What Kind of Assurance Do You Have?

Introduction

Dr. Erwin W. Lutzer, senior pastor of Moody Memorial Church in Chicago, Illinois, explains, “Some Christians cherish a belief in what is called ‘eternal security,’ while others call it a ‘hellish doctrine’ that lulls Christians into spiritual lethargy and carnality. After all, they reason, if a person knows he is assured a place in heaven, he will be tempted to neglect the disciplines of holiness and opt to live carelessly in the world. One preacher even said that eternal security should not be publicly taught even if it is true; better to keep Christians alert by warning them about falling away than to tell them they have a room reserved in heaven that can never be canceled regardless of their lifestyle.”1

Dr. Henry Allen “Harry” Ironside (1876-1951), for many years the pastor of Moody [Memorial] Church in Chicago, said he met a man who claimed he had been saved ninety-nine times! Actually, if you believe you lose your salvation every time you sin, I’m surprised it wasn’t more like 999 (perhaps with a zero added)! We can sympathize with pastor who told the drunk who got saved every Sunday, ‘Next week I ought to shoot you right after you get saved, so that you’d be sure of heaven!”2

Some are afraid that they can lose their salvation by committing a “willful sin” and others fear that they will lose their salvation by committing a “mortal sin”.

We will discover that of those who believe in the doctrine of assurance there are at least three kinds of assurance:

I. Feeble Assurance

Dr. J. Clyde Turner (1878-1974), longtime pastor of the First Baptist Church of Greensboro, North Carolina, writes in his classic titled, Soul-Winning Doctrines: “Two things are made plain in the Word of God about Christian assurance. First, God wants his children to have the assurance of their salvation. It is not his will that they should be filled with doubts and fears. That is the work of the devil. The evil one does all within his power to keep Christians from having assurance, because he knows that a doubting Christian can never be a powerful Christian.”3

Dr. Floyd H. Barakman (1923-2007), instructor of Systematic Theology at Practical Bible Training School, Bible School Park, New York, affirms in his Practical Christian Theology: “It is God’s desire that His people know that they are saved (1 John 5:13a).”4John writes in his first epistle chapter five, verse eleven, “And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God” (1 John 5:11-13).

Dr. Adrian P. Rogers (1931-2005), pastor emeritus of Bellevue Baptist Church, Memphis, Tennessee, shares, “When they built the first section of the Golden Gate Bridge, there was no safety net to protect the workers. Twenty-three workers fell to their deaths in the perilous waters far below the bridge. The city of San Francisco decided to spend an enormous sum to put a safety net under the next section, but once the safety net was in place only a handful of workers ever needed it. The work went faster, and the workers could concentrate on their jobs without worrying about the danger of death.”5

Dr. Billie Friel, pastor of First Baptist Church Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, for 34 years, who recently began serving the church as pastor emeritus/staff evangelist, asks and answers, “Why do people doubt their salvation in Christ?”

1. “Lack of Understanding About Salvation”(Ephesians 1:13 14),
2. “Unconfessed Sin”(1 John 1:8,9; Romans 4:7; 1 John 1:7),
3. “Spiritual Inactivity” (Matthew 11:3; James 1:22),
4. “Unrealistic Expectations” (James 1:3,12),
5. “[Unfavorable Comparision] Comparing Others”.6

Dr. Floyd H. Barakman states, “Satan uses unfounded doubt to cause us inner unrest and to hinder our spiritual development and ministry.”7

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther (1483-1546), father of the Reformation, penned these inspiring words: “Feelings come and feelings go, / And feelings are deceiving; / My warrant is the Word of God, / Naught else is worth believing! Though all my heart should feel condemned / For lack of some sweet token, / There is One greater than my heart / Whose Word cannot be broken! I’ll trust in God’s unchanging Word / Till soul and body sever; / For, though all things shall pass away, / His Word shall stand forever!8

Note that C.S. [Clive Staples] Lewis (1898-1963), Oxford and Cambridge professor and one of the twentieth century’s most famous converts to Christianity9, said, “Though our feelings come and go, God’s love for us does not.”

II. False Assurance

“Did you know? Forty-seven percent of American men and 43 percent of women say if a person is good, they will go to heaven, whether they believe in God or not.”10

Adam Christing writes, “Some people say, ‘I go to church, so I am a Christian.’ But that’s like saying if you go to McDonald’s you’re a Quarter Pounder.”

Dr. Warren W. Wiersbe, pastor, Bible teacher, conference speaker, prolific writer of Christian literature and theological works, refers to the “security of the believer” as well as the “security of the deceiver.” Satan would love for an unbeliever to have a “false assurance” of salvation only to stand unprepared and unsaved before the Lord Jesus Christ, the righteous judge of all the earth.

