How to go to Heaven
What Must I Do To Be Saved? - Acts 16:30
This question by the Philippian jailer is nothing new. Thousands of years ago, Job asked, "If a man dies, shall he live again?" (Job 14:14). And similar questions are still being asked today. Ecclesiastes 3:11 says that God has set eternity in our hearts and some of the deepest longings of the soul are reflected by questions like these. Fortunately, God has given us definite answers and we can know for sure how to go to heaven as we properly understand the things below.
1. God is holy and cannot look upon sin.
We begin with the nature of God. If we are to see our need for a Savior we must see things from His perspective. What we must first know is that God is a perfect and Holy Being Who cannot dwell with evil. "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God" (Revelation 4:8). "Thine eyes are too pure to approve evil, and Thou canst not look on wickedness with favor" (Habakkuk 1:13). "And nothing unclean . . . shall ever come into [the new Jerusalem]" (Revelation 21:27).
2. Man is sinful and separated from God.
As we understand the nature of God we must understand the nature of man. Here we see an immeasurable contrast. None live up to God's perfect standard of holiness because we are sinners and separated from Him. "There is none righteous, not even one" (Romans 3:10). "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). "But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God" (Isaiah 59:2).
3. Because God is just, man deserves both physical and spiritual death.
"God is a righteous Judge, and a God who has indignation every day" (Psalm 7:11). God's nature requires payment for sins committed, otherwise He would be no different than a corrupt judge who let a guilty criminal go free. The payment for sin is death: "For the wages of sin is death . . ." (Romans 6:23a). "And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire" (Revelation 20:15).
4. Man can never save himself, even through his good, religious works.
No one wants to face the judgment of God. Therefore, we naturally turn to what we think will appease Him - good works. The Bible teaches that good works can never make us acceptable to God. "And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment" (Isaiah 64:6). "He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy" (Titus 3:5).
5. Because God is love, He paid for man's sin by Jesus' death on the cross.
Man is in quite a predicament! He is guilty before God and can do nothing on his own to rectify it. Mercifully and graciously, God understood this dilemma. While God is just, the Bible also says that He is love (1 John 4:8). Knowing man's hopeless condition, God provided the payment for sin Himself. He sent His Son to die as a perfect Substitute for all who would trust in Him. "He was pierced . . . for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities . . . and by His scourging we are healed" (Isaiah 53:5). "And the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin" (1 John 1:7). "He made Him who knew no sin to become sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:21).
6. You must repent and trust in Christ alone to save you from your sins.
So what must we do? Instead of naturally turning to good works, we must supernaturally turn to Jesus Christ. Repentance involves change and when someone truly turns to Jesus Christ, he turns from sin and dead works. We must place our trust in Him alone to save us. "Repent . . . that your sins may be wiped away" (Acts 3:19). "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me" (John 14:6). "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe on His name" (John 1:12). "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus . . . we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by faith in Christ" (Galatians 2:16). "He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life" (1 John 5:12).
7. Salvation is a free gift which can only be received and never earned.
Since we can do nothing to earn salvation, we can only receive what God has done for us. Salvation is entirely the work of God from beginning to end. "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent" (John 6:29). "Being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus" (Romans 3:24). "But the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus" (Romans 6:23b). "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).
8. When someone trusts in Christ to save them, God gives assurance of salvation.
There is no greater peace of mind than knowing that you will spend eternity with God. This is not wishful thinking but a glorious reality for everyone who comes to saving faith in Christ. How good of God to give us this assurance, not that we may presume on His grace (Jude 4), but that we might live for His glory! "Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1). "There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1). "These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life" (1 John 5:13).
As we understand these things, we can understand the answer that Paul gave to the jailer: "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you shall be saved" (Acts 16:31)
Is this hope yours?
If not, it can be by sincerely and genuinely praying along these lines: "Dear God, I know that I am a sinner and deserve death and hell because of my sins. But I also know that Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay for my sins. I now repent and trust in Jesus Christ alone to save me and accept His work as full payment for my sins. I receive the free gift of eternal life as I receive Him as my Lord and Savior. Thank You for forgiving me and for giving me eternal life. Amen."
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