Assurance of Salvation

Do you know if you’re going to heaven? The apostle Paul knew he was going to heaven when he wrote, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only me but also to all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:7-8). Can we have that same confidence in our salvation? I answer with a resounding “YES!”

Salvation is something we are given by the grace of God based upon our faith (Ephesians 2:8). It is not something we earn based on a ratio of good deeds versus bad deeds. Its not like the Baseball Hall of Fame where you hope your career statistics earn you a spot nor is it like a political election where you hope you’ve won over the voters so you’ll be elected. Salvation is something that is given to us by God when our faith acts in obedience to His will. When we receive that salvation we have charted a one-way course to heaven…..unless we steer the boat off course.

In his book The Faith Once for All, author Jack Cottrell brilliantly states three basic ways that we steer ourselves off course – 1) Sudden Spiritual Suicide, 2) Slow Spiritual Starvation and 3) Strangulation by Sin. Think about these three ideas for a minute. Spiritual suicide refers to a deliberate decision to stop believing. Obviously if one does not believe in God he cannot receive salvation (Mark 16:16). Spiritual starvation refers to spiritual neglect. Just like our bodies need physical nourishment and excercise, our soul needs spiritual nourishment and excercise. If one chooses to give his life to Christ but never excercises his faith through study, prayer, service and collective worship then he/she will succumb to spiritual malnourishment. One who is spiritually starved is like the rocky soil which never allowed the seed to develop any roots (Matthew 13:3-9; 18-23). Finally, there is strangulation by sin. This occurs when one knowingly allows sin to exist in his/her life. In the Scriptures it is quite evident that Christianity cannot co-exist with sin (Matthew 6:24; 1 Corinthians 6:15-20; James 3:9-12; Romans 12:1-2). Those who allow sin to thrive in their lives are like the thorny soil which grows weeds up with the seed and eventually chokes the seed out (Matthew 13:3-9; 18-23).

These are the three basic ways we choose to step off the hard and narrow path (Matthew 7:13-14). If we have obeyed God and we are not living in any of the above situations then we can have confidence in our salvation. God did not design Christianity to be based on fear of hell; instead, he designed it to be based on faithful obedience and unwavering trust in His grace. He gave us His plan in written word with the intention of us being able to determine what it takes to receive salvation and what it takes to maintain that salvation. Study His word and examine yourself then you’ll know whether or not you’re on the path to heaven (1 John 5:13; 2 Corinthians 13:5).