A few months ago, someone in my Multiply network wrote an article entitled “If I die tonight, what will I tell God?” I couldn’t resist explaining to the author her erroneous understanding about God’s judgment and the chance to witness to this person. Below is our exchange of answers regarding the topic.
If I die tonight, what will I tell God?
I have been through many near-death experiences already, each one allowing me to glimpse what it would be like to step through that door we call death and see my life here on Earth ending. Each form of death I would have experienced was different yet equally disturbing. I might safely say that each of these experiences helped me to see life in a different way – and that life on Earth is really so fragile. So if I were to die tonight, what exactly would I tell God about how I spent my life on Earth?
The first thing I will tell God is: forgive me for my mistakes. I look back on my youth and I see that I did some things wrong and some things right and some things I did not have any idea of what I was doing until I did them. So that would be my first statement to God.
The second thing I will tell God is: forgive me when I hate people. The commandment to love even my enemies is a very hard commandment to follow and there are days when the people around me are really impossible to love without feeling you are being taken for a fool. Which leads me to my third statement…
Thank you God for my gift of discernment. I have learned a lot on this Earth about how some people are truly trustworthy while others are not worthy of your time. I have learned to interpret certain signs about people like the expression on their faces, the way they talk, the things they say, and the look in their eyes to see what is really going on in their mind, their hearts and their souls. Though I have not always been successful at weeding out the evil people, much of the time I have been able to leave out the bad people from my life. And that is a good gift to have.
Thank you for my friends who have stuck by me through all these years – like the Chums from high school who have always managed to stay in touch somehow, and my other friends gathered from here and there. Thank you that despite my flaws, these friends still consider me a good friend and are themselves good friends in return. My friends may not all be rich but they are good people anyway.
Thank you that I still own myself and have free choice as to what I will become (at this point in time.)
Thank you for the love given to me by my animals. Thank you that I have been honored by their trust, their loyalty, and their unequivocal acceptance of me (even when the people around me are not accepting of me.)
Lastly, I would tell God that I am happy to have been accepted into His circle of loyal followers and that I hope that he will accept even those I love who are more flawed than me. If I die tonight, I will die a happy person because of these things I know I will be able to tell God. I also have a lot of questions to ask but that’s between him and me.
My Reply
This is in response to Eleanore's blog. But I guess everyone who reads my response would benefit from reading this.
Eleanore's question was "If I die tonight, what will I tell God?" I'd like to make everyone understand that when you die and face God you will not be able to ask for forgiveness anymore for mistakes you have committed here on Earth. Hebrews 9:27 tells us this--- "It is appointed unto man to die once and after this the judgment." This verse is explaining to us that we will die once and be judged by God right away base on what we did here on Earth. You can't find anywhere in the Bible that when we die and face God, He will give us a chance to apologize to Him. Apology, or repentance (this is the Bible's word for that) should be done here on Earth and not when you are in front of God's judgment seat. If you don't get right with God while here on Earth, the sure judgment that awaits us is punishment in Hell. This is exactly what Romans 6:23 tells us, "For the payment of sin is death..." And what death is being pointed on here? The book of Revelations tells us that this is the "second death" which the Bible explains as an eternal stay in Hell.
Now here's the question for you, Elaenore and to everyone. Where will God send you when He judges you? Let me help you know by making you answer some questions.
That's exactly what Jesus did for you 2000 years ago. He is God, creator of everything that we see and don't see. He went down to Earth and took on the form of a man. He lived just like anybody else but the only thing He did not do was commit any sin. 33 years after, people saw Him nailed to a cross, suffering and then died. The story tells us that 3 days after, He rose from the grave. Why did He suffer when He never committed any sin? He went to all of that because He was paying for what we should be paying for. It's as simple as this--- you're the one who did all of the sinning but He was the one who suffered for your sins. Whoa! God really loves you. What He did was a gift. Now, how can you receive that gift? The Bible tells us that we just need to do two things. First and foremost, you have to repent of your sins by admitting that you are a sinner and asking for forgiveness for all of these sins. The attitude for repentance must be one that shows God a real intention and desire to hate sin from now on. Lastly, He wants you to believe and trust that it is ONLY JESUS that can save you, not your own good deeds nor your religion, only Him, that's why you only ask help from Him. The Bible promises us that if we do these two things, we receive the gift and we go to Heaven when we die. Why? Because Jesus' sacrifice at the cross have been credited to your own account. Isn't that great!
Finally, do you truly love yourself? If you do, then don't let this day pass without you doing those two things because you might never live out tomorrow because tomorrow might not come for you anymore. Get right with God here on Earth before death knocks at your door.
