I want to talk about "grace" in how it works.
There's a tension in Christianity, between some idiots' thinking that "we need works," versus the moronic idea that if you mentally assent to Jesus' sacrifice that it doesn't matter whatsoever how you live your life.
We are judged by how grace transforms us. We must begin that transformational process by acknowledging our sin... we must begin our transformational process by accepting that our "good deeds" will NEVER IN A MILLION YEARS get us into Heaven.
If your motivation to "be good" is to "score points with your maker," it won't work. If you are trying to impress God, or worse, impress other people, that WILL BE your reward. If you think of "good deeds" as deeds that are good, you fully and completely miss the point. You help a person in need, because you love them... if you have no love in your heart, you've never grasped the nature of grace, and you will have no home in Heaven.
Ultimately, "mental assent" isn't enough. Praying a dumbass prayer isn't enough, unless you really mean it. Getting right with God is a little bit like casting evil spells in Harry Potter: "You have to MEAN IT, HARRY!" If you don't really mean it, it is pointless. And if you don't abide in God, you may get 'cut off'- you have to abide in Christ by constantly living in relationship with God.
If the grace of God isn't actively shaping you, isn't actively transforming your heart from one depth of knowledge of God to another, I QUESTION YOUR SALVATION. Mental assent is NOT ENOUGH. Praying a prayer you didn't really mean IS NOT ENOUGH. Living for God for a year, and then going your own way IS NOT ENOUGH. You need to FULLY commit yourself to the process of transformation. We'll be judged by how we allowed grace to transform us; we'll be judged by how we responded to God's empathy for us. If we don't spend time in God's love, if we don't get to know the goodness and graciousness of God, we'll never understand grace; if we don't understand grace, we'll never be empathetic; without empathy no one can go to Heaven. And that is that.
