How to know you are on your way to Heaven.
1. You must know there is a God.
“…he that cometh to God must believe that he is…” (Hebrews 11:6)
“So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.” (Romans 14:12)
2. You must know that you are a sinner.
“For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)
Sin is doing something God said not to do, or not doing something God said to do. Sin is an offense against God. We are all in trouble with God, because we are all sinners.
3. You must know there is a penalty for sin.
“For the wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23a)
Many people feel they will go to Heaven because they do more good than bad. Others believe that because they have been baptized, they will go to Heaven when they die. Still others are trusting in their church for eternal life. But the Bible says that Christ is the only way to Heaven. Salvation is not by works. He saves us. A person who tries to get to Heaven any other way will face God’s penalty for sin—eternal separation from God in the lake of fire.
4. You must know that the Lord Jesus Christ paid the penalty for your sin. He died on the cross, shed His precious blood, and rose from the grave.
“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)
Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. After living a sinless life on this earth, the Lord Jesus went to the cross, where He bled and died for our sins. After three days and three nights in the grave, He arose, proving that He is God and that He has power over sin, Satan, and death. The wages of sin is death. Jesus paid the wages of sin for us.
5. You must know that you need to accept His payment for your sins.
“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23)
A gift is free. Eternal life is not anything we can earn; it is something we accept. Romans 6:23 gives two choices. We can pay for our sin ourselves by dying and going to Hell, or we can accept God’s gift of eternal life, and go to Heaven when we die. Romans 10:13 tells us how to accept God’s wonderful gift of eternal life. “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” To be saved, a person must be saved from something. If you were drowning, and someone threw you a rope, you would say that he had saved you from drowning. When you pray and trust the Lord Jesus Christ to forgive your sin and be your Saviour, He saves you from the penalty of sin and eternal death in the lake of fire. Will you trust the Lord Jesus Christ to be your Saviour? Will you rely on Him alone to forgive your sin and give you everlasting life in Heaven? If so, pray the following prayer from your heart to God, placing your trust in Him.
“Lord, I admit that I’m a sinner. I do not deserve to go to Heaven, but I believe that you sent your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for my sin. I trust Him, and Him alone, to forgive my sin, to become my Saviour, and to take me to Heaven when I die. Thank you for saving me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
If you placed your to trust in Jesus Christ as your Saviour after reading this, please let us know via e-mail. We would love to hear from you!