Please give this some thought. I won't benefit from writing you this reply, but for sure, it will benefit you to do what God wants you to do. Thanks for reading this!
A Reply to my Reply
Well, actually it was pretty lengthy so no, I didn't read it. For one thing, I believe in a God who is loving and kind, who understands human frailties because His Son also became human for awhile. It would be like that saying that goes like this: You cannot understand a man unless you have walked around in his shoes. I guess God sent Jesus to Earth for that purpose. (That saying I think comes from the book To Kill A Mockingbird.) The God you seem to believe in would damn me to hell for all my mistakes as a child and as a young adult. What a pity then.
We humans are frail and flawed creatures. The God I understand and pray to everyday understands that. For instance, I once heard that one of my college schoolmates (someone in BS Biology in UP Manila) committed suicide by drinking cyanide in his dorm room.) Now, the God I understand would forgive that young man his moment of weakness and lack of courage and his choice of killing himself rather than just opting for a less demanding course in college. I don't think I agree with your post that all of us will be damned to our fate once we die - if so, then that young man must be already in hell somewhere, if not being prepared to be sent to hell come Judgment Day.
I prefer to believe in a more merciful God. Whether that fits into your religious standards is beyond my concern.
I answered back
Well it's unfair for you to comment when you haven't read the whole reply. One thing more, please give me verses from the Bible that says that God will just forgive sins just like that. You just made a god that suits yourself and not one shown in the Bible. Here's an advice. Base what you believe from what the Bible says and not from just any book written by some popular author like Harper Lee. You have to understand this --- God's forgiveness is through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus. Jesus' sacrifice can only be credited to your own account if you will first repent and decide to turn away from your sins, and then trust that it is only Jesus that can save you, not your religion nor your good works, only Him so you only ask for help from Him (read Ephesians 2:8-9). Please read my entire reply. I made it out of concern. Have a nice day!
Her final say
Well there is no rule that says I gotta read your reply either. As for me, I have a lot of other stuff to write about.
One day, this woman, just many other people, will find out that what they thought of God and His judgments are totally of their creation, not even near the truth. This is the reason why we shouldn’t stop preaching until people get the point of the basis of God’s judgment and how He will carry it out.
If I die tonight, what will I tell God?
I have been through many near-death experiences already, each one allowing me to glimpse what it would be like to step through that door we call death and see my life here on Earth ending. Each form of death I would have experienced was different yet equally disturbing. I might safely say that each of these experiences helped me to see life in a different way – and that life on Earth is really so fragile. So if I were to die tonight, what exactly would I tell God about how I spent my life on Earth?
The first thing I will tell God is: forgive me for my mistakes. I look back on my youth and I see that I did some things wrong and some things right and some things I did not have any idea of what I was doing until I did them. So that would be my first statement to God.
The second thing I will tell God is: forgive me when I hate people. The commandment to love even my enemies is a very hard commandment to follow and there are days when the people around me are really impossible to love without feeling you are being taken for a fool. Which leads me to my third statement…
Thank you God for my gift of discernment. I have learned a lot on this Earth about how some people are truly trustworthy while others are not worthy of your time. I have learned to interpret certain signs about people like the expression on their faces, the way they talk, the things they say, and the look in their eyes to see what is really going on in their mind, their hearts and their souls. Though I have not always been successful at weeding out the evil people, much of the time I have been able to leave out the bad people from my life. And that is a good gift to have.
Thank you for my friends who have stuck by me through all these years – like the Chums from high school who have always managed to stay in touch somehow, and my other friends gathered from here and there. Thank you that despite my flaws, these friends still consider me a good friend and are themselves good friends in return. My friends may not all be rich but they are good people anyway.
Thank you that I still own myself and have free choice as to what I will become (at this point in time.)
Thank you for the love given to me by my animals. Thank you that I have been honored by their trust, their loyalty, and their unequivocal acceptance of me (even when the people around me are not accepting of me.)
Lastly, I would tell God that I am happy to have been accepted into His circle of loyal followers and that I hope that he will accept even those I love who are more flawed than me. If I die tonight, I will die a happy person because of these things I know I will be able to tell God. I also have a lot of questions to ask but that’s between him and me.
My Reply
This is in response to Eleanore's blog. But I guess everyone who reads my response would benefit from reading this.
