Directions to Heaven

Hell Testimonies

Most of us realize that it takes specific directions to get to a destination. We even have navigation systems and smartphones to map it out for us. We understand the need for directions in life. Yet, when it comes to spiritual matters, most people completely abandon their everyday practice. They say things like, “I believe all roads lead to heaven. Whatever you believe is fine for you. Whatever I believe is fine for me.” They adapt a loose, sloppy approach to the things of God and specifically, the directions to heaven.

Here is an example: You say to me, “Bill, I want to invite you over to dinner and I want to give you clear directions to my house. Go south on Highway 95, turn right at Main Street, then go up the hill. That’s the only way to get to my house.” My response to you is, “I think I’m going to go north on 95 instead of south, and then I’m going to get off at Beach Boulevard, not Main Street, because I think all roads lead to your house. That’s what I think.” You’d say to me, “Bill, you’re not going to get to my house that way. I’m trying to give you clear directions. I’ve told you exactly how to get there.”

In the same way, God gives us clear directions to His house. I think He knows where He lives. All we have to do is follow His clear directions, and we will get there. He’s not being narrow-minded. He’s being very specific. He’s trying to get us to His house, not keep us out. We are the ones who reject the clear directions. Many of us don’t even want to talk the afterlife. We don’t want to do any kind of research whatsoever or even discuss it. But by not discussing something, we can remain ignorant or uninformed. We could be on the wrong path.

Except for Jesus, the wisest man whoever lived was King Solomon. He said in Proverbs 14:12, “There is way that seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” The information I am sharing with you will enable you to make an informed decision. Mark Twain once said, “We’re all ignorant — just about different things.” You might say, “Bill, why should I believe the bible? Why is that so important? There are many different religions. Who’s to say the bible is more important than any other book?”

There are many reasons why the bible is much more important and totally different from the teachings of any other religion. First of all, no other religion claims that someone died for you and rose from the dead. That someone is the Son of God. He’s a loving God and He gave His life for us. No religion claims that. There are also over 500 witnesses who attest to a risen Savior, and historians who have written about it. If Jesus didn’t rise from the dead, and it was just a hoax, or the body was merely hidden, the Romans and the Jews would have stopped at nothing until they found it. His body would have been highly sought-after because they wanted to stop Christianity. People have searched for His body for 2,000 years and never found it because He rose from the dead just like He said He would.

All other religions were written by one man, who based an entire belief system on his own vision. How do you know this vision wasn’t demonic? There is no concrete proof about anything with this type of religion. The Bible is not based on what one man wrote. The bible is not even just one book. It’s a collection of 66 books, written by 40 different authors, over almost a 2,000-year period, on three different continents. Every one of these authors wrote about the same thing. They all wrote about Jesus Christ.

There are over 300 prophecies in the Old Testament alone foretelling the life of Jesus, and what He would be like. Here are just a few of those prophecies:

  • The day He would be born
  • Where He would be born (Bethlehem)
  • His would travel to Egypt
  • He would be raised in Nazareth,
  • He would grow up as a prophet and a priest
  • He was the Son of God
  • He would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver
  • That silver would be thrown down in the temple
  • A potter’s field would be bought with the silver
  • He would be lied upon, spit on and beaten to where He was unrecognizable as a man
  • He’d be hung on a cross
  • His hands and feet would be pierced and His side would be pierced
  • He would be crucified
  • He would wear a crown of thorns on His head
  • He would die and He would rise on the third day
  • He would ascend into heaven

All of these things were told hundreds of years BEFORE He was ever born. No other religion foretells the future like the bible does. All other religions tell us what we must DO to earn our salvation. Some religions believe that you have to harm your own children, or sacrifice them. Some instruct people to cause harm to their own body, or even take their own life. Even then, there is no assurance of salvation. You never know if you’re really saved or not. Christianity guarantees your salvation. You have assurance of it, and not because of your works. It’s a free gift that God gives us. He is the giver of life. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is the only one who came and died in our place.

There is no other religion that has been checked out, scrutinized, and researched like the bible has, by a vast array of scholars. Thousands of scholars have actually dissected every letter and every word of the bible, and have not found even one discrepancy that could not be cleared up with good scholarship. All of the history, the archeology, the kings, the cities, and the dates have been researched and found to be true.

The bible is also unique from all other religions because it is a message of love. No other religion mentions a God of love. The bible gives us clear instructions how to get to heaven. It’s not ambiguous in any way. Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes unto the Father but by me.”

Today, people would say that it’s not politically correct to say there is only one way, but Jesus said it. Do you want to live in His house? You must do things His way. He made it abundantly clear. He said in Luke 13:3, “Unless a man repent, you shall all likewise perish.” We have to agree to repent. Repent simply means to be humble enough to admit we are sinners, be willing to turn from our sin, and follow Him.

In Romans 10:9, 10, it says, “If we confess with our mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in our heart that God raised Him from the dead, we shall be saved.” We have to believe in our own heart and confess Him with our own mouth. Those are the clear directions to heaven.

We have the bible to stand on for clear directions to heaven, just like we have our smartphones and our navigation systems to arrive at a certain destination. My questions for you are, “What are you standing on? What is your belief based on? Is it something concrete like the bible?” You want to be clear about this one. You don’t want to take a chance with your soul in the afterlife. This decision is the most important one you will ever make because it’s an eternal one.

Which road will you take?

 

© Copyright 2007-2019 Soul Choice Ministries – All Rights Reserved
By Bill Wiese, author of
23 Minutes in Hell