Lesson 32 - Assurance of Salvation

• "In Christian experience, assurance that one is saved by faith in Christ is essential to the whole program of growth in grace and in the knowledge of Christ. Assurance is a matter of experience and relates to personal confidence in present salvation. It should not be confused with the doctrine of eternal security, which will be discussed in the next chapter. Eternal security is a question of fact, while assurance is a matter of what one believes at a given time concerning his personal salvation. Assurance of salvation depends upon three major aspects of experience: (1) understanding of the completeness of the salvation provided in Jesus Christ; (2) the confirming testimony of Christian experience; (3) acceptance by faith of biblical promises of salvation."[1]

Understanding the Nature of Salvation

     God is holy and completely set apart from sin. Scripture reveals, “Your eyes are too pure to approve evil, and You can not look on wickedness with favor” (Hab. 1:13; cf. Ps. 99:9; Isa. 6:3; 1 John 1:5). All of us are under the guilt of sin and helpless to save ourselves (Rom. 3:10-23; 5:6-10; Eph. 2:1-3). Further, good works have no saving merit in God’s sight (Isa. 64:6; Eph. 2:8-9; Tit. 3:5). Salvation is never what we do for God, but rather, what He has done for us through the finished work of Jesus Christ who died in our place and bore the punishment that rightfully belongs to us (Mark 10:45; 1 Pet. 3:18). Our salvation is conditioned on faith alone in Christ alone (John 3:16; Rom. 3:23-28; Gal. 2:16; Eph. 2:8-9). Once we trust in Christ as Savior, God’s righteous demands toward our sin are forever satisfied (Rom. 3:25; 1 John 2:2), we are forgiven all our sins (Eph. 1:7; Col. 1:13-14), imputed with His righteousness (Rom. 5:17; 2 Cor. 5:21; Phil. 3:9), and shall never face condemnation (Rom. 8:1; 31-34; cf. 1 John 2:1). The person who is born again has new life (John 10:28; Rom. 6:23), and just as there are signs of life in a newborn infant, so there will be signs of life in a new believer. (Read pages 212-213)

The Confirming Testimony of Christian Experience

The new life that is in the Christian is manifest only in the one who is surrendered to God (Rom. 6:11-13; 12:1-2), living by faith (Gal. 2:20; Col. 2:6-7), filled with the Spirit (Eph. 5:18), and walking by means of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:16). The Christian who has surrendered to sin will manifest only those qualities of the sin nature (1 Cor. 3:1-3; 11:18-21; cf. Gal. 5:19-20), and may suffer divine discipline (Heb. 12:6-11), even to death (1 John 5:16; cf. Lev. 10:1-2; Acts 5:1-10). Whether the Christian is spiritual or carnal, he/she is in Christ (1 Cor. 3:1), and belongs to the family of God (Read page 214). Some of the manifestations of our new spiritual life include:

1. The knowledge that God is our heavenly Father (Matt. 11:27; John 17:3).
2. Prayer as a new reality for the Christian (Rom. 8:26-27; Eph. 5:18-19).
3. The ability to comprehend Scripture (Luke 24:32, 45; John 16:12-15; cf. 1 Cor. 2:12-16).
4. A heightened awareness of sin. It follows that Christ, who died for sin, will naturally incline the heart of the Christian to hate that which He hates, and to reform the character of the one in whom He dwells (Ps. 119:9-11; Rom. 6:11-14).
5. A new love for both unsaved and saved persons. It follows that Christ, who died for the lost, will naturally incline the heart of the Christian to love that which he loves (John 3:16; 1 Cor. 15:3-4; Gal. 6:10; 1 John 3:14).
6. A transformed character in the life of the surrendered Christian (Gal. 5:22-23; Phil. 1:21; 2:4-7).
7. These combined experiences make the Christian aware of his/her salvation through faith in Christ. Though there continues an awareness of sin, the believer knows he/she is not condemned because of their union with Christ (Rom. 8:1).[2]

Accepting the Veracity of the Promises of the Bible

1. The assurance of one’s salvation rests upon the truthfulness of Scripture that God’s promises are true (1 John 5:13; cf. John 3:16; 5:24; Rom. 3:21-26). Our experience is subject to fluctuation, but God’s Word never changes (Ps. 119:89, 160; Matt. 5:18; 24:35; 1 Pet. 1:23-25).
2. Very few remember the moment or day they trusted Christ as Savior; but what is important is that each Christian know that he/she is trusting Christ now.
3. Doubting the faithfulness of God casts a shadow of doubt over our salvation. “This state of mind is usually caused by looking for a change in their feelings rather than looking to the faithfulness of Christ. Feelings and experiences have their place; but, as stated before, the final evidence of personal salvation, which is unchanged by these, is the truthfulness of God. What He has said, He will do, and it is not pious or commendable for a person to distrust his salvation after having definitely cast himself upon Christ.”[3]
4. Assurance of salvation depends on understanding the nature of God’s complete salvation in Christ.[4]

 

[1] Lewis Sperry Chafer; John F. Walvoord; Major Bible Themes (Grand Rapids, Mich. Zondervan Publishing, 2010), 212.

[2] These modified points are taken from Major Bible Themes, pages 214-216.

[3] Chafer & Walvoord; Major Bible Themes, 217-218.

[4] These modified points are taken from Major Bible Themes, pages 216-218.