Assurance of your salvation

August 26, 2023

After receiving God’s free gift of salvation, you should notice great changes in your life and how you decide to utilize your time. Otherwise, your conversion may not have been genuine.

Keeping the commandments
The two greatest commandments recited by Jesus are to love the Lord with all your mind, heart, and soul (Matthew 22:37; Deuteronomy 6:5) and to love your neighbor as you love yourself (Matthew 22:39; Leviticus 19:18). A common teaching today is that these two greatest commandments replaced the Ten Commandments entirely. That is not written. Jesus became our everlasting sacrifice, and by coming to faith in Him and confessing your sins, you no longer have to slit a lamb’s throat to be forgiven. That is what is indicated by those under the new covenant not being justified by the works of the law, but by faith (Galatians 2:16; Romans 3:28).
You will desire to keep the commandments as a result of your faith in Christ because you will no longer want to live in sin but seek righteousness instead (Matthew 5:6; Proverbs 29:18). To love the Lord wholly is to keep all His commandments in your born again life (1 John 5:3; John 14:15, 15:10; Deuteronomy 10:12-13), and keeping them will testify your faith to others (Deuteronomy 6:2; Ecclesiastes 12:13).
Do not think you are alone in this process. By receiving the free gift of salvation, you will receive the Holy Spirit, who will direct you in your obedience to God (John 14:16-17, 14:26), including your good works (Ephesians 2:10). God works in you by granting imparted righteousness (Philippians 2:13), and this should allow you to strive for complete sanctification.

Good works
Evidence of your salvation also includes the good works from your newfound faith in Christ. Good works in the Bible are the honorable things you do for others apart from keeping the commandments (1 Timothy 3:1, 5:10; James 2:21, 2:25). They are crucial in your born-again life, as faith without good works is dead, or incomplete faith (James 2:17). Good works can vary based on the circumstances. They could be giving to the poor, reading the Bible, holding the door open for someone, prayer, or assisting someone financially. Additionally, these works are to apply at a spiritual level. For instance, giving to the poor does not only include the financially poor but also those who lack knowledge. You are to give bread (the word of God) to them as they are “strangers from the covenants of promise” (Ephesians 2:12).
Failure to do good works when convicted is the sin of neglect (James 4:17). Maintaining salvation requires us to keep the commandments with good works (Matthew 19:17; 2 Timothy 3:17; Matthew 25:37-41).

Sensing transgression
Followers of Christ have the ability to perceive sin in themselves or others when it occurs. This awareness comes from the conviction of the Holy Spirit (John 16:8). Understanding that you have sinned is good evidence that the Holy Spirit resides in you. When convicted by the Spirit for sin, you must confess your sin to the Lord through prayer so that you can be forgiven (1 John 1:9). Only your past sins are forgiven when you are saved (Romans 3:25). The sentiment that your future sins are also forgiven is not written. Any sins that occur in the future of your born-again life must be confessed every time to the Lord so that you can be acquitted (Proverbs 28:13). Any new unrepentant sins that are revealed to you by the Holy Spirit must also be confessed and repented of without deferment (Matthew 3:8).
Since God's people will have a by-heart understanding of God’s law (Hebrews 10:16), born-again Christians under no circumstances should continue to sin willfully (Hebrews 10:26).

The word of God
A continuous desire to study God’s word in the Bible is also strong evidence that you are saved. Part of your sanctification process is the ceaseless consumption of the word of God. Jesus declared that man must not live by bread alone but also by the word of God (Matthew 4:4; Deuteronomy 8:3). Just like you are to depend on food to live on earth, you must also depend on God’s word in scripture to prepare for eternity that awaits. Studying and reading God’s word should not be limited to Bible study groups or church days but every opportunity you have (Proverbs 3:6; Psalm 105:4; Lamentations 3:25).

Prayer
An active prayer life is essential for Christians. Prayer is your direct communication with the Father, where Christ is the mediator (Hebrews 9:15; 1 Timothy 2:5; Romans 8:34). This is why you must end your prayers with: “in Jesus name”. It places a stamp of Christ's authority on your prayer, since no person can come to the Father without going through Christ (John 14:6). Prayer can be used to help resist temptation (Luke 22:40), for guidance (James 1:5), for thanksgiving (Colossians 4:2), for one another (James 5:16), and confession of sin (Psalm 32:5). For anything else, God will only hear prayers that are in accordance to His will (1 John 5:14). This means that sinful prayers will not be considered (James 4:3).

Doubts
It’s not uncommon for some to doubt their salvation due to their past or current transgressions, which is often used by the enemy to discourage you. It is also possible to deceive yourself into thinking that you are saved when the truth is you are not. You will still fall into sin after being born again, possibly multiple times in a single period (Proverbs 24:16). However, those sins should not be deliberate. Do not become discouraged in the faith due to habitual sins, for you have an advocate (1 John 2:1). Your subsequent righteousness after being born again is not of your own, but of Christ, where the Holy Spirit will always be at your side to convict you of sin and righteousness, provided you have ears to hear. Trust in God and allow Him to restore you to your perfect character and continue in sanctification (Psalm 23:3; Proverbs 29:25).