Can You Know for Sure You’re Going to Heaven?
We love to tell the story — to tell others how you can be sure of heaven when you die. All of us realize that someday, somehow, somewhere, we’re going to die. And then what? Job 14:10 says, “This man dies. He wastes away. He gives up the spirit. And where is he?” That’s a question for all of us to ponder, and here’s the truth: we can know for sure. We can know for absolute certainty where we’ll be after we die.
So many people say, “Well, I hope so. I think so. I’m trying to be sure.” But you could go out of this building tonight assured — not because of anything we can do, but because of the promises of God. God’s word, His promises, never fail. God, who promised, cannot lie. So we must rest on the word of God, the truth of the word of God.
He wants you to know that if you’ll trust His Son, you can have peace. You can have the forgiveness of sins. You can go home tonight, put your head on your pillow, and say, “No matter what happens to me, I’m sure that I’ll be with the Lord in heaven forever and ever.” That’s worth having. There’s nothing in this whole world — no amount of money — that can buy that kind of joy and peace and assurance. But you can have it free. The free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
God’s Word Never Fails
There’s one more verse I want to mention before we read a couple of scriptures — the words of the Lord Jesus Himself, recorded in several of the gospels. He said, “Heaven and earth will pass away.” Not that they might — they will. The Bible speaks of a time when heaven and earth will be destroyed. But He says, in spite of that, “My word will never pass away.” Even everything we know, everything we can see physically — even if it’s gone — God’s word will never change and will never disappear. It’s totally dependable. And we invite you to trust the only Saviour of sinners.
Sin Has Separated Us From God
Isaiah 59 — Your Iniquities Have Separated You from God
Let’s take time to read a couple of scriptures. The first is found in Isaiah, chapter 59. The chapter begins with the Lord saying, “Look — the Lord’s arm is not shortened, that it cannot save.” In other words, the arm of the Lord isn’t too short or too weak to save. He is able to save to the uttermost all who come to Him through the Lord Jesus. He’s able to save, and He’s not deaf — His ear isn’t too heavy to hear. So if there’s a soul here tonight who will cry out to God, God hears that cry. God hears that prayer.
But verse two begins with the word but. “But your iniquities have made a separation between you and God” (Isaiah 59:2).
Psalm 49 — No One Can Ransom Their Own Soul
Turn back to the book of Psalms — Psalm 49, verse 7. It says none can by any means — in other words, there is no way that anyone can redeem his brother, or give to God a ransom, a payment for him. The redemption of their soul is precious, and no amount of payment is ever enough. Nothing a man or a woman can do is ever enough to ransom a soul.
How Can a Sinner Be Made Right With God?
Let’s move to the New Testament, to the book of Luke — Luke chapter 18, verse 13. By way of background: two men went to the same place of worship, and both men prayed, but their prayers were very different. One man told God all the wonderful things about himself — “Lord, aren’t I great, and I’m not so bad as that guy over there.” The other man wouldn’t even look up. He wouldn’t raise his head. He beat on his chest, rotten with guilt, and cried out these simple words: “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.”
Jesus said about that man that he went home to his house cleared of all charges — he went home safe, on the way to heaven. The other man went home exactly the way he came: full of himself, full of pride.
Justified by Faith — Romans 5:1
One more passage — Romans chapter 5, verse 1. There are a number of ways this verse has been translated, but I like this rendering for its simplicity. Paul is writing to Christians, and he says, “Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God.” Notice — someone else does something for this person. It’s not because of what we’ve done, not because of our prayers, not because of our religion, not because of our church membership, not because of our baptism. None of those will get you to heaven. None. Read from Genesis 1:1 to the very last verse of Revelation 22, and you won’t find any of those there — only what Jesus Christ our Lord has done.
It’s Who You Are, Not What You’ve Done
The “No Girls Allowed” Illustration
Some of you may recognize this old Saturday Evening Post cover — the treehouse with the sign that reads “No Girls Allowed.” Not to be outdone, the girls have their own sign: “No Boys Allowed.”
Here’s what I want you to notice: it isn’t because any of them did something to each other that they’re forbidden to come in. It’s not because of what they did — it’s because of who they are. “You’re a boy, you can’t come in here.” “You’re a girl, you can’t come in here.” Because of who they are.
I want you to understand something we’ll come back to: yes, we have sinned — we have done things against God, because all sin is against God. But it goes deeper than that. It’s who we are. We are sinners. It’s our nature to sin.
Gina’s Story — Try Not Sinning for One Day
I remember being out in Iowa for a children’s meeting. There was a young lady partway back in the hall, and I asked the group, “Has anyone here ever tried not to sin for just one day?” I didn’t expect anyone to raise their hand, but a young lady named Gina did. I said, “Gina, you tried that?” She said, “Yeah.” I asked, “How’d it go?” Her eyes got big, and she said, “I can’t stop sinning for even one day.”
Neither can you. Neither can I. It’s our nature. It’s who we are.
