What do you say at heavens door.

The story goes, you live a life that is amazingly well lived, you do your best, and trust god to do the rest, you, go to church every Sunday, irrespective if it was raining, snowing, freezing, sunny, or smoggy. You pay your tithe, and everytime you see someone you tell them about Jesus and the need to get saved. At the end of your life you reached the pearly gates of heaven, and an angel at the door asks you a question, "hello there! Welcome to the gateway, today you will be taking the exam, and according to how you answer, it will determine if you get to go to heaven, or you are going to hell., you ready for the exam?" You anxiously opens the paper. "what have you done that you think you can get to heaven?"

This is a question, I feel that we all need to prepare our exam for. What is it that will get us eternal life with God, or put it another way, what is it that will take us to hell? The answer to this is very revealing. You have to be absolutely honest to yourself. Because If you do not know the answer to this question now, you probably won't know the answer to it at the gate.

I have always thought that I was going to heaven, it was just natural, I mean I didn't murder nobody, I am a pretty good boy when I was young, and in a relative sense, I was very much at the 98 percentile on the good side, rather than the bad. Okay, I am no mother Teresa, nor Martin Luther King, but I am pretty high up there, after the elites, who knows I might become an elite one day.

This was when I was young. But then I heard the church message, and became a Christian, and knows that if I believe in Christ, he saves me! I am saved. I am going to heaven!!!!

All sounds good right? Yep, all is good until, you did something bad, something that you are not suppose to do, something you know it was wrong. Then its bad news, you are now feeling guilty and condemned. 

At that stage, I repent, repent in the sense that I am mega sorry for doing this wrong thing, and I ask forgiveness from Jesus, and he forgave me, and viola! I am back on the save side of Jesus! Sin taken care of, I am all good....

Well all good until the next sin that I commit, back in to guilt, back into condemnation, feeling sorry, feeling regretted, I ask God again for forgiveness, and viola! I am back in with God. But after the 60th time, doing the same sin, that forgiveness from God seems a little tiring if not for God, at least for me, how the hell do I fail so many times. then you say to God, God you know what, there is something wrong, before I ask you for forgiveness, I am going to contemplate about this, think Hard, do some reflection, so that when I do ask, I am going to be serious. so I stay in this sorryful state for a day or two, then goes to God, yep I am ready for your forgiveness. I repent, promise I won't do it again. all great until the next time I commit the same sin! Sounds familiar?

Okay here is the question? what will happen to me if I immediately died of a heart attack, or crossing the road and hit by a car. during one of these episodes of guilt treatment? Where do I end up? At heaven's gate, does the angel look at you and say, well hello Albert, you should have asked God for that forgiveness when you had the chance. Or lets think of another scenario, what about you were diligent in confessing all the sins that you think you did. But then there was one that you forgot, and you did not ask for forgiveness from God. where will you be? the angel points out to you, well Albert, all well done, except! you forgot about this one when you were young, you stole someone's pencil because it had mickey mouse on it, and you really liked it. unconfessed sin buddy. 

Put your hand up if you had been through these thoughts, If you have had such questions before, welcome to Christianity as many may call it. So if you were one of the above, what will your answer be at the exam?

1) well I think God sees that I tried, and did my best, he will judge.

2) well Jesus saves me right, I have tried my best to follow his commandment. I guess I will be okay God is to judge?

With both those answers, you are not really sure what is going to happen 100% ? Being truthful, are you sure you have tried your BEST? what if you did a relative best? what will happen? you are 99% sure, or even 99.9% sure. But that is in fact a oxymoron. "Sure" by definition is not a relative, its a 100% thing. and 99.9% is not 100%. do you get the magnitude of this problem. Holy! Even if you did your best, you might not even be going to heaven. after all God is the Judge and he is love, holy, but Also JUST! 

JUST!!

22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?

23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. 

Matt 7:22-23

Scary stuff, this scripture. That better not be me! but who knows, it might be me, they prophesied, they casted out devils and did many wonderful works. But more so if they did all these and can't get in. because they might have a wrong heart, who is to say I have a perfect Heart for God. my chances are probably not even 99.9%.. 

Ladies and Gentlemen. I hope I have not brought to you a frightful picture. But if I did! don't worry, I did it for a good cause. I bear good news. The above perspective is not a biblical way of what God is saying. I have the answer for the exam that will guarantee a pass at heaven's gate!

And here it is!

—¹⁶ For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. ¹⁷ For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
—¹⁸ “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
—John 3:16-18

Whoever believes in Him, will have everlasting life. He who believes is not condemned. Here is the truth right here. Just in case you don’t see it. The criterion is you believe. You may say. This is a waste of time, you are telling me nothing new. Well I am, if you are not sure of your salvation, it is because you do not believe. But if you do believe, it is a 100% pass! If you are believing “you might get Eternal life.” You are not believing the above because there is a doubt inside you, and as such you do not literally believe in what is written in John 3:16!

But what about the people spoken of in Matt 7:22-23? They did all the miracles, they weren’t sure, in fact they were surprised? What about them? Well they are probably not going to make it. I feel sad for them, and so does God. But see this profound truth.

Thank God, these people aren’t us, if we believe in John 3:16. Then, there is not a possible way that we don’t get eternal life. I am not basing my salvation on my action or inaction, but I am basing it on God and his promise. A God who is ever faithful, not a liar, never goes back on his word. (more qualifications is needed on this, will post in another post). I am trusting in what he said he will carry through, and when he said it he meant it, he has the intention, but more so than this, he has the ability to bring it to pass.

But what about if I believe, but I did some really bad stuff, and I didn’t ask for forgiveness, in fact I have unforgiveness! Its not something I forgot, but I intentionally don’t want to repent? Oh no! what will happen?  

The question to you is, will this make the word of God void?

No? You are correct! It changes nothing!

What about if it was a maturity issue, when I was young I don’t know better, but now I have been a Christian for so long, I should know better, more is expected from me. Question again, does this make the word of God void? NO!

What about……

When you think deeper, you see the truth of this. It is not dependent on your action, or inaction, but it is based on the promise of God, and what God has already done. If you are the best person in the world, but you have sinned unless you believe in Jesus, wanting to, and able to, and having taken away your sins, you receive it by believing it, according to John 3:18 you are already condemned. But if you are the worst person in the world, and you have sinned the size of the Himalayas, and you didn’t even repent for all your sins, since they are so many, and you habitually still sin, but you believe that God meant what he said, and did what he did. You approach heaven’s gate. And you answer to the question:

"what have you done that you think you can get to heaven?"

And you say to the angle, I have not even done half the good that I can do, did more evil than I ever knew I could do, but I am going in, not on my own account, I go in because the dude behind you, said he if I believe in him, I am not condemned, but have eternal life. I am going in, on his ticket.

If this is your answer. Congratulations, get your party boots on, we are partying on the same floor! For eternity!