In this month’s RZIM Ask Away Podcast, Vince and Jo Vitale discuss a lot of thought-provoking questions about heaven. How does someone get into heaven? What is heaven? What is the minimum requirement to get into heaven? If Hitler were to repent of his actions on his death bed, would he get into heaven? On one point, Vince and Jo seem to agree that it is not our good or bad actions that are the primary factor in our acceptance into heaven, but rather our acceptance of Christ’s sacrifice and our desire to pursue a relationship with Him.
This point is interesting because it stands in contrast to the view of culture. Surveys seem to agree; the majority of Americans who believe in heaven think that people who are “good” can go to heaven, even if they don’t believe in the the same faith system. The same surveys seem to reflect that the general perception of heaven is based primarily on the perceived Christian idea of heaven.
As such, it seems that many people like the Christian idea of heaven, but they would much prefer to decide for themselves how to get there. As Christians, we must not forget the importance of Jesus in the heavenly equation.
Ravi Zacharias says:
“Jesus didn’t come to make bad people good; he came to make dead people live.”