Do You Have the Ticket to Heaven?
Many of you have been to an airport. Picture the gate agent standing by the door to the jet bridge. All the passengers are waiting to board, but they have to pass her first. Notice what she’s looking at — not the passengers themselves, but the ticket. It’s the same on a train: the conductor isn’t really looking at the individuals — he’s checking whether they have the right ticket.
You might say, “I don’t read about tickets in the Bible.” Fair enough — but think of it this way, because God has provided a way in. As the old hymn puts it, “My passport, my ticket to the realms of bliss, is Jesus died for me.” We’ll come back to that.
So my question to you is: do you have the ticket to heaven? You might say, “Well, I’m baptized.” That’s not a ticket — it doesn’t work that way. The Lord doesn’t look at you and say, “Oh, you’re baptized, okay, come in.” No. What He sees in you and in me is our sin. And our sin, as we’ve already read, makes a separation between us and God. The only acceptable ticket is this: Jesus died for me.
Access Because of Who You’re With
When COVID hit — and this is just an example — a lot of buildings got shut down, and government and military buildings especially had very heavy security. Some of that security is a lot worse than barbed wire; you look at it and think, I’m not getting in there. And if that doesn’t stop you, there are guards who will make sure you don’t get in.
You might say, “But I’m not a bad person, I have no evil intent.” Doesn’t matter — you’re still not getting in. But the next day, you come to that same building with somebody else — say, the CEO of the company in the penthouse. You walk up, the same guard is at the door, and this time, access is granted. Why? Because of who you’re with. Because of that person — because of him, or because of her — I have access.
Christ, the Only Way
John 14:6
That’s the way it is with heaven. You’ve already heard this verse tonight from my brother Brandon — John 14:6, where Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to heaven except by Me.” He is the only way to heaven.
1 John 5:12 — Whoever Has the Son Has Life
Near the end of our Bibles, in 1 John, we read: “Whoever has the Son has life” (1 John 5:12). When was it, in your own experience, that you trusted the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Saviour because you needed the forgiveness of sin? When did that happen? If you can’t point to that — if it’s never happened in your experience — you’re in danger, because all sin must be, and will be, punished. All sin. Nothing escapes the eye and the accountability of a holy God.
Acceptance With God
I want to spend the rest of this message on the subject of acceptance with God. We’ve already read about the denial of that acceptance — your iniquities have made a separation. God can save you, God hears you — but there’s a problem you have to face and deal with: your sins have made a separation between you and your God.
God longs for you to be with Him — with all of His heart, at an infinite price. He wants you with Him in heaven. But your sins have to be dealt with first.
The Fall — Genesis 3
God’s Command About the Tree
Remember what happened in the garden? Some people say, “Well, I try to keep the Ten Commandments.” God didn’t start with ten — there are actually over 600 commands in Scripture — but He started with one: “Don’t eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for in the day you eat of it, you will surely die.” Nothing confusing about that. It’s as clear as could be: don’t eat the fruit.
As Adam and Eve looked at the fruit of that tree — Adam was right there with her — the enemy said, “You won’t die.” That directly contradicted what God had said. Sadly, they believed the lie. They took the fruit.
And do you know what’s happening in our world today, by the tens of thousands, perhaps millions? People are believing the same lie: be a good person, go to church, get baptized, keep the Ten Commandments, say your prayers, pay your dues. All lies.
What happened to Adam and Eve as a result? Because of their sin, they were separated from the God who wanted them with Him forever — and that’s exactly where you and I stand because of our sin. It’s telling that Adam and Eve tried to fix it themselves. They ran from the presence of God. They knew they had sinned against Him and disobeyed His command, so they hid and sewed fig leaves together to cover their nakedness.
“Adam, Where Are You?”
God came to the garden that day and called out, “Adam, where are you?” — not because He didn’t know, but Adam was hiding. Why? He was afraid.
My friend, as Brandon told you earlier, we’re not in the business of trying to scare people. But if there’s anyone you should fear, it’s a holy, righteous God. The proverb says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” — that’s not a bad thing. God will punish us. He will bring on us the consequences of our sins. That’s exactly what happened to Adam and Eve.
Coats of Skin — the First Sacrifice
Genesis 3 tells us the Lord God made something for them. He wasn’t satisfied with the fig-leaf covering they’d made for themselves. So He made them clothing out of animal skins — and you don’t make clothing out of skins without that animal dying. Maybe it was an animal they’d held, fed, even named. I imagine Eve watching in horror, thinking, “What have I done? I can’t go back and change it now.” That little animal hadn’t done anything wrong, and it died. Its blood was shed so that God could provide an atonement — a covering.
Every single human being in history, apart from the Lord Jesus Christ, has been affected by what happened in that garden about 6,000 years ago.
Banished from the Garden
As a result, Adam and Eve were banished from the garden. They could no longer be accepted there. My friend, if you die in your sins, you cannot be in heaven. There’s only one way to get rid of your sins — and it’s through Christ alone.
