1 John 3:19-21
And
hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before
him.
For
if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.
Beloved,
if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.
The epistle of First John
addresses, as much as anything else, the subject of assurance. There is a
difference between being saved and having assurance of the same. First John
recognizes this and teaches:
That the heart of a saved person can condemn them
We know we are not perfect. Our
sin can drive us into self-condemnation and doubt of true salvation.
That God is greater than our heart
Our salvation is not based upon
our sin or how we feel about our salvation. Salvation is based strictly upon
faith in the promises concerning the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
That Christlikeness can bring
our hearts to assure us.
The value of good deeds (besides the value of the deed itself) is not
that it aides in salvation but that
it confirms with our spirit that what God said would be the case in the
Christian is indeed occurring in us.
Assurance is not salvation but
it is a blessing to possess it.
Assurance is gained, among
other things, by obedience to the Scriptures.
No comments:
Post a Comment