Will there be “Christians” in hell?

The Lord has given me a burden for the lost. And I have been becoming increasingly aware of a need for real repentance by many of those who call themselves “Christians”. Now please do not misunderstand my intentions. I am by no means trying to “judge” anyone or say that I am better than the next. Lord knows I make more than my share of mistakes! But in looking more deeply at the Scriptures I have to question what it is that some people really believe. And what is even more disconcerting is that I have to question what some leaders are teaching.

I guess it comes down to how you define “Christian”. Some would say that a “Christian is someone who believes in God”, or “believes in Jesus”. I disagree. A true “Christian” is someone who is following Christ to become more Christ-like. I will say that I am totally against the legalistic teachings that say our salvation is dependent on or determined by our own actions. No. We are “saved by grace through faith” alone (Ephesians 2:8). But too many people have a weak and watered-down definition of “faith”. Saving faith is not the casual acknowledgement of the Biblical truth. It is not a creed where you hear it and say, “Ok, I believe that”. It is to trust in, to cling to, to rely on, and depend on the Biblical truth. It is so much more than a one-time decision to “believe” in Jesus.

You see, when one truly believes in, or has faith in Jesus, then (and only then) the Holy Spirit dwells within that believer. That is being “born again”, or “born of the Spirit”. That means God lives inside the believer. If God lives inside you then you will absolutely not be able to live in an ongoing life of continual rebellion against the standards of God. Yes you will make mistakes. Yes being like Jesus is a process of Spiritual growth. No you will not be “perfect” (at least not on the outside) all the time. But your life will display a trend of change going in God’s direction.

Look at it this way: In John 3:16 we read where Jesus said, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (NASB). That’s great. And it is the truth. So why then did Jesus also say, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter”? It is because we misunderstand and incorrectly define “believe”. In John 3:16 (and many verses throughout the Gospels) the Greek word “believe” is not a noun or an adverb but it is an active verb. It indicates an ongoing act. It means if you truly believe then you will continue to believe and grow stronger in that belief.

If you are a Christian, you will grow in the things of God. You will grow in your prayer life. You will grow in your worship of the Lord. You will grow in your interest in His word, the Bible. You will grow in your distaste for sin and you will grow in your thirst for His righteousness. This Western Worldview that says you pray a prayer and ask Jesus into your heart and then you are saved and you can then live anyway you want because God has forgiven you is false doctrine. That is not taught or implied anywhere in Scripture. Jesus also said, “Repent and believe…” (Mark 1:15). Repent means you turn away from your old life and change your direction toward a new life in Christ. If you are still living the same old life you lived when you were lost and in sin, then you are still lost and in sin regardless of what you said you “believe”.

So will there be Christians in hell? No. But there will be vast multitudes there who called themselves Christians.

Peace and blessings,

Shannon