Revelation 1:18 I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.
Psalms 68:20 Our God is a God of salvation, and to GOD, the Lord, belong deliverances from death.
Isaiah 22:22 And I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David. He shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.
Matthew 16:19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
Revelation 9:1 And the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star fallen from heaven to earth, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit.
Revelation 20:1-2 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain.
Revelation 20:14 Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.
Romans 14:8-9 For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.
Death has a finality to it and Christ has been all authority over it. To some, this will be death to eternal life. For others, it will be death to eternal torment. The difference is between those who trust in, cling to, and rely on Jesus Christ redemption and forgiveness of sin, and those who choose to reject salvation through Jesus Christ is their eternal destiny. Many live like and eternal destiny does not matter or even exist. This still does not negate what God’s word promises to both. Rejecting Jesus Christ, the one who went to the cross to suffer and die once and for all for our sin seals their eternal death and torment forever and ever. Likewise, those who believe in by faith trust in Jesus Christ’s sacrifice for their sin seals their eternal life and forevermore with Jesus Christ.
God has revealed this mystery throughout scripture. Sin always has consequences and obedience always has a reward. Self-centered Christ-rejecting people do not believe in Jesus Christ, the need for Jesus Christ, judgment, wrath, and anger of God. They reject the idea of judgment and eternal torment. Yet those whose hearts have softened to the call of Jesus Christ sought forgiveness of sin, and chose to believe His sacrifice and promise that it forever cleanses them. To them will be a time of rejoicing at the second coming of Jesus Christ for they will forever be with Him in eternity.
The time for this choice is while we are alive this side of eternity. There is no chance after death to choose. At the time of death, our eternity is sealed forever. Choose faith in the sacrifice and redemption found in Jesus Christ.
