Secure in Your Salvation?

If someone asked you how you knew that you were saved, what would you say? What does it take to believe in Christ as Saviour? How do you know you are saved?

The demons believed that Jesus was the Son of God, and knew who He was yet were not saved, and still made the decision to turn their backs on Him. “. . . ‘Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did you come to destroy us? I know who you are – the Holy One of God!’” (Mark 1:24). Four chapters later in Mark 5:7 another occurrence with a multitude of demons; they are recorded saying, “. . . What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God that You do not torment me.” The Gospels of Matthew and Luke have the same recorded occurrences.

If believing that Jesus was the Holy One of God was the only requirement to saving faith, then logic would tell us that these demons would still be angels in Heaven. They knew who He was, so they believed ‘that’ He was the Christ, yet they rejected ‘believing in’ Him and consequently ended up as fallen angels. How then can we expect that we would be any different? We could as well believe that Jesus is the Christ and the Son of God without putting our trust and security for our salvation in Him, meaning our Faith in who He is.

Charles Ryrie explains the moderate view accurately, “Faith is to put one’s trust in – ; to use intellectual credence in the resurrection and reliability of those truths, but also to put your trust in those facts not just believe.” To be truly saved one has to believe ‘in’ Christ, and not just that Christ is the Son of God, because as demonstrated above, even the demons believed Jesus was the Holy one of God. James 2:19 says, “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe– and tremble!”

Just having faith that something is true is different than having faith in something that you rest all your assurance upon. There is also another example in Acts chapter 26 where Paul is speaking to King Agrippa, and after everything that Paul says regarding the truth of Christianity, King Agrippa still does not come to faith in Christ. King Agrippa says in verse 28, “. . . ‘You almost persuaded me to become a Christian.”’ Ryrie stated, “Nevertheless, it is true that some people can believe and not be saved. King Agrippa apparently believed the facts that confirmed that Jesus of Nazareth was the promised Savior (Acts 26:27). But he refused to receive Jesus and His salvation.”

Matthew 7:21-23, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord’, shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” Based on this scripture, it would certainly be hard to say ‘believing that’ Jesus is the Son of God is good enough to feel secure in your salvation. At the same time, it shows that all good works is no more enough proof that someone is saved, than is someone who does nothing visible after believing in Christ.

Having a new relationship and new heart should change behavior and thinking, but it does not necessarily happen over night. And it also does not seem to be a requirement from verses in the Bible that specifically talk about salvation. John 5:24 states, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.” John 6:40 says, “And this is the will of Him who sent me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” Nowhere does it say that in order for you to be saved that your mind must be transformed immediately and that you must demonstrate that by your actions.

Even Paul struggled with sin after being saved, and no one would suggest that he was not saved just because his mind was not transformed completely. Paul calls himself carnal and a sinner, “For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do” (Romans 7:14-15).

Saving faith will produce good works, but it is not on our time line and we may actually never witness the fruits of someone who claims being saved. Salvation is based on believing in Christ, and everything else, works, transformation, comes about during sanctification, or our growing in Christ as Christians.

Charles Ryrie put it this way, “Faith means confidence, trust, holding something as true. The only issue is whether or not you believe that His death paid for all your sin and that by believing in Him you can have forgiveness and eternal life.” Just because we do not see someone’s fruit of the spirit does not mean it is not there. It may just not be outwardly evident. He goes on to say, “It is all too easy to have a mental list of spiritual fruit and to conclude that if someone does not produce what is on my list that he or she is not a believer. But the reality is that most lists that we humans devise are too short, too selective, too prejudiced, and often extra biblical.”

How would we explain the fruit of deathbed conversions or the thief on the cross next to Jesus, if it was necessary for faith to always produce some evidence we can see to prove salvation? Neither person in the cases just mentioned had any time to produce outward evidence of fruit other than believing ‘in’ Jesus. They probably had an internal fruit of the Spirit, peace. And we also could never know of the fruit that came from the people witnessing their conversion at that point in time. The seeds they may have planted in others about Jesus may not be manifested at that time, but later in the observer’s life.

