Blessed Assurance

Since I began blogging (almost fifteen years ago!), I’ve received emails and messages from readers. One common message I receive is from readers expressing concerns over the security of their faith. They may be going through a season of doubt and wonder if their faith is genuine. Or they might be crying out to God in prayer and don’t sense his presence in the same way they used to. Or they may be struggling with temptations to sin and wonder if it means that they aren’t truly saved. Whatever the reason, assurance of faith is something all believers wrestle with, asking themselves, “how do I know if I am truly saved?”

In recent months, we’ve read in the blogosphere and on social media of well-known Christians who have walked away from their faith. Whenever this happens, it can prompt believers to ask themselves—can this happen to me? Is my faith secure? These are good and important questions and the Bible provides an answer to them.

There are a number of passages that teach about the assurance we have as believers. One of them is found in the book of John:

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” John 10:27-30

Writers are often told by editors to limit their use of adverbs. In the case of this passage, the phrase “never perish” in the Greek is written in the strongest denial. We might consider it an overload of adverbs as in “they will most definitely never ever perish.” [1]And why could Jesus say such a thing so emphatically? Because God the Father is greater than all. Whatever he wills always comes to pass. He gave his chosen ones to Christ and because Christ is one with the Father, no one can snatch them out of his hands.

As John Calvin wrote concerning this passage: “It is an inestimable fruit of faith, that Christ bids us be convinced of our security when we are brought by faith into his fold. But we must also observe on what foundation this certainty rests. It is because he will be a faithful guardian of our salvation, for he testifies that our salvation is in his hand. And if this were not enough, he says that they will be safely guarded by the power of his Father. This is a remarkable passage, by which we are taught that the salvation of all the elect is not less certain than the power of God is invincible.”

What good news for those who face doubts and questions about their faith! What good news for those who stumble into sin and wonder if it means that they are lost from God forever! What good news for those who feel weak in their faith! As the Westminster Confession tells us: “They whom God hath accepted in his Beloved, effectually called and sanctified by his Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace; but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved.”

Theologians refer to the assurance and confidence we have as believers as perseverance of the saints. Such perseverance refers to the persevering grace of God at work in the elect. What this means is, if God has called someone to faith—if God has brought a person from death to life through the power of the Spirit—they will surely have eternal life. It is God’s divine grace which saves us; it is his divine grace which perseveres us to the end. As Paul wrote, “And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified” (Romans 8:30).

Because we live in a fallen world, and because we continue to battle sin in our lives, there are times in our Christian lives when we may wander from God. We may have doubts about our faith. We may give in to temptation to sin, as David did. We may even, like Peter, deny Christ. The Westminster Confession speaks to this as well: “Nevertheless they may, through the temptations of Satan and of the world, the prevalency of corruption remaining in them, and the neglect of the means of their preservation, fall into grievous sins; and for a time continue therein: whereby they incur God’s displeasure, and grieve his Holy Spirit; come to be deprived of some measure of their graces and comforts; have their hearts hardened, and their consciences wounded; hurt and scandalize others,hand bring temporal judgments upon themselves.”

Because we are God’s children, he will discipline us (see Hebrews 12). We will experience consequences for our sins. As a result of such sin, we can expect to feel the distance between us and God as David did in Psalm 51. But for those who are truly God’s children, he will restore us and bring us back to himself. For nothing and no one can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:39).

Dear believer, if you are in Christ, you have the assurance of faith. You have the blessed assurance that you will remain in Christ to the end. No one can snatch you from the Father’s hand. You rest there safe and secure. Rejoice in this today!

[1] I am thankful to Prof. Anderson at RTS for this insight.

When You Feel Weak in Faith

"I tried Mommy, but I just can't do it!" moaned my son. He curled up on the couch and cried. Sitting down beside him, I said "You're right. You can't. But God can. Let's pray about it together."

I often look at my children and see my own heart and my own struggles. Sometimes I look at the road ahead, see an obstacle and think, "There's no way around it. It's impossible." When I consider my life circumstances and the trials seem insurmountable, I throw up my hands and think, "I'm stuck. I'll never get out of this mess." Feeling overwhelmed and in despair, I simply give up. Like my son, I want to curl up and cry.

