If God Loves Everyone, Why Doesn't Everyone Go to Heaven?

okay I'll try it again I'll try this uh you know as it hi my name is father Mike Schmitz and this is Ascension presents so I heard from a gentleman not too long ago who um brought something up that I thought was a really compelling dilemma he was facing and that dilemma was here's the message of the Gospel here's the message that Jesus Christ has come to us so that we can have eternal life that he sent us holy spirit so that we can have this encounter with God in a real way that Jesus through his life to the resurrection has opened up the gates to heaven has made access to the father not only possible the holy spirit makes it actual we have this incredible promise of new life and we actually can go to heaven when we die he'd heard the gospel and he you know was maybe raised Christian or raised Catholic at some point but then he said he said but I know a lot of people I know a lot of people who are living their lives in such a way that uh the church would say and the Bible would say Christianity would say that they'd be lost they're making choices that would uh lead them to hell not to heaven and he said as a he was a military guy he said as a former military man I know that you don't leave your brother behind you don't leave your comrade behind you don't you don't leave the people you care for behind and so he came to this conclusion saying like well if the church is saying if the Bible's saying Christianity is saying that certain people who make certain choices are going to hell then I don't know that I want heaven I don't want Heaven if not everyone can be there and that and and so there was this it was really interesting and really compelling because it was kind of like this Noble stance he was taking it kind of like this sense and don't mean Noble like a self-righteous Dance I mean there might have been that I don't know because I don't know his heart but I really truly mean there's something Noble about this sense of I I don't want heaven if not everyone's going to be there like why should I experience the beatific Vision right why should I experience peace and blessing and joy and love for eternity if not everyone is going to experience peace and love and blessing and joy for all eternity and again so the interesting thing is I'm just like wow that's fascinating and compelling because it's rooted in I care for people it's got because it's rooted in loyalty like don't leave a fallen comrade behind but what's kind of the problem with this what what's what's the what's missing here is maybe what I might say is a proper understanding of really what's going on when it comes to Christianity Catholicism the first thing I want to say is this is that the church has never condemned anybody meaning the church has never said so and so is in hell we've never said that ever why because Jesus told us not to right he says judge not lest you be judged ye be judged he says condemn not lest he be condemned we don't know the reality of a person's heart we don't know the secrets of our person's heart so we can see their actions we can see like oh no buy these certain actions it appears that this person is choosing sin if they actually they are choosing sin I don't know if they're choosing hell we don't know we don't know the circumstances of a person's heart we can't we can judge actions where we can judge decisions we can never judge a heart so the church does never condemned someone a so keep that in mind church has never said so and so is in hell that's important because it leads to the next thing which is God desires that all people be saved so it's it's not as if well there are certain people that God Made Who are destined for hell it's the heresy of double predestination there was a guy John Calvin and some of his followers who have said that there's this double predestination that God predestined some people to heaven and he predestines some people to hell we don't believe that we believe that what Saint Paul wrote to Timothy is that God Wills that all human beings come to knowledge of him and come to Salvation we believe all human beings that's what he wants God wants that all human beings he Wills that all people come to Salvation He makes himself accessible to everyone again in a way that's known to God Alone so Heaven is not a gated community in the sense that some people are not allowed in the third piece is this what Jesus has done with the holy spirit makes actual in our lives he makes it possible and actual for every one of us if we want we can choose God because what Jesus has done every one of us if we want we can choose God the holy spirit gives us that strength gives us the grace to be able to actually do what we couldn't do on our own we have the ability to choose God we've always had the power to say no to God Jesus gives us the power to choose him but we have to make the choice and because of Jesus if you choose God you get him it's amazing like and we don't just choose god with our hearts like I really like him I'd like to choose him I actually have to choose him with my actions I'm meaning I have to say at the end of the day God your will not mine will be done I can also reject God by my actions meaning my will not your will be done here's the last piece and this is so important because here's a person who says I'm taking The High Ground I'm taking the noble position the noble position is I will not leave a comrade behind the noble position is I don't want Heaven if not everyone's going to be there and then I have to just say then I say this with hopefully what sounds like gentleness and not condescension at all but you're not more noble than God none of us are more just than God and this person was saying what about this group of people and that group of people and this group of people they um struggle with certain sins they wrestle with certain Temptations how can they automatically go to hell well they don't automatically go to Hell No One automatically goes to hell we either choose it or we choose God and you and I are not more just than God you and I are not better than God we're not more good essentially and this is the guy again the noble position is like no I love them more than God even loves them that is impossible God wants everyone to come to knowledge of himself and to choose him I mean even to realize this how can I say that God loves every person more than any of us because God so loved the world that he gave his only son that all those who believe in him might not perish but might have eternal life for God sent his son into the world not to condemn the world but that the world might be saved through him that's the good news goes on to say and this is the verdict light came into the world but people prefer Darkness to the light what God has done is he's revealed I am for you every person every person regardless of what their Temptations are regardless of what their struggles are what their sins are God wants everyone but we have to choose him and it is not actually more noble to say I am more just than God I am more loving than God I just this is the hard word you're not but it's also the good word you're not I don't want Heaven if not everyone's going to be there I don't know that you know what you're saying maybe you do maybe you do but what I'm saying is that God is love and every time we choose love willing the good of the other we're choosing him if I truly love my friends I'm not gonna condone every decision they make I'm not going to celebrate every decision they make I might even actually correct them for some decisions they make because not every decision leads to love not every decision leads to life not every decision leads to God but because of Jesus Christ every one of us regardless of our struggles our weaknesses our fallings are our failures every one of us have the power now in Christ in the Holy Spirit to choose God which means we all have the ability to choose heaven but it starts by realizing the truth God you love me more than I love me you love them more than I love them because you are loved so I'm gonna trust you hope that makes sense anyways it's a big question it's a big topic but it's a big truth you got a good God anyways from all this your distance represents my name is father Mike God bless [Music]

Channel: Ascension Presents

Views: 83,682

Keywords: ascension, ascension press, ascension presents, fr. Mike, father mike, catholic advice, catholic inspiration, catholic motivation, fr. mike schmitz, fr. Mike schmidt, father mike schmitz, michael schmitz, fr. Mike advice, fr. Mike videos, does everyone go to heaven, who goes to heaven, who goes to hell, heaven and hell, am i going to hell, am i going to heaven, heaven or hell

Id: jwCJBtbvn2M

Length: 8min 26sec (506 seconds)

Published: Wed Jan 04 2023