Assurance of Salvation

that You would grant all of us, according to the riches of his glory he may grant us to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in our inner being, so that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith—that we, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that we may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Ephesians 3:14–21 ESV

14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

So to bring our assurance of salvation together I want to look at a few different things to bring it full circle.

First, I want to discuss: What is assurance?

According to: Dwight M. Pratt - ASSURANCE, a-sho̅o̅rʹans: A term exceptionally rich in spiritual meaning. It signifies the joyous, unwavering confidence of an intelligent faith; the security of a fearless trust. The original words have to do with the heart of vital religion. בָּטַח, bāṭaḥ, “trust”; אָמַן, ’āman, “to prop,” “to support,” hence to confide in, to trust. Jesus repeatedly used this word “amen” to express the trustworthiness and abiding certainty of his sayings. πίστις, pístis, “faith”; πληροφορία, plērophoría, “full assurance.” The confidence of faith is based, not on “works of righteousness which we have done” (cf Titus 3:4, 5 AV) but on the high-priesthood and atoning sacrifice of Christ (He 10:21, 22; cf ver 19, “boldness to enter … by the blood of Jesus,” AV). Assurance is the soul’s apprehension of its complete emancipation from the power of evil and from consequent judgment, through the atoning grace of Christ. It is the exact opposite of self-confidence, being a joyous appropriation and experience of the fulness of Christ—a glad sense of security, freedom and eternal life in Him. This doctrine is of immeasurable importance to the life of the church and of the individual believer, as a life of spiritual doubt and uncertainty contradicts the ideal of liberty in Christ Jesus which is the natural and necessary fruitage of “the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit … shed on us abundantly, through Jesus Christ our Saviour.” Paul unhesitatingly said, “I know” (2 Tim 1:12)—a word which, oft-repeated in 1 Jn, furnishes the groundwork of glad assurance that runs through the entire epistle. For the classic passage on “full assurance” see Col 2:1–10.

1 John 5:13-15 - Confidence - We can ask God (for salvation and increased assurance)

1 John 5:13–15 ESV

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life. And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.

Second: What is Security?

According to Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary: SECURITY OF THE BELIEVER [is a] Teaching that God protects believers for the completion of their salvation. Contemporary Christianity needs to deal forthrightly with the universal human problem of insecurity. The natural gulf between the invisible, infinite God and finite, fallible humanity makes the quest for assurance and security a very significant theological issue. Slogans such as “once saved, always saved” and “eternal security” often easily gain a reverential status normally reserved only for biblical texts and become symbols of “evangelical orthodoxy.” Indeed, it comes as a shock to some when they discover that their symbols are not actually biblical terms.

The Bible does teach that salvation does not depend merely upon human effort. God is the author of salvation (2 Cor. 5:18–19; John 3:16). God justifies or treats as acceptable sinners who receive Christ in faith (Rom. 3:21–26). The great message of the Reformation says: No one can earn assurance or security with God. Assurance of salvation is God’s gift! Security does not come by absolutions, church attendance, good works, reciting Scripture, or performances of penance. God who has begun the work of salvation in Christians also provides the necessary assurance to bring His work to its completion in the day of Christ (Phil. 1:6). God in Christ protects and keeps Christians (John 10:27–29; 2 Thess. 3:3) just as Jesus took seriously the task of preserving the disciples while He was on earth (John 17:12–15). We do not possess the strength to secure ourselves.

In Ephesians 1:13, we see that we are SEALED with the Holy Spirit of promise. Speak on old letters that were sealed.

Ephesians 1:13 ESV

In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,

Third, and we have already talked a little about it: How do we gain security?

Through the gospel we gain Christ’s righteousness and the promises of God.

Romans 4:13-25 - When we place our trust in Christ we gain His righteousness, so we no longer need to feel like we have to earn it or make up the difference.

Romans 4:13–25 ESV

For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. For if it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression. That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.” He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb. No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. That is why his faith was “counted to him as righteousness.” But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.

Four, So: How do we grow in assurance?

