Brothers and sisters in Christ, Praise the Lord.
In this study we will examine what we must do to gain Entry into Heaven.
We will break this into 3 topics:

  1. God judges you for heaven or hell according to our works
  2. What it means to be born of the Holy Spirit
  3. Why we must be born of the Water and the Spirit to gain entry into New Heaven

In Revelations 22:11-12 Jesus Christ says, “He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” After we die, we will be blessed or cursed eternally in Heaven or Hell according to how persistently we obeyed or disobeyed the commandments of Jesus Christ. There are higher levels of Heaven and more reward for those who did more righteous and holy works. And there are lower levels of Hell and more punishment for those who did more unjust and filthy works. God will be the most righteous Judge and this verse clearly states that he will reward every soul according to their works in this present world.

In Heaven there are 4 main levels—from lowest to highest the levels are as follows: New Earth, the Tabernacle within New Earth, New Heavens, and the city of Zion within New Heaven. As the Lord Jesus Christ said, every man will be given rewards according to his works. The higher the level of Heaven you make it to the greater the reward of glory, joy and presence of God. The following passage from Revelations 21:1-3 mentions the 4 levels of Heaven we just discussed: “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” In this passage we see a reference to all 4 levels of heaven that we saw earlier -- New Earth, the Tabernacle of God (in New Earth), New Heaven, and the holy city of Zion (in New Heaven). Here we must note that the people who make it to the highest level in Zion, are referred to as New Jerusalem or Bride of Christ.

What separates souls who go to Heaven versus those who are cast in Hell? The answer is, that Soul’s obedience or disobedience to God. In Revelations 22:14-15 Jesus Christ says, “Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without are dogs and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.” Here we see that we must do Lord Jesus’s commandments to have the right to the tree of life, which is to gain eternal life. Jesus is speaking of New Earth (this is the lower level of Heaven also know as Paradise where the tree of life is located). To escape Hell and gain eternal life, our soul must be born again of the holy spirit and obey God. If we diligently obey the commandments of Jesus such that we grow in spirit, we may even gain entry into the highest level of the kingdom of heaven which is the City of Zion within New Heaven. This passage tells us that we may enter in through the gates into the city.

Let us see what the commandments at the most basic level are – In verse 15 Jesus explains the categories of evil, sinful people who will not be allowed into Heaven at all. These are spiritually dead souls who do not have the covering of the Holy Spirit.

  1. Dogs & Sorcerers
    These are those who backslide or return to committing sin that they had previously come out of. As scripture says, as a dog returns to its vomit which is the filth of sin. Sorcerers are those who commit witchcraft, or dabble with evil spirits or evil powers.

  2. Whoremongers
    These are people who commit sexual sin and immorality. God blesses the marriage bed of the husband and wife. Sex outside the bounds of marriage is a sin and cursed by God.

  3. Murderers
    These are evil doers who take the life of innocent people. In the New Testament, Jesus amplifies this to include unrighteous anger against brethren as in Matthew 5:22.

  4. Idolaters
    These are those who worship that which is not god as god, and also includes drunkards, revilers, people who party excessively.

  5. Loves & makes Lies
    Those who change the truth of God, twist the word of God, and make heresies and blasphemy against God.

In Matthew 15:19 Jesus himself talks of these types of sins, “For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.” We now have a clear understanding of the sins that we must avoid to escape hell. The most basic foundation of righteousness is not doing evil or harm to your fellow man. Now let us see what we must do to get into heaven. Sin causes spiritual death – so we must repent of sin and be born again of the Holy Spirit for our soul to be made spiritually alive. But this is just the beginning, as a spiritual newborn we grow in the spirit as we obey the commandments of Jesus.

We must be Born of the Spirit - In John 3:3 Jesus says, “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Jesus says that unless a person is born of the Holy Spirit he cannot SEE the kingdom of God. Meaning this is only the first step toward entry into Heaven. This only gives us a spiritual eye to discern that which is godly and that which is evil. The Holy Spirit allows us to see the filth we must clean within our own heart and life, and it opens our eyes to perceive more about the truth of heaven and God. The Holy Spirit is a necessity to gain eternal life. But just as it is easy to receive the Holy Spirit from God, it is also easy to lose the Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5:19 says, “Quench not the Spirit.” This verse tells us that the spirit can be quenched. So we must be careful not to quench the Spirit and lose it.

A spiritual newborn cannot remain in that state. We must either do what it takes to grow, or we will lose the Holy Spirit and become spiritually dead again. 1 Peter 2:1 says “Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby…" To grow from a spiritual new born into a child of God we must turn away from our prior sinful ways and now desire and obey the sincere milk of the word of God. If we diligently cleanse our heart, mind and life of sin, and grow in doing righteous and holy works then we may grow from an immature child of God to become a mature Son of God. This process requires actively detaching from sin, and attaching to the words of Jesus to obey it.

So, although being born of the Spirit is required to enter heaven, it is not enough. This is why Jesus said that we must be born of Water and of the Spirit. In the same chapter of John 3:5 Jesus adds this requirement, “Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” So, what does it mean to be born of water. It is explained in Ephesians 5:26-27 which says, “That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.” First, we must be born of the Holy Spirit, then Once we are born of the spirit, God’s spirit can teach our spirit, so that we may learn the word of God directly from Jesus Christ. As we obey the commandments and teachings of Jesus, Christ Jesus washes our heart and mind with the water of the word to make us pure. It is a process of spiritual growth—as we strive to walk in newness of life led by the holy spirit, Christ will cleanse and remove our prior sin addictions and lusts. The water is the word of God that purifies and sanctifies believers who work to cleanse their heart and life of sin by obeying the doctrine of Christ. When you are born of Water, or born of the Word, you are fully cleansed from the filth of sin. Now your heart and mind’s intentions and inclinations are righteous and holy. The word of God is abiding within you. You will not be deceived by false doctrine. When born of the water or word, we will instinctively obey the doctrine of Christ. This is what it means to be born of the water, or being born of the word. It is the end point where you’ve achieved spiritual growth to being perfectly holy.

So, once we are born of the spirit to have eyes that see the truth of God’s marvelous promise of Heaven, let us keep our eyes fixed on God and seeking His kingdom. To escape Hell and get into even the lowest level of Heaven of New Earth we must be born again of the spirit and live righteously. If we persist in obeying Jesus’s commandments and teachings to be born of the Water and live holy, we may get into the higher level of New Heavens. 2 Peter 3:13-14 says, “Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.”

In conclusion, we must obey the commandments of the Lord Jesus Christ if we are to attain eternal life and entry to heaven. As we obey the commandments and teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ, we are washed by the word in our heart and in our mind. It is a process of spiritual growth of increasing in righteousness and increasing in holiness. Our reward in heaven is according to how much we obey and how diligently we do the work to overcome sin. Thanks for listening. May God bless you.