Indeed! I think that the main obstacle for "religious" people is letting go of the pride and the feelings of false piety that happen whenever we rely upon our own goodness and righteous acts to make us worthy of Heaven with God. How many times did God say in his word that all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags? That the price of our sinning against him is death? That he provided a complete and sufficient sacrifice for us? That he demands faith in order to please him? That he saves us by his grace and we receive that gift - that unspeakable gift - by believing in him whom he hath sent, we receive Jesus as our Savior, our redeemer and deliverer?
I wonder about why there are still so many people, who after hearing the Gospel, still insist on doing it all for themselves. Sure, they may say they believe in Christ and that God saves us by grace, but they then still hold onto their own deeds to add to their faith because they have been deceived into believing that faith is not enough. That God still expects us to work for it - not even getting the point that if we are saved by grace then it cannot be also by works because then grace would not be grace.
I genuinely worry about people like my Mom who think they must earn their place in heaven. Sure, she believes in Jesus as the Savior, that he died for our sins and he "opened" the gates of heaven, but that is where it stops - the efficacy of the sacrifice of Christ. He only made it possible to go to heaven but that she must also do all she is supposed to do like not sinning and going to confession when she does and doing penance afterward and going to Mass every week and receiving communion and giving her money and, and, and. There is never anything more than a glimmer of "hope" that she will make it there. Why I worry is because I ask can a person be really saved who says they trust in Jesus as their Savior but that they must also do certain things and not do certain things to go to heaven? Is that really trusting or receiving Christ like we're supposed to when all the other stuff must be added on or else we won't make it? I pray for God's mercy and grace for her and others like her caught up in a works based salvation. I pray that God opens their eyes through the Holy Spirit to hear his words and understand that we all have a precious gift from God and it is available to all who in faith receive it. I yearn for her and others to have assurance of their salvation, to KNOW they have eternal life. To rest in the promises of God and be free from the bondage of sin and death.
God wants us to have assurance of our salvation or He would not have told us we could.
1 John 5:6-15
6This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. 7For there are three that testify: 8the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. 9 If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. 10Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. 11And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.
13I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. 14And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 15And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.