Is it really that easy to go to Heaven?

[Elijah John]

From another thread in response to this question:

Yes to the narrow gate, but how does one get through it?

In response, Tcg made this astute observation:

By joining the most popular religion in the world, it's the widest narrow gate known to mankind.

This is the verse from Jesus alluded to:

"For the gate is narrow, and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it.

-Have the millions of Evangelical Christians in the world who believe that Jesus died to "pay for" their sins, found the narrow gate and the hard road to life?

-What's so hard about believing that Jesus died to "pay for" your sins? Especially when millions are indoctrinated from childhood and by culture to believe just that?

-Is it really that easy? Simply to believe that Jesus died as a blood atonement for you in order to pave your way to Heaven? Or is something more, or something different needed to appropriate the Grace of God and get to Heaven?

[ttruscott]

- Is it really that easy? Simply to believe that Jesus died as a blood atonement for you in order to pave your way to Heaven? Or is something more, or something different needed to appropriate the Grace of God and get to Heaven?

Yes - for the elect.

PCE theology contends that you must be a sinner who is a believer so not condemned, not a sinner who is condemned already, Jn 3:18. We are not here to make our choices but to be separated according to the choices we already made, Matt 13:24-30 which is later explained, no more metaphor or typology, verses 36-43...

Those sinners who chose GOD but then fell into sin will be redeemed and return to HIM.
Those sinners who rejected HIM totally will be banished to the outer darkness.

[Checkpoint]

[Replying to post 1 by Elijah John]

-What's so hard about believing that Jesus died to "pay for" your sins?

A good question.

Please give us your answer.

[Elijah John]

[Replying to post 1 by Elijah John]

-What's so hard about believing that Jesus died to "pay for" your sins?

A good question.

Please give us your answer.

Just believing that Jesus died to "pay for" one's sins, does not seem to be the "hard road to life" that Jesus was referring to. Does it to you?

[jgh7]

[Replying to post 1 by Elijah John]

Somewhere in the scriptures it is noted that even demons know what Jesus did. I doubt simply a belief or acknowledgment of what he did is enough.

[Elijah John]

[Replying to post 1 by Elijah John]

Somewhere in the scriptures it is noted that even demons know what Jesus did. I doubt simply a belief or acknowledgment of what he did is enough.

I think that is from the letter of James.

You believe that God is one, you do well. Even demons believe, and tremble.

But then again, James is the "faith without works is dead" guy.

That line of thinking seems more in harmony with Jesus than does the theology of Paul or Evangelicaqls who posit "sola fida".

[Checkpoint]

[Replying to post 1 by Elijah John]

-What's so hard about believing that Jesus died to "pay for" your sins?

A good question.

Please give us your answer.

Just believing that Jesus died to "pay for" one's sins, does not seem to be the "hard road to life" that Jesus was referring to. Does it to you?

Not specifically, not in particular.

But it is part of the package, a part you find too hard for you to accept, for your own reasons, don't you?

[JehovahsWitness]

[Replying to post 1 by Elijah John]

That would depend on how one interprets "the way" that leads to life.

If "the way" is taken to mean being part of a mainstream religion or (like most nominal Christians on this site), claiming to be associated by name with Christ (with or without attending a "church") then that would indeed constitute numerically about a third of earths population, not a majority but a substantial number nonetheless.



Whether a third would be considered "broad and spacious" and whether that is to be understood as "easy", is again down to interpretation.



JW

[Elijah John]

[Replying to post 1 by Elijah John]

That would depend on how one interprets "the way" that leads to life.

If "the way" is taken to mean being part of a mainstream religion or (like most nominal Christians on this site), claiming to be associated by name with Christ (with or without attending a "church") then that would indeed constitute numerically about a third of earths population, not a majority but a substantial number nonetheless.



Whether a third would be considered "broad and spacious" and whether that is to be understood as "easy", is again down to interpretation.



JW

Jesus was critical ot those who claimed to have the right heritage, in his day, those who claimed that their Abrahamic lineage in and of itself made them "right with God". (the Father could turn these stones into children of Abraham:)

In our day, perhaps Jesus would say to those who think it is simply enough to claim "Lord Lord" (Christians who think that simply beleiving the "right things" will put them right with God), "I never knew you".

[JehovahsWitness]

[Replying to post 9 by Elijah John]

Yes, that's one interpretation. There are probably thousands of different interpretations of this and other passages.

Tcg's interpretation that nominal Christians being a third of the worlds population would constitute being on the broad way is an interpretation some would agree with although since Jesus only spoke of two roads (and nominal Christians only constitute about a third of the earths population) then according to Tcg's interpretation, they would still be smaller than the group who were not Christian.