What Does It Mean That We Have "Assurance of Salvation"?

When Jesus died on the cross, He said, “It is finished!” This statement officially declared that God’s wrath had been poured on the sacrificial lamb, which paid for the sins of the world. God’s grace had been extended to humanity.

After man started sinning in the Garden of Eden, the whole of humanity continued to rebel against the Lord. Because of their sin, no person could stand before God in righteousness, but because of what Jesus did on the cross, an opportunity was given to everyone to have Jesus’ righteousness credited to themselves. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, people can be saved from their sinful nature, an eternity in hell, and have the opportunity to have a true relationship with the Creator.

After being forgiven and starting that relationship with God, it can be difficult to believe that all of someone’s wickedness can be washed away. The Bible promises the person who repents and accepts the sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross paid for their sins, they can be assured their name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life and they will be in Heaven forever.

What Is "Assurance of Salvation?"

The assurance of salvation is the guarantee that once someone has put their faith in Jesus Christ, repented of their sins, and has entered into that relationship with God, that they are sealed with the Holy Spirit and are guaranteed their sins are fully forgiven. They will go to Heaven after they die.

There are many reasons why someone may not feel they are fully forgiven. This may be because they feel their sins were too great, they feel shame, or even because they discover that even with the Holy Spirit, they cannot lead a sinless life. None of these feelings are actually related to whether or not someone’s salvation is in question. The Bible is clear about why people sin and what Jesus did to pay the price for those sins, both of which are the predicates for examining the assurance of salvation.

Important Verses about Humanity’s Need for Salvation and Sin Nature

Romans 3:23 - “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.”

Galatians 5:19-21 - “Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

1 John 1:8-10 – “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”

1 John 5:12-13 - “He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.”

Important Verses about Christ’s Redemptive Work

John 19:30 - “Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, ‘It is finished!’ And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.”

Acts 2:38 - “Peter replied, ‘Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.’”

Romans 6:23 - “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Titus 3:4-7 - “ But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”

When Jesus died on the cross, He declared “it is finished” because He paid the price in full. The path to salvation for anyone who will repent has been laid out. He declared it was finished because there was nothing else that could be done. All someone had to do moving forward to spend eternity with the Lord is to repent of their sins, so they can be washed in the blood of Jesus, and begin a relationship with God, unencumbered by their sins. After the moment of belief, repentance, and acceptance, the Holy Spirit fills them, and they are sealed by the Spirit until Jesus’ return.

Where Does the Bible Talk about Our Assurance of Salvation?

There are many verses in the New Testament that explicitly state that those who have a relationship with Jesus Christ can be assured of their eternal salvation.

John 5:34 - “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.”

Romans 8:16-17 - “The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs — heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.”

Ephesians 1:13-14 - “ In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,  who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.”

Titus 1:12b-14 - “But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me. Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.”

The men who were inspired by the Holy Spirit knew that Christians would experience doubt. People continue to sin after they get saved. The world is bombarding them with reasons to doubt their faith. They can lapse in practicing spiritual gifts. Sometimes they just allow the relationship between themselves and their Savior to grow stale, and they neglect it. Others begin to indulge in doctrine and belief that says it is impossible to have assurance of salvation.

Even in the days of the early church, wolves in sheep’s clothing came into the church and taught that someone had to work, to earn their salvation, and they could not have simple assurance in the work of Jesus Christ on the cross. Many of the epistles in the New Testament warn about those who would add anything to the work of salvation done by Jesus.

How Do We Know God Keeps His Promises?

Even understanding what the Bible says, it can be difficult in the modern day to embrace that once someone has that relationship, they can stand firm in surety and peace. In order to show His power over sin – and death which is the natural consequence of sin – Jesus performed a mighty miracle to stand as a testimony of what He was about to accomplish on the cross.

When His friend Lazarus died, Jesus grieved with Martha and Mary, the dead man’s sisters. He had been buried for three days. In an exchange with Martha, “Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?’” (John 11:25-26). Martha affirmed, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.” After this moment, Jesus restored Lazarus to life, resurrecting Him in body. This miracle served to prove He was everything that Martha said, but also as an evidence to future generations that their faith in Him is right, and that He has the power and authority to give life to those who believe in Him.

Later in His book, the apostle John – who recorded the resurrection of Lazarus – wrote, “ Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:30-31). For John, the miracles recorded were sufficient to verify the identity of Jesus as the Messiah and the Son of God, and for someone who puts their faith in Jesus to be assured of His truth, power, and work of salvation.

What Does This Mean for Us Today?

It is wise to self-examine one’s life and one’s relationship with God. There are people who are deceived into believing they are saved because they try to live a good life, and they have a head knowledge of who Jesus is and what He did on the cross. However, they do not repent of their sins, nor pursue a relationship with Him. However, it is also not wise to obsessively be afraid that one is not saved because one sins, or to become afraid that there is something else to be done to be assured of salvation.

Christians should stand boldly, and proclaim like the Apostle Paul, “For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39).

Sources

Gloag, Paton. A Treatise on the Assurance of Salvation. Edinburgh: Paton and Ritchie, 1853.

McArthur, John. Saved without a Doubt. Colorado Springs: David C Cook, 2010.

Peterson, Robert. The Assurance of Salvation. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2019. 

Photo credit: ©Getty Images/m-imagephotography

Bethany Verrett is a freelance writer who uses her passion for God, reading, and writing to glorify God. She and her husband have lived all over the country serving their Lord and Savior in ministry. She has a blog on graceandgrowing.com.