I would like to share a reflection, not exhaustive, about what the Bible says about those who are going to go to heaven.
Often, it seems that some people believe that this is a small number of people.
They believe that these people work so hard and achieve a certain degree of perfection.
Thus, they are allowed into heaven.
However, to address the issue, I’d like to start by sharing with you a portion of the scripture that talks about this topic:
After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.
They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.
And they cried out in a loud voice:
“Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”
Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?”
I answered, “Sir, you know.”
And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Revelation 7:9-10; 13-14
In this text, the apostle John is in a vision where he sees what heaven will be.
The first thing shown to him, in this part of his vision, is that there will be countless people from all nations, peoples, tribes, and languages.
Therefore, it is possible to conclude that, the idea that only a small group will be in heaven does not seem to be consistent with what the Bible teaches.
Also, the Bible clearly states that in heaven there will be people of all races, ethnicities, peoples, nations, languages, etc.
God, unlike human beings, has never had any favoritism for people based on ethnic or racial issues.
The next and perhaps most important question would be why are these people in heaven?
That is, why instead of not being in heaven, are they in heaven?
The first thing that must be clarified about this is that God is the only one who can say, specifically, which person will go and which person will not go to heaven.
He is the only righteous enough judge.
It is not our prerogative to close or open heaven to people with our imperfect opinions and judgments.
Only God knows each specific case.
And He will judge everyone with justice and truth.
However, an important answer is given to John in his vision, by one of the twenty-four elders he had seen next to the throne of God.
According to the Bible, those who will go to heaven are those who:
“(…) they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb”
The Bible communicates, again and again, that salvation can only be obtained through the merits of Christ.
Our own clothes, that is, our own righteousness, before God is completely inappropriate and imperfect, and can never help us gain entry into heaven.
Access to heaven is a gift from God, which was bought and paid for with Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.
When the Bible says that those who will be in heaven are those who washed and whitened their clothes with the blood of the lamb, the message it communicates is that our imperfect lives have merit of salvation before God, only when presented with the merits of Christ.
Our only merit before God is a life that renounces one’s self-dependence and surrenders to Jesus.
A life that is transformed, cleansed, and whitened by the love, and mercy of God in Christ.
Dear friend, those of us who will be in heaven will be the ones who accept Jesus as our only means of salvation, and who love Him and walk with Him, so that our entire lives may be impregnated and transformed by His perfection.
Are you already living that experience to one day be in heaven? Would you like to live it? Share with all of us to grow together.