Eleanore's question was "If I die tonight, what will I tell God?" I'd like to make everyone understand that when you die and face God you will not be able to ask for forgiveness anymore for mistakes you have committed here on Earth. Hebrews 9:27 tells us this--- "It is appointed unto man to die once and after this the judgment." This verse is explaining to us that we will die once and be judged by God right away base on what we did here on Earth. You can't find anywhere in the Bible that when we die and face God, He will give us a chance to apologize to Him. Apology, or repentance (this is the Bible's word for that) should be done here on Earth and not when you are in front of God's judgment seat. If you don't get right with God while here on Earth, the sure judgment that awaits us is punishment in Hell. This is exactly what Romans 6:23 tells us, "For the payment of sin is death..." And what death is being pointed on here? The book of Revelations tells us that this is the "second death" which the Bible explains as an eternal stay in Hell.
Now here's the question for you, Elaenore and to everyone. Where will God send you when He judges you? Let me help you know by making you answer some questions.
- Have you ever lied?
- Have you ever stolen anything, regardless of the value, even if what we are talking about is a piece of candy which your brother or sister owned?
- Have you ever used God's name in vain like when you are angry or when you are surprised by something and you say "Oh my ____!" This is called blasphemy.
- Jesus once explained (Matt. 5:27-28) that you have already committed adultery even if you just looked at someone with sexual malice. Have you ever looked at someone with sexual malice?
That's exactly what Jesus did for you 2000 years ago. He is God, creator of everything that we see and don't see. He went down to Earth and took on the form of a man. He lived just like anybody else but the only thing He did not do was commit any sin. 33 years after, people saw Him nailed to a cross, suffering and then died. The story tells us that 3 days after, He rose from the grave. Why did He suffer when He never committed any sin? He went to all of that because He was paying for what we should be paying for. It's as simple as this--- you're the one who did all of the sinning but He was the one who suffered for your sins. Whoa! God really loves you. What He did was a gift. Now, how can you receive that gift? The Bible tells us that we just need to do two things. First and foremost, you have to repent of your sins by admitting that you are a sinner and asking for forgiveness for all of these sins. The attitude for repentance must be one that shows God a real intention and desire to hate sin from now on. Lastly, He wants you to believe and trust that it is ONLY JESUS that can save you, not your own good deeds nor your religion, only Him, that's why you only ask help from Him. The Bible promises us that if we do these two things, we receive the gift and we go to Heaven when we die. Why? Because Jesus' sacrifice at the cross have been credited to your own account. Isn't that great!
Finally, do you truly love yourself? If you do, then don't let this day pass without you doing those two things because you might never live out tomorrow because tomorrow might not come for you anymore. Get right with God here on Earth before death knocks at your door.
Please give this some thought. I won't benefit from writing you this reply, but for sure, it will benefit you to do what God wants you to do. Thanks for reading this!
A Reply to my Reply
Well, actually it was pretty lengthy so no, I didn't read it. For one thing, I believe in a God who is loving and kind, who understands human frailties because His Son also became human for awhile. It would be like that saying that goes like this: You cannot understand a man unless you have walked around in his shoes. I guess God sent Jesus to Earth for that purpose. (That saying I think comes from the book To Kill A Mockingbird.) The God you seem to believe in would damn me to hell for all my mistakes as a child and as a young adult. What a pity then.
We humans are frail and flawed creatures. The God I understand and pray to everyday understands that. For instance, I once heard that one of my college schoolmates (someone in BS Biology in UP Manila) committed suicide by drinking cyanide in his dorm room.) Now, the God I understand would forgive that young man his moment of weakness and lack of courage and his choice of killing himself rather than just opting for a less demanding course in college. I don't think I agree with your post that all of us will be damned to our fate once we die - if so, then that young man must be already in hell somewhere, if not being prepared to be sent to hell come Judgment Day.
I prefer to believe in a more merciful God. Whether that fits into your religious standards is beyond my concern.
I answered back
Well it's unfair for you to comment when you haven't read the whole reply. One thing more, please give me verses from the Bible that says that God will just forgive sins just like that. You just made a god that suits yourself and not one shown in the Bible. Here's an advice. Base what you believe from what the Bible says and not from just any book written by some popular author like Harper Lee. You have to understand this --- God's forgiveness is through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus. Jesus' sacrifice can only be credited to your own account if you will first repent and decide to turn away from your sins, and then trust that it is only Jesus that can save you, not your religion nor your good works, only Him so you only ask for help from Him (read Ephesians 2:8-9). Please read my entire reply. I made it out of concern. Have a nice day!
Her final say
Well there is no rule that says I gotta read your reply either. As for me, I have a lot of other stuff to write about.
One day, this woman, just many other people, will find out that what they thought of God and His judgments are totally of their creation, not even near the truth. This is the reason why we shouldn’t stop preaching until people get the point of the basis of God’s judgment and how He will carry it out.
