Who Will be in Heaven?
“Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:” Matthew 25:34, KJV.
Who will be in heaven? This question in often debated amongst religious circles. Many Christians believe that only those who have heard the preached word and have made a profession of belief in Jesus Christ will enter into Heaven. Other religious groups believe that they are the only ones who are entitled to paradise beyond this world, and the rest of the human race are doomed infidels. Is heaven reserved for a small group or will we all be there? Will only Christians enter into heaven or will there be people from other religions there also? What about those who have never heard about Jesus Christ?
In the latter part of Matthew 25, Jesus speaks of his return to the earth. The Bible states that all nations will be gathered before him and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. Those on the left (the goats) will be sent to everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels. Those on the right hand (his sheep) will inherit the kingdom prepared for them from the foundation of the world. It is they who are going to heaven whom we will address in this article.
The Bible provides much teaching about heaven and who will be there. Simply stated, all that are supposed to go to heaven will be there. In 1 Peter 1:2, the Apostle writes to those who are, “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father.” Who are the elect? They are those who God chose before the foundation of the world to enter into heaven. In Ephesians 1:3-4, Paul writes, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:” God has chosen who will be before him for all eternity. His Son, Jesus Christ procured the salvation of the elect through his sacrifice on the cross. How did God decide who was going to go to heaven? He predestinated (determined their destiny beforehand) them according to the good pleasure of his will (Ephesians 1:5).
Does the concept of election limit the number of those that will enjoy heaven’s eternal glory? No indeed! The Bible speaks of God’s children as being a great multitude. The number of God’s elect is likened to the sand of the sea. God told Abraham that if he could number the sand, then he could number His people. The elect are also likened to the stars of heaven (Genesis 22:7). Today, telescopes have located millions of stars. New ones are identified daily! Many have not yet been discovered. So it is with those that will enjoy heaven’s glory. They are a great multitude which no man can number. In Revelation 19 we observe a great voice of much people in heaven saying, “Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honor, and power, unto the Lord our God.”
There will be people from all nations in heaven. Entrance will not be limited to one particular race, culture or religion. God’s elect are everywhere! Acts 10:35 records that, “In every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.” Scripture teaches that hell is a real place that will be populated by those who know not God. These will be judged according to their sins. However, we know that all whom Jesus died for will be in the presence of the Lord forevermore. How do you know that you are one of the elect? If you have a reverential fear of the Lord and work righteousness, then you have good evidence that you are one of his! As one of God’s children we need not fear his return to the earth. When he comes again he will say unto his children, “ Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” What a day that will be!
Michael Green, Jr. is pastor of Palm Chapel Primitive Baptist Church (www.palmchapel.org) in Crestview, FL. Palm Chapel meets every Sunday at 10:30am and Wednesday at 6:00pm. Pastor Green can be contacted at (850) 689-3383 or by email at pastor@palmchapel.org. Pastor Green warmly invites you to come and worship at Palm Chapel Primitive Baptist Church.
2 comments:
i came across your article by chance, and i have a comment. i pray first that God's Spirit is with me in my words. almost all of what you said is true to His Word with a eternally deciding conflict in your understanding of Scripture. you mentioned the elect, but you fell when you qualified the attributes of those who will be in Heaven. let me stay concise to say that if you define religion as man's effort to achieve God's approval, your claim that many religions will be there is actually false. Jesus existed in the old and new testaments, and this is the mystery that only God's people will understand, see, and hear. this was the pharisee's dilemma, they did not recognize Him due to this blindness. they were deceived into thinking that by some effort of theirs in following the law was going to achieve for them God's approval. "ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God". justification is by faith, not in ANY God, but in the Jesus of ALL of the Scriptures. so, this is the matter at hand:
all those who believe in God's promise - the Messiah, Jesus, will be found to be innocent. if we confess our sins that are identified in our lineage to the fallen Adam, and turn from our depravity in our sins, thus placing our faith in the "PROMISE" of God, we will be saved. the prophets longed to see our day when God's "ISRAEL" would be able to look back and see the fulfillment of all of God's laws perfectly found in Jesus who had no sin. He is our high priest, our mediator, our substitute by which God's wrath for sin came upon in one moment on the cross. God's approval for such a sacrafice was confirmed in His ressurection, therefore finishing all the work needed to satisfy a holy God. it is by Christ's righteousness imputed to our account, by way of faith alone, that we enter heaven, in the here and now, and fully consummated at His second coming. yes, there will be people from all nations and tongues in heaven, but only those washed by the blood of the Lamb, whether found in faith in the old testament or the new. the promise made to Abraham was one to a "SPIRITUAL ISRAEL", never a nation. not all "ISRAEL" is "ISRAEL".
in short, your qualification of those in heaven is without substance and says nothing of the cross of Jesus Christ. "I am the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE, NO ONE comes to the FATHER, except through ME. Thou shall not worship false Gods" (BUDDA, MOHAMMED, and so on). Thank God for Jesus Christ for showing us the Father in HIM, and being our very "door" into salvation. This is how one answers, "Who will be in Heaven?" JESUS WAS GOD IN THE FLESH, fully human, and FULLY God.
Dear Anonymous,
You stated
"I am the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE, NO ONE comes to the FATHER, except through ME."
This is a fact. No doubt about it. BUT, you are setting forth a FACT as a CONDITION. There are those that are God's elect that may not believe on Christ. Want proof?
"And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins. As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the ELECTION, they are beloved for the fathers' sakes. For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance." Romans 11:26 - 29.
Christ is indeed the only way that any man shall see heaven, but belief upon Christ is not a condition of eternal salvation.
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