Assurance of Salvation

Jeremiah 17:9, 1 John 5:13, Hebrews 10:23

Because of the overwhelming amount of responses that I received from yesterday's devotional about doubt, I wanted to follow up with some truth about the assurance that we have in the salvation of Jesus Christ.

Since I struggled with doubt for several years, I read anything I could get my hands on about doubt. One of the games that Satan plays is the game of shame and isolation. Many people will never admit or talk about the fact that a doubt has ever come into their heart because they fear what others will think. I used to be afraid that people would think I was "unspiritual" or immature. When I finally sought out some real help from the Word of God and confessed my doubt to a counselor, my life began to change. I was no longer living in the dark. I brought things into the light where they could be dealt with by the Spirit of God.

There are several misconceptions out there about a doubt. I have heard preached from the pulpit by many well-known pastors that if you ever doubt your salvation, you are not saved. I believe this is totally unbiblical and spiritually unsound. I see nothing is scripture that supports that statement. The other misconception is that Satan is always the reason we doubt. I do believe he is one of the reasons, but not the only reason. Foundations, a Bible study about core truths for the Christian life, truly helped me understand why people struggle with doubt.

Whenever a person is not sure if they are saved, there are several possibilities:

• They may be disobelying God; disobedience causes us to lose the joy of our salvation and causes us to wonder if God still loves us.
• The may be experiencing temptation to doubt from Satan, who obviously does not want us to feel secure in our relationship with God.
• They may not be saved.

Foundations 2003 - Tom Holladay and Kay Warren

One of the things I had to realize was that I could not depend on my feelings or trust my own heart. Just because we may not feel saved does not change the fact of our salvation through Jesus Christ. Women are so emotional and we trust in our feelings much of the time. Jeremiah 17:9 tells us that our own hearts will decieve us. We may not be able to trust our own hearts, but we can trust the Word of God. If we have trusted in Him, we will not be put to shame. (Romans 10:11)

The last thing I want to do is convince anyone that they are saved. But, I do want to tell you that "anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved" Joel 2:32. Our first son is named Joel to remind me that I have called on the name of the Lord. I will see Him face to face and He will hold me in His arms. I pray that you have called on His glorious name for salvation. If you have not, you can right now. There is no right or wrong way. The words are not important; the condition of your heart is. If you have never accepted Jesus as your Savior, I invite you to pray a prayer like this:

Jesus, I believe you are God's Son and I believe that you died to pay the penalty for my sins. I ask you to forgive me for my sins and to be the Lord of my life. I trust in you right now on October 15th to forgive me and save me. I give you my life. Thank you for your gift of salvation. I love you. In Jesus' Name, Amen.