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11/27/2011 - by Chuck Monan, Preaching Minister
Nothing has contributed more powerfully to wean me from all that held me down to earth than the thought, constantly dwelt upon, of death and the last judgment.
~ Augustine
Many Christians struggle to have a truly biblical understanding of their salvation and whether it will stand or fall at the judgment. Some adopt a once saved, always saved approach that fosters spiritual apathy and laziness. Others legalistically view their standing with God as determined by an exact number of prayers corresponding to the precise number of sins committed, leaving them constantly unsure and perpetually afraid.
Neither is correct.
Our salvation was earned. Not by us, but by Christ. His blood continually cleanses us of sin (1 John 1:7). It is not God’s will that we should take this gift for granted. Neither is it his will that we should never have any confidence in our standing with him, imagining that the only way we will make it to heaven is if we have done enough.
Who among us can ever do enough to deserve heaven?
Throughout the Bible, the message is that those who have obeyed the gospel and accepted the salvation Christ offers belong to the Lord. Consider just a few passages that remind us of this great truth:
But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.
− Eph. 2:4-9
Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.
− Rom. 8:1-2
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
− Rom. 8:35, 37-39
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
− 1 John 4:16-18
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
Do you believe in God? Do you love him with your entire being? Have you confessed your faith in Jesus and reenacted his gospel in faith, repentance and baptism? Do you try to do what is right? Is the trajectory of your life following God’s will?
If so, then the Bible says you are saved. You can have confidence that you are the Lord’s and the Lord knows those who are his (2 Tim. 2:19).
Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift! (2 Cor. 9:15).
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