How Do We Get To Heaven?

Most human religion is an attempt to please a divine being through human effort — present the right sacrifice, perform the right ritual, give the right gifts and maybe we can earn the favor and blessings of our gods. But the gods of human invention are powerless to bless anyone because they do not exist. There is a true and living God who spoke this universe into being but humanity has separated itself from Him through sin and we are not able to bridge the distance between a holy God and unholy humanity. We have offended His justice with our injustice, grieved His goodness with our wickedness and we cannot work our way or give our way back to God.

Christianity is unique among the religions of the world in the proclamation that God alone has provided the sacrifice that satisfies His justice and bridges the distance between God and humanity. Jesus Christ, Second Person of the eternal Trinity, in His sacrificial death, took upon Himself our sin and God’s judgment of our sin, offering Himself as the holy Lamb slain in the place of sinners — our holy Substitute. God showed His acceptance of this sacrificial offering by raising Jesus from the dead. All who place their trust in His sacrifice and resurrection are forgiven of sin and reconciled to God.

Why did humanity need an atoning sacrifice? Because in the words of Isaiah, Each of us has turned to his own way (53:6). The problem in the world is that humanity has turned away from God, violated His truth, His mercy, His moral law, has attempted to live as autonomous beings as if there is no God and as a result of this sinful rebellion, have fallen into the spiritual and moral darkness of separation from God.

The result is the universal condition known as death: For the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). God did not create death. Death is the result of humanity’s choice to disobey God, to deny the Source of our life and being. Just as a branch, separated from the vine, withers and dies, so a human being, separated from God by sin, will die.

God clearly warned the first man, Adam, that if he chose to sin, death would enter the perfection of Eden (Genesis 2:16,17). Though neither Adam nor Eve died physically on the day they first disobeyed God, death entered every aspect of their world. Death entered their relationship with God. Perfect fellowship with God was broken as they now saw God as someone to fear and so they ran from God, hid from God, were separated from God by guilt and shame.

Death entered their own being. Prior to their sin they were conscious of self without any corrupting qualities but now they perceived themselves through the distorted eye of fear, shame and guilt. This initiated the disintegration, the breakdown of human personality.

Death entered their relationship with each other. Whereas Adam and Eve had once been joined in perfect union, Bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh (Gen. 2:23), now relationship was marred by accusation and distrust (Gen. 3:12). This initial breakdown of human society would result, within one generation, in corruption, violence and murder. In fact, the first city was built by the first murderer, Cain, the first son of the first fallen man and woman (Gen. 4:17).

Death entered creation. Humanity no longer had dominion as the wise, compassionate caretaker-gardener over creation and so creation began to break down (Gen. 3:17,18). Death entered the physical being of Adam and Eve, though it took centuries for their bodies to break down, due to the magnificence of God’s creative design.

The problem on earth is not that God is cruel, uninvolved or unloving but that humanity fell from relationship with God. The disintegration and disaster in nature, in human society and in the soul of humanity is the result of sin.

Because God is holy, He must judge sin and sinner. God designed this universe in a manner consistent with His truth, mercy and moral goodness. He cannot ignore the violation of truth, mercy or moral goodness. This would be a denial of His own being and God cannot violate Himself. Therefore He must judge sin. Yet God in His mercy does not desire that we perish under the weight of our sin and His judgment. In fact, God’s response to the sin of Adam and Eve was to come to them, call to them, cover them and before they were sent away from the garden, God promised a someday Deliverer (Gen. 3:15).

The disciples of Jesus and all of Israel were expecting that Deliverer, a Messiah who would drive out the hated Romans and establish the kingdom of God. They could not imagine Messiah dying on a Roman cross. They thought, “If Jesus is truly the Messiah, He will conquer our enemies.” The followers of Jesus were bewildered by His death and their kingdom expectations were crushed. But if Jesus had ushered in the kingdom of God without first reconciling sinners to God, then no one could have entered the kingdom, separated as they were from the God of the kingdom.

The enemy was not the Roman army or the policies of the Roman government. The enemy was not the corrupt Jewish religious officials. The enemy was sin. The issue Jesus came to deal with was a world separated from God by sin and dominated by the death and disintegration which sin produces. And humanity was helpless to do anything about it.

While we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly (Rom 5:16). How is it that we are helpless to save ourselves? Because in our separation from God, humanity is spiritually blind to our lost condition.

This is not to say that God has hidden the truth about Himself. To the contrary, the Apostle Paul reminds us, That which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse (Rom. 1:19,20). God has made His existence known through an intrinsic sense of of good and evil deposited in each human soul — evident within them. And God has made Himself known through the grandness of creation.

The problem is not that God is hiding. Rather, people suppress the truth in unrighteousness (Rom. 1:18) and then invent false gods, false religious and false philosophical systems to justify their rejection of the true and living God.

The result is separation from God and spiritual death, as Paul reminds us, And you were dead in trespasses and sins (Eph. 2:1). Furthermore, in our fallen state we are spiritually blind, unable to discern the truth of our condition and unable to discern the truth that God desires to deliver us from our sin: And even if our Gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God (2 Cor. 4:4).

Dead to God, blind to the truth of our lostness and the truth of God’s saving grace, we are helpless to save ourselves. Even if we could perceive our lost condition, we cannot redeem ourselves. The Psalmist reminds us: No man can by any means redeem his brother or give to God a ransom for him, for the redemption of his soul is costly and he should cease trying forever, that he should live on eternally, that he should not see decay (Psalm 49:7-9).