The truth is, my faith often seems quite small. Imperfect. Weak.

In Exodus 4, Moses and Aaron told the Israelites that God would deliver them from Pharaoh. They showed them signs and wonders. They believed that God sent Moses to deliver them and they worshiped God. Then in chapter 5, Moses went before Pharaoh for the first time and told him to let the Israelites go. He responded in anger and made the work load harder for the people. They were punished and beaten. The Israelites went to Moses and Aaron and said, "May the Lord look on you and judge you! You have made us obnoxious to Pharaoh and his officials and have put a sword in their hand to kill us.” (v.21).

I do the same thing. I say I believe God can do anything and then when he does things differently than I expect, I stomp my feet and say he did it wrong. I follow him when he gives me what I want, but as soon as scarcity arrives, I complain and say "This is not how I'm supposed to be treated!" I grumble about the provisions I'm given and returning to slavery begins to look appealing. When the future seems filled with giants, I'm like the returning spies who want to give it all up and return to the desert rather than believe the promised land is worth the effort to stay and fight.

I know I'm not alone in this. I receive emails all the time from people struggling with doubts and feelings of insufficiency. Even in Scripture I see that I'm not alone in my weak faith. In fact, over and over in Scripture, I see Jesus extending grace and accepting the imperfect faith of those he called. He often admonished the disciples by saying, "O you of little faith!" They constantly questioned him and doubted what he could do. Even after witnessing Jesus feeding the five thousand, they were concerned when they didn't have anything to eat. Jesus said, “O you of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves the fact that you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive? Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many baskets you gathered? (Matthew 16:8-9). Yet, these were the very men whom Jesus entrusted with starting the church.

Those who came to him for healing didn't have complete faith either. The woman who had bled for twelve years came to him with a combination of superstition, doubt, and faith and touched the edge of his cloak. Yet he accepted her efforts and healed her. A man asked Jesus to heal his demon possessed son saying, "But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.” (Mark 9:22) "Jesus responded, ‘If you can?' said Jesus. 'Everything is possible for one who believes.' Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, 'I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!'” (vs. 23-24).

In Calvin's commentary on the book of Mark he commented on how God responds to our weak faith: "This agrees with what I have lately noticed, that God deals kindly and gently with his people, —accepts their faith, though imperfect and weak,—and does not lay to their charge the faults and imperfections with which it is connected...Though we have not such abundance of faith as might be desired, there is no reason why our weakness should drive away or discourage us from prayer.”

This is what I want my children to understand and what I want my own heart to grasp: It's not about what I can do but about what God has already done through Jesus on my behalf. It's not the strength of my faith which saves me but the object of my faith. It's who my faith is in and not how strong it is that matters. Though my faith is weak and imperfect, I need to come to God in prayer saying, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!"

Francis Schaeffer received numerous letters from people asking him questions about the Christian life. I have a book where Francis Schaeffer shares some of those letters, along with his responses. One of my favorites is between Schaeffer and a man who struggled with doubts. Schaeffer responded: "You may go through a period of darkness, but once we have accepted Christ as our Savior he has promised to hold us fast forever. Our salvation does not rest upon our holding on to Christ, but upon his work as He died upon the cross. Because He is God, His death has infinite value and can cover every spot. Thus when He promises to hold us fast and to never let us go, He is doing so upon the basis of the infinite value of His shed blood as He died for us....You have been in a relationship to this personal God—in the way God Himself has provided through the work of Christ— and as such you can look to Him to help you through the darkness." (in Letters to Francis Schaeffer, p.142).

Here's what I know to be true: in this life I will face trials, circumstances, and mountains that are too high for me to climb. I will have fears, doubts, and worries. I will feel weak in faith. Like the Israelites, I may see God's wonders in my life one day but the very next day doubt he can provide my daily bread. But I must keep my eyes focused not on my circumstances or on how strong I feel, but on the object of my faith: Jesus Christ. His blood is sufficient; his grace is more than abundant to cover my weakness. I must come to him, no matter how weak my faith and ask him to help me in my unbelief. And though there may be times when I just can't hold on, I have to remember that Jesus never lets go of me.

What about you? Do you ever feel weak in faith?