Do You Really Have OCD Or Is It Something Else?

John 3:14-17, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.”

I have received numerous emails from a handful of web visitors over the decades, who confide in me that they have Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). I always encourage such people to refrain from diagnosing themselves with such a mental disorder. I think in most cases, people who think they are suffering from OCD are really just lacking a solid grasp on what the Gospel is. I was wonderfully saved (born-again) at age 13. However, for the next several years I worried much. I cried and feared that I might not be saved. In hindsight, I did not have OCD, nor did I even know about such a disorder until I was much older.

What is OCD? It is a mental disorder that causes a person to incessantly worry that they are not saved, no matter what anyone tells them. I had a man from India years ago who wrote bizarre emails to me. At first I thought he was messing with me, mocking my ministry. He asked me if it mattered which of Jesus' hands were nailed to the cross first? Of course, it does not matter. He asked me if it mattered what material the cross was made of, wood or plastic? I replied that since plastic wasn't invented until the year 1862 by Alexander Parkes, obviously the cross couldn't have been made of plastic.

The man said that he feared while sitting in his recliner that Hell would open up and take him at any time. I was very doubtful about his sincerity at first, but then concluded that if he was willing to take the time to write lengthy emails, I ought to give him the benefit of the doubt, so I did. We exchanged 150 emails over a few months. I shared every sermon, article, video, book and resource I could think of about salvation to help the man find the peace and assurance he desperately desired. I do sincerely believe that this man has OCD, but I am not a psychologist. I finally had to kindly tell him that I simply could not help him with his issues.

However, I am convinced that most people who think they have OCD really don't. I encourage people who are struggling with doubts about God's salvation to listen to lots of Bible preaching on the subject, and to read Christian books about salvation, and most importantly to study the King James Bible. When I learned over time how salvation works, all my fears went away.

Some people refuse to trust God no matter what anyone says to convince them otherwise. God doesn't expect that you have no fears or doubts to be saved. In fact, the more doubts and fears you have, the greater will be your faith, just so long as you act on the faith and not the fear. Do you trust Jesus as your personal Savior? If so, you are saved according to John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” All God requires to get to Heaven is childlike faith (confidence) in His only begotten Son, Who died in our place on the cross, was buried and physically resurrected from the dead three days later (1st Corinthians 15:1-4). Nothing more is required or permitted by God to go to Heaven.

I feel sorry for people who refuse to trust God. Listen friend, it is okay to have fears and doubts. Don't focus on your fears and uncertainties. Instead, focus on God's promise in 1st Corinthians 1:21b, “TO SAVE THEM THAT BELIEVE.” Do you believe? I do friend. I DO! John 6:47, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.” Saving faith is not the absence of all doubt and worry. Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). Faith is placing your trust (resting) in the finished redemptive work of Jesus Christ. Jesus paid your sin debt and mine.

2nd Corinthians 5:21, “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” What a beautiful Scripture!!! God the Father made His only begotten Son to be sin for us. That is why in our text passage from John 3:14-15, Jesus mentioned to Nicodemus Moses in the Wilderness, who was instructed by God to form some brass into the form of a serpent and lift it up for the people to see. Anyone who looked to the serpent (i.e., looked to Jesus) was spared death. John 3:14-15, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.”

The simple and sure way of salvation has always been through faith in Christ. Isaiah 45:22, “Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.” The dear Savior Himself said in John 3:14-15 that just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the Wilderness, even so must He be lifted up on a cross, crucified, for the sins of the world. Jesus was crucified, just as He prophesied. He died and was buried, bodily resurrected three days later. The way to Heaven is to simply LOOK TO JESUS, the Author and Finisher of our faith. Hebrews 12:2, “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

If you are one of few people who thinks you might have OCD, obsessing about going to Hell and not being saved, then I encourage you dear reader to spend time listening to good Bible preaching. We are what we eat and think! People who fear and worry only do so because that is what they have chosen to dwell upon in their mind. So the way out of that pit of despair is to start listening to doctrinally sound preachers like Pastor Ralph Yankee Arnold, and Pastor Max Younce, and Pastor Jack Hyles and other fundamentalist preachers. Proverbs 13:20, “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.” The Bible promises that if we walk with wise men—taking heed to their good judgment, sound wisdom and fear of God—then we will be influenced by them and become more like them.

And let me say dear friend, that if indeed you do have OCD, it doesn't in any way mean that you are not saved. Just because you have doubts and fears doesn't mean that you're not trusting Jesus. It just mean that despite your faith in the dear Savior, you are a worry-wart. Please do not confuse OCD with a lack of faith. Having difficulty finding the assurance of your salvation does not in any way reflect upon your faith. I worried about going to Hell for several years after I got saved at age 13 in 1980. I was saved, but naïve about how salvation works. What kept confusing me is the non-biblical requirement to pray a prayer, that I kept reading in every religious tract I picked up. In every Baptist church I had attended, I was taught to lead people to pray a prayer to be saved, which confused me.

I am also sick and tired of hearing pastors require people to walk down an aisle to the front of a church, to learn how to go to Heaven. God Himself does not require anyone to walk down an aisle to be saved, so why do preachers? Why cannot those preachers simply tell people how to be saved right their in their pew? God Himself in the Bible doesn't tell us to pray to be saved, so why do preachers add this? In the Gospel of John we are repeatedly told to simply “believe” to be saved, with no mention of repenting, praying or getting water baptized. The man who believes has repented (changed his mind), and the man who repents (changes his mind) has believed. More people will go to Hell someday because they tried too hard to be saved, doing more than what God required, rather than simply “BELIEVE ON THE LORD JESUS CHRIST” (Acts 16:31b).

So before you conclude that you are hopelessly a victim of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), condemned to a life of unnecessary fear and worry that you aren't going to Heaven, please take the time to begin making it your hobby to study the topic of salvation. Sit at the edge of your seat with curiosity every time you hear a preacher teaching about eternal life and how to be saved. I encourage you to read my own book titled, 'SALVATION,' which is 42 chapters long and full of helpful truths. Kindest regards and God bless.