Dr. Michael Youssef believes there are some key facts people get wrong about heaven — and hell.
Youssef’s new book, “Heaven Awaits: Anticipate Your Future Hope, Your Eternal Home, Your Daily Reality,” tackles this important topic, with the preacher breaking down some of the mistakes people — and pop culture — make while discussing the afterlife.
First, he addressed misconceptions popularized in Hollywood and by individuals in the secular world.
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“For those who [believe in heaven], they say … ‘I’m a good person and, therefore, I’m going to go to heaven,'” he said. “And Hollywood [says], ‘Everybody goes to heaven, everyone becomes an angel when they die, and they earn their wings and all that stuff.”
But Youssef said there are also issues within Christendom, calling out “more dangerous falsehoods” that have permeated church circles in recent decades.
“It began in the mainline denominations, and now it’s spreading to the evangelical churches,” he said. “So much so that so [that research has] shown that … 60 plus percent of churchgoers believe that Jesus is just a way, not the way — and therefore, they say, if you’re a good person, you go into heaven; you don’t have to be a Christian.”
Another issue Youssef addressed is the claim there’s no hell — no place of eternal damnation.
“This is a lie from the pit of hell in order to deceive people to end up in hell,” Youssef said. “And Satan wants to take as many — just as we want to take as many people to heaven with us — Satan, for whom hell was made. I mean, the lake of fire was created for Satan, and his angels, and his demons.”
He continued, “So, he wants to take as many people with him. So, he can say, ‘Well, Satan doesn’t exist or hell doesn’t exist’ … misleading people straight into hell.”
This is why Youssef believes the Gospel message needs to be made clear. He warned that these faulty ideas about heaven and other related issues are muddying the waters and have “been sweeping across and invading so-called evangelical churches.”
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“Universalism, which it says that, basically, when Jesus died, He died for everyone, whether they know it or not, whether they become Christians or not, that he redeemed everybody — He redeemed the whole world,” he said. “It doesn’t matter what you do, and it [runs] contrary to the very heart of the Gospel and why Jesus left the glories of heaven.”
Youssef said Jesus came to redeem people who recognize they are sinners and need to receive Him as their Savior — and repent. He pointed back to Jesus’ well-known encounter with Nicodemus, a Pharisee, during which Christ proclaimed people must be “born again” (John 3:3) if they wish to see the kingdom of God.
“And, so, ‘unless you’re born again’ — these are the words of Jesus, not mine,” Youssef said, “Don’t shoot the messenger. These are the words of Jesus. Unless you are born again, you will not see the kingdom of heaven. And so that is the message that really needed to be communicated clearly and in every way, lovingly, but without compromise.”
Another discussion Youssef weighed in on is the theological debate surrounding whether Christians are asleep until the end of days judgment — or whether they immediately go to heaven after death.
The preacher falls into the latter camp, appealing to Jesus’ conversation with the criminal hanging on a cross next to Him during the crucifixion to solidify his response.
“Jesus said to the thief next to him, ‘Today, you’re going to be with me in paradise,'” Youssef said, indicating heaven would be imminent. “The Apostle Paul said, ‘For me: to die is gain, because I’m going to be with Christ, which is far better.'”
Youssef, who cited numerous additional verses and stories to illustrate his point,” added, “The believers, as soon as they die, they go to heaven.”
The pastor said he hopes his book “Heaven Awaits: Anticipate Your Future Hope, Your Eternal Home, Your Daily Reality” helps Christians see that their lives on Earth directly tie to what happens in eternity. This passion is one reason Youssef is ramping up his ministry well into his 70s.
“I could put on some white robe, head for the mountains, and say, ‘Well, I’m just waiting for Jesus to come back,'” he said, noting this isn’t what Jesus wants Christians to do. “Jesus, again, said, ‘Occupy until I come.’ That is, work hard, give, serve, do, in order to change lives here before you go to heaven.”
He’s also hoping the book inspires nonbelievers to embrace the Gospel.
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