~ A place to find answers to gnawing spiritual questions ~
Question: I have been talking to some of my co-workers. They don't believe me that we must be a born again Christiann to get to heaven. They think because they have been a GOOD person they will make it to heaven. Also they don't believe me that hell is a lake of fire and anyone that goes there will burn for ever. What can I tell them to convince them?Answer: The only authority that I can refer you to is the Bible, the Word of God. If your co-workers do not believe the Bible to be God's Word, then everyone can decide for himself what is right and what is wrong. That would never do.
The words of Jesus Christ Himself, as quoted in John 3:3, is that unless a person is born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God. You may refer your co-workers to John, Chapter 3.
Regarding their second point, that one can get to heaven through good works, we need to refer to Romans chapter 3, verses 10-28, and Ephesians 2:8.
Again, on the authority of the Bible, Hell is a place of eternal separation from God, and a place of punishment for sin. Hell is described by Jesus Himself, as a place where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. Some references are: Matthew 8:12, Mark 9:43-48, 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9, Revelation 20:15, and 21:8.
In our own earthly society, we have found it necessary to have government, and laws. We have also learned by experience that, if there is no punishment for violation of our laws, people will ignore them. We find that jails and prisons have become a necessity.
>Now, by the same token, God, Who is righteous, sits as the Governor of the universe. He rules the universe in absolute righteousness. For God to maintain order, He also has required that sins which are committed must be punished. Those who rebel against God's principles and commandments will be punished. Hell, as it were, is God's jailhouse.
God has made a way of escape; for Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and also the Son of Man, has taken the punishment that we, as sinners, justly deserve, If we receive Jesus as our Savior, a miracle takes place in our lives. This miracle is called in the Bible, "The New Birth" (2 Corinthians 5:17-21, 1 Peter 1:15-25).
God, by His very righteous nature, must punish sin. In His great love, He has also provided a Sin Bearer, the Lord Jesus Christ, as the "Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the World" (John 1:29). Since all of us have sinned, we must either receive punishment for our sin, or accept God's provision, Jesus Christ , the Lamb of God, as the one who took the punishment that we deserve. That is a choice each individual must make (Isaiah 53:5-6).
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