Lies We Believe #25: Everybody Goes to Heaven
"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. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”—Matthew 7:13-14
Perhaps the greatest lie believed today by many who call themselves Christians is that everybody goes to heaven. For those who espouse this view, they choose to focus on God’s love so much as to neglect His holiness and justice. The Bible is clear—only some will be saved. The gate by which we must travel is narrow and hard. It’s not easy, and the life we live is difficult and wrought with trials and tribulations, but for those who take the path of Christ, there awaits eternal salvation in His presence. And for those who reject Him and take the path of least resistance awaits an eternity that makes the bravest cower in fear.
Mark Dever, pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C., describes teaching at a conference and talking about who God is when a man from the crowd raised his hand and said, “I prefer to not think of God that way. I like to think of His love, benevolence and goodness rather than His justice and wrath.” Dever responded, “Thank you for that. But, enough about you, let’s talk about who God is.” Dever was right. It doesn’t really matter what we think about God because our thoughts of God don’t change who He is one iota.
We must place ourselves and our thinking in line with what He has already revealed of Himself through His Holy Word, and according to the Scriptures, God is unmistakably a God of love, justice, holiness, and wrath. Does everybody go to heaven? No. Would a good God send some to hell? Undeniably, yes. God is not beholden to us. He can do whatever He wants to do and is fully within His right to do so.
The fact is, we deserve hell. We prefer not to think about it that way, but it’s true. We are disobedient, rebellious, selfish, and evil at our core. The problem is that we prefer to think of ourselves as pretty good and that in the end our good deeds will outweigh our bad deeds, but that is popular thinking and is nowhere near the God of the Bible. The Bible is very clear. Christ is the only way of salvation (Acts 4:12; John 14:6)—no exceptions.
The road to eternal life is very narrow and few find it, but the path to eternal death is broad and most of the world is headed that way. Only those who have trusted in Christ’s substitionary death by faith are saved. No one else will be. It doesn’t matter how “good” you have been, because the fact of the matter is that even our so-called “righteous deeds” are in actuality “filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6).
I have stood at the casket at several funerals and preached a great deal of sermon messages. And more often than not I know that the person is not in heaven, despite what the family prefers to think. How do I know? Because the Bible tells me so and their life revealed a heart that had not been transformed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I don’t mean to sound cruel or judgmental; after all, I don’t know their heart, God does. Nevertheless, I do know that, according to God’s Word, most will be in hell, and that the heart overflows with what is in it, “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks”—Matthew 12:34.
I also know that every sin will be judged. As the author of Hebrews wrote, “For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?”—Hebrews 2:2-3.
I also know that judgment is going to begin at the household of God and that many of us who have trusted in Christ will be “scarcely saved.” As Peter wrote, “For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And ‘If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?’"—1 Peter 4:17-18
And because I have never heard them espouse Christ, never saw God’s power at work in their lives, nor saw His fruit evidenced, I have concluded that they must be in hell. As Jesus said, “You will recognize them by their fruits”—Matthew 7:16.
I have stood in front of grieving families and told them that their loved one is not in heaven, while for others I say, “if your loved one was here today they would tell you that Jesus is the Savior of the world.” Because even though they are in hell, they know that Jesus reigns.
My approach may seem cruel to some, but what would be crueler—allowing them to believe a lie? If I were to say that that person is in heaven, then I would be calling God a liar. I would be saying His Word is a farce. And I would be valuing the individuals’ feelings in that room over God’s judgment through His Word to determine what is true. I can’t do it. My conscience won’t allow me. I want them to come to a saving knowledge of who Jesus is. I don’t want them to believe a lie. Hell is going to be a terrible and awful place.
Jesus spoke much and frequently about hell, and for me to say that the person is in eternity is like giving them a lollipop when they are dying of cancer. It may be that there is a bit of sweetness in my message, but it doesn’t stir the soul to consider the claims of the Lord of Life. When I preach a gospel message at a funeral I am letting them know that eternity is serious and our choices matter.
How many pastors have failed in their responsibility to preach the full counsel of God? How many of them have abdicated their duty to tell others what the Bible has claimed? May we hold fast to God’s Word despite whatever breeze of tolerance blows in our world, treasuring the testimony of Christ and the salvation of those who believe more than we do the feelings of those who are perishing! May God bring about the salvation of many who testify to Christ’s salvation! And may we, in eternity future, meet those who were saved through our proclamation during times of hardship, because we sought to honor God before honoring men! Amen.
