Why Greg Laurie Believes Heaven Is for Forgiven People
- Milton Quintanilla Crosswalk Headlines Contributor
- Updated Nov 21, 2024
During an appearance on the "Jordan B. Peterson" podcast, California pastor Greg Laurie delivered a clear presentation of the Gospel to the renowned psychologist.
"Ultimately, when everything's said and done, what's more important than the afterlife? What's more important than where we spend it? According to the Bible, I believe there's a literal Heaven, a literal Hell, and I believe we choose in this life where we will spend the afterlife," Laurie, who leads Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California, told Peterson during the nearly two-hour-long interview.
Per The Christian Post, he added that the reason he is going to Heaven is "not because I've lived a good life, because I failed in many ways, but because Christ laid His life down for me on the cross."
Citing Scripture, the Harvest Crusades founder showed how the story of God telling Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac foreshadows Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on the cross.
"The Son Jesus made that sacrifice for us because He knew there was no other way that we could reach God, no other way we could satisfy the righteous demands of God," he said. "So Heaven isn't for good people, as it's often said. Heaven is for forgiven people."
Laurie also told Peterson concerning the loss of his 33-year-old son Christopher, who died in 2008 in an automobile accident.
"As a Christian, I believe I'll see my son again because he believed in Jesus," Laurie told Peterson. "He won't be in Heaven because I'm his dad. He'll be in Heaven because he put his faith in Christ, and he had that relationship. He's a part of my future as well. So that gives me hope. But also, I realize that God can allow these things in our life. I don't know why. I can't explain it. I don't even try to explain it."
Peterson, who recently released his new book We Who Wrestle with God, acknowledged that he struggles to reconcile matters of raising earthly transcendence with eternity.
"How do you reconcile, in your own mind, the insistence that part of the Christian moral pattern is to perfect the world and to raise the material up to the heavenly with the notion of the afterlife and immortality?" he asked.
In response, Laurie pointed to 2 Corinthians, where the apostle Paul spoke about being "caught up in the third Heaven," as well as when Christ promised the thief on the cross, "Today you will be with me in paradise," — a word translated like the "Royal Garden of a king."
"Paul went there, and he came back, and then after that, he said, 'I have a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better,'" Laurie said. "Ever since that moment in this life, he had homesickness for Heaven. So, coming back to my son, I can't explain it, but I would say this: when he went there, I feel like a part of me went there too."
"I believe when my son left this world for the next world, and that tragic automobile accident, that he was taken by angels into God's presence, and I believe that I will go there too," Laurie continued. "It's faith that's in my heart."
In retrospect, the pastor stressed that his faith grew the most during times of trial and suffering.
"God made a lot of promises," he said. "I've put those promises to the test, including the worst thing of all, to lose a child. And I've seen how God had come through for me. If He hadn't come through for me after my son died, I would have given up preaching, for sure. Why carry on? But He came through for me."
In a blog post following the interview, Laurie described Peterson as "one of the great minds of our generation" who has a "deep interest and love for the Bible."
"I really appreciated how he let me tell my story. In the process of telling it, I was able to share how Jesus Christ has changed my life and what it means to come into a relationship with Him," Laurie said.
WATCH: The Jesus Revolution: The Real Thing | Greg Laurie | EP 499
Photo Credit: ©YouTube/Jordan B Peterson
