What does it take to get to heaven?

[JohnnyRudick]

Faith is what should motivate works. You see, the gospel is about intent, motivation and doing.

As for deathbed repentance, it really depends on why he repented when he did. Did he realise earlier that he needed to repent, or is it only now when he sees he is about to die and that all that talk about punishment wasn't idle so better repent fast...

Takes us back to Paul's comment about

1 Corinthians 15:2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in

memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.

[Dravin]

Talk about death bed repentance being effective is kinda moot. If it is repentance it is effective and if it wasn't effective then it wasn't repentance. Now confessions and professions are another story and are what most people seem to be talking about when they talk about deathbed repentance.

[john doe]

Yes, it's more correctly called deathbed confession, not deathbed repentance.

[Hemidakota]

Keeping it simple.

In a word, Yes.

Life does not end at death.

And neither does accepting the atoning work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

See Temple work for the dead.

Same goes, spiritual birth was not the first progressional state and the celestial state is not the end all.

[Hemidakota]

1 Corinthians 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the

gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received,

and wherein ye stand;

1 Corinthians 15:2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in

memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.

The apostle who used his talents and intellectuality for the Lord did not teach the glory of ignorance, but he showed that man's highest knowledge, without revelation, falls short of preparing him for eternity. "Christ, and him crucified" (1 Cor. 2:2) was the beginning of his message, which blended with "Christ and him resurrected," as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15. The Greeks convert thought, there own wisdom was much greater than receiving revelatory messages.

What they thought to be of great wisdom failed them. This itself caused much dissension in that branch in southern greece. Paul letter was to correct many wrong beliefs and actions, and to prepare them for his future visit

[dizzysmiles]

First off there isn't just a heaven and a hell. When we die we all go to the spirit world where we continue learning, There are two portions to this - spirit prision and spirit paradise. Those in spirit paradise will (someone stop me if I am wrong here) be doing missionary work and those in prision will be going throuh their own sense of hell. Have you ever sinned and the hell of heartache you feel? To me that is hell... but that is only according to me. Anyways, the viel will still not be lifted off our eyes and people will have the oppurtinity to learn about the savior and our Heavenly FAther's plan. That is why there is work for the dead. Then the millenium will happen and all those who will be going to the celestial and ter. kingdom will live in peace for a thousand years. Then we will have judgment day and since we ALL chose our first estate (To come to earth- we will all be resurected and recieve a degree of glory) those who did ot chose (evil spirits/satan/ so forth) will go to outter darkness. So yes, god is merciful but justice still has to be served. I view it as emotional and physical turmoil, but not an eternal depth of fire and coals. Again, only according to me. God is our father, he wants us back and that is why he gave us his only begotten son, IF we can only come to him now, his arms are open. There is nothing you can do that he can't take away. If Iwere you I would read "I'm not perfect can I go to the celestial kingdom?" It really talks about the plan and defines what perfection and damnation really means... most of all it enlightens us and gives us hope.

[dizzysmiles]

So he had no time to do any good works but he still believed, does he get in?

For what its worth and some may have figured it out, I am not Mormon but wanted to know more about it.

I am not the judge but I would think if he truly was repentant and not just saying he believed in christ because he was scared then probably. We have free agency to chose what we want to do, It is through the grace of God- his atonment- and our works that matter, otherwise if works didn't matter why would we need Christ ? There would be no need of repentance if our works and daily deeds had no meaning in this world

[RRR1]

Takes us back to Paul's comment about

1 Corinthians 15:2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in

memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.

Paul recognized and called to their attention that some may have had a non saving faith Some believed as Demons believed. (James 2:19). Satan and devils believe in God, they just dont believe its true and had no love for Christ and his righteousness. See Matthew 7:22-27. Other parables in Matthew 7 illustrate this as well.

[marts1]

Satan and devils believe in God, they just dont believe its true and had no love for Christ and his righteousness.

What is it they don't believe is true?

[RRR1]

What is it they don't believe is true?

That may have come out wrong. They know what is true, but they just hate and despise it. They want to be better than God. There selfish acts is what got them kicked out of heaven in the first place.

[mnn727]

I guess an example would be a person who has done terrible things in his life (murder, rape, stealing, etc) and he was on his death bed. And 10 minutes before he died, he accepted Christ. So he had no time to do any good works but he still believed, does he get in?

.

As long as there is true repentance, yes. If he is just saying the words because he's afraid but doesn't truly believe, then in my opinion, no.

But one thing I need to point out is that only God knows someones heart and for that matter the circumstances that put him in that position in the first place. God is the only one capable of judging.

