How Do You Know if You're Going to Heaven? by Carey Kinsolving on Creators.com

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How Do You Know if You're Going to Heaven?

"My grandma thinks I'm going to heaven," says Kole, 6.

Most grandmas have a special relationship with their grandkids. The kind of love many show to their grandkids is a taste of God's perfect, unconditional love.

"You have to be good," says Carly, 6.

If we have to be good to go to heaven, how good is good enough? We tend to think God grades on the curve. The reality is that it's either pass or fail. Left on our own, the Bible makes it very clear that we all fail. Carly, have you considered Romans 3:23? "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."

If we each try to throw a rock from Texas to New York, what difference does it make if you throw a rock a lot farther than I do? We both fall far short of New York. When we consider goodness and sin, we compare ourselves to other people. Even if we don't sin as much as most people, it's much ado about nothing. We're looking at the wrong standard.

The standard is God's righteousness, which is perfect. That's where everyone falls short. That's the bad news.

Isaiah, 7, gives us the good news: "I know I'm going to heaven because if I believe that Jesus died on the cross and rose again, then I'm going to heaven."

Isaiah has reduced the gospel to its uttermost simplicity. It's faith alone in Christ alone. Centuries ago, Martin Luther described the kind of faith that justifies the sinner before a holy God as the hand of the beggar reaching out to receive the gift.

The freeness of God's grace is what really gets under the skin of those who are trying to work their way to heaven. They can't believe that God's love could be so lavish. What they fail to understand is that God is jealous of his glory.

Because he is the author and finisher of our eternal salvation, he gets all the glory for it. Those who try and rob God of his glory will fail.

"I know I'm going to heaven because I asked Jesus into my heart four times," says Thomas, 8.

We should look to the inspired Word of God for the language to present the gospel. Although it's very popular, nowhere in the Bible do we find people asking Jesus into their hearts. At best, this is a Christian cliche. At worst, it's unclear and confusing.

The fact that Thomas has asked Jesus to come into his heart four times is a strong indication he doesn't understand the nature of saving faith. It's not the quality or continuity of the faith that counts. It's the quality of the object of faith, Jesus Christ.

"If you accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, you are guaranteed a place in heaven," says Bethany, 9. "In John 11:25, Jesus said, 'I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.' So if we just believe in Jesus, we will surely go to heaven."

Think about this: Eternal life is not something one possesses only in the future. It's a realm of life that people enter when they believe in Jesus as their savior. Memorize this truth: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life" (John 5:24). Ask this question: Do you have eternal life?

Listen to a talking book, download the "Kids Color Me Bible" for free, watch Kid TV Interviews and travel around the world by viewing the "Mission Explorers Streaming Video" at www.KidsTalkAboutGod.org. Bible quotations are from the New King James Version. To find out more about Carey Kinsolving and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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