Who will get to heaven?

Will everyone go to heaven, will good people get there, or under what conditions will they go to heaven? Read more to get to heaven

When it comes to heaven, some may think it is just a great wish or doubt its existence. They might say, "No one has been to heaven and come back, so why believe in the whole thing?"

However, it is important to note that the Bible speaks of heaven in many places. Jesus said directly: “For I came down from Heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him that sent me” (John 6:38), so He certainly has knowledge of the matter. Likewise He said: “Let not your heart be troubled: you believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you to myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:1-3)

Paul wrote about the same thing. He said:“But as it is written, Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for them that love him” (1 Cor 2:9) and “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Rom 8:18). In addition, he spoke about the new, glorified and perfect resurrection body, e.g. saying: “For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality” (1 Cor 15:33) and in Philippians (3:20,21): “For our conversation is in Heaven; from where also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body that it may be fashioned like to his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things to himself.”

Perhaps the best description of the world to come, the heavenly Jerusalem and its dwelling places with all its delights and joys, can be found in Revelation chapters 21 and 22. They describe how heaven is a pure and perfect place, free from the curse of sin, how there is a stream of the water of life (22:1: And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb), the throne of God and of the Lamb, and that there is neither sickness, nor death, nor night there (21:25: And its gates are not shut by day, and there is no night there), but all the former is gone. According to the description, it is at least as real a place as the earth, and moreover it is eternal. The closeness and presence of God is also characteristic of this kingdom:

- (Rev 21:1-6) And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.

2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

5 And he that sat on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said to me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

6 And he said to me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to him that is thirsty of the fountain of the water of life freely.

WHO WILL GET TO HEAVEN? The good and excellent aspects related to heaven and God's future kingdom have been discussed above. It has been established that if all the above passages of the Word are really true and the truth, then a wonderful future awaits us if we become a part of it. Compared to that, many sporting victories, monetary prizes or earthly things are quite insignificant. Many things - even the good ones - are only temporary, but the kingdom of heaven is eternal.

But what about going to heaven? Does the Bible or especially the New Testament say anything about it, and how to get there? For this matter is not always so clear to men, but they may have wrong conceptions of it—conceptions which prevent them from receiving life.

In the following, we are going to examine two of the most common misconceptions that many people may have, and which are related to getting to heaven. It is good to clear up these misunderstandings first, so that you can get to heaven yourself. These misconceptions are:

• Everyone will go to heaven

• Only good people will go to heaven

“EVERYONE WILL GO TO HEAVEN”. Some people have the idea that everyone on earth will go to heaven. They think that when a man’s life ends he will automatically go to heaven regardless of how he has lived. God does not close the gates; everyone gets in.

Let’s consider the faulty logic in this approach.

What is true? When a Finnish priest wrote the book Kaikki pääsevät taivaaseen (“Everyone will go to heaven”) some years ago, the title of the book brought to light the same idea that once every single person would be in heaven. According to it, no one would be excluded from it. However, the question is whether the above ideas are from people's own heads or whether they are true and God's view. Assuming that the Gospels and the New Testament texts about heaven and how to get there are indeed true, they do not support that everyone would go to heaven once. On the contrary, the New Testament teaches that a certain group – unrepentant sinners – will be left outside the gates of Heaven. In Corinthians (1 Cor 6:9), for example, we read, “Know you not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived…” In the Revelation, verse 21:27, is written: Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life. The next verses continue the message that some people will be left outside Heaven:

- (Rev 22:14,15) Blessed are they that do his commandments that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.

15 For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and fornicators, and murderers, and idolaters, and whoever loves and makes a lie.

So the previous verses indicate that everyone will not get in to Heaven. Unrepentant sinners will be left outside.

It is good to understand that a God who forgives unrepentant sinners is not a good God. He would be as bad as the evil he accepts if he only looks away when people do bad things. He would also be morally even lower than us humans, because evil causes an opposite reaction in us and can arouse our sense of justice and anger. If God were indifferent and accepted everything, He could not be a righteous God. He would give His consent to evil. We cannot expect Him to open the doors of Heaven to unrepentant people:

I’m not of the same opinion with those who explain that heaven is open for everyone. As I thank God for Him not making us judges of our fellowmen, I see that the Bible clearly teaches that there are people who will be left outside the Holy City when their life here on Earth has come to an end. One of my friends told me long time ago about a young woman who imagined that God would never close the gates of Heaven from anyone.

That young woman amused her brother’s little daughter one day by telling her a story of “Children in the Woods”. When she finished the story, the child asked with anxiety, “Did all the children go to heaven?” “Yes, they did, my darling," the aunt answered. “But what happened to the bad men?” the child asked. “Oh, I think that God took them to heaven too.” “But won’t they kill children there again?” inquired the little one with anxiety. The practical nature of the question was too much for the aunt’s philosophy, and she saw now – as never before – the impossibility of the righteous God acting that way. (1)

The next question is how to get into heaven and what do we need to do. Is there any clear guidance?

The answer is that if unrepentant sinners are not forgiven and do not enter into Heaven, then people who genuinely repent and turn to God receive total forgiveness and get to enter Heaven. The matter is so simple.

Let’s read the story of the Prodigal Son, as told by Jesus. It is one illustration of a person who was forgiven after having turned his back on his father. Jesus taught that when the son repented, turned toward his father and confessed his wrongdoings, his father was filled with compassion and welcomed him home. The door to Heaven was opened to him such as it was opened for the thief on the cross. Jesus told him: “Today shall you be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43).

