I saw a video a while back of a pastor preaching who said, “When you die and you get to heaven and I’m not there, you are not in heaven.”
Every person who has ever lived has asked the question, “What really happens when you die? Do we go to heaven, or hell, or back to the mothership?” Everyone wants to know.
Across the world, people answer that question in lots of different ways. Hindu and Buddhists teach the concept of reincarnation — an endless cycle of rebirth based on karma. Muslims, Mormons, and Catholics each have their own pictures of the afterlife: judgment, levels of heaven, various work for the dead, and purgatory.
Some people talk about soul sleep or annihilation. And that’s just mentioning a few of the beliefs and religions of the world. How do you make sense of it all?
Here’s the surprising thing: out of all those beliefs, Jesus only taught two final destinations. It wasn’t reincarnation, no secret planet, no purgatory you can earn your way out of.
According to Jesus, there are only two final destinations after death: heaven or hell. And of all the people who talked about this subject in the Bible, Jesus talked about it the most. He’s the foremost authority on the subject.
In Luke 16, Jesus tells the story of a beggar named Lazarus and a rich man who cared only about himself.
“The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’ “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’” (Luke 16:19-31)
Notice that they are conscious, aware, and divided by a great chasm. There’s no purgatory, and no getting in and out. This story paints a clear picture: two destinations — one with God, one without.
Here are two bits of good news to remember. First: you don’t have to go to heaven. Second: you don’t have to go to hell. But you will go to one of them. Which eternity are you choosing?
Let’s get hell out of the way because people ask, “If God’s so good, why is there a hell?” The short answer: hell wasn’t created for you. Jesus describes it with awful images for a reason — a blazing furnace, weeping and gnashing of teeth, eternal torment. It’s a quarantine for evil and rebellion. It’s not God being mean — it’s God giving people what they wanted in life: separation from him.
God doesn’t force anyone to love him or go to heaven. Because that wouldn’t be love, for love to be real, it must be freely given.
Hell is God’s quarantine of evil. That’s why no evil thing or person can go to heaven. Hell is a place of condemnation.
But here’s the good news. You don’t have to fear death and hell anymore. Jesus didn’t come to condemn; he came to save.
Hebrews 2:14-15 says, “Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—the Son also became flesh and blood. For only as a human being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the devil, who had the power of death. Only in this way could he set free all who have lived their lives as slaves to the fear of dying.”
In John 14, Jesus promises a place prepared for those who trust him: “When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.”
Someone recently told me that they were “tired of this garbage world.” If that’s you, hear me clearly: death is not the end for those who put their trust in Jesus. Romans 6:23 says, “the wages of sin are death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ.”
Which eternity are you choosing? If you want to turn toward Jesus, start with a confession of faith. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us.” (1 John 1:9). That’s how heaven becomes yours: not by your performance, but by first trusting Christ.
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