YBible Thoughts Y

August 23, 1998

What a sobering thought! Someday we shall stand before the one who created us and answer for our behavior while we were upon earth. Yet, how few realize this truth.

The way in which we will give an account is revealed in Revelation 20:12, "And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne; and books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of the things which were written in the books, according to their works." Standing before the throne of God, Jehovah will determine if one has faithfully fulfilled one's responsibilities to God by having obeyed the gospel and lived a faithful life. The standard will be the word of God, not the works of men.

God will decide who goes to heaven. He sent His Son, revealed His word, established His church, and outlined the ways in which men should live their lives. For these, and a host of other reasons, He alone will pass judgment. "...for we shall all stand before the judgment-seat of God" (Romans 14:10).

One's preacher cannot decide on the destiny of men's souls. The only book in which God ever revealed who will and who will not be saved is the Bible. If your preacher teaches one can be saved without obeying the gospel and living the life of a Christian, he is influencing the destiny of souls, something in which he has no right! Giving assurance that one is right must be decided by what God revealed, not what some man(preacher) teaches.

The Pope(and his priests) have no right to absolve(to set free from) sin. Only God has that power and he, not some group of humans, will decide who goes to heaven. Why would one want to put trust in humans for salvation, anyway? They have no power and no right to lead people to believe they can extend forgiveness. Only God forgives and he does so when one follows His revealed word.

Brethren cannot give one assurance of forgiveness unless that person is willing to follow the instructions in the word of God. Only by following the pattern of forgiveness can one possibly expect to be right in God's sight.(Note: Men may forgive each other for offenses between men. Only God can forgive the sins that will enable one to go to heaven, which includes instructions on how to seek a brother's forgiveness.) No brother, or group of brethren, have any right to set aside God's pattern for obtaining the remission and forgiveness of sins.

Another thought: When one apologizes to the elders, the brethren, or the preacher for neglecting the responsibilities and obligations of a Christian, they are apologizing to the wrong folks. That apology should be to the God whose service they neglected. It is Jehovah to whom we will answer, not men. Too often, we are embarrassed as we stand before men knowing we have not behaved as a faithful disciple, with far too little thought that it is God in whose presence we will give an account for our behavior.

It is certainly right to ask brethren to pray to God when sin invades a Christian's life. Simon recognized that when he asked Peter, "Pray ye for me to the Lord, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me"(Acts 8:24).

Who decides, then, the ones who go to heaven? The answer is obvious: Jehovah does. And some day Christ will say, "Come, ye blessed of my father, inherit the kingdom"(Matthew 25:34). Be faithful and true so that youn can be a part of those who go to heaven.