What will happen to people who have different religions?

Jesus is the only way to Heaven. I know that seems unfair but it is the truth. Most of our modern industrial countries know who Jesus is. The Bible is the most translated and published book in the entire world. There is no excuse for a modern society to not know Jesus; what it boils down to is a matter of choice. Will people choose to believe in Jesus or will they choose another form of religion?

Even in this country, there are various forms of religion being practiced. The same goes across the globe. But, the truth is, unless a person believes that Jesus is who He says He is and receives Jesus into their hearts and repents of their sins, they will not go to Heaven. And, I emphasize, Heaven is not for “good” people. It is for “saved” people. After all, what is considered good enough in God's eyes? It is perfection! We could never live up to God’s standard of perfection. That’s why God sent His One and Only Son to us, to die for us and to save us.

People who choose to turn their backs on Jesus will not enter the Kingdom of God. That’s why it is written in the Bible, “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14)

Do the people in the Old Testament get to go to heaven if Jesus hadn't died for them?

Ever since “the fall,” salvation has always been available through God. The requirement for salvation has always been faith. The object of faith for salvation has always been God. In the Old Testament it was God the Father; in the New Testament it is Jesus Christ, His Son. No one, either before Jesus’ death or since Jesus’ death, would ever be saved without the resurrection of Jesus. His death paid the penalty for past sins of Old Testament saints and future sins of New Testament believers.

Do you remember the account of Abraham? In Genesis 15:6, Abraham believed in the Lord and was credited for being righteous. He was “saved” because he believed and trusted in God and God saw him as righteous, meaning right – not wrong- according to His eyes. In Isaiah 69:10, Isaiah says, “I delight greatly in the Lord: my soul rejoices in my God. For He has clothed me garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of His righteousness…” Isaiah’s faith in god made him righteous and “saved.” Even King David, in Psalm 86:1-2, cried out to the Lord and was saved through his faith. There are plenty of other Old Testament heroes that are saved through the simple act of having faith in God (By faith, Abel…by faith, Enoch…by faith, Noah…by faith, Sarah…by faith, Isaac… by faith, Jacob…by faith, Joseph…by faith, Moses…by faith, Rahab…etc.)

And, to answer your question directly, all the Old Testament believers who followed Abraham in his faith in God and also had faith in God also enjoy eternity with Jesus. Ephesians 2:8 states, “For it is by grace you have saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is a gift of God.”

Why do we get baptized?

That is a very awesome question! First off, let me just say - because sometimes folks are confused by this - that you do not need to be baptized in order to be saved or to have a personal relationship with Jesus. Being saved is a decision you make by admitting you are a sinner, believing Jesus is who He says He is and choosing to accept Jesus into your heart.

Baptisms are a very public and symbolic way of sharing with others your decision to accept Jesus as your Savior and to follow him with your life and heart. The practice of baptizing people with water was first shown in the Book of Matthew, the first book in the New Testament. In Chapter 3, we get introduced to a very strangely described person named John the Baptist. He is really a different kind of person in the way he dresses and in the stuff he eats! But, he is baptizing people in the River Jordan. He says it’s for repentance of their sins. (At the end of that chapter, he baptizes Jesus, who while sinless, gives us a model we follow!)

In the Book of Acts, the fifth book of the New Testament, Peter (one of Jesus’ original disciples) commands us to, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.” (Acts 2:38)

Again, we see that the act of baptism is a symbolic way to repent by “washing away your sins” and then rising again (just like Jesus did when He was resurrected) and walking in the newness of life that Jesus has to offer. Very cool - no doubt!

I wonder if I will go to Hell

I want to reassure you of what the Bible and God has to say about hell. And I know that you have said that you have accepted Christ as your Savior so I am speaking from that perspective.

First when you mention a fear of going to hell it makes me think you are questioning your assurance of salvation. I think it is common for us to question our salvation because we sometimes go by our feelings, we know we are sinners and that we really don’t deserve to go to heaven. The truth is, if making it to heaven was up to us then you would have reason to fear but fortunately God through Jesus provides the way to heaven. Rather than go by our feelings we need to look at God’s Word for our assurance. Here are some verses that we can trust:

John 3:36 “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”

Ephesians 2:8-9 “For it is by grace that you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works so that no one can boast.”

1 John 5:11-13 “And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.”

These are just a few verses that give us confidence/assurance in what God has for us. If you use a concordance (some Bibles even have concordances in the back of them) you can look up more verses by going to salvation, saved, or Savior; you will find several.

Should I get baptized right away after I trust Jesus as my Savior?

That is very good question! There are many people who believe that baptism is necessary for salvation and they often quote the Apostle Peter in Acts 2:38, “repent and be baptized,” as evidence that asking Jesus into your heart plus baptism results in salvation. Well guess what? Scripture clearly doesn’t support that view.

For example, when the thief on the cross placed his faith in Christ, Jesus said to him, “Today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:43), even though the dying thief had no chance of being baptized. Then, as the book of Acts demonstrates, baptism is a sign of becoming a Christ Follower, but not the way we become a Christ Follower.

When the jailer asked the Apostle Paul, “what must I do to be saved?” Paul responded, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved.” (Acts 16:30-31)

Baptism isn’t the way we’re saved, but it is the symbolic way we show our friends that we’ve turned away from our sin and have asked Jesus into our life. It’s a symbolic gesture to show everyone that we’re no longer our own – that we’ve been adopted into the family of Christ.

Bottom line, God knows your heart. He loves you because you are fearfully and wonderfully made! And, He knows you love Him. Whenever you’re ready to show your faith to your friends and family and you want that symbolic washing of the water, that’s when you should get baptized?