Heaven, Hell And Everything Else - Grace Umc

Happy Easter! Thank you for joining Grace as we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. What role do church and faith play in your daily life? God asks us to love Him and our neighbors. Commit or re-commit your life to Christ today. Walk the walk and live the life.

Today, Christians around the whole world gather together as the Body of Christ and honor the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross. Through His work, we are offered salvation and eternal life. Our sins no longer have a hold on us. We are set free in Jesus.

Palm Sunday we celebrate the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. He arrived to cheering crowds and well-wishers. Those crowds faded away and soon all that were left were a handful of followers. Do we cheer one day and ignore the next? If we follow, we need to follow with our heart, soul, strength and mind. Make your discipleship true and pure.

Is the Bible clear about who goes to Heaven? Many assume so, but there are passages that allude to many not going to Heaven and Jesus is the only way. What does that say to other religions or believers in God? Today we examine who goes to Heaven and how to make sure we end up there.

As we grow older, our views tend to change. Concepts and ideals are deeply impacted by our personal experiences. Beliefs also play a big role in determining our views. The concept of Hell has gone through many renovations over the past 2000 years. Four main views on Hell spring forth and in this sermon, we will explore them all.

The followers of Jesus had very distinct views of Heaven and Hell. We look at the views of Peter, Paul and John today. They were all very forceful personalities and leaders in the early church. Hear their words of repentance and forgiveness, qualified and explained in a physical view of Heaven and Hell. Their desire was that all would repent, but knew it was a free choice.

What does the Bible say about Heaven? In the Bible, the word Heaven describes three distinctly different "heavens". Heaven is the home of God and the eventual home of all believers. Do we believe? Do our lives reflect the glory of God? Be open to where God leads us and whomever is placed in our path.

What did Jesus actually say about Hell? Was and is Hell a literal place of suffering and damnation? Or, are the new theories about Hell (Gehenna) being a garbage dump outside Jerusalem where the fire never goes out, more to our liking? Whichever way you go, we all must first begin with the Bible, as it was written most by firsthand accounts of what Jesus said and did.