This applies to us today. If we turn to God then we will experience the same acceptance. “For there is no respect of persons with God” (Rom 2:11). Everyone can experience the same acceptance as the Prodigal Son. One day we will be welcomed into the kingdom of Heaven in spite of our past. The only condition placed upon us is that we must first turn to God and confess that we have been wrong. We will immediately be forgiven. The problem of many unrepentant people is that they never take this step. They do not turn to God and ask for a new life, so they cannot be forgiven for their sins. Do not act in this way, but turn to God by confessing that you have lived apart from Him. Then the doors of Heaven will open to you.

- (Luke 15:17-20) And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!

18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before you,

19 And am no more worthy to be called your son: make me as one of your hired servants.

20 And he arose, and came to his father. But when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him.

- (1 John 1:9) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

“ONLY GOOD PEOPLE WILL GO TO HEAVEN”. The second idea is that only “good” people and people with high moral standards will go to heaven. Many people think that if someone does his best, lives a moral life and is not as bad as others, he will go to heaven. They suppose that God will receive them first and welcome them.

This idea is also wrong. Even though good deeds and moral attitudes are good things, they cannot lead us to God and into Heaven. This is because nobody is perfect:

Perfection and the essence of God. Although good deeds and morality are good things, they – or being better than someone else –cannot help us get into heaven or help us get closer to God. It is the same thing as if we had to jump across a bottomless chasm several hundreds of meters wide. Some could jump maybe 3 meters, others, good jumpers almost 6 meters and the best in the world even 9 meters when they are in their best condition. However, the end result regardless of everything would be that the jump of each of these jumpers would be unhelpfully too short. Because even if some people could jump even 2-3 times further than others, there is still a long way to cross the chasm and reach perfection. Each of them and us would have to state that "Yet not one of you keeps the law" (John 7:19) and that we would all be far from God's perfection. It is impossible for us to get to Heaven by leading a moral life or by doing good deeds:

HOW CAN WE GET TO HEAVEN? When all people will not get to heaven - not even people who strive for a good and moral life - the next question is who can get there and how can we get there? Does the Bible show a solution to the issue?

The answer to the previous one is that we can be saved in only one way: by the grace that has come through Jesus and who has done everything for us. When good works and morality can't take anyone to heaven because of our imperfections, grace does. Whether it was a public godless sinner, a denier of God, or a person striving for morality, each of them can be saved and enter heaven in only one way: by grace, when they first turn to God through Jesus Christ. The Bible teaches us that this is the only way to be saved. Only grace leads to heaven:

- (Eph 2:8,9) For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

- (Eph 2:4,5) But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love with which he loved us,

5 Even when we were dead in sins, has quickened us together with Christ, (by grace you are saved;)

- (John 4:10) Jesus answered and said to her, If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that said to you, Give me to drink; you would have asked of him, and he would have given you living water.

- (Rev 21:6) And he said to me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to him that is thirsty of the fountain of the water of life freely.

- (Rev 22:17) And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that hears say, Come. And let him that is thirsty come. And whoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

Through grace and through Jesus. The following verses talk still about how Jesus is the way to heaven. This is for the simple reason that He has become our mediator between God and man. He has crossed the gap that lies between them. Everything is now based on grace that has come through Him:

- (John 14:6) Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father, but by me.

- (Hebr 9:15) And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.

- (John 1:17) For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

- (Rom 6:23) For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

- (Rom 3:24) Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

- (Acts 10:43) To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whoever believes in him shall receive remission of sins.

- (Acts 13:38) Be it known to you therefore, men and brothers, that through this man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins:

RECEIVING GRACE. When it was stated above that everything has been done for us and you can get to heaven only by grace and through Jesus Christ, it also has meaning in our lives. We must turn to God and receive mercy. We must turn to Jesus Christ in order to be saved and enter heaven. Only by receiving Him can we one day arrive in heaven.

What if we reject God's grace and Jesus? What if we don't care about Him and the life to come? Will there be any consequences of it? Does it have an effect on our eternity?

The answer to the previous one is that if we reject Jesus and the gift of eternal life, then we ourselves will have to pay for our sins. We will have to atone for our judgments in eternal damnation—a place from which there is never a way out. This is because we have then turned our backs on the only chance to be saved and enter God's paradise. We have rejected the only chance to get to heaven. Therefore, do not personally turn your back on God's mercy. Let yourself be saved today so you don't regret it later. It's the best decision you can ever make.

In 1892, Wilson and Porter were sentenced to be hanged for a mail robbery. Porter was executed, but Wilson was pardoned. He rejected his pardoning, and judge John Marshall of the Higher Court left the future generations this statement: “Pardoning is an act that is not legal without releasing the person, and release is not perfect without receiving. The person to whom it is offered can reject it, and if it is rejected, we do not deem the Court fit to put it into effect by force.”

As you see, you bear the responsibility. If you do not accept God’s mercy, He will not force you. “How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?” (Heb. 2:3) (2)

My friend, if you are damned, it is not because of your sins, but because you have not received mercy that God offers to you through Jesus. That is why it is fair. If you reject Jesus, what can God do? You then dismiss your only hope of salvation. (3)

THE PRAYER OF SALVATION. Lord, Jesus, I turn to You. I confess that I have sinned against You and have not lived according to Your will. However, I want to turn from my sins and follow You with all my heart. I also believe that my sins have been forgiven by Your atonement and I have received eternal life through You. I thank You for the salvation that You have given me. Amen.

REFERENCES:

1. D.L. Moody, Kristinuskon rikkaus, p. 114

2. Oswald J. Smith, Jumalan pelastus, p. 35

3. Oswald J. Smith, Maa johon kaipaan, p. 89