When I talk with people in our street ministry, and I share the gospel with them, I then ask them, “If you were to die today, where would you spend eternity?” Some people don’t know where they are going to spend eternity; however, some pray and receive Christ as Savior and Lord, right there on the street. Others want to think about it. A lot believe they can get into heaven by their good outweighing their bad. In other words, their goodness should earn them heaven. However, this is contrary to Jesus' gospel. Only those who receive God’s unmerited favor called grace and turn from their love of sin to a love of God and ask God to forgive them of their sin and pray to receive Christ as Savior and Lord and are born again and enter the kingdom of God, go to heaven. (John 3:3) The root of sin is setting yourself up as your own god, similar to Satan. We are saved by grace, not our own goodness. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

However, some people have believed in Jesus and placed their faith in Jesus Christ to save them, and they have prayed to receive Christ, and there has been some change in their life, and they say, “I hope I will go to heaven.” There are over 100 scriptures that talk about receiving eternal life and being sure of it. For instance, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God” (1 John 5:13). Another important scripture says, “ The Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Romans 8:16) The Bible also tells us to stand against the devil and his condemnation by the following: “And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God” (Ephesians 6:17). You can according to God and the scripture can know you are going to heaven. Knowing our salvation is like putting on a helmet in war, for Satan comes against all people. However, greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world. (1 John 4:4) One of the ways we fight against evil is by knowing our eternal security. We need to know it and live it. If we are truly born again, we can be confident of our eternal security, and we can be confident in God. Learn to trust and love him more and more each day.

When Adam and Eve sinned against God, God cast them out of the Garden of Eden and “he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life” (Genesis 3:24). If Adam and Eve were able to approach the tree of life they would live forever in a state of spiritual death in hell. God guarded that tree because his plan was redemption in and through Jesus Christ. However, as God has said in his word, “Also He has put eternity in their hearts….” (Ecclesiastes 3:11) God’s gift in Christ must be received to be yours.

Yesterday, I was talking to a Christian man who believed you could lose your salvation after receiving it. This is similar to a Theological camp called the Arminians. Many Arminians believe you can lose your salvation. If you can lose your salvation, then God did not really give you, eternal life; he only gave you temporary life, and your own efforts, rather than grace, save you. Most Catholics do not believe we are justified by grace but by grace plus merit. Therefore, their thinking, like the Arminians, is to go back to believing that our works or merit saves us.

However, as the book of James emphasizes, we are not saved by works but our life will give evidence of being converted. We will do good works because we are saved, not in order to be saved, but because God has converted our hearts. (Ezekiel 36:26) Some of the important good works are evangelism and discipleship, and service to the Lord. Of course, becoming more and more Christlike is also something very good and is realized by God’s grace. Doing good is implied in all of the good works.

Now we are going to go even deeper. There can be two aspects in understanding the scriptures with those who fall away or who make sin a lifestyle after conversion. The first aspect is that these were never saved or converted in the first place. The Bible says, “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us” (1 John 2:19). Some people come real close to becoming Christian, but stop short. (See the book by Matthew Mead, Almost Christian) However, God does a radical change in the heart in true conversion.

The other possibility is that the person is truly saved but is scorning the grace of God and neglects, dishonors, and uses God’s grace in vain. They harden their hearts against God and live only for themselves, instead of living with gratitude, love, and honor. Some who live in blatant and gross sin and deceive others in love and business bring dishonor to themselves and God. Their lives are no different than the world. Perhaps it is even worse. They may go to heaven yet by fire. As the Bible states, “Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire” (1 Corinthians 3:12-15). This is a very dangerous position to be in, and it is possible to harden your heart so bad that it is impossible to repent and be restored to fullness in Christ. (see Hebrews 6:6) The writer of Hebrews gives two examples of this, the children of Israel, who refused to enter the promised land (Numbers 14)and Esau, the brother of Jacob, who sold his birthright. (Hebrews 12:16-17)

The book of Hebrews gives 4 very strong warnings of hardening your heart against God. Bitterness is one tool that Satan uses to lead you to a hard heart. Deep repentance, and love toward God will set these people free again, as well as walking with a forgiving heart. However, you must repent before your heart becomes completely hard. Hebrews 6 also talks about judgment, which for the Christian is covenant discipline. That discipline may be in this life or the life to come. We will all give an account on judgment day on what we have done with Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:10)

As the scriptures state, “Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away. For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just reward, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation…?” (Hebrews 2:1-4).

If you are truly a Christian, your life will give evidence of it and you will be trusting in grace rather than your own goodness. If you are truly a Christian you can have confidence in God’s love and your eternal destiny. You can be sure of your salvation because it is a gift given by God, and he doesn’t, according to the Bible, remove it. You might be hindered by a lack of love, diligence, and gratitude, but the giver is always true to himself. (2 Timothy 2:13). Christian, be sure of your eternal security. Your salvation, as Spurgeon said, “Is all of grace.”

As Christians, we are the people who spiritually never die. “ Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26) To die in this context is to be separated in eternity from God, which is hell. As Dallas Willard says, “You are a never-ceasing spiritual being with an eternal destiny in God’s great universe.” You are not a body with a soul; you are a soul with a body.

Christian walk with confidence in God’s word and the work he has done inside of you. You are now eternally secure. Fan that love towards God and to a full Godly flame and a passionate love towards God and his people, as well as those without Christ. Share the gospel with them and live it. Walk humbly with God and honor him in how you live and love. (James 4) May the Lord be honored by your life and mine. Sin must be avoided at all costs because it tangles around us and requires a mighty move of God in repentance to overcome. Yet, remember that we as Christians can come “boldly to the throne of grace” (Hebrews 4:16; 1 John 1:9) As Christians, we are eternally secure and loved. Walk worthy of our calling. (Ephesians 4:1).

If we are not willing to exercise some diligent effort to grow in Christ and to be and do what Christ has directed, and are willing to be inconvenienced and suffer for Christ, it is unlikely we will grow in Christ. “Grace”, as Dallas Willard says, “is not opposed to effort.” If we are going to grow in Christ, it requires focused effort.