10-15-2016, 07:54 PM
(10-15-2016, 07:00 PM)Dill Wrote: ??? What??? I can see why you might say that of the Old Testament, since beyond "Sheol" there little discussion of an afterlife. But the New Testament is another story. Criteria for entry into heaven are laid down frequently and explicitly.
John 14: 6--I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me.
Matthew 7:21--Not everyone who says to me, "lord, lord," will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my father in heaven.
Romans 2:13--For it is not the hearers of the Law who are righteous before God, but it is the doers of the Law who will be declared righteous.
Timothy 3:15-16--From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness . . . .
Mathew 18:1-6--Who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?” Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. “And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me. But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea.
I could do this all day, but will close with my very favorite, which leaves little doubt about necessary steps to heaven:
Mark 10: 17-25 As Jesus was starting out on his way to Jerusalem, a man came running up to him, knelt down, and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
“Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked. “Only God is truly good. But to answer your question, you know the commandments: ‘You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely. You must not cheat anyone. Honor your father and mother.’”
Teacher,” the man replied, “I’ve obeyed all these commandments since I was young.”
Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him. “There is still one thing you haven’t done,” he told him. “Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven.
Then come, follow me.”
At this the man’s face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.
Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God!” This amazed them. But Jesus said again, “Dear children, it is very hard to enter the Kingdom of God. In fact, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!”
I think you're missing my point. I'm not saying the bible doesn't tell you how to get to heaven. I'm saying that because the bible is not a step by step guide of what you must do to get to heaven, it leaves room to interpretation, which in turn leads to all of the different beliefs people have because people think differently.
The bible mentions multiple times that you must "do God's will" but what does that even mean? These are the questions people ask themselves when reading the Bible and everyone comes to their own conclusion as to what it all means. It is not a step by step "Do this and this and this and viola, you're in heaven".
