For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.
Ephesians 2:8-9
“Will you go to heaven?” If you ask 100 people that question, most would probably say yes. And, if you then ask them why, they’ll tell you it’s because they are “a good person.” But this begs the natural question, how good is good enough? Is it based on a daily tally? If we do one big “good” thing, does it eradicate a whole bunch of small “bad” things? Then there’s the “Well, I’m not as bad as Hitler” idea, one that keeps us comparing ourselves to others on the spectrum of good and bad (which comes with its own madness).
I lived this excruciating mental and emotional exercise for three decades of my life. Fearful that the bad decisions I made (and kept making) put me on the outs with God. I’d promise to do better—and I’d try—only to fall down once more. The uncertainty was exhausting.
If salvation (and heaven) is based on works (which is what many Christians and every other world religion believe), how can we ever know if we’ve done enough or are righteous enough to earn it? Where is the comfort and peace in that?
But the Gospel is, by definition, good news—great news, actually! We can be sure! There is blessed assurance in the saving grace of Jesus Christ. When we accept what Jesus accomplished on our behalf, we can be absolutely secure in our current standing with God and our eternal destination (John 5:24; 10:28). It’s not about our good-versus-bad tally each day (we’d all fail there, friends). It’s not about our church attendance or donation totals. Salvation (our sinful nature traded for Jesus’ righteousness) is not dependent on what we do—or don’t do. It only requires a decision to trust the Lord and surrender all those efforts to Him and His work alone (Romans 10:9; Eph 2:8-9; Titus 3:5).
And this certainty is not based on our feelings. I’m confident that many Christians (if not all of us) doubt our salvation because we’re not “feeling” close to God. We will have mountaintop experiences and valley seasons. We’ll struggle with our ungodly words and actions. Maintaining “the joy of the Lord” can be a challenge. But we’re in good company—just read David’s Psalms or anything from the Apostle Paul!
One more thing. The believer’s certainty of salvation is often attacked as self-righteous arrogance. But this is absurd and ironic: Christians are the only ones who claim to be going to heaven NOT by our own works and righteousness, but solely through the righteousness of Jesus. His grace, not our good works. I mean, to think we can, in and of ourselves, stand blameless in front of a holy God is pretty much the definition of self-righteousness.
So, if you’re reading this, and you’re already a believer, you can embrace the peace and rest Jesus promises amid the tumult of this life. Your security in Christ is a sure thing no one can take away. And, if you haven’t yet placed your faith in Jesus, why not make today the day (2 Corinthians 6:2)? All you have to do is let go of your uncertainty, release the idea that being “good enough” is good enough for an eternity in heaven. Just believe that, on the cross of Calvary, Jesus exchanged His life for yours—your “to-do” list has been “done.”
Because, as crazy and dark and uncertain as this world is getting, we could all use a sure thing right now.
encouraged by grace 