Doing Good Enough Does Not Save Anyone

There are many people who are believing they must do good things or live righteously to be saved and heaven bound. Christ is the only way to heaven, it is through His righteousness that a born-again believer gains heaven nothing of their own work.

Every born again believer remains to the end. Not remaining to the end is the proof the person was never born again.

When Christ changes us into a new creation it is all His Work because of our confession that we are sinners and cannot save ourselves. We cannot work our way to heaven or work to keep the salvation that was a work of God.

Our salvation is not based on Christ's sacrifice and us too. You will not find this anywhere in Scripture.

Ephesians 2:10

"10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."

2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new."

We do not make ourselves this new creation, Christ does it so no one can boast that they did enough to save themselves. No human being has the ability to be "good enough" to earn heaven.

Ephesians 1:13-14 "13And in Him, having heard and believed the word of truth— the gospel of your salvation— you were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14who is the pledge of our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession, to the praise of His glory.…"

When Christ changes us we cannot change back nor do we want to.

Those who walk away after claiming to be a Christian were pretenders they are explained in Matthew.

Matthew 7:21-23

I Never Knew You

21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’"

Matthew 15:8-9

"8 ‘This people honors Me with their lips,

But their heart is far away from Me.

9 And in vain do they worship Me,

Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”

Someone can attend a church gathering all their lives, claim to be Christians and even have much "god-talk" and never have been changed by Christ because they were playing religion not wanting to be changed by Christ and expecting to be good without Him.

Many people are more about impressing others than they love Christ. They will parade their good deeds and god-talk as if this is convincing, but to the discerning Spirit one can often see the pretense because the fruit of the Spirit is missing in these people.

Galatians 5:22-26

"22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

24 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus crucified the flesh with its passions and desires."

The fruit of the Spirit is not works, neither to earn heaven or good graces. The fruit of the Spirit is the character qualities of Christ that we get when He comes to live in us, they have nothing to do with any thing we do.

Christ saves those who confess their sinfulness and desire to be changed by Him, then He comes to live in us as our guide and teacher and disciplines us when we falter.

Hebrews 12:5-7 "…5 And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not take lightly the discipline of the Lord, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you. 6 For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastises every son He receives.” 7 Endure suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?…"

God does not throw away His children for sin, He disciplines them.

Also, anyone who thinks we can sin to lose our salvation had better be able to tell us which ones would cause this to happen, how many and how big.

Christ died for all our sins and cleanses us as we confess them.

1 John 1:9 "9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

Someone changed by Christ does not keep on sinning but confesses it to be cleansed. Those who resist correction defending their sin will willful abandon were never born again.