In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus warns, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ (Matthew 7:21-23)

Dr. Floyd H. Barakman cautions, “. . . we should not take our salvation for granted without valid evidence of its reality in our lives (2 Cor. 13:5 [a]). [“Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. . .”] The assurance of salvation rests on two lines of evidence. These are the witness of the Holy Spirit and the signs of a new life.”11

Dr. Erwin W. Lutzer explains, “There are three witnesses that will help us know where we stand.

1. The first is the promises of Christ, who said that those who believe on him would have eternal life. To believe means ‘to rely upon’ or ‘to trust.’

Two clarifications are in order. A. First, there must be an acknowledgement of personal need; an understanding of one’s sinfulness and helplessness without Christ. His work on the cross was a substitutionary sacrifice for sinners. Without it, no one can be saved. But only those who see their need qualify. Christ came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance. B.Second, faith must be directed to Christ alone. Some who claim to trust Christ also have confidence in baptism, in the Mass, in good works. The amount of faith is not as important as the object of faith.

Let is also be said that this faith in not a prayer (though it may be expressed through prayer). Many who have prayed to ‘receive Christ’ are unconverted simply because they think saying the right words saves them. All the prayers that have ever been said by all the people in the world have not changed God’s mind about a single sinner. It is the transfer of trust that saves.

2. The second witness is the Holy Spirit. ‘The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God’ (Rom. 8:16). The Holy Spirit not only regenerates but also comes to indwell every believer. The new nature received at conversion is thus energized by the indwelling Spirit. This  begins the process of spiritual growth. A personal sense of the Spirit’s presence, whether dramatic  or quietly peaceful, usually accompanies the gift of salvation. An inner certainty comes within the human heart.

[“The testimony of the Holy Spirit.—‘And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he gave us’ (1 John 3:24). In Romans 8:16, Paul says, ‘The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit, that we are children of God.’ And John says again, ‘He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in him’ (1 John 5:10). If one is a true Christian, and seeks to do his Master’s will, he will have the assurance in his own heart that he is a child of God, an assurance planted there by the divine Spirit.”]12

3. Finally, there is the fruit of the new life — the works that accompany salvation. These are not uniform in the lives of the converted. Some experience dramatic growth through proper teaching and a strong desire for Christian fellowship and a personal knowledge of God. Others may wander in a spiritual wilderness, without any guidance in their newfound faith. Still others may fall back into old habits and sinful attitudes. But almost always there is some outer change whatever, the person should examine himself to see whether he has indeed savingly believed.”13

III. Full Assurance

When Dr. J. Wilbur Chapman (1859-1918), American evangelist, revivalist and pastor, was a college student, he was sorely perplexed about his own salvation. He came under the influence of D. L. Moody (1837-1899). He told the great evangelist his difficulties. He said, ‘Sometimes I feel that I am  a Christian, and at other times I question whether or not I have ever been saved.’ Mr. Moody asked him to read John 5:24, ‘Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death  to life.’ ‘Do you believe that Scripture?’ asked Mr. Moody. The young man assured him that he did.‘Do you believe in Christ?’ queried the evangelist. Chapman told him he certainly did. ‘Then are you a Christian?’ he asked. Again the young man told him about his doubts. Mr. Moody told him to read the verse again, and again he asked him if he accepted Christ and believed his Word. Mr. Chapman assured him that he did. Mr. Moody asked him if he was a Christian, and again he began to tell him he was not sure. Then the great evangelist turned upon him and said, ‘See here, whom are you doubting?’ In that moment the truth flashed upon the troubled young man. He had accepted Christ, and believed his Word, and yet he had been doubting whether or not God would keep his Word. ‘In a moment,’ he said, ‘I know that I was a Christian because of his promise.”14

Our Lord Jesus said, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand” (John 10:27-29).

We read in 1 John 3:14, “we know that we have passed from death to life.” Also in Acts 26:17-18 we read that believers also go “. . . from darkness to light.”

John C. Copenhaver tells, “A man was twitting a humble old woman who was a devoted Christian, ‘Suppose,’ said he, ‘that Christ would let you slip out of his hand.’ ‘ Ah,’ she replied confidently, ‘I am his hand.’15

Listen to Paul’s testimony of assurance: “For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day” (2 Timothy 1:12).

Paul also confesses, “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing” (2 Timothy 4:6-8).

John Bunyan (1628-1688) was born in Elstow, Bedfordshire, England. “His home was a small thatched cottage, and his father was a tinker, who spent his days pushing a cart along the roads, stopping at homes to fix metal pots and pans.

Young John received a grammar-school education, but like most sons of his day, he learned his father's trade. During the English Civil War he served as a soldier -- probably on the Puritan side. At nineteen he married, and his Christian wife led him to try to reform his life. But John found himself constantly slipping back into old habits. Though he lived well enough to impress his neighbors, he described himself as a "painted hypocrite."

In 1651, John began attending . . . [a Baptist] meeting at Bedford and was moved by the pastor's intense biblical preaching. He began to pore over the Scriptures, until the conflict within him ended in the assurance of God's grace in his life. Salvation had come to John Bunyan.

