Heaven and Hell are Real

"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."

John 14:2,3

Have you reserved a heavenly home?

Many years ago, one of my students asked me, "What do I have to do to go to hell?" I told him, "Nothing." That is right. There is nothing more we need to do to go to hell. None of us are perfect. We all have sinned. There is, however, something that we all must do to go to heaven. The Bible says, "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him" (John 3:36). Hell is not a joke.

Numerous churches today do not preach about hell and only preach about the love of God. Jesus himself warns that hell is a real place of darkness where "there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth" (Matthew 13:42). This is bad news, but I have good news for you. God does not want anyone to spend eternity separated from Him in the darkness of hell. That is why God sent His Son to suffer the punishment for our sins, so we would be able to go to heaven. Heaven and hell are real, and they last for eternity. Heaven is to be with Christ! Hell is to be with the devil! Heaven or hell? It is your choice.

Everybody needs a heavenly home. Not everyone has one, but everyone sure does need one! D. L. Moody said, "Heaven is a prepared place for a prepared people." To make it to heaven does not depend on your efforts or good works. Heaven is God's home and is perfect because God is perfect, and nothing imperfect can ever enter heaven according to (Revelation 22:14-15). Romans 3:23 says, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." Still, God in His grace provided a way to bridge the gap between Him and us. John 3:16 tells us this, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Jesus died for your sins and mine. He took our punishment for sin. He died for our sins, so we would not have to do it. Now, He offers forgiveness and a heavenly home for us.

Heaven is for all those who, by faith, receive Jesus Christ as Savior Lord. If you have never done this, today is the time to ask Jesus into your life. Heaven is for people like you!

• FIRST, to be saved, you must REALIZE that you are a sinner as the Bible warns us. "All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, everyone, to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all" (Isaiah 53:6), "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23), "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." (Hebrews 9:27).

• SECOND, you must REPENT. "I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish" (Luke 13:3), "Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord" (Acts 3:19).

• THIRD, you must RECEIVE. "But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:" (John 1:12), "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved" (Romans 10:9).

Accept Jesus today as your personal Savior. By accepting the Lord, you receive a one-way first-class ticket to heaven. Do not be a fool. Get on board! This way, you will enter heaven’s Gates instead of hell’s flames. You can accept Jesus as your personal Savior by praying something like this:

Lord, thank you for your Son Jesus who died on the cross to pay for my sins. Now I repent. I turn from my sin, and by faith, receive You as my personal Savior and Lord. Please forgive my sins, and save me and show me your will and help me become the person you want me to be. In Your name, I pray. Amen.

Jesus in John 14:2-4 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." Jesus reveals here that He is making preparations for us in His Father's house-heaven. Can you imagine that? Jesus Christ, the Lord of the universe, is going out of His way to prepare a unique place in heaven just for you and me. In heaven, we will experience eternal joy in the presence of the Lord!

According to the Lord, heaven is an actual destination, someplace where we will experience the absolute best of everything. Since Jesus Christ is preparing it for us, we can trust that it will be perfect. He can do nothing less. Heaven is a better place than earth. The great heavenly city that Jesus has prepared for us is just amazing. "And the twelve gates were twelve pearls: every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass" (Revelation 21:21). The Lord desires all of us who live on earth to be with Him in heaven. "Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee..." (Psalm 73:25). Additionally, the apostles Paul and John ensure what the Lord has for all of them who love Him. "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him" (1 Corinthians 2:9), "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is" (1 John 3:2).

Most people want to go to heaven, but in reality, they do not want to die. Why? Because they do not know what the scriptures say about heaven or they do not believe them. They are scared to death when they think they might die. Sometimes we pray for the healing of sick Christians, to keep them out of heaven until a later time, instead of asking for God's will to be done.

Some years ago, one dear brother in Christ passed away from cancer and his wife asked everybody not to wear black clothes at his funeral, because this was a celebration. Her husband was in heaven with the Lord, and they walked together on the streets of gold. When we live with this kind of hope, we will never be scared of death. The day we die will be a blessed day because we will see the Lord face to face and be with Him forever.

WHEN WE ALL GET TO HEAVEN

When we all get to heaven,

What a day of rejoicing that will be!

When we all see Jesus,

We'll sing and shout the victory!

