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About Salvation
How Can I Go To Heaven?
If you are truly seeking meaning in life and have sensed an empty place in your heart that nothing has been able to fill then I have good news for you. The Bible tells us that the gospel means good news. It is good news to all who hear of its wonderful plan of salvation. What does salvation mean, you might ask? It simply means that God has made a way for mankind to regain a right relationship with the living God. When we receive a right relationship with God the outcome is salvation or a rebirth in which we are translated from death to life and from hell to heaven. Each one of us must receive salvation before we die or we will not enter heaven. Consider these few scriptures below:
Rom 3:23 - For all have sinned; all fall short of God's glorious standard. NLT
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The Bible teaches us that every one of us were born into this world with a sinful nature. That is why none of us have completely pure thoughts. Each one of us has lied, thought evil or harm about someone, or have been jealous of what others have. The Bible calls this attitude – SIN. However, God’s standard is higher than this and He has set a standard of holiness and righteousness.
Rom 5:8 - But God showed His great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. NLT
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However the good news is that the Bible tells us that while each of us cannot meet God’s standard because of our sinful nature, God showed love to us and made a way for us to meet His standard. We must realize that we cannot meet God’s standards by being good, saying enough prayers or being religious. The Bible tells us that the work of salvation is God’s work, not man’s. That means He made a way for us to receive eternal life. This scripture tells us that the way God has prepared for man to receive heaven is only through Jesus Christ.
Rom 6:23 - For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. NLT
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The Bible is clear about sin. If we stay in our sinful condition when we die it will produce death, which really means separation from God, Heaven and eternal life. In other words the Bible tells us that we will spend eternity in hell where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. It is a place of torment. God does not send us there, for the Bible teaches that hell was not prepared for man, but for satan and his angels who rebelled against God. However, if we do not receive Jesus Christ, God’s plan of salvation, then it is us who chooses hell. We place ourselves there by our choice to reject God’s plan to bring us in a right relationship with Him and in so doing receive eternal life in heaven with Him. The scripture above goes on to say that eternal life is a free gift. It is not something we must earn – it is free! If we receive Christ into our lives, not only will that empty place in our heart be filled, we will also be saved from hell and receive the wonderful gift of Heaven.
Rom 10:9 - For if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved. NLT
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How do we receive Jesus into our lives? How can we be sure that we are going to Heaven? These are good questions and can be answered by reading the scripture above. It is simple. Remember eternal life is free and so is a relationship with God. The Bible tells us that all we need to do is confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord. In other words we must say it out loud to God (confession) that He is the Creator of life and everything that exists. Not only do we say it out loud but be must also believe what we are saying about Jesus. We must believe that He is God and the proof of this is that God raised Him from the dead. It really did happen my friend. Jesus was here upon the earth and He was placed upon a cross and died for your sins. But the good news is that He didn’t stay in a grave for He was raised up from the dead to prove that He is God and the Lord of all.
If you would like to receive Jesus into your life then simply say the prayer below. The prayer is not magic it can only help you begin to talk to God. So when you pray this prayer do not just read it, but instead talk to God as you read it and begin this wonderful relationship with the God who created you and loves you.
Sinners Prayer
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Lord Jesus I come to You as a sinner. I realize today that I have sinned against You and can not meet Your standards. However, I realize today that You love me and have made a way for me to meet Your standards and that is only through Jesus Christ. Thank You for remembering me on the cross when You died for me and thank You for making a way for me to enter heaven with You. I do believe You died and rose again on the third day to prove You are God. I now turn from my evil ways, the best I know how, and turn to You. Come into my life and let me know right now that I am saved from hell and am now going to heaven. I believe You are Lord of all and I need You in my life. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit today and help me to live for You the rest of my life.
-- Amen
What Now?
#1 - Receive -- We want to be the first to welcome you into the family of God. The Bible tells us that all we need to do is believe and confess (Rom. 10:9-10). There are a few things you need to do now that you have accepted Jesus as you given you life to Christ then please let us know. Give us a call or go to the "Prayer Center" section and let us know. We would love to pray with you and help you on your journey to heaven.
#2 - Pray -- You now have a personal relationship with Christ and have access to Him. So pray to Him! Pray simply means talk to Him. Set some time aside each day and pray and when you don't feel like -- pray anyways!
#3 - Read -- You now have access to the blessings of God and you will begin to find them in His Word. So read the Bible! A great place to start is in the book of John. If you do not have a Bible go to our "Prayer Center" section and fill out the appropriate information and we will help get a Bible to you.
#4 - Fellowship. The Bible tells us in Hebrews 10:25 that we should not forsake the assembly of ourselves together. That means we need to find a Bible teaching church and become part of that church. You will find other people who have given their lives to Jesus and are there to help you on and pray for you. If you are in the area of San Pedro we would love to invite you to our church. Go to the "Directions" section and visit us soon, call us or email us at the Our Prayer Center menu.
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