep on believing what you believed at first when you surrendered your
life to Christ.
3 Go back to what
you heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly and turn to me again. Unless
you do, I will come suddenly upon you, unexpected as a thief, and punish you.
4 “Yet even there
in Sardis some haven’t soiled their garments with the world’s filth; they shall
walk with me in white, for they are worthy.5 Everyone who
conquers will be clothed in white, and I will not erase his name from the Book
of Life, but I will announce before my Father and his angels that he is mine. {Revelations
3:3-5 TLB}
Those
who keep on having faith in Christ have their names indelibly written in the
book of life. Jesus will announce them before the father on that day as His own.
We have already
overcome the world by faith. The victory that conquers the world is our faith.
We shall be clothed in white.
4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world.
And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our[a] faith. {1John 5:4 TLB}
20 Behold, I stand
at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will
come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.
21 To him that
overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame,
and am set down with my Father in his throne.
22 He that hath an
ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. {Revelations
3:20-22}
We
are the redeemed of the Lord and our spirits are already mad perfect in heaven.
The day He offered up himself as an offering for sin, He perfected us forever.
He knew all those who would accept him and has predestined us to eternal
salvation. We are registered in heaven with a perfect spirit.
22 But
you have come right up into Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the
heavenly Jerusalem, and to the gathering of countless happy angels; 23 and to
the church, composed of all those registered in heaven; and to God who is Judge
of all; and to the spirits of the redeemed in heaven, already made perfect; 24 and
to Jesus himself, who has brought us his wonderful new agreement; and to the
sprinkled blood, which graciously forgives instead of crying out for vengeance
as the blood of Abel did.{Hebrews 12:22-24 TLB}
14 For by that one offering he made forever perfect
in the sight of God all those whom he is making holy. {Hebrews 10:14 TLB}
Maybe you
are wondering “but when was my name written?” Well before the world began God
already chose you and wrote your name in the book of life.
8 He
was alive but isn’t now. And yet, soon he will come up out of the bottomless
pit and go to eternal destruction;[b] and
the people of earth, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life
before the world began, will be dumbfounded at his reappearance after being
dead.*{Revelations 17:8 TLB}
6.
How am I sure that He will take me to heaven?
I can tell you with every assurance that the Lord Himself
will come and take us home one day. I don’t know the day but I know it is no
longer far. I know our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. I
know that yet a little while He that shall come will come and will not tarry.
The only thing you need is to believe in Christ. The just shall live by
faith.
15 I
can tell you this directly from the Lord: that we who are still living when the
Lord returns will not rise to meet him ahead of those who are in their graves. 16 For
the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a mighty shout and with the
soul-stirring cry of the archangel and the great trumpet-call of God. And the
believers who are dead will be the first to rise to meet the Lord. 17 Then
we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up with them in
the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and remain with him forever. 18 So
comfort and encourage each other with this news.{1 Thessalonians 4:15-18 TLB}
Did you notice that the BELIEVERS who are dead and those who
will be alive at His coming will be taken home to heaven? I thought it would
have said, those who kept the Ten Commandments will be taken to heaven or those
who are moralists, atheist or Muslims. No! It says the BELIEVERS!
11 He
came as High Priest of this better system that we now have. He went into that
greater, perfect tabernacle in heaven, not made by men nor part of this world, 12 and
once for all took blood into that inner room, the Holy of Holies, and sprinkled
it on the mercy seat; but it was not the blood of goats and calves. No, he took
his own blood, and with it he, by himself, made sure of our eternal salvation. {Hebrews
9:11-12 TLB}
3 All
honor to God, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ; for it is his
boundless mercy that has given us the privilege of being born again so that we
are now members of God’s own family. Now we live in the hope of eternal life
because Christ rose again from the dead. 4 And God has reserved for his children the priceless gift
of eternal life; it is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the
reach of change and decay. 5 And
God, in his mighty power, will make sure that you get there safely to receive
it because you are trusting him. It will be yours in that coming last day for
all to see. 6 So
be truly glad! There is wonderful joy ahead, even though the going is rough for
a while down here.{1Peter 1:3-6 TLB}
7. No fear of the rapture
It’s a pity that whenever the rapture is preached in church,
people end up in fear and lack of faith, they start thinking about their
self-righteousness, how good or how bad they think they’ve been. This is
because they think that the rapture is about God coming to punish their sins.
Paul said the rapture should be a thing of joy, comfort and encouragement to us
not to scare us. Let me tell you the truth. Christ is not coming to deal with
our sins, He already defeated sin on the cross. He is coming to save us from
this corrupt world and to take us
into our heavenly home. The bride has no reason to be afraid of her
groom’s return. She patiently waits for Him with joyous expectation
so
also Christ died only once as an offering for the sins of many people; and he
will come again, but not to deal again with our sins. This time he will come
bringing salvation to all those who are eagerly and patiently waiting for him. {Hebrews
9:28 TLB}
9 For
God has not chosen to pour out his anger upon us but to save us through our
Lord Jesus Christ; 10 he died for us so that we can live with him forever, whether
we are dead or alive at the time of his return. 11 So
encourage each other to build each other up, just as you are already doing. {1Thessalonians
5:9-11 TLB}
I believe now that you have read the verses in this article,
you will stop thinking that you have a 50-50 chance of making heaven and start
believing that in Christ you have 100% certainty and assurance of heaven. God
is not a man that He should lie nor the son of man that He should change His
plans. His promise is steadfast” WHOSOEVER BELIEVES IN CHRIST SHALL HAVE
ETERNAL LIFE”. You can trust God to deliver on His promises. What makes you a
believer is your belief in Christ as your saviour and only way to heaven. Once
you start doubting this then you are not a believer.
17 God
also bound himself with an oath, so that those he promised to help would be
perfectly sure and never need to wonder whether he might change his plans.
18 He has given us
both his promise and his oath, two things we can completely count on, for it is
impossible for God to tell a lie. Now all those who flee to him to save them
can take new courage when they hear such assurances from God; now they can know
without doubt that he will give them the salvation he has promised them.
19 This certain hope
of being saved is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls, connecting us
with God himself behind the sacred curtains of heaven, 20 where Christ has
gone ahead to plead for us from his position as our High Priest,[b] with
the honor and rank of Melchizedek.{Hebrews 6:17-20 TLB}
LIKE
A BRIDE WAITING FOR HER GROOM.
WE
WILL BE A CHURCH READY FOR YOU
EVERY
HEART LONGING FOR OUR KING
WE
SAY, EVEN SO COME!
LORD
JESUS COME!
SO
WE WAIT! WE WAIT FOR YOU!
