Equipped

Professional law enforcement officers must be well equipped in many areas in order to succeed. Our business as a company is to equip them with the tools that they need. Most police officers I know would never go to work without some basic equipment…duty weapon, body armor, flashlight, portable radio, handcuffs, etc. None of us would want to make a high-risk traffic stop or even do a building search without these. The stakes are too high. Unless we are equipped with the proper tools our odds of failure are vastly increased.

Likewise, there are other areas in our lives of even greater importance where we need to be equipped. The greatest need that any of us have is to be equipped spiritually. We must be ready for eternity. Unless we are equipped for eternity failure is certain.

Let me ask you a question. Think about your answer. If you were to die right now are you sure where you would spend eternity? Would it be in Heaven? When that question was posed to me in 1969 I didn’t know the answer. I’m thankful that someone cared enough to sit down and explain God’s plan of salvation to me from the Bible. God loves you! And He wants you to know how to spend eternity with Him in Heaven after you die. And so do I. If you’re like I was and don’t know for sure that you’re on your way to Heaven, please allow me show you what God says about it in His Word (the Bible).

The Bible tells us that we can know for sure that we are saved and on our way to Heaven. In I John 5:13 the Bible says “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.” God tells us that we can know that we are going to Heaven.

The Bible teaches that there are just four things that you need to know in order to go to Heaven:

1. The first thing that you need to understand is that you are a sinner. All of us are. The Bible says in Romans 3:10, “As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one.” Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”

2. You need to know that there is a penalty for sin – death in Hell. Romans 6:23a, “For the wages of sin is death…” “Death” doesn’t mean just dying and going to the grave. The spiritual death spoken of here means spending eternity separated from God in a lake of fire - Hell.

Revelation 21:8, “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” Because we are all sinners, death in Hell is a debt that we owe right now.

3. You need to know that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, loves you so much that He paid the price for your sin. He paid your debt by dying on the cross and shedding His perfect, sinless blood as payment for our sins. Romans 5:8, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

Because we are sinners by birth we have no perfect sacrifice to make for our sin. Even our best efforts are stained by sin, so that no matter how good we try to live or how hard we try to make up for our sins, we fall short of what a Holy God requires. But, Jesus Christ is perfect, and His death on the cross was a perfect sacrifice for all of our sin, and God will allow Jesus’ sacrifice to pay for all our sin.

4. You need to know that Jesus offers you the free gift of Heaven.
Romans 6:23b “But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

Going to Heaven is a gift. It’s absolutely free! Salvation is not found in a church or a good deed or in baptism or any religious act. Salvation is found in a Person, and that Person is Jesus Christ.

Romans 10:9-10, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
Romans 10:13 says, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” The word “whosoever” means anyone…you and I.

If you are willing to trust Jesus to take you to Heaven when you die, won't you bow your head and sincerely ask Him to save you right now. If you’ve never prayed before or don’t know how, you could pray something like this:

“Dear Jesus, please forgive me for my sins. I believe that You died on the cross for me and rose again from the grave. I trust You today Jesus, and only You, and ask You to take me to Heaven when I die. Thank you for saving me. Amen."

Congratulations! If you just accepted Jesus and sincerely asked Him to take you to Heaven you can be sure that He will. The Bible says in John 3:36a, “He that believeth on the Son (Jesus) hath everlasting life...”

Now let me encourage you to find a local fundamental Bible believing church in your area and attend faithfully. Get a King James Bible and begin reading God's Word. Pray and ask God to help you understand what you read and guide you to the right church.

My family and I are members of the First Baptist Church of Hammond, Indiana. All of our services are broadcast live in video on the internet. While this is not a substitute for your local church, if you can't attend your church for some reason let me invite you to visit us on the internet.

Thank you for allowing me to share this good news with you. My prayer is that you are equipped for eternity.

Sincerely,

Troy See