I Jn
5:11-13
11 And
this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
12 He
who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have
life.
13 I
write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal
life. (NIV)
How can we know that we have eternal life? How can we know that we have the son -- that Jesus is in us?
2 Cor
13:5
5 Examine
yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize
that Christ Jesus is in you-- unless, of course, you fail the test? (NIV)
If you were to ask random Christians how they know they have
eternal life, you would get a variety of different answers. Many would be right, and many would be
wrong. Many answers you might hear would
be impossible to classify as right or wrong, like “I just know”. True believers “just know”, but so do many
false believers. The purpose of this document
is to present a scriptural answer to the above question: An answer that is always right and works for
everyone. God had everyone in mind when
He wrote the Bible.
Yes, I have assurance of my salvation. It is different than that of most of today’s
Christians. Dan Corner exposes the more common view of salvation assurance at http://www.evangelicaloutreach.org/assuranc.htm
and http://www.evangelicaloutreach.org/assure.htm. This view is arrogant. One of the nastiest conclusions that can be
reached from it is this:
I may be living wickedly,
but I’m sure I’ve got a ticket to heaven—I “believe”
in Jesus.
So the devoted Hindu or Buddhist is left scratching his head. But wait—it gets worse: Many who make such a claim as above often think that the Buddhist, who is living a more sanctified life than they are, is going to hell, while they go to heaven. This makes God seem like a bigot who just wants people to accede to a creed, and then send everyone else to hell. God is not a bigot. NO wicked person who practice
s lawlessness has eternal life in them. God will send them all to hell equally.Rom 11:19-23
19 You
will say then, "Branches were broken off so that I could be grafted
in."
20 Granted.
But they were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not
be arrogant, but be afraid.
21 For
if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either.
22 Consider
therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but
kindness to you, provided that you
continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off.
23 And
if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to
graft them in again. (NIV)
1 Cor
10:5-12
5 Nevertheless,
God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the
desert.
6 Now
these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things
as they did.
7 Do
not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: "The people sat
down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry."
8 We
should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did-- and in one day
twenty-three thousand of them died.
9 We
should not test the Lord, as some of them did-- and were killed by snakes.
10 And
do not grumble, as some of them did-- and were killed by the destroying angel.
11 These
things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us,
on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.
12 So,
if you think you are standing firm, be
careful that you don't fall! (NIV)
1 Pet 1:16-17
16 for
it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy."
17 Since
you call on a Father who judges each man's work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear. (NIV)
1 Pet 1:17
17 And
if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth
according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear: (KJV)
John 6:66-71
66 From
that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.
67 Then
said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?
68 Then
Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal
life.
69 And
we believe and are sure that thou
art that Christ, the Son of the living God.
70 Jesus
answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?
71 He
spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it
was that should betray him, being one of the twelve. (KJV)
Peter was assured of the current salvation of himself and
the other 11 apostles, and their ability to “remain in Him” or continue and
persevere. Peter states this emphatically
in Greek in verse 69, or so Dr. Robert Shank asserts in his book, Life in
the Son: A study on the conditional
aspects of salvation (p. 182). Jesus
corrects his presumptuous assurance by saying that even though He chose to save
and empower all 12 of them; one of them was going to betray him. They had no idea which one it was, implying
that Judas was as outwardly good as any other, until he backslid.
Luke 22:22-23
22 The
Son of Man will go as it has been decreed, but woe to that man who betrays him."
23 They
began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.
(NIV)
Indeed, not only Judas had a problem, but so did the others,
especially Peter.
Luke 22:24-34
24 Also
a dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest.
25 Jesus
said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who
exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors.
26 But
you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the
youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves.
27 For
who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not
the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.
28 You
are those who have stood by me in my trials.
29 And
I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me,
30 so that you may eat and drink at my
table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of
31 "Simon,
Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat.
32 But
I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have
turned back, strengthen your brothers."
33 But
he replied, "Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death."
34 Jesus
answered, "I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will
deny three times that you know me."
(NIV)
The
disciples argued about who would be greatest in what they may have perceived to
be the coming physical kingdom that Jesus would soon establish. We know that Peter believed this “hyper
prosperity gospel” because of the following passage:
Matt 16:21-26
21 From
that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he
must go to
22 Peter
took him aside and began to rebuke him. "Never, Lord!" he said.
"This shall never happen to you!"
23 Jesus
turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block
to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men."
24 Then
Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny
himself and take up his cross and follow me.
25 For
whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me
will find it.
26 What
good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul?
Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? (NIV)
Sensing
that Peter was in more danger of denying Him than the others because of his
denial of the need to suffer for Christ, He encourages Him to quickly climb out
of his eminent backslide, and return to encourage others.
31 "Simon,
Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat.
32 But
I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you
have turned back, strengthen your brothers."
33 But
he replied, "Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to
death."
34 Jesus
answered, "I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will
deny three times that you know me."
Once again, Christ corrects Peter on his presumptuous
assurance that he will patiently endure the coming trials without denying
Christ. Do not fall into Peter’s
assumption that if you are really
saved (or born again), you will
necessarily persevere. This ignores over
15 clear scriptural warnings against apostasy written to believers. Dr. Shank lists 15 of these warnings on p.
158-62 of his book, Life in the Son. Here’s another reason not to have a hasty
assurance of other people’s salvation.
Rom 10:6-8
6 But
the righteousness that is by faith says: "Do not say in your heart, 'Who
will ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down)
7 "or
'Who will descend into the deep?'" (that is, to bring Christ up from the
dead).
8
But what does it say? "The word is near you; it
is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are
proclaiming: (NIV)
The apostle John concludes his first epistle this way:
I Jn
5:11-13
11 And
this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his
Son.
12 He
who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have
life.
13 I
write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal
life. (NIV)
What are “these things” that he wrote so that we can KNOW
that we have eternal life? Why not read
the book of first John and find them?
Here is a list you can look for:
EVIDENCES of salvation in 1 John:
1. Believe (
2. Obey scripture
3. Follow His example
(2:6) – for example, turn the other cheek.
4. Do his will
5. Practice
righteousness (
6. Do not love the
world (
7. Love Christians
(
8. Continue/abide in Christ (
Dan Corner teaches about these evidences of saving grace at http://www.evangelicaloutreach.org/assure2.htm
John also writes us that we can know who the sons of God,
and the sons of the devil are. Knowing who
else is a Christian is a very important task for a number of reasons. I call
this skill discerning the body of
Christ. Here is one case where you must be sure another person is a true
Christian.
1 Cor
39 A
woman is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she
is free to marry anyone she wishes, but he must belong to the
Lord. (NIV)
Here Paul commends certain other as Christians with
certainty:
Rom
10 Greet
Apelles, tested and approved in Christ. Greet
those who belong to the household of Aristobulus. (NIV)
The ability to discern
the body is a critical skill for a new Christian who is looking for true
Christian fellowship. However, it is a
large subject that has its own document which you can reach by clicking here.
Footnotes
Shank, Dr. Robert. (1960).
Life in the Son; A Study of the Doctrine of Perserverence. Westcott Pulishers,