Sister, why do you feel like you will go to hell? Is it something specific or general feeling of unworthiness?
Do you have sin that you struggle with that you cannot seem to overcome? Or just feeling like you can't possibly stand up to what you feel is required?
Know that I've only been a Christian for a bit over a year, confessing my faith in Christ at 26, for so many years being outside of church, going to Christian/Catholic primary school, being an atheist and such things.
Even recently, after coming so far I have felt so incredibly disgusting and unworthy. I had received dreams which showed me the deep and horrible sins within my heart, the desire for evil for certain lusts and things of the world. I felt a dreadful feeling for days from this, like how bad am I for dreaming about these things and this is what is in my heart.
Even though I have felt the same worries as you, about fearing as if I am unworthy, that I am worried I am not good enough and have not served the Lord well enough. These feelings are normal to feel, though not everybody will feel them.
What you are feeling is actually a positive thing. You are feeling that you need to be more worthy towards the Lord, you are feeling weak and that you may be letting Christ down. Know that I have felt this a lot myself. I struggle with temptations, fears, anxieties. Do I think that I am always loving? Certainly not. But I know what the Bible says so I TRY to do it.
What God wants from us is our efforts and for us to not give up. We are weak. We are in bodies of sin, not purified in our spirit. Know that the Word tells us our flesh and spirit are at enmity with each other, they are in battle, at odds with each other. Your pure spirit wants to serve God and focus on the things of the spirit, but the flesh wants to do the things of the world. This is just how we are in this challenging bodies.
Christ came on earth and overcame all temptations and did not sin, and lay His life down as an unblemished sacrifice to save all the souls on earth. We are charged to walk after Christ and bear our cross of self-sacrifice, seeking to crucify the flesh (not give in to fleshly temptations and focus on the spirit), and try our best to follow God's commands to love, which fulfill all the law perfectly.
Now we are CERTAINLY not perfect. Christ was perfect as a man on earth but HE STILL STRUGGLED. HE STILL BATTLED. He knows all the temptations we experience, because He Himself experienced ALL OF THEM. He's not about to cast us away from Him because we fail, because we error and because we might lose sight of Him temporarily.
Just the fact you believe in hell and are worried about your faith is a testimony to your faith in Jesus Christ and His Word. You desire to serve your KING as a faithful daughter, just as I desire to serve my KING as a faithful son. But I know I need great helpings of His grace and help to achieve this, to overcome my sinful nature, the temptations and failures. My failures pile HIGH. Just know sister your feelings of unworthiness I SHARE strongly. I never went to church except when I was young. I was baptized early in life. I believe true baptism is the reception of the Holy Spirit into your body, the temple of God, and this is PURELY by faith in Jesus Christ as the only begotten Son of God.
You have already achieved this. Do you think sinners and ungodly fear hell? No they don't, they don't care about hell because THEY DON'T BELIEVE. You believe sister. You know the reality and truth of hell, and you know the reality and truth of the Lord God Jesus Christ, who is one with God the Father and the Holy Spirit.
By your fear of hell you are fearing the Lord. This is the beginning of wisdom and is actually a testimony of your FAITH. This is a work before God whether you believe it or not. Not all works are of the flesh and physical actions. The greatest calling of our works is OUR FAITH manifested in our lives. Your struggles within you, your desire to please the Lord even though you feel unworthy IS CRUCIFICATION OF THE FLESH. You know the flesh is unprofitable and focusing on it is not going to lead you to victory. But you feel the struggle and sinful nature, the unworthiness. Trust me I do as well.
I know you are worried about those who the Lord will cast away who confess themselves as the body of Christ. This is true and let none convince you otherwise. For the lukewarm will be vomited from the Lord's mouth. But trust me, the lukewarm aren't fearing they will go to hell, they are neither cold NOR hot. You are certainly HOT as described by the word. You know the truth of the Word, however you feel unworthy to accept the promises of God.
Know that those who are cast away we are given guidance that they are branches in the vine of Christ who are not bearing fruit, meaning they are not abiding in God and His Word and are cast out from the vine of Christ and become withered and are thrown into the FIRE. This is hell for those Christians and believers who have forgotten their first love, as the Lord calls out the church to repentence in The Revelation (first three chapters).
We all should feel the need to purify ourselves and repent before the Lord, to become the pure and spotless bride for the bridegroom, who is righteous, in white and purified from the world. Do I think I am the bride? I have NO idea, but I am working to be the bride of Christ. I am trying to deal with sin in my heart and stand fast against the temptations in the world. Already it's been a year since coming to Christ and I look back and know that I am different. I am born again. I am a new man and my old man is nailed on the cross. I can't go back once I know the truth. However, the journey is not easy beloved SISTER.
The journey to life is entered by the narrow gate and is thin and difficult, the path to destruction is broad, entered by the wide gate and many go through it. This is talking of the world in general, that few find the call of faith and can sustain it.
You are already fulfilling what the Lord desires of you. How do I know this? Because you fear the Lord. You do not fear those who can destroy the flesh, but the ONE TRUE who can condemn your soul to hell! This is wisdom, this is prudence. When we fear God we desire earnestly NOT TO CROSS HIM. This is wise and this is knowledge.
Do not feel ashamed that you fear God. I fear the Lord. I know that pride comes before the fall, and if we get so comfortable in our faith and relationship with Christ and fall into neglect and away from our first love (God), and do not abide in Christ and His Word we can be cast out as the unprofitable member and burned in the FIRE! This is true sister, I know you feel the weight of these things. We are told in the word that those who sin after receiving the truth and are purified before God have an earnest expectation of hellfire!
