What will I say?

This is the question and response I gave to a young adult who asked the question of me.

When I die, what do I say to God?

I’ve thought about this multiple times over the course of many years.  When I was young, I thought about all the questions I would ask Him – such as, Why did you give me so many zits in high school? or Why do you let little children suffer?  Admittedly, I had and still do have many many questions about the world, creation, and evil itself.  Then again, I’d also be extremely happy to be in Heaven.  I used to think I’d be overjoyed and run up and give Him a hug!  But as I got older and was confronted with the death of family members and friends, I had to wrestle with the concept of death.  It isn’t a fun subject, but we’re all headed in that direction.  Inevitably, we all die.  Then what?

The secular world would like you to believe that either we all go to Heaven or we simply cease to exist.  The first seems extremely wonderful the next equally as sad.  But neither opinion is true.  And if we think about it, maybe it wouldn’t be so wonderful if the really evil people of the world - the murderers, rapists, and abusers were with us again, just as they were on earth!  And what a cruel joke it would be if we were created with no purpose only to die and never exist again!  Without quoting scriptures, it is easy to see that both viewpoints simply don’t add up.  So, what truly happens? 

Fortunately, the Bible gives us many examples to show us:

First – that we were created for a purpose.

Second – that we live on in another location after our time on earth is done.

And third – that our decisions here on earth determine that location and also what we may say to God when we meet Him face to face.

What is our purpose?  We were created to please God.  (Colossians 1:16 and Revelation 4:11) He desires to fellowship with us (1 Corinthians 1:9) and He has given us rules to live by that guide us in pleasing Him and fellowshipping with Him.

Where do we go when we die?  The Bible provides for two locations after death – Heaven or Hell.  (Luke 10:15)

If we love Jesus and have a sincere relationship with Him, then he has paid the debt for our sin and we will live with Him in Heaven. (John 14:6)  Our response to Him will probably be based on complete awe, gratitude, humility, and love.

If however, we reject Jesus as our Lord and Savior, then we will not be with Him, but rather separated from God and condemned to live in Hell.  (John 12:48)  And so our response to Him will be very different.  We cannot pretend to have loved Him.  We will undoubtedly be very sorry for the choices we have made, and honestly, I’m not exactly sure what someone in that position would dare utter to the God of the universe.

There is only one passage in the Bible that directly addresses what all people’s response to God will be:

Romans 14:11-12

“11 It is written:

“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord,
‘every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will acknowledge God.’”

12 So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God.

Regardless of our relationship with the Lord on earth, every single person after death will bow and acknowledge God for whom He is.  If we choose to accept Christ as Lord and Savior, He will pay the debt for our sin, and that broken relationship between God and ourselves will be healed.  We will be greeted with grace.  But if we live for ourselves and don’t realize our need for a Savior until after we have passed from this earth, we will be met with harsh judgment and condemned to Hell.  Either way, we will all recognize and acknowledge God for whom He is – the creator of this world whose love is just as great as His wrath.  We will also have a much better understanding of who we are – mere humans incapable of saving ourselves.  I do not know what each of us will say to God, but I do know that we will be struck with humility and our relationship with God will make all the difference in how we are permitted to approach his throne.