Will you go to Heaven? Are you sure? The Bible is very clear and instructs to “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.”
Many. Are you one of many or one of a few? Do you feel at home here on the Earth? Do you love the Earth? James 4:4 says “You adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever chooses to be a friend of the world renders himself an enemy of God.”
An enemy of God. The Bible goes further and says, “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.” Matthew 10:37. What? We are to love God more than our own flesh? Yes. “For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” Romans 8:13
Some people believe that the only requirement is a little prayer that invites Jesus into their heart. This is the point where I refuse to make a call on the destiny of a person’s soul yet the Bible has a few things to say that give me pause for thought.
In John 8:31-32 Jesus is teaching to the Jews who already believed in Him. He says, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
How about these, “So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:33
“By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.” John 15:8 So, we know that we need to hold to His teaching. How are we taught? Same as anything else. We learn by someone teaching us or by reading instruction. We read the Bible and draw towards people who are following after Jesus.
How do we know who is following Jesus? Many people judge God by people who call themselves Christians but are not. The Bible tells us how we will know true Christians, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore, by their fruits you will know them.” Matthew 7:15-20 “The fruit of His Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23
When people talk about God does it make you uncomfortable? We are told in Matthew 10:32-33, “Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father in heaven.…”
We confess or deny Jesus with the words we say. “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil. I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words, you will be condemned.”
Life and death are serious business. It is worthy of your time to consider the Words of God. Think of how much time we spend chasing the things of this world yet God tells us not to, that if we seek first His Kingdom first that He will add everything else to us. (Matthew 6:25-34) “For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” Matthew 16:26
Don’t be like the folks who we are told will have this sort of exchange with the Father… “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ Matthew 7:21-23
That is terrifying! Imagine thinking your whole life that you were doing the will of the Father and finding out you were merely being “virtuous” in a way that Satan delights in. He excels is twisting the Truth just enough to fool us. We must be educated in the Word and diligent in defending our minds.
My takeaway is that we repent of our sins, invite Jesus to be Lord of our lives. We humble ourselves, submit to His Lordship in all things. In order to follow Him we are required to know His voice and then actively seek after it!
Author: Janna Swanson
Janna Swanson helps her husband Paul farm in NW Iowa with their two young daughters. Since 2013 Janna has volunteered her time and energy for her community. She was a key member of the Preservation of Rural Iowa Alliance that protected landowners from the Rock Island Clean Line. From there she helped start and facilitated the grassroots group, The Coalition for Rural Property Rights to help protect community members from industrial wind installations. She is also a board member of National Wind Watch, a 25-year online collection of information of the industrial wind opposition from around the world. Most importantly Janna is a follower of Christ and seeks to help others to know and understand Him. Yet because she is also seeking deepening her own knowledge and understanding she welcomes critical, constructive debate. No one has the corner on truth, we all see “through a glass, darkly”. (I Corinthians 13:12)
