Salvation Assurances 1

Chuckle: Mr. and Mrs. Roberts had reached the airport just in the nick of time to catch their flight for their vacation in the Bahamas. “I wish we’d brought the piano with us,” said Mr. Roberts. “Why on earth would we bring the piano?” asked the wife. “I left the tickets on it!”

Ponder This: "It is never right to think that my obedience to a word of God will bring dishonor to Jesus. The only thing that will bring dishonor is not obeying him." --Oswald Chambers

HOW CAN I KNOW FOR SURE?

"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." (1 John 5:13 NIV).

Numerous times people have asked me how a person can be sure of his or her salvation. How can a person be certain that he has been saved? How can a person know with certainty that his or her eternal home is in heaven?

It's not uncommon for a Christian to doubt his or her salvation from time to time, and I'm sure Satan wrings his hands with glee when he is able to destroy the confidence of a Christian. But God wants you to have complete assurance in your faith once you have trusted Jesus Christ as Savior. How about you? Are you certain that if you were to die tonight you would spend eternity in heaven with Jesus Christ? You can know for sure! In the little book of 1 John, we find some very clear indicators to help us know for certain that we know Jesus as Savior and Lord. Today, we will deal with the first indicator.

OBEYING CHRIST'S COMMANDS

"We know that we have come to know him (Christ) if we obey his commands. The man who says, 'I know him,' but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk (live) as Jesus did" (1 John 2:3-6 NIV)

Jesus expects and wants each born again person to follow His teachings. To obey is to show we belong to Him and have eternal life. The opposite is also true -- not obeying shows we are not His. Obedience also shows our love for our Lord. In John 14:15,23, we find Jesus speaking: "If you love me, you will obey what I command. . . . If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching."

Our passage summarizes two ways we can know we belong to Christ. First, if do what Christ says; and, second, if we live as Christ lived. Each of us is to live each day as Jesus went about His daily life here on earth. How are you doing so far? Do you have a genuine desire to understand Jesus' commands and teachings, and are you making every effort to obey them?

The obedient disciple not only has assurance that he or she belongs to Christ, but also becomes a channel for God to express His redemptive love to others. If we intentionally choose to disobey God's commands, we can hardly have confidence that we know Christ as Savior and Lord.

Love, Jerry & Dotse