ASSURANCE OF SALVATION

ASSURANCE OF SALVATION & OUR CHIEF END AND PURPOSE IN EXISTING by Elder Joe Holder When we disconnect the response to God’s love from God’s love and instead of saying "We love Him because He first loved us" say "oh He loves us anyway," we have disconnected scripture that links God’s effectual call with it’s impact in our life and we are not standing on biblical ground. "Oh God doesn’t care whether we serve Him or not." Show me the verse that says that. It’s not in the bible! And that leads me to the counterpoint that I want to emphasize as well -I cannot give anyone assurance of their salvation. I can’t give myself assurance of my salvation apart from the degree to which my life reflects my love to God. I grant that. I believe that. You can’t give yourself assurance of salvation in the pig pen feeding pigs and living rioteously. You can’t! But there’s something more subtle and more powerful about this truth that we need to understand. The biblical focus of the Christian life is not the objective of me gaining assurance of my salvation or of me assuring you of your salvation. If I put all my focus on the assurance of salvation I will work for it- I’ll say "oh, I’ve hit this hurdle, I have a little assurance here, let me work a little harder, I’ll get here and have a little more assurance." You’ll never have enough to be satisfied. You’ll always wonder, "do I have it- am I assured?" And you’ll never get to the point of contentment. It’ll never happen. Oh, there’s one way it might- you’ll redefine all the barriers and the boundaries and accomplishments of discipleship and then by redefining say, "oh, I’ve arrived, I’m assured, I know -but I’m not sure about you folks, I don’t know if you have it or not." It makes us arrogant and judgmental. What is our primary objective as children of God, creatures of God’s making here in this world? To praise and glorify God! The Westminister Confession, the London Confession and the catechisms that go with those and the whole theme of doctrinal, biblical teaching on the doctrines of grace says that our chief end and purpose in existing is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. What is your objective- gaining more assurance of your salvation or glorifying God? It can’t be both. They’re contradictory. Because one is self-centric, one is ego-centric- "I want more assurance of my salvation." The other is self-denying and says "I want above all other things, my whole purpose in existing is to gloryify God and to serve Him and I serve Him by serving others. Let me invest every ounce of my energy and life in serving God and in serving His people." And suddenly you just feel so content and so joyful and so assured of your salvation and you don’t have to worry and fret and wonder and look at the scales every night and see if they tip this way or that way. You’re investing everything about your existence in glorifying God and in the process God makes assurance flow like a flooding river. It is not that what we do to gain assurance of our salvation causes it but rather is the evidence of it.