What does it take to get into heaven?
1- All religions have holy Bibles that contradict one another in most areas.
2- God is supposed to be omniscient, so "He" will know that attending church once a week doesn't make you religious any more than spending time in a garage makes you a race car.
3- God gave man freedom of choice, and no clear directions on his expectations (otherwise there wouldn't be so many religions, and so many variations of each one).
My Reply:
I hope you don't mind, but I'm going to answer these out of order:
2- Christianity isn't a religion...Christianity is a relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ.
Everything else out there is just a religion...they're about what you need to do to be considered as good or righteous. But they're all judged by how a human some time ago considered it as such.
The Apostle Paul tells us that the only way to become righteous, or "good" in God's eyes, is through faith in Jesus Christ, whom God sent. It's not about what we can or need to do, but about what Jesus has already done.
So when you mention that all religions have holy Bibles that conflict one another in most areas, keep in mind that Christianity isn't a religion.
Also, you're right...there are a lot of people who go to church but don't have a relationship with God.
1-You'll also notice though that most "holy" books, traditions, practices, and beliefs are actually very similar to that of the Holy Bible of Christianity. That's because they're all copycats. Satan's a copycat...everybody wants to be or be like God.
There's nothing in the others that wasn't first in the Holy Bible. God even told Moses that His name is what He is...God. But others take on that name in order to fool people into believing and following them.
3- Freedom of choice. You're probably right about the different religions. I notice that there are a lot of people out there searching for God. Sometimes they find Him, and that's great. Sometimes they try to figure things out themselves without guidance from somebody who already knows God, and start up a church with others with the same messed-up thoughts. And some people trust the wrong people and end up meeting somebody wearing a generic version of God's clothes, and end up becoming more messed up than they were to begin with.
But I think freedom of choice only plays a small part in this.
The freedom of choice part comes in play in terms of whether or not we want to have anything to do with God. For example, science continues to prove God's existence, and archaeology continues to prove events in the Bible. But yet, even with the proof, some continue to refuse to believe. But that's a choice that they made...they CHOSE not to believe. If God forced people to believe in Him, then He'd be a tyrant.
Some believe in God, but CHOOSE to have nothing to do with Him. Sure it breaks God's heart, but God’s love for them is expressed in His giving them that choice.
So what does it take to get to heaven? Repentance of sins, acceptance of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
---Pastor Andy G.
