CAN
I “KNOW” I'M SAVED?
PART
5
I've
written now about the the way of salvation, as far as initial
salvation goes, but what about our life down here and the future
beyond this life? That too, is a part of salvation, and this is what
we want to explore today!
So
yes, it is true that once we are initially saved, that we will never
lose our salvation. Why? Because Christ made full
and not
partial
payment for
our sin! More on that in a bit, but for now let us define what is
meant by the three parts of salvation. Well, as said, the first part
is that act of faith in the Savior who saves us from the consequences
of our sin.
For we read, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who
are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1) Then, secondly, we have this
life. Here, He saved us from the power
or
dominion of
sin. God says, “Sin will no longer have dominion over you.”
(Romans 6:14a) Then comes the third and final stage of our salvation,
deliverance from the very presence
of sin
in Heaven. Yes, this is also a part of salvation, but it obviously
has as yet not happened! For it is written, “For salvation is
nearer to us now than when we first believed.” (Romans 13:11b) So,
there we have it, the three parts of salvation!
Now,
just to touch briefly on the thoughts regarding whether we can lose
our salvation or not. Well, did Jesus purchase us a full, or a
partial salvation? If it is indeed full, then it includes all three
parts of that salvation, including our future in Heaven above!
Further to that, the Word says that upon believing, “We should not
perish but have
everlasting
life.” (John 3:16b) Notice, it says that that we “have,”
present tense, “everlasting life”! How, I ask, can you lose
something that has no end? Also, Hebrews 7:25 says, “He is able to
save to the uttermost [completely] those who draw near to God through
him, since he always lives to make
intercession for them.”
Look, if we can lose our salvation, then the fault would be with
Jesus! It is clearly He who saves, and not us! If we could lose our
salvation, then Jesus would be to blame for not “make[ing]
intercession for [us].”
Someone
may bring up Hebrews six, but we must first realize that you never
interpret a
clear passage of Scripture with an obscure/difficult passage of
Scripture, but always the reverse. Now, we must realize the context
of the Hebrews passage. Who is it addressed to? It is written to
Jews. Are you a Jew? Likely not. This speaks of those who tasted of
the truth of Christianity and the New Covenant (New Agreement), and
either have, or are contemplating going back to Judaism. Though they
were never actually saved in the first place. That is what is being
addressed there. So then, to get “unsaved,” you would have to pay
back Christ the death He died for you and kick the Holy Spirit out
who has come to take up permanent residence in you! And yes, somehow
undo “eternal life”. So I ask, are you stronger than God?
So,
can we know that
we are saved and will be in Heaven for sure? The Word of God says, “I
write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God
that you may KNOW that you HAVE eternal life.” (1John 5:13) How can
we “know” these things with such a certainty? When we are
trusting that Jesus, who is God, is able to fully
save us,
because we trust that what He did was enough,
and we don't need to help God out at all. We are simply resting in
Him and His finished work on our behalf!
See
you next time, for a look into the future, for our last segment of
this six part series!
Victor
J. Reimer
*Scripture
quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV),
copyrighted © 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights
reserved.
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