"These things have I written unto you..
..that ye may know that ye have eternal life.." - 1 John 5:13
You can know 100% sure that you will go to Heaven when you die. Here is what you need to know.
The Sin Problem - You must confess that you are a sinner.
"As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:" - Romans 3:10
The Bible is very clear that no one can truthfully say, "Well I've never sinned before." Another verse, Romans 3:23 tells us that, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." "All" means all and that's "all" that all means. You and I were born with a sin nature. No parent ever tries to teach their child how to lie, and yet we are all pretty good at it. We have a natural propensity to sin.
Perhaps you are thinking, "Well yes, I've sinned, but I'm pretty good now." Let me give you the good test..
Have you ever told a lie? - if so, that would make you a liar.
Have you ever stole anything (even if it was something small when you were little)? - well that would make you a thief.
Have you ever looked upon a person of the opposite sex with lust? - Jesus said if you think about lust you have already committed it in your heart and that you are guilty.
So by your own admission, you are a lying, thieving, adulterer at heart, and that only cover 3 of the 10 commandments.
So how about it? Would you be able to confess that you are a sinner?
The Love of God - Understand that God loves you.
"But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." - Romans 5:8
The word commendeth in that verse means that He gave his love toward you. Jesus Christ knew that we were sinners, yet because of the love of God, Christ died for us. When John the Baptist saw Jesus Christ, he could not help but proclaim, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world."
Jesus lived a perfect, sinless life, He did not deserve to die on a cross like He did. The reason He went willingly to the cross was because of the love that He has for you. It's been said many times and it is so true, if you were the only sinner on earth, Christ would have died for you.
You and I are God's creation. He desires for us to have a relationship like He had with Adam and Eve in the garden, but just like in their case, sin has crept in and driven a wedge between us and the love of God.
The Price for Sin - Realize that sin has a heavy price to pay.
"For the wages of sin is death;" - Romans 6:23
The Bible tells us that the wages of sin is death. Wages are what you receive for your actions. When you go to work, you expect to receive a paycheck. That is the fruit for your labor. The paycheck for sin according to the Bible is death. Now there are two types of death that the Bible refers to:
1. Physical death - This is where you stop breathing and your heart stops beating, you are physically dead.
2. Spiritual death- Spiritual death is separation from God because of sin. When Adam and Eve sinned in the garden they were thrown out from the presence of God. That was Spiritual death. When Jesus bore in His body all the sins of the world, the Father turned His back on his Son. He took our Spiritual death for us. If you die in your sins and do not have the forgiveness of God, you too will experience Spiritual death in the lake of fire.
So the wages or payment for your sin is spiritual death forever. It's a debt that you can never be good enough to repay God. Jesus Christ knew that, and that is why He took your place on the cross.
The Gift of Eternal Life - All you have to do is accept it.
"...but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." - Romans 6:23
The latter part of this verse clearly states that the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. You do not have to experience spiritual death, instead you can live forever with God in heaven.
In Ephesians we are told, "For by grace are ye save through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." You cannot earn your salvation through a good life, or baptism, or giving, or any other way. You must accept God's free gift of Salvation through His son Jesus Christ. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
It's called a gift. If I came to your house and brought a check to you for $1,000,000 (not likely, but go with the illustration) wouldn't you be excited? If you knew that I had the money, the check was good, and it's all yours, and all you had to do was cash it. Now let's say you put that check on your kitchen table and showed friends and family. You were so excited that you began to make plans and purchase things, but you never cashed the check, how much is the piece of paper worth on your kitchen table? The answer is nothing. You must take it to the bank and cash the check for any transaction to take place.
The same is true of the gift of God. Eternity in Heaven and escaping hell is worth far more than $1,000,000. A relationship with Jesus Christ is worth more than all the money in the world, but until you accept His payment for you on the cross, the promise of God is worth nothing to you.
How to accept the Gift of God
"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. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." - Romans 10:9-10
The verse gives two clear actions to accept the gift of salvation.
- Confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus
- To confess anything else than Christ for your salvation would offer no result. The Lord Jesus Christ is the only one who can save you, only He has power over sin and death and hell. When you confess the Lord Jesus with your mouth, it is an exclusive statement. You are claiming and identifying to God that only His Son Jesus Christ can save you.
- Believe in thine heart thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead
- Righteousness comes through belief; through faith in the promises of God. You must truly believe that the same power that raised Jesus from the dead can raise you from death to the saving of the soul.
What is it called when you talk to God (confess) from you heart? We call that prayer. The way you accept the gift of God, salvation, the cleansing of your sin is through prayer. It's a simple heart felt prayer to God asking Him in faith. I did this when I was 18 years old and it was the best decision I have ever made.
If you know right now that if God were to judge you based on your sin that you would be guilty, and it would be hell to pay, why not accept His free gift of salvation. You can pray anytime and anywhere and God will hear you. If your ready, you can accept his gift of salvation now. Talk to Him, He wants to hear your prayer.
If you have any questions or need someone to talk to regarding this please contact us. We would love to help in any way. Salvation is the most important choice anyone will either receive or reject. If you have received Christ please call or send me an email. I would love to rejoice with you!