Don’t Just Hope You’ll Go to Heaven
By Rick Warren
“And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life” (1 John 5:11-12 NIV).
If you went to a mall today and asked people if they were going to Heaven or Hell, you’d likely hear many of them say, “I hope I’ll go to Heaven.”
But hope just isn’t good enough. I pray that’s not your answer. Your eternal destiny is too important not to know for sure.
It’s foolish to be unprepared for what we all know is inevitable: death. The most recent statistics show that mortality rates in the world remain 100 percent!
You’re not guaranteed another minute on this planet, much less another hour. Don’t put off the most important choice you’ll ever make.
The Bible says in 1 John 5:11-12, “And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life”(NIV).
That’s about as clear as you can get. If you have Jesus, you have life. If you don’t have Jesus, you do not have life. You have a choice.
You won’t go to Heaven because of someone else’s faith. You’ll never go to Hell because of someone else’s choice.
It’s your choice! You’ll decide where you’ll spend eternity.
This is why Christmas and Easter are so important. If Jesus hadn’t come at Christmas, and then if he hadn’t died and come back to life on Easter, we’d be hopeless. Nothing we do would matter. You wouldn’t have this choice.
The cross is the answer to our deepest problem: our separation from God.
The Bible says, “You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross” (Colossians 2:13-14 NLT).
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Talk It Over
How does realizing that you’re not promised another second on Earth give urgency to either your decision to follow Jesus or the decision your friends and family need to make?
Who in your life needs to read the message in this devotional? How can you develop your relationship to a point where you can share this message with them?
If the decision to follow Jesus and have life or reject Jesus and not have life is so clear and stark, why is it hard for some people to choose?
Prayer of Commitment to Jesus
If you are ready to commit your life to Jesus Christ, then pray this prayer:
“Dear Jesus, you have promised that if I believe in you, everything I’ve ever done wrong will be forgiven, I will learn the purpose of my life, and you will accept me into your eternal home in Heaven one day.
“I confess my sin, and I believe that you are God, my Savior. I receive you into my life as my Lord. Today I’m turning over every part of my life to your management. You have the right to call the shots in my life.
“Jesus, I want to relax in your love. Thank you that I don’t have to earn it or deserve it or work for it. I want to use the rest of my life to serve you instead of serving myself. I humbly commit my life to you and ask you to save me and accept me into your family. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.”
For more Daily Hope with Rick Warren, please visit pastorrick.com!
God's Big Plans for Me Storybook Bible by Rick Warren
Limited time offer ends April 3
Share God’s Word with a child – and give them the keys to a good life!
“Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.” -Proverbs 22:6 (NKJV)
One of the greatest ways to fulfill the Great Commission is to share Jesus and God’s Word with the children in your life.
And there’s now a great tool to help do that—Pastor Rick Warren’s brand-new book, God’s Big Plans for Me Storybook Bible.
This 223-page, full-color hardcover children’s version of God’s Word shares key Bible stories along with the 40 foundational principles of the #1 New York Times bestseller, The Purpose Driven Life. And it’s written in a way that’s easy for even the youngest readers to understand.
The God’s Big Plans for Me Storybook Bible will help the children in your life…
• Experience Bible stories coming to life with child-friendly language
• Connect deeply with Scripture through engaging illustrations
• Grow to love Jesus through lessons targeted specifically for them
• Discover God’s plans and purposes for their life
God’s Big Plans for Me Storybook Bible is available as our thanks for your gift below—but only for a limited time. This offer ends April 3.
So when you give today, be sure to request your copy of God’s Big Plans for Me Storybook Bible to bless a child in your life, or to give to a neighbor, coworker or friend.
And thank you for giving today to help more people learn, love, and live the Word through Daily Hope!
This devotional © 2017 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
You can listen to Rick Warren on OnePlace.com.