Millions of People Who Think They Are Going to Heaven But Are Not Saved

There are millions of people who believe they are saved, but are in fact not saved and have nothing to do with Jesus’ church.

Good Enough for Heaven?

“I’m a pretty good person.”

There are millions of people who believe they are saved, but are in fact not saved and have nothing to do with Jesus’ church. They are headed for the lake of fire. I have so many people I know that claim to be believers and yet, they have no evidence of that or no fruit of the Spirit in their lives and have nothing to do with Jesus’ church. What’s wrong? They are deceived. Sin has a way of doing that (Rom 7:10-11; 1 Cor 6:9-10). Most unsaved people I talk to think they’re a good person and compare themselves to the worst of people, rationalizing, “Well, at least I’m not that bad,” but God doesn’t grade on a curve. No one can ever be good enough to be saved. He demands perfection but He also supplies that perfection in Jesus Christ (2 Cor 5:21). What does the Bible say about good people? They don’t exist! In fact, “None is righteous, no, not one” (Rom 3:10). Not even one is good enough to go to heaven, but many still think they are because of the good they’ve done, but that is not saving faith (Eph 2:8-9). Gladly we know that none are so bad that they can’t be saved and yet none are so good that they don’t need to be saved.

No Communion

Do people really think they can exist in faith apart of Jesus’ church? There are over 100 “one-another’s” in the New Testament, with 48 being imperative commands, so that’s a lot of disobedience to Christ saying you love Him but break His commands (John 14:15). In what seems to be an early hint of the Lord’s Supper or Communion, Jesus says, “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink” (John 6:54-55). Jesus associates what appears to be a Communion reference to being raised “up on that last day.” Fellowship with Jesus’ church, who is the very Head of the Church, says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you” (John 6:53). No life means no “eternal life.” That’s about as serious as it gets. Many have told me that they say they love God but can’t stand to be around His people in a church. What if someone told you, “I really love you but I just can’t stand to be around your children?” How would you take that?

Not Part of Jesus’ Body

Jesus is the Head of the Church, or Head of the Body of Christ, which the church is also called, so why would someone believe they are part of Jesus’ church when they are not part of His body. The Apostle John warned that those who leave the church were never really part of the church to begin with (1 John 4:19), so church attendance seems to show that we persevere till the end. The Parable of the Sower (Matt 13) shows that only 1 in 4 of those seeds took root, so few are saved, even though many are called (Matt 22:14). Many think they are saved, when in fact few are saved, meaning many are heading for the judgment of God and don’t even realize it (Matt 7:21-23).

No Hunger or Thirst for God

The Psalmist wrote about a true believers heart in Psalm 42:2 which says, “My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?” Is there no thirst for God? You may still be dead in your sins (Eph 2:1-5). The Psalmist so desired to be with God that he prayed, “O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water” (Psalm 63:1). Do you have this thirst? Do you hunger for the Word of God or even read it? The Lord said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied” (Matt 5:6). If there is no hunger to know God, to know and study His Word and to worship with His people, then you are not really saved, because the people of God are commanded to not forsake the assembling of themselves (Heb 10:24-25). Those who are part of a biblical church can testify to “how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity” (Psalm 133:1).

I Never Knew You

Jesus warns those who think they are saved but are not, saying, “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 who is in heaven” (Matt 7:21). Many call Jesus Lord, but He is not the Lord of their lives…they are! On the last day, when we all face Jesus Christ, many, not a few, but many will believe they are saved and won’t be (Matt 7:22). What does Jesus say to the “many?” He tells them, “I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness” (Matt 7:23). Those are some of the most terrifying Bible verses I have ever read. Many, not just a few, but many will profess to be believers on Judgment Day. Jesus says to them He does not even know them! Why doesn’t Jesus know them? He is omniscient (all-knowing)! This means He doesn’t know them like He does the members of His own body. He knows His sheep by name (John 10:3). They are part of His flock and naturally, they abide with His flock because He is their Chief Shepherd. To the many who think they are His, He will “declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness” (Matt 7:23).

Conclusion

I’ve been told countless times that the church doesn’t save you, but I say, “Yes, the church doesn’t save…the church are the saved.” Church can’t save anyone, but God uses the church as a means to save others by reaching out to the lost, so in a direct way, the church does save people by means of preaching God’s Word. It takes a person of God to share the Word of God and then the Spirit of God can birth a child of God; and to the glory of God, for salvation is of the Lord (Acts 4:12, 16:30-31). I highly doubt the secluded believer does this or much of anything for Christ at all (Matt 25:37-39), and that has eternal consequences which cannot be changed (Matt 25:41-46). If you can’t pillow your head with 100% assurance you will not go to hell, you might not be saved! May God use us as a means to warn those who think they’re going to heaven but instead, are headed for hell, thinking their being “good” enough for God. That’s fatal. Let Isaiah’s call be your call, as it is every believer’s duty (Matt 28:19-20; Acts 1:8), “And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me” (Isaiah 6:8)!

I pray you have put your trust in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. If that has not happened yet, my friend, you are in real danger of hell fire. And I mean, in immediate danger. You’re one breath, one heartbeat…one accident away from eternity when it will be too late to repent. Today is the best day to believe (2 Cor 6:2) since tomorrow is no guarantee. If Jesus Christ came today, here is your fate (Matt 7:21-23). This is why I plead with you as you read this, repent today…and I mean right now. Put your trust in Jesus Christ. If you do not, you will face God’s judgment after death guaranteed (Heb 9:27) or at Jesus Christ’s appearance (Rev 20:12-15), which could happen at any moment.

Here is some related reading for you: 7 Signs of a True Conversion

Resource – Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version^® (ESV^®), Crossway Bibles. (2007). ESV: Study Bible: English standard version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Bibles. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Tagged as: Church, Church Attendance, False Converts, Head of the Church, Jesus' Church