Should God Let "Bad" Christians Into Heaven?

A correctional officer emailed about his frustration:

“I read the Bible and am comforted, knowing that my sins can be and have been completely forgiven by God. I strive to be good, as He says. When I fail, I try again. But what’s the point of my trying to be good if a murderer can be sorry, accept Jesus’s sacrifice—paying for all his crimes—and also get into heaven? It angers me that I’m no different in God’s eyes than any really bad person.”

Is this officer’s anger valid? Will God equally open heaven to life-long criminals and “good” people serving in corrections?

We rarely see fairness; it’s painful to think unfairness might continue in eternity, letting “bad” people into heaven. Yet, at his crucifixion, Jesus assured entry to paradise that day to the criminal next to Him. No punishment was required; the criminal simply repented and believed that Jesus was the only way to heaven. Was this right?

First, Should We Compare Ourselves To Others?

We can always find someone who appears more sinful than us, yet we all sin; “No one is righteous—not one.” (Romans 3:10-11)

Comparison is delusion, breeding pride and deluded self-confidence. That’s being like the older brother of the “prodigal son” in Luke 15:11-32: he was bitter when his father welcomed back the repentant son who’d rebelliously demanded, then wasted, his inheritance, realized his stupidity, and returned to express humility to his father.

The older brother was (in his assessment), good—much better than his brother. He was unforgiving, angry, and judgmental—all sins in God’s eyes and dangerous because such self-righteousness leads to belief that “I’m good” and not in need of a savior. The older brother thought he was beyond needing grace; the younger brother thought he was beyond receiving grace. Both were wrong.

Second, heaven won’t be the same for everyone.

The officer who wrote the above email—and any who accept Christ—need not worry that God will “see no difference” between him and others who are “bad.” God has full knowledge of each one’s thoughts, words, and behavior during life and will judge each one perfectly. Those who accept Jesus as their personal savior but lead ungodly lives will be welcomed into heaven, but will receive fewer or no rewards. Here’s how God explains this:

1. We can store up our good deeds in heaven as rewards: “Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys.” (Matthew 6:20) It’s not bad for us to want eternal rewards; they are God’s idea! Good deeds don’t get us into heaven, but will affect our heavenly experience.

2. A criminal who accepts Jesus as savior and a Christian who did good things will both enter heaven, but their eternal rewards will vary because of what they did while on earth: “The Son of Man will recompense every man according to his deeds.” (Matthew 16:27, Revelation 22:12) Once saved by Christ, even a serial killer can’t lose heaven, but will regret (“suffer loss”) the life he led on earth, belatedly recognizing it as useless (“burned up”): “If any man’s work remains, he shall receive a reward. If any man’s work is burned up, he shall suffer loss; but he shall be saved.” (1st Corinthians 3:14-15)

3. Anyone can enjoy eternity in heaven, if they accept Jesus’s offered death as payment for their sins: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only son, so that whoever believes in the Son will not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16). Belief is enough, as clarified in Ephesians 2:8-9: “It is by faith that you are saved (from hell) by grace from God—not by good works, so that no man can boast.” This differs from what many wrongly believe: that good deeds can get them into heaven. But no one in traffic court for speeding would say to the judge, “Yes, I was speeding, but I pay taxes and am good to others,” and expect the judge to no longer require payment for the speeding ticket; payment is still required. Yet many think that our heavenly judge will be that irrational. Nope; every sin must be paid for—and we’re unable to do that!

4. Good deeds, church membership, religious rituals, or belief that God exists (which the Devil also believes), get no one into heaven.It’s only by accepting Jesus’s sacrifice as fullpayment for our sins which gives eternal life. Those who reject Jesus but “do good”– believing they are good enough to earn a way into heaven (making themselves god, having established their own standard), will never enter heaven.

5. God is fair; rewards will be based on what we did, with what we had. Those in poverty or handicapped, with less capability to do good, won’t be judged to the same standard as the healthy and wealthy with their opportunity to help many. Those with unequal resources but with equal faith, will be rewarded equally. Jesus explains in Matthew 25:14-23 that God can be trusted to judge and reward perfectly.

6. There are degrees and types of eternal rewards. Jesus said some will be highly rewarded: “Blessed are you when men persecute you on account of Me, for your reward in heaven is great.” (Matthew 5:11-12). God gave us talents; in heaven, rewards will include roles that fully use these, bringing joy to us and to God, the giver: “I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.” (Matthew 25:23)

7. Rewards can be lost, fully or partially, if Christians fail to do good things which God planned for us: “For we are created in Christ to do good works which God prepared for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10) “Watch that you do not lose what was accomplished, so that you may receive a full reward” (2nd John 8-10) Christians who squander opportunities to do good, will find their reward reduced.

8. Wanting rewards in heaven should prompt us to make wise decisions in this life: “Beware of practicing righteousness to be noticed; otherwise, you gain no reward in heaven. Pray not as hypocrites who pray to be seen by men and have their earthly reward in full. Pray in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will repay you.” (Matthew 6:1)

Punishments In Hell Will Also Vary By Individual

Those who reject Jesus’s gift of sacrifice (such as #4 above), choose hell and will receive stored up punishments, tailored to each person: “Because of your unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself for the day of God’s judgment; wrath will be rendered according to each one’s deeds.” (Romans 2:5-6 and Revelation 20:12b)

Punishments will vary because God perfectly views sins as greater or lesser. For thousands of years, he has decreed differing penalties:

“If there is serious injury, take life for life, eye for eye….” (Exodus 21:23-24)

“Have the guilty flogged with the number of lashes the crime deserves.”(Deuteronomy 25:2)

Jesus called Judas’s sin greater: “The one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.” (John 19:11b) “Worse punishment will be deserved by the one who trampled underfoot the Son of God.” (Hebrews 10:29)

Punishments will vary by the life each Jesus-rejecting person led, based on his or her knowledge of God. People with greater knowledge of God will be more severely punished in hell than those who were ignorant or uninformed: “A servant who knows, but doesn’t carry out those instructions, will be beaten with many blows. But someone who does not know and then does something wrong, will be beaten with few blows.” (Luke 12:47-48a)

Should We Believe In Such A God?— Ask A Mathematician!

17th century mathematician Blaise Pascal, who laid the foundation for the modern theory of statistical probabilities, argued that people should believe in the Christian God, stating: “Weigh the gain and the loss in wagering that God is who He says He is. Estimate these two chances: if you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager then, without hesitation, that God is.”

How to Store Up Rewards for Heaven

Acknowledge you sin. Thankfully accept Christ as savior—as the Bible (and Pascal) urge. To learn about this, call 888-633-3446, or text 320-345-3455, or contact me. Read your Bible—ideally daily—and pray to understand God’s loving wisdom and plan for you. Confess failures, move forward, and express daily gratefulness to God.

He loves you. Who else would die for you?

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Chaplain Linda Ahrens Chaplain American Jail Association

Note: The opinions expressed in the article are my own as a volunteer chaplain and do not reflect the views of any other entity.