47. Who will be in heaven?

People from every nation, tribe and tongue according to Revelation chapter 21 verses 22-27: ‘I saw no temple in the city, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. And the city has no need of sun or moon, for the glory of God illuminates the city, and the Lamb is its light. The nations will walk in its light, and the kings of the world will enter the city in all their glory. Its gates will never be closed at the end of day because there is no night there. And all the nations will bring their glory and honour into the city. Nothing evil will be allowed to enter, nor anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty—but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.’

This is why Jesus gave His disciples the great Commission: ‘Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’ (Matthew 28:19,20) Jesus expected that by the time He would return people from every nation, tribe and tongue would be His followers. This is the evidence that there will be people from all nations who have followed Islâm, Buddhism, Hinduism and many other religions in heaven, provided they have come to trust in Jesus as their Saviour.

In the Hadith 57 we read: ‘When a woman observes the five times of prayers, fasts during Ramadan, preserves her chastity, and obeys her husband, she may enter by any means of the gates of paradise she wishes (Abu Nu-aim),(sayings of Muhammad by Prof Ghazi Ahmed).

In the Hadith it states that; ‘Seventy thousand of my people will enter paradise without being taken into account. They are those who do not use spells or take omens, but put their trust in the Lord (Bukhari, Muslim).’