“For God did not send his Son into the world
to condemn the world,
but that the world through him might be saved.
He who believes in him is not condemned,
but he who does not believe is condemned already,
because he has not believed in the Name
of the only begotten Son of God."
John 3:17-18
There is a hard truth revealed here. "He who does not believe is condemned already."
Why is that?
We need to get to the crux of the situation. It's because we are fallen by nature, sinful by nature, and no one guilty of sin can enter heaven.
Satan lured Adam, our first father, into sin and rebellion against God. The Lord had made it clear to Adam that if he should rebel against him, death would be the result. We know that Adam did not die on the day he rebelled against God and brought sin into our world, in fact he went on to have children. So ...did God lie? Of course not, Satan lied, indeed Jesus called him the "father of lies" (John 8:44). Adam DID die the very moment he brought sin into the world. When we think of death, we think of the spirit leaving the body. Everyone has seen a dead body, and we know how dead death is. But that is only one kind of death.
Death means "SEPARATION."
At physical death, the soul leaves the body, and the body without the soul is dead as a door-nail as we all know. But there is another death, and that is when the spirit of man is SEPARATED from God. Adam had been created a perfect human being whose spirit was in perfect harmony with God. When Adam sinned, that harmony was destroyed. The spirit within Adam died. There was no longer the life in God that was there before. Adam's spirit was dead and all his descendants would now be born in spiritual death. That's why Jesus so adamantly stated, "You MUST be born again" (John 3:7).
Satan achieved his great goal and his great victory when he caused Adam to sin. It resulted in the destruction of mankind's relationship to God.
But ...God provided a remedy for that. He sent his Son to bear on a Cross the terrible judgment due on our sins. When a person comes to Jesus Christ and receives him and the atonement Christ provided for him, that person is made alive to God in what Jesus termed being "born again." So now, a supernatural change happens within the person. The spirit of the person who has come to Christ by faith is made alive and the harmony between him/her and God is established. The Scriptures tell us that at that moment the person becomes a "new creation."
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is A NEW CREATURE;
old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."
2nd Corinthians 5:17
Are you born again? If not, or if you're not sure, pray with me:
Father God, I'm very aware that I was born a sinner, living in the world without connection to you. Jesus told us that when we receive him and the atonement he provided, we CAN be "born again," that we become a new creation and that all is made new. Lord, I believe your Word and I ask you to receive me into that relationship with you, that I may be a new creation in direct contact with you. Make my spirit alive, Lord, I pray. Put that new life in me. I'm willing to surrender all to you and to be yours for all eternity. Father, I thank you so much for the provision you made for me in Christ Jesus, and I receive it now by faith.
More on this:
Born Again -What Does That Mean?
Jesus said:
"And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe me?
He who is of God hears God’s words;
therefore you do not hear,
because you are not of God.”
John 8:46-47
Because you are not of God...
The world could simply be divided between those who revere the words of Jesus Christ, and those who do not. Jesus went on to say that those who do not - will not, or cannot, hear the truth, those are not children of God.
We are all born into a fallen world, under the “god” of this world who the Scriptures tell us is Satan himself (2nd Corinthians 4:4). This is why Jesus said one MUST be born again. Those born into the world and who do not become born again ...are by nature children of "the god of this world."
You'll know them by their fruits, the Scriptures say.
Jesus describes Satan, the god of this world, like this:
vs 44:
“He was a murderer from the beginning,
and does not stand in the truth,
because there is no truth in him.
When he speaks a lie,
he speaks from his own resources,
for he is a liar and the father of it."
How many wars have been fought because of religion? How much blood has been shed because of religion? Those who deceive and murder are children of the devil, says the Lord Jesus Christ. If a religion fosters murder and deception, know that that religion is the work of Satan. God does not call his people to force truth onto others, nor does he desire anyone to kill for him. If any religion does, then know it is the work of Satan.
"Yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you
will think that he offers God service."
John 16:2
Taking a look at Islam for example: What is hard to understand is the conflict between what Islam says concerning Jesus, versus what Islam does. On the one hand Islam acknowledges Jesus Christ as “a prophet.” If he is a prophet, why then do they not hear his words? Jesus clearly said that the religion whose very precepts are based on deception and murder - is the religion spawned by "the devil." They profess that Jesus is "a prophet," yet they refuse what he said? He said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, EXCEPT THROUGH ME. John 14:6 But Islam does not believe the "prophet's" words.
Islam comes to kill and to destroy. Islam teaches its followers to lie when it's in Islam's best interests (Taquiah).
There is no such thing as a "moderate" Muslim, because to be a Muslim is to follow its tenets, and the tenets found in the Koran and the Hadiths tell them to lie and to kill. If their "holy" books tell them they must lie and kill, then who is behind that, according to Jesus?