Saving faith can be illustrated in the following way, at least in the moderate view of salvation.
1. Act of mind and will (James 2:19)
2. Will accepts (Rom. 1:18)
3. Will receives (1 Cor. 2:14)
4. Heart commitment (Rom. 10:9)
5. Sees its significance and is subjectively applied
6. Does prompt actions
7. Does tend to produce good works (James 2:17)
8. Does lead to salvation (James 2:14, 18)
9. Belief ‘in’ – taken from Dr. Geisler

Saving faith does produce fruit, but it is not always seen by us. Saving faith is also more than believing that Jesus is the Son of God, but believes in Jesus for our eternal destiny. “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run, with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. . .” Hebrews 12:1-2. Your faith in Jesus will save you, now let your salvation produce the fruits through discipleship and sanctification.

Repentance is also necessary in order for us to experience salvation, and is supported all throughout Scripture. In Acts 2:38 Peter says to the crowd, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Matthew 3:2, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” Matthew 4:17 tells us that Jesus began to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Mark 1:15; 6:12; Luke 13:3, 5; Acts 3:19 all have repentance as part of coming to Christ. Many other verses as well imply repentance, as mentioned above. Repentance also always comes before believing in Christ, when both are used in the same sentence. Acts 26:20 demonstrates this well when it says, “. . . that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance.”

Millard Erickson says, “Repentance is godly sorrow for one’s sin together with a resolution to turn from it.” He goes onto to say, “If there is no conscience repentance, there is no real awareness of having been saved from the power of sin.” Second Timothy 2:24-26 says it perfectly, “And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil. . . .”

One problem is that some take a stance that regeneration must come before one is able to recognize the need to repent and be saved. The moderate position believes that regeneration takes place, but at the time of salvation and continues throughout our Christian lives as sanctification. To believe in regeneration prior to salvation is to take away one’s free choice to choose. Dr. Geisler has stated, “. . . there are no verses properly understood that teach regeneration is prior to faith. Instead, it is the uniform pattern of Scripture to place faith logically prior to salvation as a condition for receiving it.” Romans 5:1 says, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God. . . .” Acts 16: 31 says, “. . . Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved. . . .” There are other verses as well, Luke 13:3; 2 Pet. 3:9; JN 3:6-7, that all put faith prior to salvation and not regeneration. First faith then salvation. Regeneration happens at our time of belief in Christ, and then continues as Sanctification throughout our Christian lives.

All the Church Fathers in ancient times also believed that it was our responsibility to believe in Christ for salvation, and that we were not regenerated prior to being able to believe. We were able to freely choose whether or not we wanted to ‘believe in’ Christ for salvation. Irenaeus said, “God made man free [agent] from the beginning, possessing his own soul to obey the behests of God voluntarily, and not by compulsion of God (Against Heresies, XXXVII).” Origen stated in his preface of De Principiis, “This also is clearly defined in the teaching of the church that every rational soul is possessed of free will and volition.” Last, but not least, Thomas Aquinas said “To be free is not to be obliged to one determinate object. Man has free choice, otherwise counsels, exhortations, precepts, prohibitions, rewards, and punishments would all be pointless. . . .”

The best way to conclude is with Scripture. Romans 6:23 tells us that “the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”, Romans 3:23. Second Peter 3:9 says, “The Lord . . . is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” Romans 5:8. Finally Acts 16:31 says, “Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved. . . .”

The Bible spells it out in what is referred to as the salvation trail that was just mentioned in the above paragraph. We are sinners, and need to realize it. Christ did what we could not do through works on our own part and paid the price on the cross. God calls us to repentance and wishes none would be lost. Repentance is before salvation, and God wishing indicates that He is allowing us to choose freely, and not regenerating us first and giving us no real free choice of whether or not to accept His wonderful gift of Salvation. Then we are called to believe ‘on’ or ‘in’ Jesus for the forgiveness of sin and salvation, and not just ‘that’ Jesus is the Son of God as the demons also believe.