Do you hope you’ll have the opportunity to turn to Christ after death? Unfortunately, many people think so. They hope that God will be merciful towards them at the “gate of heaven“ and that salvation will still be possible then.
But let’s be honest. What is your reason for thinking that way? People who want to enjoy their lives their way now, without Him, aren’t serious about their need for salvation. For them, God is nothing more than insurance, a long stop, and a last resort. Why should He approve of such an attitude of heart? What signal are we giving God if we think like that? We’re really saying to Him, “I want to live my life without you, but after I’m dead, I’ll spare you a thought!”
What does God say about the afterlife?
Is it even possible to decide for God after death? What does the Bible say about this? It gives a clear answer: “It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). The last second before your death will be the last second for you to decide (if you’re conscious then!). From the moment of death, it will be too late to say “Yes” to God! He tells us in this verse that judgment awaits us after death, so the decision you make during your life here on earth determines where you will spend eternity: “In the place where the tree falls, there it shall lie.” (Ecclesiastes 11:3).
Jesus once told a story that makes this clear to those who think they can put off believing in Him for salvation. He said:
“There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, the dogs came and licked his sores. So it was that the beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. “Then he cried and said, “Father Abraham, have mercy on me, […] for I am tormented in this flame.” But Abraham said, “[…] now he [Lazarus] is comforted and you are tormented. And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.” “Then he said, “I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.” (Luke 16:19–28).
I shiver every time I read this true (!) story. A man lives his life without God — and right after death, lifts up his eyes in the “place of torment”. Now he knows this gruesome place does exist, but it’s too late to escape. There’s a gulf between paradise and hades, the “suburb” of hell, and this makes it impossible to move between the two. But he wants his brothers warned so they don’t make the same mistake as him. Incidentally, these verses show us clearly that the Catholic teaching of purgatory is false.
M R DeHaan said, “Once we have stepped through the door of death, we cannot take our suitcase and simply move on if we don’t like our accommodation.” And wouldn’t it be very illogical if God were to say at some point in the future: “Your sins have faded away; I’m now taking you to heaven where you never really wanted to go”?
How can I come to God now?
‘Your iniquities have separated you from your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you” (Isaiah 59:2) is what God has already said in the Old Testament. The gulf between Him and man cannot be bridged after death. Judgment must follow then.
The only possibility for us to have a relationship with God rests with the “Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all” (1 Timothy 2:5–6). It is only through Him that you can bridge the abyss between God and you — and only in this one lifetime. Take your opportunity to get right with God now!
Allow me one more question: aren’t you taking an extreme risk and being very careless to cling to the vague hope of having a chance of salvation after death? If you have the feeling you must confess your sins and believe in Jesus for salvation, why wait a minute longer? Decide for Him today!
‘Today, if you will hear His voice: “Do not harden your hearts.”
Psalm 95:7–8
‘Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”
2 Corinthians 6:2
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