“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord!’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven. On that day many will say to Me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in Your name, drive out demons in Your name, and do many miracles in your name?’ Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you! Depart from Me, you lawbreakers!’ Matthew 7:21-23 HCSB
Are you 100% sure if you died right now you would go to heaven? This is way too important to think so or hope so, you must know so. There is only one way to be saved and that is through Jesus Christ (John 14:6). Maybe you are like I used to be, a false convert. I was baptized when I was 11 or 12 years old. I did fairly well through my teen years, but after college my life got rocky and I got away from the Lord. I still went to church a couple times a month. I still prayed when things got rough. But I wasn’t living a life that pleased the Lord. Ephesians 4:30 tells us not to grieve the Holy Spirit. I would get back to God and do well for a while and then mess up again and so the cycle continued. But ten years ago, I just couldn’t do it anymore. I needed Jesus to take over. I surrendered my life to Him. I no longer wanted to do anything that displeased Him. He saved me from an eternity in hell. He forgave me of my sin and filled me with His Holy Spirit to guide me and help me to no longer sin. Now I am not saying that I never sin, I am just saying that I try my best not to. I no longer intentionally sin. I don’t want to grieve the Holy Spirit.
Before I surrendered to Christ, I was a lawbreaker just like in our scripture passage. I was an idol worshiper who misused God’s name. I did not always honor my parents. I sometimes argued with them or rebelled against them. I was a lying, thieving, murderous, adulterer.
If you want to know if you are a sinner, take a minute to go to Exodus 20 and see if you can find a commandment that you have not broken. Do you have other gods before God? Does anyone or anything get in your way of spending time with Him? Do you worship anything other than God? Is there something that takes your time and money leaving none for Him? Do you misuse God’s name? I don’t just mean profanity, but what about saying things like “Oh my God!” or “For Christ’s sake!”. Do you keep the Sabbath holy? Do you honor your father and mother, or do you disobey and argue with them? Do you rebel against them? Have you committed murder? This can include being a part of an abortion. Matthew 5:21-25 says that murder begins in the heart and even if we are angry with someone or call them a fool or moron, we are subject to the fires of hell. What about adultery? This includes sex outside of marriage, but can also include lustful thoughts about someone else (Matthew 5:27-28). Have you ever stolen anything? This could even include something as small as that pen from the office. You can also steal time from your employer when you are doing your personal business at work instead of doing your job. Have you ever lied against anyone? This can include spreading false gossip that you trust to be true. Have you wanted what your neighbor has. Many people go into debt trying to obtain what they see their friends and neighbors buying.
2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us that if anyone is in Christ, or has truly accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior, he is a new creation. We are changed from the inside out. It goes on to say that the old has passed away and behold the new has come. We no longer want to sin. We may face temptation, but we know we can turn to God and He will help us overcome any temptation we face (1 Corinthians 10:13). We love Him with all our heart and we want to please Him.
God doesn’t want any of us to go to hell, this is why He sent His Son to die for us (John 3:16). God doesn’t make us love Him, He allows us to choose. Please be sure that you are saved before it’s too late. If you are not sure, turn to Him. Talk to a pastor or Christian friend. You can contact us through this website. I beg of you, please don’t hope so or think so, but know so.
Have a great day!