The Wednesday Word
Full Assurance of Faith: Part 2
by D.G. Miles McKee.We cannot possibly come to a place of personal assurance of salvation if we don’t believe the Bible to be the Word of God.
Consider what the Bible says about itself. We read,
“Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and Thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of my heart” (Jeremiah 15:16).
Then in Psalm 119: 7-10, “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether."
And again, “Thy testimonies have I taken as a heritage for ever: for they are the rejoicing of my heart" (Psalm 119:111).
Jesus taught, “Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God” (Luke 4:4).
Then in 2 Timothy 3:16, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:”
And Jesus declared, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that hears My word, and believes on Him that sent Me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life” (John 5:24). Do you believe that?
The Bible assures us that,
He has purged our sins (Hebrews 1:3).
He has removed our sins as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12).
He has blotted out our sins (Isaiah 44:22).
He has cast our sins behind His back (Isaiah 38:17).
He has cast them into the depth of the sea (Micah 7:19).
He takes our sins away (1 John 3:5).
He has washed our sins away (Revelation 1:5).
He has cleansed us from our sins (1 John 1:7).
He has forgiven us our sins (Romans 4:7; Ephesians 1:7).
He has forgotten our sins (Hebrews 10:17).
Is He a liar?
No!
Then believe Him.
Trust Him.
Christ's work for us makes us safe, and God's word about us makes us sure. Assurance, therefore, is not to be had by looking inside ourselves for some religious experience or other. No indeed, assurance comes by what the Lord has said.
Suppose, for example, that a man has been charged with a certain crime. If found guilty, he will face a hefty prison sentence. Much to his relief, the court finds him not guilty and acquits him of all charges. How would he be assured that he had been cleared by the Judge and jury. How would he know for certain that that he was not going to prison?
Would it be by looking to his feelings?
Or would it be by listening to hearsay?
Or speculation?
Or would the ‘not guilty’ status be his because the judge had declared him so? Obviously, this is what he would hold on to.
Similarly, if we want to be certain of the fact that we have been saved, our feelings, wishes, speculations and what people might think about us is not the evidence that we need to give us peace. Those sources don’t have the authority to pronounce on the matter. We must go to the Word of God and see what “God the Judge of all” says about it (Psalm 50:6). We can put our fullest confidence in His Word for He cannot lie, and that will be what we will need for solid assurance of our salvation. (see Romans 8:29-30; Acts 13:39; Ephesians 2:8-9; 1 John 3:5).
Listen again to John 5:24, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that hears My Word, and believes on Him that sent Me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”
As we’ve written many times,
Jesus said it,
That settles it:
I believed it,
That settled me!
And that’s the Gospel Truth!
Consider what the Bible says about itself. We read,
“Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and Thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of my heart” (Jeremiah 15:16).
Then in Psalm 119: 7-10, “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether."
And again, “Thy testimonies have I taken as a heritage for ever: for they are the rejoicing of my heart" (Psalm 119:111).
Jesus taught, “Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God” (Luke 4:4).
Then in 2 Timothy 3:16, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:”
And Jesus declared, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that hears My word, and believes on Him that sent Me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life” (John 5:24). Do you believe that?
The Bible assures us that,
He has purged our sins (Hebrews 1:3).
He has removed our sins as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12).
He has blotted out our sins (Isaiah 44:22).
He has cast our sins behind His back (Isaiah 38:17).
He has cast them into the depth of the sea (Micah 7:19).
He takes our sins away (1 John 3:5).
He has washed our sins away (Revelation 1:5).
He has cleansed us from our sins (1 John 1:7).
He has forgiven us our sins (Romans 4:7; Ephesians 1:7).
He has forgotten our sins (Hebrews 10:17).
Is He a liar?
No!
Then believe Him.
Trust Him.
Christ's work for us makes us safe, and God's word about us makes us sure. Assurance, therefore, is not to be had by looking inside ourselves for some religious experience or other. No indeed, assurance comes by what the Lord has said.
Suppose, for example, that a man has been charged with a certain crime. If found guilty, he will face a hefty prison sentence. Much to his relief, the court finds him not guilty and acquits him of all charges. How would he be assured that he had been cleared by the Judge and jury. How would he know for certain that that he was not going to prison?
Would it be by looking to his feelings?
Or would it be by listening to hearsay?
Or speculation?
Or would the ‘not guilty’ status be his because the judge had declared him so? Obviously, this is what he would hold on to.
Similarly, if we want to be certain of the fact that we have been saved, our feelings, wishes, speculations and what people might think about us is not the evidence that we need to give us peace. Those sources don’t have the authority to pronounce on the matter. We must go to the Word of God and see what “God the Judge of all” says about it (Psalm 50:6). We can put our fullest confidence in His Word for He cannot lie, and that will be what we will need for solid assurance of our salvation. (see Romans 8:29-30; Acts 13:39; Ephesians 2:8-9; 1 John 3:5).
Listen again to John 5:24, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that hears My Word, and believes on Him that sent Me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”
As we’ve written many times,
Jesus said it,
That settles it:
I believed it,
That settled me!
And that’s the Gospel Truth!
NOTE: to hear/read more Gospel messages and for Contact Information please go to: http://milesmckee.com/
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