1John 5:11-13 - And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.
I listened to a sermon last week on eternity. I thought I'd share snippets of my take on the pastor's thoughts. This is long, filled with hard words and truth, maybe not well received. Hopefully you'll get through to the end. Don't quit early. While it may be hard, there is always hope. There's always good news for those who want to hear. There's a God in heaven who loves you no matter what you might think. Even if you reject Him, He loves you. He'd rather you not reject Him. There are consequences for doing that.
Basically, the truth that was stated in the sermon many times is: eternity stretches on and on and on. It is eternal. It never ends. Never ends. It's why it's called eternity!
There's a bit of debate about eternity. Some believe eternity is being in heaven. Along with that thought some believe all people go to heaven, or only good people go to heaven. Taking that another step is the question concerning just who is good? And...just how much good do we do to please God? How do we, mankind, determine what is good? How does man's goodness compare to God's view? Oh, to be sure, the Bible has a few things to say about these points, like, briefly, we cannot earn our way into heaven. We are told our (good) works are as filthy rags, that apart from God we can do no good thing, nor enter into heaven. Ouch. Good works do not produce salvation; good works are the product of salvation.
So this pastor suggests, and it's all biblical, that we all must spend eternity somewhere. We actually choose where we want to go. It's all about choice and that choice is simple. That choice will either put us in either heaven or hell. But...it is our own choice. Another ouch.
Again, we don't go to heaven based on our good works, what church we go to, how wealthy we are, or who we know. Oh wait, there is one Person we can, and must, know--Jesus Christ. The Bible was written to show us this, from Genesis to Revelation.
Life is not about what we make of it, what we accomplish or how much we accumulate in this world. God's whole purpose for creation and for creating us is to know and glorify Him. Then what we do is important. It's not about the works that we do before we know the Lord. It's about the works that we do after. Remember, all our works, before we know Christ, are as filthy rags. (Isaiah 64:6)
You will be somewhere all throughout eternity. There is no in between. It's either heaven or hell. There is no gray area when it comes to God. We're either for Him or against Him. What you will find all throughout the Bible's pages is that a price has been paid. If we receive Jesus as Lord and Savior, that price has been paid for us and we are saved.
So, moving on. Do you know the Lord Jesus Christ as this Lord and Savior? This question can offend people. People don't always want to be told they must have a relationship with or give their lives to Christ. But as this pastor was saying in the sermon, if you're offended by Jesus Christ, plain and simple, you're going to hell. Ouch again.
The Bible says you must be born again. There's no other way to get to heaven. You must be born again. If you want more information on what it means to be born again read John 3. You only get to heaven through Jesus Christ. That means admitting you're a no-good, rotten sinner, filled with self and pride, and absolutely powerless without God (which you find out in time)!
The great lie of the devil is like what he asked Eve in the Garden, Did Gid really say...? Did He really say you're good enough on your own, you don't need Him, your good works are what define you, but not your relationship with Him? Remember, in the Garden Adam and Eve walked and talked with God. They didn't have to work, there was no pain, no sorrow, no shame, no tears. They lived in paradise. Heaven on earth. They tended the animals and were not ashamed of their nakedness. But then the devil slithered in and changed everything...got them banished forever from all that God said was good...and separated from Him. Now to enter into eternity, we must be reconciled again with God. God made a way. He did not offer up His Son as a sacrifice for us for the fun of it. How can we live thinking all go to heaven if not everyone even goes to Him for salvation? To be born again?
Just as there will be a literal hell, there will be a literal heaven. It will be just the opposite. Like the description of the paradise of Eden, in Revelation we are told:
...God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away. Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me, “Write, for these words are true and faithful.” And He said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”
(Revelation 21:3-8)
Cowardly, unbelieving, abominable...just a few names for those who do not believe and fall into the same category as the rest. We are all in those categories...until we receive Jesus as born again believers.
Remember Jesus on the cross between two thieves? One totally rejected Him, the other admitted his sin. What did Jesus say to that second thief? Today you will be with me in paradise!
You must go through Jesus Christ. One way and one way only. There is only one door by which we enter. That Door has a name. It is Jesus Christ. He says, I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. (John 10:9)
Hell is a place of violence, misery and hate, quite the opposite of the description above. We see enough of that today. The pastor explained, Where you spend eternity is determined now. Do you live for yourself or do you live for the Lord? If you live for yourself the Lord is not a part of your life. Maybe you don't feel you need to go to church. That's a sign that you're not living for the Lord. Maybe you don't read your Bible. That's another sign you're not living for the Lord. These may be hard words but Jesus is not Someone you can sit on the fence about. You're either with Him or without Him. And our eternity is based on that.
But there's still that hope I mentioned in the beginning. We can still seek Him today. But we are not always assured of another day, or another hour or minute. A car crash could take you out in an instant. Without Jesus at that moment means eternal death. He is always waiting for the next person to receive Him. You've heard the words "it's never too late". For Jesus it's never early enough. He wishes none to perish.
Have you heard these messages before? Have you shut your ears and heart to them? Maybe you've not heard. I was offended when I first heard. But God softened my heart through a trial. Consider the words. Jesus is the way, truth and life; no one goes to the Father apart from Him. Like I said before, we are all considered wicked and separated from God until we have made the choice to seek Him with all our heart. Seek the LORD while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, and He will have mercy on him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon. (Isaiah 55:6)
Where will you spend eternity? Where do you want to?
Where will you spend eternity? Where do you want to?
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