He joined the Bedford [Baptist] congregation and began to preach there, amazing people at the abilities of a mere tinker. Though King Charles II had at first promised freedom of religion, increasingly the Anglican Church became the only accepted church. Dissent was not encouraged, and in 1661 John was sent to Bedford jail for his preaching. His times in prison were hard on his family. They had a blind daughter. He remained there until 1672, when Charles issued the Declaration of Indulgence, extending leniency to non-Anglicans.”16

Major W. Ian Thomas (1914-2007), founder of the Torchbearers of the Capernwray Missionary Fellowship, now known as Torchbearers International, Carnforth, England, tells, “When I was a kid of twelve, a man told me about Jesus in a way I could understand. Then unknown to him or anybody else, at a quarter till nine on Saturday night, the thirteenth of August, 1927, I said in my heart, ‘Lord Jesus, nobody ever told me this before, that You died in my place. I gladly receive You so that You can forgive me.’ I knew He had become my Savior, and I have had assurance ever since. I have       never again had to receive the Lord Jesus Christ into my life because He did it then, according to His promise, and He always means what He says.

That moment and that event was not my salvation, which I did not understand until about seven years later, is that Christ having died for me to change my destination when I died, also rose again from the dead to live His life in me and to change my character. His indwelling Life in me overcomes that old Adamic nature, the carnal mind that is at enmity with God and which can only abuse, misuse, and prostitute my humanity.”17

Conclusion

Dr. J. Clyde Turner asks and answers: “Upon what may one base his assurance? A mistake here may be fatal. Sometimes people think they are Christians when they are not. It is a false assurance which they have. Unless one has met the conditions of salvation—‘repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ,’ he is not a Christian, no matter what else he may have done. Any assurance which he may have is a false assurance.”18

John writes in his first epistle, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life. . .” (1 John 5:13a).

If you have never repented of your sin and trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ alone for salvation, you may silently pray the following:

Dear God, I know that I am a sinner by nature and by choice. (Romans 3:23) I confess that I have sinned against You in thought, word and deed. I believe that Your Son, Jesus, died on the cross to save me from my sin, that He was buried and that He rose from the dead on the third day.(1 Corinthians 15:1-4) I ask Him to forgive my sin and to come into my heart and life to be my Savior, Lord and King. (Romans 10:9-10) Thank You for forgiving me of my sin and for giving me eternal life. (1 John 5:10-13) In Jesus’ name. Amen.

May you truly confess in the words of blind hymn writer Fanny J. Crosby (1820-1915), “Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! O what a foretaste of glory divine! Heir of salvation, purchase of God, born of his Spirit, washed in his blood. (Refrain) This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all  the day long; this is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long. Perfect  submission, perfect delight, visions of rapture now burst on my sight; angels descending bring from above / echoes of mercy, whispers of love. (Refrain) Perfect submission, all is at rest; I in my Savior am happy and blest, watching and waiting, looking above, filled with his goodness, lost in his love. (Refrain)19

Feeble Assurance - False Assurance - Full Assurance What kind of assurance do you have?

–---------------------–------------------------------------

1. Erwin Lutzer, The Doctrines that Divide (Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1998), p. 225.
2. Erwin Lutzer, The Doctrines that Divide (Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1998), pp. 226-227.
3. J. Clyde Turner, Soul-Winning Doctrines (Nashville, TN: The Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, 1943), p. 82.
4. Floyd H. Barakman, Practical Christian Theology: Examining the Great Doctrines of the Faith, Fourth Edition (Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1981, 2001), p. 343.
5. Adrian P. Rogers, “How To Be Sure You Are Eternally Secure Part 1” Available from: http://www.bellevue.org/templates/cusbellevue1103/details.asp?id=1360&PID=33045&Style= Accessed: 02/13/07
6. Billie Friel, What Should I Do When. . . (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1990), pp. 90-96.
7. Floyd H. Barakman, Practical Christian Theology: Examining the Great Doctrines of the Faith, Fourth Edition (Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1981, 2001), p. 343.
8. Available from: http://www.activatedministries.org/activated/66.774 Accessed: 02/13/07
9. Available from: http://www.answers.com/topic/c-s-lewis Accessed: 02/13/09
10. Baptist Message, ed. Lynn P. Clayton "World Of Religion" (Alexandria, Louisiana: Baptist Message, June 13, 2002), p.2.
11. Floyd H. Barakman, Practical Christian Theology: Examining the Great Doctrines of the Faith, Fourth Edition (Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1981, 2001), p. 343.
12. J. Clyde Turner, Soul-Winning Doctrines (Nashville, TN: The Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, 1943), pp. 94.]
13. Erwin Lutzer, The Doctrines that Divide (Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1998), pp. 237-238. (Note: emphasis mine adapted for preaching)

14. J. Clyde Turner, Soul-Winning Doctrines (Nashville, TN: The Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, 1943), pp. 90-91.