A Majority of U.S. Christians Believe Good Works Contribute to Salvation

A new report from the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University, part of the American Worldview Inventory 2025, reveals that Americans typically believe Jesus Christ’s death on the cross and His resurrection from the grave are not sufficient to secure their eternal salvation. Instead, they believe that experiencing eternal peace and joy requires a blend of personal works and God’s grace.

While the survey found that 84% of adults—including 95% of self-professed Christians—believe there is such a thing as sin, millions of Americans do not believe their sinfulness will resign them to a future of fire and brimstone. Only 3% of adults believe their soul, spirit, or essence will experience unending torment and punishment. In total, more than three out of five people (63%) expect an eternity filled with peace and rest. One out of five (19%) anticipate some form of reincarnation—either joining with the universe or returning to earth as another life form. About one out of every eight adults (13%) contend they will simply cease to exist. Among those who expect a future of peace and serenity, one-fifth (13% of all adults) foresee a period of purification for their soul before spending the rest of time in that state of bliss.

What Is Heaven, Anyway?

Among those who say they are Christian, three out of four (77%) said they will enjoy eternal comfort and peace. That eternal reward, however, was described in three different ways. Half of the self-identified Christians (52%) say after they die, their soul, spirit, or essence will reside in the presence of God—a condition widely described as “Heaven.” About one out of every eight (13%) said it will be a two-step process, with their soul first going through a period of purification before experiencing peace and rest for eternity. That expectation was more than twice as common among Catholics as Protestants. The third expected outcome, anticipated by 12%, is experiencing eternal peace, serenity, and joy without any divine being present. Protestants, Catholics, and people of non-Christian faiths were equally likely to predict this future for themselves.

The survey discovered that even among those who are most likely to fit some description of being “born-again” through Jesus Christ, there were significant differences—and points of conflict—with Scripture. The study identified three uniquely defined born-again segments.

What We Really Believe

The first segment, people who call themselves “born-again,” represents one-third of the public (33%). More than four out of five of them (82%) believe they will experience eternal life in peace and serenity, including six out of ten (62%) who say that will include the presence of God. This group was perhaps the most biblically confused of the three. Just 58% believe every person will be personally judged by God. More than four out of ten say good people can earn their salvation (41%), one-third believe in reincarnation (35%), and one-third say there are many viable paths to salvation (35%). A large minority says a simple admission of sinning constitutes repentance (40%), and one-quarter do not believe that confessing their sins is very important in their salvation process. One out of every three does not consider themselves to be a sinner. Ultimately, just six out of ten of the self-described born-again segment believe they will live eternally in the presence of God.

A second data-defined born-again segment included those who claimed they had confessed all of their sins to Jesus, embraced Him as their savior, and believed that after they die their soul, spirit, or essence will experience eternal peace and rest. That segment represented close to half of all American adults (43%). However, their worldview is a jumble of biblical and cultural ideas. While nine out of 10 believe that everyone will be personally judged by God, a majority also believe that “a person who is generally good, or does enough good things for other people, will earn a place in Heaven.” Nearly half of this group believes repentance is simply admitting to sinfulness, regardless of future behavior. Half also said there are many viable paths to eternal salvation.

The third research-defined born-again segment was based on a more detailed perspective. This group includes adults who claimed they have confessed all their sins to Jesus; prayed to Christ to forgive them; changed their thinking and behavior related to such sins; specifically asked Jesus to save them from the consequences of their sins; and believed that after they die their soul, spirit, or essence will live in the presence of God. Defined in this manner, one out of four adults fit the characterization (27%). But even this segment was confused in their spiritual understanding of sin and salvation. Although 95% knew that God will judge all people individually, nearly half (42%) believed that good people can earn Heaven. More than one-third (38%) said repentance only takes admission of sin, not behavioral change. One-fourth (27%) argued that there are paths to salvation apart from Jesus.

What Determines Our Salvation?

The study also explored 13 different ideas about what is “very important” in determining the post-life experience of the soul. The most common responses were embracing Jesus as Savior (57%), honoring and serving God above all else (55%), consistently demonstrating strong moral character (54%), and confessing all sins to Jesus (54%). Other factors included living a transformed, righteous life (49%), sincerely worshiping God (49%), and obeying all of God’s laws and commands (45%).

The combinations of these ideas underscore how much “theological noise” exists within people’s worldview related to this core focus of the Christian faith—what happens after death. If a person said embracing Jesus Christ as Savior is “very important,” they were also likely to list several other actions, both biblically defensible and indefensible, as equally important.

Generationally, the study found that Gen Z adults were least likely to emphasize traditional biblical teachings about salvation. Only a minority of Gen Z respondents said it was very important to confess all their sins to Jesus (44%), embrace Jesus Christ as Savior (48%), or honor and serve God above all else (45%).

Differences Among Ethnic Groups

Significant differences also appeared among ethnic and racial groups. Blacks were more likely than whites, Hispanics, and Asians to value living a transformed life, honoring and serving God, obeying His laws and commands, and consistently worshiping Him. Hispanics were most likely to emphasize balancing good and bad deeds, while Asians were least likely to affirm the importance of any of the 13 behaviors. Asians were also the only racial/ethnic group for which a minority believed their soul will experience eternal peace or the presence of God. Half of that segment (50%) said their soul will either join with the universe, be reincarnated, or cease to exist.

Dr. George Barna, Director of Research at the Cultural Research Center, who has studied beliefs about life after death for more than four decades, said the results highlight a deep misunderstanding of fundamental Christian doctrine.

Shocking Confusion Reigns

“There remains a shocking degree of misunderstanding among Christians regarding sin, repentance, forgiveness, and salvation,” Barna explained. “Tens of millions of people who attend Christian churches every week, and who consider themselves to be followers of Christ and eternally secure, do not seem to understand that repentance is necessary for salvation, and that repentance demands a change in behavior.”

He added, “Repentance is not merely sorrow over misdeeds. It must include a determined effort to change both mind and actions to avoid committing the same sins in the future. Simply apologizing to God, or saying a prayer asking for forgiveness, without a real effort to change the lifestyle, does not fit with biblical teaching about forgiveness and grace.”

The findings, Barna said, point to a larger issue. “Millions of people who regularly attend Christian churches believe that eternal salvation does not depend on the sacrifice of Christ because of our sins. They don’t understand this fundamental tenet of Christian belief.”

“Instead, we have a majority of self-described Christians hedging their eternal bets by integrating multiple means of salvation into their personal security plan. They say they are relying on Jesus to wash away their sins, but they also expect their good works to gain them points with God, and they retain the possibility of other pathways to eternal peace, just in case. This multi-faceted salvation strategy enables them to avoid stress over the whole issue—especially for those who also harbor the possibility that there may be no type of life after death anyway,” Barna said.

Biblical Illiteracy

Barna, who has written over 60 books, including multiple New York Times bestsellers, and more about the worldview of American Christians than anyone in history, concluded that the baseline problem is Americans that are biblically illiterate.

“The presence of unbiblical beliefs in the minds of most Christian-leaning Americans reminds us that most people are information collectors rather than biblically consistent followers of Christ. Americans are more determined to be comfortable than biblically right. That preference will produce profound eternal effects for each of us.”