Over the ages, many people have presented questions that they felt were very important. But I have a million-dollar question that is more important than any of them, and it has to do with your eternity. What will happen to you, and where will you go after death?
Will you go to Heaven or Hell or cease to exist? Many thoughts, ideas, and religions surround the possibilities of what happens to us after we die. Most people would say they would like to go to Heaven because it would be a good and joyful place to spend eternity. But don’t those who are good go there, and those who are bad go to Hell? I guess another million-dollar question would be, “are you good?”
Here is a quick test to see how good you are and, then again, how you may not be good. How many lies have you told in your lifetime? What people call fibs, half-truths, and white lies are still lies. Most people would freely admit they have told many lies throughout their lifetime. But, unfortunately, acting like this would make you a liar.
Have you ever stolen anything? It doesn’t matter how big or small; if it wasn’t yours, that is stealing. Some may say, “I have never stolen.” But you just admitted to lying. So I am not sure I would believe you. Besides, who hasn’t taken even a pen or something small, that wasn’t theirs? So if you have stolen, that would make you a thief.
Have you ever taken God’s name in vain? For example, this would be saying, “Oh my God,” in exasperation or “Jesus Christ” instead of using a curse word. Using God’s name as a curse word, or using it flippantly with no regard to the name you are using is very offensive to God. Could you imagine people using their mother’s name as a curse word? Most people would not dare because they respect their mothers. Yet, you have taken the Lord’s holy name and used it in the place of a filth word to express disgust. Speaking like this would make you a blasphemer.
Here is a hard one. Have you ever looked at someone with lust? Jesus said, “Whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” So it is not just those who commit adultery and fornication that are guilty, but those who also look with sexual intent in their heart.
If you have done these things, God sees you as a lying, thieving, blasphemous adulterer at heart. When you die, you will stand before God. He will judge you and find you guilty according to His Law. The Bible warns us that one day God will punish all liars, thieves, blasphemers, and the sexually immoral in a terrible place called Hell. I would not want you to go there.
Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 1 Corinthians 6:9-10
But God is not willing that any should perish. He doesn’t want that to happen to you, either. So you must understand that you are a sinner. You have fallen short of God’s standard. You have broken God’s Law, the Ten Commandments, which I have pointed out 4 of them to you.
But there is good news. God provided a way to forgive guilty sinners and still go to Heaven. Jesus paid your fine when He died on the cross. He shed His blood to pay for your sins, paying the penalty you deserve for your crimes against God because He is perfect and never sinned. He is the perfect Lamb of God sacrificed for the world’s sins. You may have heard this message before, but it is good to listen to it again.
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” John 3:16-18
After Jesus died, He rose from the dead after three days. He defeated sin and death for the forgiveness of your sins. He did all this for you if you are willing to accept His offer of salvation. Because of what Jesus did for you, God can legally dismiss your case in the courtroom of Heaven. If you believe in Him, repent of your sins, and follow Jesus as your savior, He will forgive you and grant you eternal life in Heaven.
Repentance means to turn away from your life of lies, thefts, lust, hatred, and dishonoring your parents. In retrospect, you will then obey the Lord God and His ways. Finally, trusting Jesus means putting your complete faith in Him like you would have faith in a pilot to fly a plane safely from one place to another. If you did not have faith, you would never get on the plane.
You must put your faith in Jesus and transfer your trust from your goodness, which is no goodness at all, to Jesus Christ. Have faith in Him that He has forgiven your sins and He will greet you in Heaven when you die. If you do this wholeheartedly and seek His righteousness, God promises never to leave or forsake you. He promises to give you a new heart and mind to follow His commands. To do good instead of evil and, in the end, give you a great reward in Heaven for your faith and service to Him.
Please consider this million-dollar question because today may be your last. There is no more critical issue than where your soul will spend eternity. Cry out to God, ask He to reveal Himself, and forgive you for your sins. Pick up a Bible and start reading the Book of John. If you seek God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, you will find Him, and He will answer you. If you desire to be saved and go to Heaven, repent, believe, and turn away from your old evil ways and turn to Jesus Christ. You will never regret your choice to accept His invitation to the family of God.
Jesus said, “If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the Gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? For what can a man give in return for his soul?” Mark 8:34-37
The Soul Sower 