— Hymn by Eliza E. Hewitt, 1898

Christians must know that God is the center of all things in heaven, and that is why a person who lives wisely will make him the center of all things on earth, as well. "If you read history, you will find that the Christians who did the most for the present world were just those who thought most of the next. It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this" — C. S. Lewis

Meditations On Heaven (Audio)

Jesus hugs in heaven

The heavenly city

The New Jerusalem

VERSES

"And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there you may be also." - John 14:2,3

"And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus."

- Ephesians 2:6

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy

hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you."

-1 Peter 1:3,4

"For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God,

an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens." - 2 Corinthians 5:1

"But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem,

and to an innumerable company of angels." - Hebrews 12:22

"Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever." - Psalm 23:6

"One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after;that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple." - Psalm 27:4

"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me,

hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life."

- John 5:24

"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men,

who hold the truth in unrighteousness." - Romans 1:18

"Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life...And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die..." - John 11:25, 26

"...The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." - Romans 6:23

QUOTES

• "If we really understood Heaven, we would be most unhappy and unsatisfied with life on Earth. We would rebel against our earthly limitations. If we saw Heaven, we could not bear this earth. That's why Heaven is forever: we cannot bear to leave it after we get there."

"To die is to go and live in another home."

"Heaven is a permanent residence … a place where we unpack our bags and stay forever. … What a glorious thought to wake up in Heaven and realize it is home!" — C.L. Allen

• "Joy is the business of heaven." — C.S. Lewis

• "I would rather go to heaven alone than go to hell in company."

— Evangelist and Pastor, R.A. Torrey

• "I would not give one moment of heaven for all the joy and riches of the world, even if it lasted for thousands and thousands of years."— Priest and Theologian, Martin Luther

• "I have all that I need here and heaven hereafter! How much richer could anybody

want to be?" — Dr. Lester Roloff

• "For the Christian, heaven is where Jesus is. We do not need to speculate on what heaven will be like. It is enough to know that we will be forever with Him." — Theologian, William Barclay

• "One reason some saints will have a greater fullness of heaven than others will be that they did more for heaven than others. By God's grace, they were enabled to bring more souls there."

— Prince of Preachers," C. H. Spurgeon

• "Those who go to heaven ride on a pass and enter into blessings that they never earned, but all who go to hell pay their own way." — Dr. John R. Rice

Heaven is a city without a cemetery.

Do Not Stand At My Grave And Weep (Audio)

Do not stand at my grave and weep

I am not there. I do not sleep.

I am a thousand winds that blow.

I am the diamond glints on snow.

I am the sunlight on ripened grain.

I am the gentle autumn rain.

When you awaken in the morning's hush

I am the swift uplifting rush

Of quiet birds in circled flight.

I am the soft stars that shine at night.

Do not stand at my grave and cry;

I am not there. I did not die.

-Mary Elizabeth Frye

*

Home in Heaven

I am home in heaven, dear ones;

Oh, so happy and so bright.

There is perfect joy and beauty

In this everlasting light.

All the pain and grief is over,

Every restless tossing passed.

I am now at peace forever,

Safely home in heaven at last.

Did you wonder I so calmly

Trod the valley of the shade?

Oh, but Jesus’ love illumined

Every dark and fearful glade.

And He came Himself to meet me

In the way so hard to tread;

And with Jesus’ arm to lean on

Could I have one doubt or dread?

Then you must not grieve so sorely,

For I love you dearly still.

Try to look beyond death’s shadows;

Pray to trust our Father’s will.

There is work still waiting for you,

So you must not idly stand.

Do it now while life remaineth;

You shall rest in Jesus’ land.

When that work is all completed,

He will gently call you home.

Oh, the rapture of that meeting;

Oh, the joy to see you come.

-Author Unknown

*

What we call life is a journey to death.

What we call death is the gateway to life.

By accepting Jesus as your personal Savior

you receive a one-way first-class ticket to heaven.

Do not be a fool. Get on board!

This way, you will enter heaven's gates

instead of hell's flames.

Are you on the way to heaven?

Hell or Heaven

?

It's Your Choice

"And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment"

(Hebrews 9:27)

"But as many as received Him [by faith], to them He gave the right

to become children of God, to those who believe in His name."

(John 1:12)

"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves:

it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”

(Ephesians 2:8-9)