Jesus' atoning sacrifice covers all sins, great and small. (ok, there's one exception according to the Bible - "blasphemy against the Holy Ghost", but IMHO few people will ever qualify for that)

[Blackmarch]

Ive heard from some its a combination or works and faith, and a few different things. Exactly what does it take? Thanks.

Faith, humility, love, and obedience.

[Matthew0059]

I guess an example would be a person who has done terrible things in his life (murder, rape, stealing, etc) and he was on his death bed. And 10 minutes before he died, he accepted Christ. So he had no time to do any good works but he still believed, does he get in?

President Spencer W. Kimball talks about 'deathbead' confessions 'and deathbed' acceptances of Christ in The Miracle of Forgiveness, and their inadequacy for cleansing a person of sin. There has to be adequate time for repentance.

[rameumptom]

And according to D&C 138, there IS time to repent in the Spirit World. We just don't know how much glory a specific individual will gain from that repentance.

[Hemidakota]

There is a difference between Paradise and Spirit Prison. What kind of redemption could those spirits hope for assigned to the Spirit World? The foundation of redemption is the resurrection, which, by virtue of the Savior's work, all who had had earthly bodies could anticipate. In addition, each could expect to be redeemed "through obedience to the ordinances of the house of God" and "receive a reward according to [his] works (D&C 138:58–59).

In the book of Moses, the Lord spoke to Enoch about Noah's generation: "But behold, these which thine eyes are upon shall perish in the floods; and behold, I will shut them up; a prison have I prepared for them. And That [Christ] which I have chosen hath pled before my face. Wherefore, he suffereth for their sins; inasmuch as they will repent in the day that my Chosen shall return unto me, and until that day they shall be in torment" (Moses 7:38–39; Moses 7:57).

Doctrine and Covenants 138:59 teaches the fate of these spirits: "And after they have paid the penalty of their transgressions, and are washed clean, [they] shall receive a reward according to their works, for they are heirs of salvation." That is, Noah's generation, as well as all those who enter the spirit world unrepentant, experience a cleansing process in the spirit world in preparation for the Resurrection. Many of these spirits will receive a degree of redemption in the terrestrial or telestial kingdoms (See D&C 76:72–78; 88:99).

There are divisions within this spirit world that is talked about. In Doctrine and Covenants 138, President Joseph F. Smith recorded that the righteous were assembled in one place waiting for the appearance of the Lord (See 138:11–19, 38–49).

This division of spirits is supported by the 'Apochryphal Book of Enoch' which, contains a view of the spirit world current among the Jews of Jesus' time which apparently influenced such New Testament books as Jude and 2 Peter (chapter 2). Enoch, on a tour of the spirit world, asks the attending angel what the hollow places in the rock are. The angel answers:

These beautiful [or "hollow"—the Greek words are similar] corners [are here] in order that the spirits of the souls of the dead should assemble into them. . . . They prepared these places in order to put them there until the day of their judgment. "For what reason is one separated from the other?" And he replied and said to me, "These three have been made in order that the spirits of the dead might be separated. And in the manner in which the souls of the righteous are separated by this spring of water with light upon it, in like manner, the sinners are set apart when they die." (ABoE 22:8–10)

President Smith wrote, "I beheld that they were filled with joy and gladness, and were rejoicing together because the day of their deliverance was at hand" (D&C 138:15). The joy of the spirits is also supported by Enoch (69:27), "Then there came to them a great joy. And they blessed, glorified, and extolled [the Lord] on account of the fact that the name of that [son of] Man was revealed to them."

[Justice]

Ive heard from some its a combination or works and faith, and a few different things. Exactly what does it take? Thanks.

It requires being washed clean by the blood of Christ.

The question is "How does one become clean through the blood of Christ?"

[Traveler]

It requires being washed clean by the blood of Christ.

The question is "How does one become clean through the blood of Christ?"

I believe the point that many do not understand is that G-d has provided all what is needed and necessary for everyone and anyone to live pure, clean, enlightened, justly and with love and compassion. Deeply embedded is the agency of man to decide to ether covenant with G-d or to seek other pursuits. What G-d provides, he provides to all. The distinction of who lives according to G-d’s covenants is not a decision made by G-d but by man. G-d forces no one to heaven or hell that determination is man’s alone.

I submit that the path we each choose leads to where such path is going. We decide the path we walk, we make the excuses for what we desire, love or lust after and what fulfils us or turns us on. If the path we walk is not a divine path – it is not the fault of G-d but ours. When someone is born again of the spirit they are of heaven already. They are a fellow citizen with the saints of G-d and they govern themselves with the divine laws and covenants of that heaven where they belong for eternity. We are all today what we through what G-d has provided for us have been making of us. If anything is going to change then that change can only come because a change within us – not G-d.

The Traveler