Heaven Can Be Yours
Robert A. Glass
Just the word HEAVEN tickles the tongue. It is the ULTIMATE goal of EVERY Christian, the ULTIMATE
“I Go” is found 58 times in the bible. There are two things involved in, “I Go”. There is SOMEONE and there is SOMEWHERE. (Go, ends up somewhere.) In (John 14:2), Jesus said, “In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you, and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
Isn’t it Just WONDERFUL to know that HEAVEN can be your home. Jesus is gone to Heaven on a mission, “To prepare a PLACE for you.” Heaven is truly a PREPARED place for a PREPARED people.
Adam and Eve had the Garden of Eden, as close to Heaven as Heaven itself. God asked them, “Hast thou eaten of the tree,” (Gen 3:11), God said “Because thou hast done this,” Three things have happened. 1. Sin has entered the world. 2. God knew their eyes would be opened, and they would know good and evil. 3. They would be removed from the Garden of Eden. Man became unprepared for Heaven.
Heaven Has NO sin and Adam and Eve had become sinners. (Deuteronomy 10:14) “Behold, the heaven, and the heaven of heavens is the LORD’S thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is.”
Man had sinned and alienated himself from God.
(Romans) 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: (Romans 3:23) “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. Adam & Eve lost the Garden of Eden and death entered the world. THIS WAS A SAD DAY!
But ALL was NOT LOST! God had a plan for your life. The VERY KEYNOTE OF THE BIBLE explains the plan. (John 3:16) "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." A
God LOVED and GAVE
For Heaven to be our home, we must be saved. The Prison Guard, who bound Paul and Silas, asked the perennial question. “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:30) Of ALL the questions a man can ask this is #1. This question even TRUMPS “Will YOU marry me?” Marry me is a man’s life, to be saved is a MAN’S SOUL!
Nobody is special. I’m not perfect and neither are you. In (Romans 3:23), Paul tells us, "For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." And SIN HAS A PRICE. (Romans 6:23) "For the wages of sin is death..." We did not deserve Heaven, we deserved to die. But Christ DIED in our place, that WE might be saved. (Romans 5:7-8) “For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
Jesus became our atonement for sin. (Romans 5:11) “And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.”
ATONEMENT is an interesting word made UP of 3-words.
AT-ONE-MENT is the act of being “AT-ONE” with God. Christ put us back to a One-on-One relationship by offering himself as the sacrifice for our sins. (John 1:29) “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” Heaven can be yours because Jesus has opened the door. (John 14:6) “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” (Matt 1:21) “And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.” Peter knew it! (Matt 16:16) And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. (Philippians 2:5-8) “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” HEAVEN CAN BE YOURS BECAUSE CHRIST DIED ON THE CROSS!
The Way Heaven can be yours is SIMPLE.
1. We have to hear the word of God. Not just the nouns and verbs but hear and understand what is being taught. Romans 10:17, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” So it’s not just hearing, but it’s hearing the word of God.
2. Do you believe in Christ? Devils do. (James 2:19) “Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.” So, Belief is NOT enough. (Acts 16:31) “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” (John 8:24) “For except ye believe that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.” I don’t want to DIE IN SIN, DO YOU? We have to believe. (Heb 11:6) “For he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. HEAVEN CAN BE YOURS IF YOU DILIGENTLY SEEK HIM.
3. We all have sinned, and we have to repent of those sins. To repent is to make a conscious decision to stop sinning. There is remorse for the wrongs we have committed, but remorse is not enough. (Being sorry you got caught is not the same as sorry you did it!) (Lu 13:3 & 5) “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish. (Acts 17:30) “And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:” (Acts 3:19) "Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing might come from the Lord." This isn’t Rocket Science; this is simple Math, REPENT or PERISH.
4. We must confess the name of Jesus. (Matt 10:32-33) “Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.” If I confess Christ HERE, He will confess ME, UP YONDER? Sounds GOOD to me! If we deny Christ, He will deny us. (Matt 7:23) “And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”
5. We MUST be baptized. Mt 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: (1 Peter 3:21 “The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:”
6. IT MIGHT BE that you’re a member of the Body of Christ and your life is not what it should be. Every adult person in this room has made mistakes. So, don’t feel alone. THERE IS FORGIVENESS FOR ANY SIN! (James 4:8) “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.” (James 4:10) “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.” (James 5:16) “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
7. (James 4:13-14) “Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.”
On March 22, 2011, my wife Beth laid down to go to sleep. Her last words to me were “Goodnight Hon’ I’ll see you in the morning!) Sometime during the night, ETERNITY HAPPENED; Beth suffered a Heart attack in her sleep and died. She had EVERY intention of seeing me the next morning. SHE SAID SO! But ETERNITY HAPPENED!
HEAVEN CAN BE YOURS, if you are willing to Hear, Believe, Repent, Confess, and be Baptized. Heaven can be yours if you are willing to make your life RIGHT with God!
The Lesson is yours; The invitation is yours, come NOW as together we stand and sing!
