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How do we get to Heaven and what sends us to Hell? Let’s start at the beginning. First of all, when God created Adam and Eve and placed them in the Garden of Eden, God gave them access to everything with one exception. In Genesis chapter 2, verses 16-17, it says:

“And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: ¹⁷ But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”

This death the Lord was speaking about was not Adam falling over dead when he ate of the fruit, but it was separation from God. When Adam disobeyed and ate of the fruit that God had commanded him not to eat, Adam and Eve were put out of the garden (Genesis 3:23-24).

God did, however, cover the sin of Adam and Eve by making them coats of skins (Genesis 3:21). This was the first animal sacrifice. Even though their sin was covered, Adam and Eve were still not allowed back into the garden because God could not let them eat from the tree of life and live forever in their sinful condition (Genesis 3:22).

Also, due to Adam’s sin, he (and all after him) would now experience physical death because before the fall of man (when Adam ate the forbidden fruit), there was no physical death. Because Adam disobeyed, we now live in a fallen world. We’re not sinners just because we sin: we sin because we are all born as sinners. Romans 5:12 tells us:

“Wherefore, as by one man [Adam] sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.”

Because we live in a fallen world, God had to provide a way for us to be reconciled back to Him. If He didn’t, we would be eternally separated from Him. Life does not end here. The Bible tells us in Genesis 1:27 that God created man in His image. That means we were all created eternal beings. We will continue to live forever when we die physically, and we will live eternally in 1 of 2 places: Heaven or Hell.

God created us with a will to choose our own destiny. No one can ever blame God for sending them to Hell. We are responsible for our own destination. You’re probably asking, ok, so how do I get to Heaven? Well in Romans 6:23 it tells us:

“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

This means that we all deserve death (eternal separation from God) because we have all sinned. However, God has given us the “free” gift of eternal life.

The thing with a gift is that we must accept it. If someone hands us a birthday or Christmas gift, it wouldn’t be of any joy or benefit to us if we didn’t accept it. It’s the same way with God’s gift to us. Jesus Christ is of no benefit or joy to us if we don’t accept Him. Romans 5:8 tells us:

“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

Now in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, the Bible tells us just what Christ has done for us so we can be saved from eternal separation from God in Hell. It says:

“Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; ² By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. ³ For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; ⁴ And that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures.”

That is the Gospel (or Good News) that saves us from Hell. We must accept that there’s nothing we can do to earn God’s favor, and totally trust what Christ did for us. Ephesians 2:8-9 shows:

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, ⁹ not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

So we see here, not only how we get to Heaven, but also what sends us to Hell.

To get to Heaven: Simply place all your faith in what Christ did for you to remove all your sin—He died, was buried, and rose again the third day (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).

To end up in Hell: Don’t believe and trust in what Christ did for you and remain in your state of sin, eternally separated from God.

The choice is yours! If you end up in Heaven, you only have Christ to thank, and if you end up in Hell, you only have yourself to blame!

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