We cannot give enough offerings to pay for our own sin or the sin of anyone else. We cannot do enough righteous works or perform enough religious rituals to undo the consequences of our sin. We cannot overcome our death. We cannot unravel the entangling cords of darkness. We cannot save ourselves. We are in need of a Savior.

God has provided a solution: The Lord laid upon Him the iniquity of us all (Isa. 53:6).

On the cross of Jesus Christ, God reconciled the world to Himself by placing our sin, and His judgment of sin, on Jesus: But now once at the consummation of the ages He has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself ... having been offered once to bear the sins of many (Hebrews 9:26,28). Jesus, as our great High Priest, offered Himself as the holy Sacrifice for sin.

God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them ... He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Cor. 5:19, 21).

The Bible does not say that God did not count our sins. It says that He did not count our sins against us. Our sins were placed on Jesus, who became a sin offering on our behalf. A holy God cannot ignore our sin and a merciful God does not desire that we perish forever under the weight of sin and judgment. So at the cross an incredible exchange took place, ordained by God. All the evil consequences due to humanity because of our sin came upon Jesus so that all the good due to Jesus through His sinless existence might come upon us.

The death of Jesus on the cross was not an accident, not something forced upon Him nor something God had not foreseen. Jesus is the Lamb slain from the foundation off the world (Revelation 13:8, I Peter 1:20). Before the creation of the universe God decided to do this. When God made human creatures and gave us a free will, He knew there would be sin. Somewhere in the ancient councils of eternity, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit agreed and decreed that the Second Person of the holy Trinity would be born in human form, that Jesus would be the Lamb slain for the sins of the world and that His sacrificial work would obtain everlasting salvation for all who believe.

Peter reminds us, He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed (I Ptr. 2:24).

For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God (I Ptr. 3:18)

We needed a Savior and that Savior needed to be a human being — only a human being could die as the holy Substitute for sinful humans. But He also needed to be God — for who but God can offer to God a perfectly holy sacrifice? Therefore Paul says of Jesus, For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form (Col. 2:9). Jesus is the God / Man who offered Himself as the holy atoning sacrifice for our sins.

In order to do this, Jesus needed to be perfectly sinless — a perfectly holy offering. A sinner cannot offer an atoning sacrifice for sin. Thus Peter testifies of Jesus that He committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in his mouth (I Ptr. 2:22).

Knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ (I Peter 1:19).

Paul testifies, He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf (2 Cor. 5:21).

The Roman governor, Pontius Pilate testified of this, Why, what evil has this man done? I have found in Him no guilt demanding death (Luke 23:22)

Jesus asked His enemies, Which one of you convicts Me of sin? (John 8:46). No one spoke.

John testifies, You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin (I Jn. 3:5)

At the death of Jesus, we read of the Roman officer in charge, He began praising God, saying, ‘Certainly this man was innocent’ (Luke 23:47).

If judgment had been poured out on sinners, we would have perished eternally. So judgment was poured out on the perfectly holy Sacrifice. This does not mean Jesus became a sinner — He did not commit even one sin. Rather, God placed our sin on Him.

But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him (Isa. 53:5,6).

As Jesus bore our sin, God poured out the fulness of His eternal wrath on the holy Sacrifice. Jesus experienced the separation of the sinner from God, crying out, My God, My God, why have you forsaken me (Matt. 27:46).

Jesus took upon Himself our sin, God’s judgment against our sin, our separation from God and He then died in our place. The Father then raised Jesus from the dead, thereby declaring His acceptance of the holy Sacrifice.

Why would God give His own Son to die in our place? For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life (Jn. 3:16).

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Rom. 5:8).

Why would Jesus submit to the agony of crucifixion and the far greater trauma of taking our sin into His sinless being? He did this for the joy set before Him. We read, Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebr. 12:2).

What was the joy set before Him? You, me. When we place our faith in Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection, we are forgiven of sin, reconciled to God and given the promise of resurrection and eternal life with God in heaven.

A few hours before the cross, Jesus prayed for His disciples and for each of us, Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me (Jn. 17:24). This was the passion that moved the heart of Jesus — that we would be with Him forever.

With the Apostle Paul we celebrate this great salvation, Giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light. For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins (Col. 1:12,14).

With the Apostle Peter we rest in this promise, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you (I Peter 1:3,4).

As Jesus was preparing the disciples for His death, they were becoming increasingly anxious. Jesus said, Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way where I am going. Thomas said to Him, ‘Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me’ (John 14:1-6).

Heaven is the dimension in which God is enthroned in the full manifestation of His glory. It is where Jesus ascended after He rose from the dead. It is where the soul of the redeemed saint goes when the body dies. It is where the redeemed will live forever when clothed with a resurrection body. Our life there will be defined by perfect joy in a perfected body and soul dwelling in the presence of a perfect God in perfect fellowship forever. And He will spread His tabernacle over us (Rev. 7:15).

How do we get to heaven? By trusting in Jesus Christ — trusting that He really did carry our sins and our judgment, that He really did provide a full and perfect sacrifice for all people for all time; trusting that He truly rose from the dead. As our brother Paul reminds us, Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Rom. 10:13).

The way to heaven is through Jesus. He truly is the way, and the truth, and the life.