Perhaps the greatest lie believed today by many who call themselves Christians is that everybody goes to heaven. For those who espouse this view, they choose to focus on God’s love so much as to neglect His holiness and justice. The Bible is clear—only some will be saved. The gate by which we must travel is narrow and hard. It’s not easy, and the life we live is difficult and wrought with trials and tribulations, but for those who take the path of Christ, there awaits eternal salvation in His presence. And for those who reject Him and take the path of least resistance awaits an eternity that makes the bravest cower in fear.
Mark Dever, pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D.C., describes teaching at a conference and talking about who God is when a man from the crowd raised his hand and said, “I prefer to not think of God that way. I like to think of His love, benevolence and goodness rather than His justice and wrath.” Dever responded, “Thank you for that. But, enough about you, let’s talk about who God is.” Dever was right. It doesn’t really matter what we think about God because our thoughts of God don’t change who He is one iota.
We must place ourselves and our thinking in line with what He has already revealed of Himself through His Holy Word, and according to the Scriptures, God is unmistakably a God of love, justice, holiness, and wrath. Does everybody go to heaven? No. Would a good God send some to hell? Undeniably, yes. God is not beholden to us. He can do whatever He wants to do and is fully within His right to do so.
The fact is, we deserve hell. We prefer not to think about it that way, but it’s true. We are disobedient, rebellious, selfish, and evil at our core. The problem is that we prefer to think of ourselves as pretty good and that in the end our good deeds will outweigh our bad deeds, but that is popular thinking and is nowhere near the God of the Bible. The Bible is very clear. Christ is the only way of salvation (Acts 4:12; John 14:6)—no exceptions.
The road to eternal life is very narrow and few find it, but the path to eternal death is broad and most of the world is headed that way. Only those who have trusted in Christ’s substitionary death by faith are saved. No one else will be. It doesn’t matter how “good” you have been, because the fact of the matter is that even our so-called “righteous deeds” are in actuality “filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6).
I have stood at the casket at several funerals and preached a great deal of sermon messages. And more often than not I know that the person is not in heaven, despite what the family prefers to think. How do I know? Because the Bible tells me so and their life revealed a heart that had not been transformed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I don’t mean to sound cruel or judgmental; after all, I don’t know their heart, God does. Nevertheless, I do know that, according to God’s Word, most will be in hell, and that the heart overflows with what is in it, “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks”—Matthew 12:34.
I also know that every sin will be judged. As the author of Hebrews wrote, “For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?”—Hebrews 2:2-3.
I also know that judgment is going to begin at the household of God and that many of us who have trusted in Christ will be “scarcely saved.” As Peter wrote, “For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And ‘If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?’"—1 Peter 4:17-18
And because I have never heard them espouse Christ, never saw God’s power at work in their lives, nor saw His fruit evidenced, I have concluded that they must be in hell. As Jesus said, “You will recognize them by their fruits”—Matthew 7:16.
I have stood in front of grieving families and told them that their loved one is not in heaven, while for others I say, “if your loved one was here today they would tell you that Jesus is the Savior of the world.” Because even though they are in hell, they know that Jesus reigns.
My approach may seem cruel to some, but what would be crueler—allowing them to believe a lie? If I were to say that that person is in heaven, then I would be calling God a liar. I would be saying His Word is a farce. And I would be valuing the individuals’ feelings in that room over God’s judgment through His Word to determine what is true. I can’t do it. My conscience won’t allow me. I want them to come to a saving knowledge of who Jesus is. I don’t want them to believe a lie. Hell is going to be a terrible and awful place.
Jesus spoke much and frequently about hell, and for me to say that the person is in eternity is like giving them a lollipop when they are dying of cancer. It may be that there is a bit of sweetness in my message, but it doesn’t stir the soul to consider the claims of the Lord of Life. When I preach a gospel message at a funeral I am letting them know that eternity is serious and our choices matter.
How many pastors have failed in their responsibility to preach the full counsel of God? How many of them have abdicated their duty to tell others what the Bible has claimed? May we hold fast to God’s Word despite whatever breeze of tolerance blows in our world, treasuring the testimony of Christ and the salvation of those who believe more than we do the feelings of those who are perishing! May God bring about the salvation of many who testify to Christ’s salvation! And may we, in eternity future, meet those who were saved through our proclamation during times of hardship, because we sought to honor God before honoring men! Amen.
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