Page 156 - Apologetics Student Textbook

heaven. Other people think that God is a God of love and would never send a person to hell no matter
how bad they are. The thinking about getting to heaven is varied.

In modern day movies Heaven’s foundation is a bunch of clouds and people come to heaven based on
their good works and even turn into angels. Clarence got his “wings” in It’s a Wonderful Life. Stories
have God sending people back to earth as angels to help others through difficult times.

The Bible, however, tells us differently. God’s Words says that everyone, everywhere has sinned against
God and that even the righteous acts of everyone is but “filthy rags” in the sight of God. Isaiah put it this
way in Isaiah 64:6 (DARBY):

And we are all become as an unclean [thing], and all our righteousnesses are as

filthy rags; and we all fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have carried
us away;

God gave mankind the Ten Commandments to help us understand what righteousness is. No man has
ever lived up to God’s righteous standards and kept them. Every man has sinned and FALLEN SHORT of
God’s glory (Rom. 3:23). So God in His loving compassion, demonstrated His love in that while we were
bound by our sin, Jesus Christ died for us. He took our place in judgment. On the cross He received the
eternal judgment of our sin on his own body. It’s called the GREAT EXCHANGE. He died, so that we
might live. II Corinthians 5:21 explains it:

He made Him (Jesus Christ) who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we
might become the righteousness of God in Him.

So you must understand that no amount of your good works can make you acceptable in God’s eyes.
Yes, there are books in heaven. There is one book that is the most important called the Book of Life.
When you die, God will determine you eternal fate by looking in that book to see if your name is written
in it. It is not a record of all the good or bad things you have done. It is simply a book of names. Your
name is written there or not. Revelation 20:15:

And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown
into the lake of fire.

Heaven would not be heaven if you could get there by your own good works. It would be nothing more
than a glorified earth – everyone with bragging rights. There would be levels or casts in heaven.
Perhaps level one, close to God’s throne, would be for all the good people, and as the levels descend,
the not as good people. Everyone would be telling others what good persons they were and look down
on those who lived on a lower level. That’s how it is here on earth! No, there will be no boasting in
heaven because everyone there will have gotten there simply by receiving God’s gift without earning it.
Titus 3:5-6 says,

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