“Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” – John 3:3
An Internet search of “how to get to heaven” yields thousands – if not millions – of results. Some of these results teach that, to obtain eternal life, man must cease from his sinful ways, repeat a prayer, make Jesus Christ his “Lord”, and invite Him into his heart. Others, that he must join a church, be baptized, and keep its sacraments. Others still, that he must pledge himself henceforth to the cause of “religion” and live a life of rigid self-denial. Doubtless much disquiet arises by these divers plans of salvation, leaving the hapless searcher in a state of utter confusion. “Which is the way to Heaven?” he fretfully inquires, overwhelmed by the volumes of contradictory paths to Paradise he has summoned by the stroke of a keyboard.
God is not the author of confusion (1 Corinthians 14:33). He speaks in these last days by His Son (Hebrews 1:2), Whose name is called the Word of God (Revelation 19:16). And though the contradictory words of mortal men may fail in answering that age-old question stated above, the Holy Scriptures shall ever be the source to which inquiring minds may turn – the source not sullied by the errors which typify human reasoning; the source which can never be broken (John 10:35) nor false (John 5:32). Men are to “search the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me” (John 5:39). Now, dear reader, allow me to use the Word of God – the King James Bible – to elucidate this crucial matter of salvation.
WHAT SAITH THE SCRIPTURE?
YOU ARE A SINNER
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)
“As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one.” (Romans 3:10)
“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6)
THERE IS PUNISHMENT FOR SIN
“For the wages of sin is death…” (Romans 6:23a)
“Wherefore, as by one man, sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.” (Romans 5:12)
“The soul that sinneth, it shall die…” (Ezekliel 18:20a)
“And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the Lake of Fire.” (Revelation 20:15)
“In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2nd Thessalonians 1:8)
JESUS CHRIST PAID THE PENALTY FOR YOUR SINS
“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)
“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. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” (John 3:16-17)
“But God commended his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)
“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners…” (1 Timothy 1:15)
“Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.” (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)
“Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” (1 Peter 2:18-19)
YOU GO TO HEAVEN BY FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST AS SAVIOR
“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:” – John 1:12
“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth upon him.” – John 3:36
“For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:26)
“…Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…” (Acts 16:31)
“Jesus saith unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.” (John 11:25)
“And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.” (1 John 5:11-12)
“But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.” (John 20:31)
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
A SUMMARY
Let us suppose you stand before a judge. “You have broken the law,” the judge declares, “and those who break this law are to be executed. I therefore sentence you to death.” Oh, the horror! You have committed a crime, and you are to die as punishment for having done so. Now, you may implore the judge to change his mind, avowing to make amends and never violate the law hereafter, but your pleas are in vain. What is done is done; you are guilty, this is the punishment which has been meted out for your crime, and you are entirely powerless to escape it. Only a pardon can save you from receiving this penalty.
Such is the sordid lot which concerns all of humanity. “The law” mentioned above is an allegory for God’s holy law – the Old Testament law of Moses – and sin is the transgression of this law (1 John 3:4). As the punishment for the crime in the above paragraph is death, so too the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). This includes not only physical death (Romans 5:12), but a second death resulting in eternal punishment in the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:14-15, 21:8). As all – yourself included – have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23), there is none righteous (Romans 3:10), and therefore none – not one – who can escape this wretched fate. You can make a commitment to reform your life; you can pledge to turn from your sins; and you can declare your intention to obey God’s every command, but these are futile endeavors, for no matter how sincerely, or earnestly, or diligently you labor to escape this condemnation, you cannot. You have nothing to offer the righteous Judge but your filthy rags of self-righteousness (Isaiah 64:6), which are wholly incapable of placating His wrath. He that believeth not is condemned already (John 3:18), and but for a pardon, you await eternal damnation.
But a pardon is available, dear reader, for though God abhors your sins, He loves you more than words can express. To receive this pardon, you need righteousness – not your own righteousness, which is of the law, but the righteousness of Jesus Christ. For Christ – the only begotten Son of God – gave Himself as your substitute at Calvary, taking upon Him all your iniquities and paying for them all with His precious blood. After He perished upon the cross, He was buried and triumphantly rose from the dead three days later, forever conquering sin and death. This is the Gospel, as defined by 1 Corinthians 15:1-4. Therefore, if, for salvation, you believe the Gospel – trusting no longer what you do or not do, but what Jesus did, believing His once-for-all sacrifice is all that is necessary to pay your sin debt, you will go to Heaven when you die. By trusting Christ as your Savior, you have been born again. You now are indwelt by the Holy Spirit; your sins have been forever washed away by the blood of Christ; and His righteousness has been imputed to your account, so that God the Father no longer sees your feeble self-righteousness and sin, but the righteousness of His Son. You stand guilty no longer, and may joyously declare the beautiful melody of that glorious verse, “He that believeth on him is not condemned!”
In Conclusion
Salvation is not found in religion; it is found in Jesus Christ. To go to Heaven, you need only to know you are a sinner who deserves to go to hell because of your sins and is incapable of saving yourself in any way, and believe that Christ died for your sins, was buried, and bodily resurrected on the third day. You do not need to commit your life to God and turn over a new leaf to receive eternal life. You do not need to make Jesus your “Lord” and invite Him into your heart to receive eternal life. You do not need to be baptized, join a religion, and do good works to receive eternal life. No, dear reader, to receive eternal life, you do not need to do anything but BELIEVE, for “to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness” (Romans 4:5).