Dozens of millions of people make this wager: “I bet I can get to Heaven if I’m a good Protestant.”
Is it possible to lose that bet? Yes. Still, dozens of millions wager: “I bet I’ll win.”
What are the odds? If the Protestant has been baptized “In the name of The Father and of The Son and of The Holy Spirit.”, then original sin has been erased. That opens a doorway to Heaven. Many go no farther. Their 40,000 denominations have no unity about, for instance, Communion. Many provide “Communion Services”, but have no priest authorized to provide the Miracle of Transubstantiation. Their wine and bread remain only a “memory” of The Last Supper and every Catholic Mass since.
In the Catholic Communion, bread and wine actually become The Body and Blood of Christ. This is important because Jesus said to those following Him in John 6: 53, “If you do not eat My Body and drink My Blood you do not have life in you.” When He said that, all but the most faithful disciples abandoned Him. They still do.
Through the ages, that Divine Instruction has wonderfully allowed the truly faithful to grow closer to Jesus. The passage is a barrier that only the most faithful can hurdle.
Those who wager “I bet I can get into Heaven, even if I ignore what Jesus said, because I am a good person and go to church.” may comprehend that it’s smart to re-calculate the odds when realizing that they have to bear some degree of false witness to avoid the clear, plain meaning of that very simple, direct sentence.
Really, how hard is it to simply do what’s necessary to do what’s necessary to “have life in you”?
Jesus also provided additional instruction by endorsing only One Church: “Thou art Peter and on this rock I build My Church. . . .” He also said, clearly and plainly, in Mt. 16: 18-20 that His Church, and no other, could “forgive sins and had the Keys to Heaven”. Again, to get around that, some degree of deception must be embraced. It often takes the form of imaginary translation difficulties about the meaning of the word “rock”, and similar hair-splitting lunacies that further separates those with “life” in them from the less obedient and alive.
The good bet is the safe bet. It is based on He Who fulfilled the prophecies. The Only Church He Founded provides His Body and Blood, without which we cannot have “life” in us.
To further cement the importance of being Catholic as the correct bet, He clearly and directly said in John 15:14, “You are My friends if you obey My commands.”
Protestants bet they know more than Jesus. That’s a bad bet. Catholics bet that it’s best to follow all that Jesus commanded.
Which is the smarter bet? How much time does anyone have left to make it? When we consider the cost of losing that bet, we don’t want to multiply the risk by betting there’s all the time in the world to make the smart bet.
