If you died today, where would you go?
Heaven or Hell?
Many would say that they think or hope they will go to Heaven because they are a “good person.”
Are YOU “good enough” to go to Heaven?
A little girl was once watching sheep grazing and thought how white they looked against the green background. But when it began to snow she thought, “The sheep now look dirty against the white snow!” It was the same sheep, but with a different background. When we compare ourselves to man’s standard we look pretty clean, but when we compare ourselves to the pure snow white righteousness of God’s standard, His moral Law, we can see ourselves in truth: that we are unclean in His sight.
If you were judged by the Ten Commandments would you be guilty of breaking them? Lets do a test and see:
Have you ever told a lie?
Then that makes you a liar. Even if it is a small one, you have broken God’s commandment. The Bible says that “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord” (Proverbs 12:22) The Bible warns us that all liars will have their part in the Lake of Fire (Rev. 5:5)
Have you ever stolen anything?
Have you ever taken something that isn’t yours, regardless of its value? This includes stealing an answer on a test, taking a pen from work, even keeping extra change that you know isn’t rightfully yours. If you have taken anything that isn’t yours, then you are a thief and you cannot enter God’s kingdom. (1 Cor. 6:9,10)
Have you ever taken God’s name in vain?
Ever used God’s holy name as a curse word? That’s called blasphemy, the Bible says that “The Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain” (Ex. 20:7)
Have you ever committed adultery?
Who of us can say that we are pure of heart? Jesus said that “Whosoever looks at a woman to lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matt. 5:28) Have you ever looked with lust? We are told that the impure, fornicators and adulterers will not enter into the kingdom of God (1 Cor. 6:9,10)
If you have broken even ONE of these commandments then you cannot enter God’s kingdom, and those are only four of them.
You be the judge. On judgment day, will you be innocent or guilty? I’m not judging you, I’m asking you to judge yourself before the Day of Judgment. All of us have sinned, and just as with man’s law, you only have to break one law to be guilty. The Bible warns us that “For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all” (James 2:10)
But, you say, “I believe that God is good and loving and will overlook my faults” Do you know what you just did? you just broke the second commandment! “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image” which means we shouldn’t make a god to suit ourselves. Either with our hands or with our mind. By saying “my god is a loving god who would never send anyone to hell” or something along that line, you are creating your own god! A god that fits your life style and that makes you feel comfortable.
God is good, that is the exact reason He must punish you and everyone else who have sinned, because He is a just God.
Imagine this, you are guilty of terrible crimes in a civil court and said to the judge, “Judge, I am guilty, but I believe you are a good man and will therefore overlook my crimes,” the judge would probably respond by saying, “You are right about one thing; I am a good man, and it’s because of my goodness that I am going to see that justice is done, that you are punished for your crimes.” The very thing many people are hoping will save them on judgment day, God’s goodness, is the very thing that will condemn them. If God is good, He must punish murderers, liars, thieves, etc., and God’s place of punishment is the “prison” of Hell.
You are a sinner and are headed for Hell, does that concern you? It should. You can never be “good enough” to get to Heaven, not even if you decide from here on out to clean up your lifestyle and follow God’s commandments. Ask yourself this, should a judge let a murderer go because he says he will now live a good life? No; the criminal is in debt to justice and therefore must be punished. Same with you and I, no good deeds of ours can ever make up for our sins. “Well” you say, “I didn’t know it was wrong when I did those things”. God has given everyone a conscience, to show us what is right and wrong. “Conscience” means “with knowledge,” so isn’t it true that every time you lied, stole, etc., you did it with knowledge that it was wrong? Of course!
So you ask, “Then what can I do to be saved!?”
Do you know what God did for you?
Let’s go back to the court room; you are standing in front of a judge, guilty of very serious crimes. All the evidence has been presented and there is no doubt about your guilt. The fine is $1,000,000 or life imprisonment, but you haven’t two pennies to rub together. The judge is about to pass sentence… he lifts his gavel, when someone you don’t even know steps in and pays the fine for you. Justice has been served, the law satisfied, and you are now free to go. What’s more, the one who paid your fine showed how much he cares for you. His payment was evidence of his love.
That is what God did for you, 2,000 years ago. He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to pay your fine. The penalty for sin is death, Jesus Christ died on the cross for you and me. He took your place on the cross so that you could have life! “For the wages of sin is death,” (Rom. 6:23) “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.” (John 3:16) God loves you so much He sent His Son to suffer and die in YOUR place. Three days later He arose from the dead, defeating death. His sacrificial death and resurrection mean that you need no longer be in debt to the Law, and God can now grant you everlasting life if you obey the gospel.
“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.” (Rom. 10.9)
Turn from your sins and put your faith in Jesus Christ in the same way you would put your faith in a parachute to save you. You don’t just “believe” it will benefit you, you actually entrust your life to it by putting it on. The Bible says “put on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 13:14). When you do that, God will forgive every sin you’ve ever committed and grant you the gift of eternal life. “For by grace are you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Eph. 2:8-9)
Don’t put it off! You may not have tomorrow. Did you know that 150,000 people die every 24 hours? That could be you. Would you sell an eye for a million dollars? How about both for $20 million? No one in his right mind would. Your eyes are priceless to you, yet they are merely the windows of your soul. Your life (your soul) is of such value that Jesus said that you should despise the value of your eye in comparison. He said that if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you, for it is better to enter Heaven blind, than go to Hell with both your eyes. In other words, of all the things that you should prioritize in your life, its not your health, your vocation, etc – its your eternal salvation. So don’t put it off until it is too late. For who knows what the future will bring? Put your faith completely in Jesus Christ, admit to God you are a sinner and ask Him to save you.
So if you died today, would you go to Heaven or Hell?
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