Heaven is the abode of the Almighty God and His saints. It is not a place for jokers or anybody can just wobble and stumble into. It is a place meant for the righteous, diligent, dedicated and responsible people who had earnestly laboured in the Lord’s vineyard, while on earth.

The journey to heaven is a lifetime project in which the candidate must commit his body, soul and spirit to the things of God. A quintessential scenario was presented in the parable of the 10 virgins in Matthew 25:1-12, which reads: “Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.

2: And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3: They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them. 4: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 5: While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. 6: And at midnight there was a cry made, behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. 7: Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. 8: And the foolish said unto the wise, give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. 9: But the wise answered, saying, not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. 10: And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.”

If you read down to verses 11 and 12 you will discover that the five foolish virgins returned knocking at the door for the Lord to open for them to enter, but the Lord replied that He did not know them, hence they were shut out from the wedding party. These five virgins were Christians, born again and honestly running the race, but they were careless.

In the biblical accounts of acts of God from creation to date, nothing portrays God as being careless in anything He does. Our Lord Jesus Christ never exhibited a carefree attitude in the course of His earthly work. He carried out His ministry with due diligence. Nothing also reveals that God’s Angels are nonchalant in any project assigned to them. From all records, everything in heaven and about God are carefully planned and diligently executed, hence the people who will make heaven must not be careless.

They must at all times be at alert and expectant of the sound of the trumpet. For the five foolish virgins to forget to bring extra oil for their lamps means they were careless. They had run the race faithfully, but were not diligent enough hence they did not finish well. Pray that this will not be your portion.

In the course of the heavenly race, there are rules and regulations that must be followed. These rules and regulations are in accordance with God’s laid down principles. This is why in the lead scripture, the Lord clearly differentiates due process in the Lord’s service from the display of self-righteousness without being born again. The Bible says, as many that received Him shall be called the sons of God. Whosoever that has not received our Lord Jesus Christ is not a child of God hence whatever he or she does, in the name of Jesus Christ is a misnomer because he or she is on his/her own.

The Devil and demons are God’s enemies and it takes a man who is fully identified with our Lord Jesus Christ to cast them out of any man. Demons are Satan’s emissaries; they are spirit beings with unknown origin. Demons are so numerous and for their number, they make Satan’s power ubiquitous. They are capable of entering and controlling men and beasts.

They take the body of any living being, through which they carry out their evil deeds. Aside this, demons are powerless on their own. They are unclean, sullen, violent and malicious. They know our Lord Jesus Christ as the Most High God and also recognise His supreme authority. They know their eternal fate as one of torment and as such want to inflict physical maladies on their victims.

Demonic influence may come inform of religious asceticism, degenerating into uncleanness. The sign of demonic influence is a departure from the Christian faith and the revealed truth in the scripture. Demons fight Christians who are filled with the truth and the Holy Spirit. Christians can only fight them through prayers, by disciplining their bodies and putting on the whole armour of God. Satan and his demons are enemies of all Christians and whosoever must cast them out must be born again and fully identified with our Lord Jesus Christ. Casting them out outside Jesus Christ is being careless, which the Lord abhors. Apart from this, such a person stands to lose heaven on the last day.

The Lord is warning all Christians, especially those who take things for granted, to be watchful and resilient in their conduct, so that, they will not be taken unawares when the trumpet shall sound. As it is now, nobody knows the hour, even our Lord Jesus Christ made it clear that only His Father knows the hour, but the time is short, as the signs of the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ are almost completed.

1 Corinthians 7: 29-31 says: “But this I say, brethren, the time is short: it remaineth, that both they that have wives be as though they had none. 30: And they that weep, as though they wept not; and they that rejoice, as though they rejoiced not; and they that buy, as though they possessed not. 31: And they that use this world, as not abusing it: for the fashion of this world passeth away.”

As the scripture warns, Christians must at this end time remove emphasis on material possessions. There is need for body control to checkmate the Devil at all times. People who place priority on wealth at the detriment of their spiritual build-up and upbringing are playing with the future of their souls.

The things of the world, notwithstanding their value and cost, will surely pass away. They will end up in this world with the flesh, but the souls will continue to live eternally either in heaven or in hell fire, depending on how one lives his/her life here on earth. Do not be careless with your soul because hell fire is not a place for human beings. It is unfortunate the people the Devil and his agents will deceive would go to hell fire even though it is against their will. This is why the Bible asks in Mark 8:36-37: “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? 37: Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”

We were all born naked and we shall also leave the earth naked. The only treasure that will outlive our existence in this world is our souls. We must not be careless about the future of our souls. It is only the soul that will go out of the earth with us. Do not allow earthly possessions or the desires of the flesh to ruin the future of your soul — force it to hell fire.

It is, therefore, time to re-examine our lives vis-à-vis our relationship with God. Is your priority on the acquisition of wealth at the detriment of the things of God? As you read this message, retrace your steps with a view to reviving your prayer and evangelism life. Ensure that there is a clear-cut amendment in any area you are nonchalant to the things of God. As you make amends today, and come back to God, the blessings of God will be your portion and you will make heaven at the end of this life in Jesus’ name.