"Assurance is Attainable"

How do you know that you're saved? This seven-worded sentence is one of the most important questions you'll ever confront in your life. Answering it is vital to your life now, and eternity. That's a scary thought, isn't it?

Today, I decided to go to a different church. My FCA (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) group and I went to our Coach's church to compare. We were talking about how a church is not the building, but the people, in this case the FCA huddle. It was nice to get a group from school to gather and come to the same church. It was an enlightening experience, and the sermon was inspirational!

The pastor began by reading 1 John 2:5-6.

"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 as Jesus did."

This is the NIV version, but the ESV version uses a different word for "live in him." Instead, it used the word "abide in him."

"but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked."

I had to look up the meaning of "abide" and found these definitions (dictionary.com): "to act in accord with; to submit to; agree to; to remain steadfast or faithful to; keep." Basically, if we're abiding in Christ, we are keeping a covenant with Him, similar to marriage. In fact, the word "know" in biblical times, was translated to the bond between the marriage of a husband and a wife. "Know" is used about 45 times in the book of 1 John, and the only way we can be assured salvation, is if we know God.

If I were to ask you, "do you know the president?" you might reply, "I know of him, but not personally." It's the same with God. I'm sure most Americans have heard of Jesus Christ, but do they really know Him? Perhaps some even know about Him. They could tell you a thousand facts about His life and the history behind the Bible, but they don't truly know Him. The pastor used an analogy to an apple. You could know the different types of apples, the biology behind it, even the nutritional value of it, but you'll never know how it tastes until you actually take a bite out of it. God tells us to "taste and see"! Taste the apple, and see it. Then you will really know it.

Psalm 34:8 (NIV)

"Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him."

There's a scary passage (the pastor claimed it was the scariest in the Bible) in Matthew.

Matthew 7:21-23

"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'"

Do you understand the meaning of this? You can do everything right. Perhaps you're a pastor, serving God every day of your life. You might know the Bible inside out, and you give to charity, and you do good works. But when you get to Heaven, God looks at you and says, "Sorry, I don't know you." Say what? God doesn't literally not know who you are (he knows the number of hairs on your head!), but he might not personally know you. You can't ever get to Heaven by good works. But, you can by knowing God. Develop a relationship with Him. He'll be the best friend you'll ever have, and the perfect Father.

I'm paraphrasing some of the pastor's words, but he went on further to explain the linear relationship between assurance and love. When your confidence increases, so does your love for God. When your love for and from God escalates, so does your assurance in Him. God is love. If you want to know Him, you have to learn to love. Our subjective assurance comes from the historically objective love-God! The Word became flesh (Jesus), and now the tomb is empty. That's a historical reality-a fact. Now, the event that happened there is up for debate and is subjective, but Jesus' tomb is empty today. I believe that He raised from the dead! He raised from the dead and conquered sin. Jesus died for every one of us, and His love is the key to everything.

How do you know? How do you know that you know? This is not meant to be a trick question, this is a confronting question facing everyone at some point, and it roots from doubts. We all have them, but facing them can result in a stronger faith. The pastor came up with three bullet points:

-Have you trusted Christ?

-Have you confessed Christ through baptism?

-Are you abiding in community?

The first one, is of utmost importance. Believing in God isn't enough. Believing in the death and resurrection of Jesus isn't enough. You have to trust Him with your life! You have to truly know God. Now first, you have to know about Him, but then you have to personally have a relationship. Once you learn to trust Him, you can show the world your new-found love, and faith by being baptized. Baptism is in no way a substitute for salvation. Jesus' blood is the only thing that can remove your sin, being baptized is just a way of publicly displaying your trust in God. After that, don't dare live in solitude! You're not meant to live in Christ alone. God tells us to encourage each other and have fellowship with each other (that's what church is all about!). It's hard in this corrupt world, and we're all sinful. But having deeply committed Christians as friends will help you grow in your faith and relationship with God.

I hope everyone can know God. It's more fulfilling than anything, and it determines your eternity. Knowledge isn't enough, you can be sure that you know God. As the pastor today said, "Assurance is attainable."

-Apple picture taken by Bubbly :)