Assurance of Salvation
--ongoing
A Christian is one who believes in Christ as Lord and Savior. It is through no accomplishment on the Christians part that they have received Jesus as their Savior. It is the Holy Spirit that has regenerated the heart.
The believer or Christian may wonder if their faith is a saving faith, for, after all, even demons believe and are still damned. Saving faith has a regenerative quality in that the believer was once dead and only lived for and cared for this life and the flesh, but now love God and live for Him and want to be like Him and desire to put to death the idolatry of the world and the flesh.
When one looks to God and loves the Kingdom of God, the pleasures of this world pale to nothingness in comparison. To have assurance of faith one must focus more and more on God. This is done through meditation on God and good and honorable and noble things. This is done by expressing your heart to God. This is done by reading the Bible with a desire to communicate with God and to be more like what God wants us to be.
Christians struggle against sin while accepting that Christ has already paid the price for sin and welcome God's sanctifying us in this life and look forward to being redeemed with Christ both at the end of this life and at His return in judgement and Glory.
Greater Freedom from sin occurs as we focus more on God and his Kingdom. The more we do that, the more we will Love God.
But I still sin and on purpose!
You are still a Christian if you struggle against sin, hate your sin, take pains to put to death your sin, turn away from your sin, turn instead to Christ, and confess your sin to God.
But I still take pleasure in sin!
Well, yes, that's why Christians still sin. Remember that you hate your sin and hate that you take pleasure in sin. The pleasure that you take in sin is the desire of your old nature. Rejoice in your struggle against sin as it is an indication that the Holy Spirit is within you fighting against your old nature. In the times that you do experience success in a battle against sin, you can praise God and thank Him for your victory! The Christian with Saving Faith desires forgiveness from sin to have a right standing with Christ and to fight against sin with renewed strength.
There are Christians in Hell
Jesus said that there are those who think they are Christian, but who will be unpleasantly surprised when Jesus returns in glory. Since we are to strive to enter through the narrow gate and work out our salvation with fear and trembling I want to look at the photo-negative of the true Christian or, to be more direct, I want to look at examples spoken of in Scripture of those who truly believe they are Christian, profess to be Christian, and live the Christian life, but to whom God will say "depart from me, I never knew you."
21 "Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord," will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?' 23 And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.'
Matthew 7:21-23The Christian who does not have saving faith desires forgiveness so that he can enjoy sin guilt free.
TAGS: bible,
mini-review
