NO ONE ON THIS EARTH IS GUARANTEED TO GO TO HEAVEN JUST BECAUSE THEY BELIEVE IN JESUS CHRIST OR BY GOD'S GRACE ALONE!
God's grace, alone, won't do it...
My faith, alone, won't do it...
How I live my life, by itself, won't do it...
I know that I can only get to heaven through Jesus. Also, it is not just by this faith in Jesus, nor just the Grace of God, nor just the works that I do. It is a combination of many things.
We receive God's saving and sanctifying grace in many ways, and Christ Himself, into our souls when we are baptized and through the sacraments. Yet we also know that Christ Himself has established certain conditions for entry into eternal happiness in Heaven.
"Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever."" (John 6:53-58)
We will be judged by this as well, so be warned...
"Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily will have to answer for the body and blood of the Lord. A person should examine himself, and so eat the bread and drink the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment on himself." (1 Cor. 11:27-29).
We will also be judged by our faith, but not by this alone, we will also be judged by the works that we do (Justification by faith alone is a Protestant doctrine; it was unheard of in the Christian community before the sixteenth century.)...
If St. Paul meant that faith ruled out the necessity of good works for salvation, he would not have written:
". . . and if I should have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing." (1 Cor. 13:2).
If faith ruled out the necessity of good works for salvation, the Apostle James would not have written:
"Do you see that by works a man is justified; and not by faith only'? . . . For even as the body without the spirit is dead; so also faith without works is dead." (James 2:24-26).
If faith ruled out the necessity of good works for salvation, the Apostle Peter would not have written:
"Therefore, brothers, be all the more eager to make your call and election firm, for, in doing so, you will never stumble. For, in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ will be richly provided for you." (2 Peter 1:10-11).
If faith was the only necessity for salvation, the Apostle James would not have written:
"If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, his religion is vain. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unstained by the world." (James 1:26-27)
Christ Himself stated:
"For the Son of man . . . will render to every man according to his works." (Matt. 16:27).
"‘Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord," shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven’" (Matt. 7:21).
But, I need my faith as well...
"Who were those who rebelled when they heard? Was it not all those who came out of Egypt under Moses? With whom was he "provoked for forty years"? Was it not those who had sinned, whose corpses fell in the desert? And to whom did he "swear that they should not enter into his rest," if not to those who were disobedient? And we see that they could not enter for lack of faith."(Hebrews 3:16-19)
When I die, I will not enter the kingdom of Heaven immediately, either...
The Bible distinguishes between those who enter Heaven straightaway, calling them "the church of the firstborn" (Heb. 12:23), and those who enter after having undergone a purgation, calling them "the spirits of the just made perfect." (Heb. 12:23).
Christ Himself stated:
"Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him. Otherwise your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny." (Matt. 5 :26).
And:
"I tell you, on the day of judgment people will render an account for every careless word they speak. By your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned." (Matt. 12:36-37).
2006-07-13 05:31:13
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answer #1
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answered by Bob 5
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I am not sure I am following you... Do you mean where would I go to die or where would I go after I die?
If I knew I was going to die, I would wear some Depends on myself so that when I soiled myself it was not a big mess for someone to clean up. I would also go lay down where it would be easy to access and remove my body.
After I die, I think our spirit is free to go where ever we want to go so I think I will travel to all the places that I have not been as well as spending time in places where I want to be. I will also stay close to my children and grandchildren so I can watch them grow as well as try to help them if I can. I am not sure about spending an eternity in Heaven or Hell... Heaven might be a beautiful place but it might also be boring and although Hell might be undesirable to some, I might find that the souls there are having a ragging good time! Kind of like visiting Greenland and Iceland...
2006-07-11 16:04:28
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answer #2
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answered by Todd Maz 4
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