"The thief does not come except to steal,
and to kill, and to destroy.
I have come that they may have life,
and that they may have it more abundantly."
John 10:10
Anyone who comes to the Lord Jesus Christ comes to the one who came to give them LIFE.
Christians are not called to kill, and they are certainly not called to lie. In fact, they are told to pray for their enemies. This, and not Islam, is the "religion of peace."
Islam proselytizes through force and terror, but not so with Christianity. No one is a Christian by force. In fact, there are passages in the New Testament showing Jesus actually letting go those who do not believe him. He does not go after them to explain it better, no, he lets them go. Read the story in Matthew chapter 19 of the rich young ruler who could not follow Jesus' instructions. He went away, and Jesus did not try to stop him. He didn't curse him, he didn't argue with him, he didn't threaten him, he let him go. There's another example of this in John chapter 6 - many stopped following Jesus when he said something they just could not accept. And he just let them go. Not only that, but he turned to the twelve and asked them if they'd like to leave also. Had they chosen to leave, he would have let them go. No one follows the Lord Jesus Christ by force.
Mankind is given freedom of choice, because the Lord wants the heart of man, not forced obedience.
Choose life.
"For God so loved the world
that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whoever believes in him
should not perish but have everlasting life.
For God did not send his Son into the world
to condemn the world, but that the world
through him might be saved."
John 3:16-17
Many, if not most, religions teach that all good people will be saved. This is one of the greatest lies that Satan has perpetrated upon the human race. People are taught that salvation is determined by the ratio of good deeds versus bad deeds. And so, many spend their lives feverishly trying to "be good," so they won't go to hell. But the truth is that we are ALL sinners, and no one with sin can enter heaven. Salvation is NOT dependent on whether your good outweighs your bad, that is a lie from "the father of lies." All are born into sin and all sin must be judged.
"There is none righteous, NO, NOT ONE;"
Romans 3:10
"The heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately WICKED."
Jeremiah 17:9
"So Jesus said to him, 'Why do you call me good?
NO ONE is good but One, that is, God."
Mark 10:18
"ALL we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned, EVERY ONE, to his own way;
and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all."
Isaiah 53:6
So how then DOES one get to heaven?
There is one thing that all other "religions" lack, and that is a Redeemer. Without the Savior, no one is saved because they have guilt, they have sin, and there is no way to enter heaven with sin on their souls.
Salvation begins when a person accepts the truth about himself - that he is not "good," and pride makes it very difficult to admit that.
As long as a person perceives himself as "good," he cannot be saved. Sin is the elephant in the room.
All human beings descended from Adam are born into a fallen human nature prone to sin, and all human beings sin. Because we have sin on our soul we are all, every one of us, deserving of hell.
Does that sound harsh? Well if no one can enter heaven with sin on his soul, where else would he go?
One denomination says he goes to "purgatory" where he burns until all his sin is purged. This too is heresy foisted upon the people, giving them hope that if they burn long enough they'll eventually get there. NOT TRUE! It's a lie. It's a lie many fall for because they do not know the Word of God. The Word of God speaks of two destinations after death: heaven and hell. And it is not the ratio of good versus bad that decides our fate.
Then what DOES decide our fate?
Let's go back to the first verse at the top of this post.
"For God so loved the world
that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whoever believes in him
should not perish but have everlasting life."
Because God loved his creation that was spoiled by sin, he sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to BEAR THE JUDGMENT due us because of our sin. Whether a person goes to heaven or not ...is dependent on whether or not their sin has been judged. If Jesus Christ bore the judgment due me because of my sin, then there's no more penalty for me to pay, he did it ALL. By receiving that great atonement he made for us, we are cleansed. And cleansed, we are welcomed into heaven no matter how great our sin was, because Jesus paid it all, and only requires us to receive him by faith.
"Because the sinless Savior died,
my sinful soul is counted free;
for God, the Just, is satisfied
to look on Him and pardon me."
Lyrics to 'Before The Throne Of God Above'
Does that mean we can just go and live a life of sin? No, absolutely not. Jesus said we MUST be born again, and once a person is born again his nature undergoes a great change. He no longer WANTS to sin. If he does slip up, the sin has been judged and he is still saved - and there will be many slip-ups while we still live in this world. But the point is that the person who has been born again simply does not want to sin. His whole life, his whole world-view, his interests, his motivations, all have been intrinsically changed once he has been born again. Jesus didn't suggest a person be born again, he said a person MUST be born again. It's the only way to heaven.
How is one born again? See the following:
Born Again - What Does That Mean?