One way is: 1. Knowledge Colossians 2:1-10 - (When we get into the word and expand our knowledge of God, we will grow in assurance)

Colossians 2:1–10 ESV

For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I say this in order that no one may delude you with plausible arguments. For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ. Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority.

2. Experience 2 Timothy 1:8-12

Covers how our experiences of God in our life, situations, and circumstances along with seeing how He works in them grows and enriches our love for Him and our assurance in Christ.

Quotes: John Newton said: Assurance grows by repeated conflict, by our repeated experimental proof of the Lord’s power and goodness to save; when we have been brought very low and helped, sorely wounded and healed, cast down and raised again, have given up all hope, and been suddenly snatched from danger, and placed in safety; and when these things have been repeated to us and in us a thousand times over, we begin to learn to trust simply to the word and power of God, beyond and against appearances: and this trust, when habitual and strong, bears the name of assurance; for even assurance has degrees. Ritzema, E. (Ed.). (2012). 300 Quotations for Preachers. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

2 Timothy 1:8–12 ESV

Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me.

3. Trials Romans 5:3-11

Romans 5:3–11 ESV

Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

By highlighting verse 3-11 we see how trials create hope that can lead to growth and growth to assurance.

Similar to Experiences

4. Sanctification Hebrews 10:19-25

Hebrews 10:19–25 ESV

Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

Speak on how being cleansed and sanctified (set aside as holy and the life long process of the believer, by the power and work of the Holy Spirit, should see in reduce more and more in the believers life).

This process will grow the believer in assurance.

So, How do we bring this all together and what else does the Bible say about our assurance?

I’d like to look at: Romans 5:1-2

Romans 5:1–2 ESV

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Breakdown how what Christ did for us impacts our past, present, and future.

So all this bring’s us to the main passage I wanted to use to highlight our assurance and security in Christ. Romans 8:31-39

Romans 8:31–39 ESV

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

How it is not by our power that we have secuirty or assurance, but by God’s power.

That we are in God’s hand and nothing, not even ourselves, can wrench us from the hand and love of God.

Using, Matthew 17:20 and Luke 17:6

Luke 17:6 ESV

And the Lord said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.

Matthew 17:20 ESV

He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”

We can see how simplying having a faith of a mustard seed can have big results and these can translate to our salvation.

There is no supernatural expectation on the part of the believer. If you have a faith and trust in Christ, even if it is as small as a grain of mustard seed, your in! Matthew 13:31-32

Matthew 13:31–32 ESV

He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”

The faith of a believer can start as small as a grain of mustard seed, but when we believe and place our trust in Christ, it can grow into a incredible faith, result in much assurance.

So let’s Summarize:

If you have placed your trust in Christ and the gospel, you are saved and secure in Christ!

Believers are sealed with the Holy Spirit at the moment we place our trust in Christ, we belong to God, and we can trust that He will se us through to the complete of our salvation.

That we have Christ righteousness and God’s promises that we can lean on to help us know we are secure in Christ.

If you focus on spiritual obedience (knowledge, experiences, trials, and sanctification) you will grow in assurance (Not security! You already have that in Christ and it’s not your doing). That is to say, the more we get into the God’s word and saturate ourselves, the more we are around other believers and at church, the more we focus on Christ in our trials, situations, and circumstances, and the more we present ourselves in worship we will be filled with the Holy Spirit, which will ultimately grow our assurance in salvation.

Christ died for our sins and rose the third day so we who place our trust in Him know we are covered: past, present, and future.

That we can have a faith as small as a mustard seed and it can make mountains move (not literally) in our life, by God’s power, even unto salvation. That we are in God’s hand and nothing can separate us from that fact, not even ourselves!

So, I hope this was a help and blessing to you. Especially those that struggle at times with their salvation. I know many worry about teaching on this as it will encourage believers to live reckless lives when they know how secure they are in Christ. But I truly believe that genuine believers will be so thankful to Christ and by the power of the Holy Spirit within us, we will actually live more for Christ as a result of this, and that is why I believe the Bible tells us to encourage one another in these things of God.

So that is all I have for you today.

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