However, this is about abiding in sin, and neglecting faith, about denying God and going after the worldly things. About putting God on the backburner, and losing Him as our first love (the first and most important command). If we truly fall of the path we can end up in Hell. Your fears are NOT unsubstantiated SISTER. But you must be clear on what the Lord requires of us.
All the Lord seeks of us is REPENTENCE. Humble yourself before Him and say, dear Father I feel so unworthy, I feel like such a failure before you, I don't feel like I am serving you well enough, I feel like I am letting you down my precious Father, my beloved Lord and King. Please help me to serve you better, please help me to feel your love and joy in my life".
THIS IS REPENTENCE. Do you know that THIS IS A WORK BEFORE GOD! Do you know that circumsicion of the FLESH IS A WORK BEFORE GOD! Do you think Jesus ignores the fact that we are in bodies of sin, in temptation as He was on the earth? The Lord knows our struggles, these form our character and ARE WORKS before God. Our works are not just what we do in life, helping others and things like that.
Our works are prayer, denying temptation, believing in God's word, abiding in HIM (these are the two things we are told in John that produce fruit, abiding in God and His Word, both of which you are DOING BY FEARING GOD!), loving others, loving God. Battling against the flesh is works before Jesus Christ. We are told to lead simple lives. Seeking God and praying, praying for others, for your nation, these are all powerful works, because we are seeking after the SPIRIT, and not the things of the world.
Sister do not be so hard on yourself. God Himself is your judge. Let you not destroy yourself. But fully submit yourself to God. Render yourself before Him entirely in repentence and HE WILL LIFT YOU UP. We are told of vital importance by Paul, that though He walked strongly in Christ He was given a persistent messenger of Satan to buffet Him, to mess with Him, to bring Him down, to upset Him and irritate Him. He prayed with God several times to free Him from this but JESUS ANSWERED, "MY GRACE IS ENOUGH FOR YOU, MY STRENGTH IS MADE PERFECT IN WEAKNESS".
Beloved sister, know that when we are weak we are strong, for Christ is in us. When we are weak we ARE HUMBLED. When we fear God WE ARE HUMBLED, AND PRACTISING THE WORK OF REPENTENCE. You could live a life as a hermit and pray to God and you would have MANY works before the Lord. Do not be confused by others requirements of what you need to do, or what church you need to go to. I don't go to church. I don't need to. God is my teacher, His Word is my teacher.
Dear sister, you are producing fruit, you are producing works before God. Because you earnestly desire to please Him, you seek to right yourself before Him, you fear Him, and you fear hellfire. This is GREAT! THIS IS WELL DONE TO YOU SISTER! The ungodly DO NOT FEAR HELLFIRE. They DO NOT BELIEVE. You have faith sister. You are on the path for SURE.
ALL you need to do is to PERSEVERE AND OVERCOME IN CHRIST JESUS.
ALL YOU NEED TO DO IS KEEP SEEKING THE LORD. YOU ARE WEAK. BUT HE IS STRONG. I AM WEAK, BUT HE IS STRONG.
REPENTENCE IS ALL HE SEEKS, for us to trust in Him and believe. You believe, but give yourself fully to Him and trust Him that He will lift you up. You may not feel worthy, but believe in the MIGHT OF YOUR KING AND LORD. HE CAN MAKE CHILDREN OF ABRAHAM FROM ROCKS! A GOD FEARING WOMAN SUCH AS YOURSELF IS NOTHING FOR HIM TO GROW!
There are times in our lives where God seeks us to be humbled. This can be in fear of God, in feelings of unworthiness. But dear sister, these times you are TRULY STRONG. It is not a joke, it is not just words. By you seeking God even though you feel unworthy, ARE YOU NOT DEMONSTRATING FAITH? IS THIS NOT A WORK OF YOUR FAITH!!!
I love you sister. Please keep sight of Christ and trust in Him to lift you up. We have MANY hurdles ahead of us in this life. The Godly will always suffer persecutions in Christ. Know that demons do wage war against us.
PRAY FOR THE WHOLE ARMOR OF GOD (EPHESIANS 6:10-18), READ PSALM 91. Trust in God. If you abide in Him and His Word you are producing fruit. Try your best to love and free yourself and purify yourself from sin and temptation. WE ARE TOLD to work out our salvation with FEAR AND TREMBLING. Is this not what you are doing sister? Fulfilling the WORD!
Keep strong and courageous. Do not doubt. You are worthy. Submit yourself to God. You will go to heaven if you keep sight of God. We must all fight the good fight, run the race to win, to battle against the temptations and difficulties. The Lord's spirit is with us in this journey and will guide us, lift us up, deliver us and KEEP US!
Please sister. I have been exactly where you are now, even recently. Remember, as others have said we are saved by grace. Our works are what we are to be judged on. We are still saved by faith, unless we fall away from God. This is a high threshold. God will forgive us when we sin if we REPENT AND ARE HUMBLED. You are humbled, you fear God. You are doing nothing wrong sister. If you have sin and difficulty in your life to clean up, we all do, we are not perfect before God. WE ARE WEAK, BUT HE IS STRONG. He loves you with an infinitely deep love sister. He will NEVER LEAVE YOU OR FORSAKE YOU.
Do not give up. The word is not condemning you. The Word is saying you are WELL ON THE PATH TO GLORY.
May God bless you and keep you dear sister. Your brother, Christopher.