Will You Make It Into Heaven? (Audio)
Take the focus off yourself and look to Jesus.
‘Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?’ (Galatians 3:3, ESV).
Once, I had a dream of Judgment Day. I found myself in a long line of people waiting to enter either heaven or hell. It was terrifying. As I stood there, my mind raced through all the ways I had failed and sinned. But then, I thought: Hold on! I need to look at Jesus. It is his works and his perfect righteousness that God will consider — not mine. They have been credited to my account and my sins are removed because my trust is in Jesus. With that, I woke up.
Examine Yourself
Many of us have struggled with the assurance of our salvation at some point. We look within and see all kinds of sin and evils, leading us to wonder: am I truly saved? Do I have enough faith? On judgement day, will Jesus say to me ‘depart from me you worker of evil’? Such fears often arise when we focus on ourselves rather than on Jesus.
We are indeed called to "examine ourselves to see whether we are in the faith" (2 Corinthians 13:5, ESV). But this examination isn’t about measuring our performance, our ability to avoid sin, or even the strength of our faith. We can never measure up in and of ourselves.
The test is whether ‘Jesus Christ is in you’ (2 Corinthians 2:5, ESV). We examine ourselves by looking at Jesus and observing whether our lives reflect that we believe in him and what he has done. For instance, when you sin, do you run to Jesus for forgiveness because you believe he has already paid the price for your sin or do you try and ‘make it up’ to God somehow? Do you strive to live a godly life because you believe you are a child of God, or are you trying to stay in God's good graces? A person who consistently turns to Jesus in faith can be assured of belonging to Him..
Jesus’ salvific work is not dependent on you
Let this be an encouragement. Jesus’ salvific work is not dependent on you. It is not based on your actions, the depth of your repentance, or even the strength of your faith. Your faith itself is a gift from God.
We all experience varying levels of unbelief, and God is fully aware of this. If you struggle with doubt, remember that Jesus is both the giver and sustainer of our faith. Turn to Him and pray, "Jesus, I believe; help my unbelief" (Mark 9:24, ESV). He understands your sins, temptations, fears, doubts, and questions better than you do. Yet, He still chose to die for you. As Romans 5:8 says, "God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." His Spirit works within you to transform your heart, refine your faith, and produce the fruit of His Spirit.
In the next blog, we’ll explore three truths about Jesus that provide assurance to all those who trust in him. Stay tuned!