What the Law Can and Cannot Do
As I said last night, we’re not trying to gain members for this church — that’s not why we’re here. We just want to tell you the truth, and sometimes the truth hurts. My brother was talking earlier about a doctor delivering bad news — it’s never pleasant for the doctor to say it. But in order to help you, I have to give you the bad news first: our sin has made a separation between us and our God.
Here’s the second point: people try, and try, and try for acceptance with God. But our verse already told us — nobody can, by any means, give a payment to God sufficient to ransom themselves. There’s no resource we have in and of ourselves.
So — how can we know the way? Do you know for sure that you’re going to be in heaven when you die? You can. Jesus said, as we’ve already quoted, “I am the way… no one comes to the Father except by Me.”
Twice over, in Proverbs 14 and 16, the wise man wrote: “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” It seems if I’m a good person, if I go to church, if I’m baptized, if I confess my sins — it seems like that’s the way to heaven. But what does it say about those ways? They lead to death — no matter how right they seem. Not the truth, not the word of God.
So, are you trying to be accepted by God, or are you trying to make yourself acceptable to God? “If I clean up my act a little more, maybe that will work.” Are you trying to make God save you somehow?
Scripture says this about the Ten Commandments: the law applies to those to whom it was given, and its purpose is to keep people from having excuses. The law wasn’t given to bring anyone to heaven. The law wasn’t given to forgive sins. What it does is show that we have sinned — that we have broken God’s law. By contrast, the Lord Jesus was the end of the law, the fulfillment of the law.
Cain and Abel — Two Offerings
Adam and Eve’s two sons — Cain and Abel — were the first two people actually born into this world, and both were to bring an offering to God. Cain presented some of his crops as a gift to the Lord. Abel brought the best of the firstborn lambs from his flock. The Lord accepted Abel and his offering, but did not accept Cain and his.
What was the difference? First, Cain’s offering wasn’t what God had commanded. And in Cain’s offering, there was no blood. Hebrews 9:22 says: “Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins.” Clear and simple.
As a result, Cain — jealous of his brother — rose up against him, and the first man ever born into this world became the first murderer. He killed his brother. Death, as a result of sin.
The Cross — Led Like a Lamb to the Slaughter
Back in Luke 18 — that short, serious prayer. The two men came to the temple, where there was an altar outside the holy place with an animal being sacrificed at that very time. When the tax collector came in, his cry was, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” The Pharisee wanted everyone — including God — to hear how wonderful he was, so he told everyone. But the tax collector simply said, “I’m so wicked, such a sinner — but on the basis of the sacrifice, Lord, show me mercy.” That man went home justified. That man went home with his sins forgiven.
The Lord Jesus, on the cross, was treated very harshly. He never complained, never fought, never spoke a word in His own defense — He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. I’ve been in slaughterhouses before, and sometimes it’s pretty noisy. But when you take a lamb in — no fight, no sound. My Saviour went to a cross without a fight, without a sound, and laid down His life for you.
Accepted in the Beloved
Have you ever wondered why He did that? The verse we read earlier said we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. That’s the basis of acceptance.
If I were to ask you — and I won’t, but if I did — “Are you going to heaven?” you might say yes. But I’d ask you this: what’s the basis on which you can say yes? Our verse again: “Whoever has the Son has life.” Acceptance with God comes because of the Son. But that’s not the end of the verse. It continues: “Whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life” — not accepted, rejected.
Remember what happened in Noah’s day? God said, “Noah, get your family into the ark.” And the Lord shut the door. Eight people, out of an entire world population numbering in the millions, were inside — the rest were outside, and everyone outside the door perished. That’s not what God wants. Ephesians chapter 1 tells us: “According to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.”
So to move from separation because of sin, to acceptance, through what the Lord Jesus Christ did at the cross — it’s all about Him. It’s all about what He has done for me. He saved me.
The Reality of Hell
You might ask, “What do you mean, saved?” That implies danger. You’ve been hearing about a place called hell. None of us likes to talk about it, but it’s real. It’s a place to avoid at all costs, because it’s forever — it never ends. And so the truth is, my salvation is found in Christ alone.
There’s a line from a beautiful old hymn: “Nothing in my hands I bring, only to Thy cross I cling.”
Come to Christ and Find Rest
You’ve heard about the door in John chapter 10. And the Lord Jesus, in Matthew 11:28, looking at people much like I’m looking at you right now, says, “Come to Me… I will give you rest.” The next verse says, “You will find rest for your souls.” That’s what the Saviour came to provide, at the cost of His life. The Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.
And right now, the door is wide open. You can come. We can’t push you through the door, and we can’t say a prayer that will do it for you — this is just between yourself and God: “God, be merciful to me, I’m the sinner.” There’s an ear in heaven waiting to hear that cry. He longs to bring you to Himself. He longs for you to be in heaven.
