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December 9, 2024

Q & A: How Can I Be Sure?

by Jason Neill

Scripture reading: John 3:16-18, 36; Acts 16:31; Romans 4:5; Galatians 3:6-7; Ephesians 2:8-9; 1 John 5:11-13

This week we continue our Q & A blog.

Question: How can I know for sure I’m saved?

Answer: This is a question that, I think, bothers a number of church and non-church going people. Of course, I assume the word “saved” in this question is referring to possessing eternal life. Other phrases that communicate this idea are “going to Heaven when I die or knowing I am right with God.” This is the most important question a person can ask. If a person is not certain of their eternal destiny, then it is difficult, if not impossible, to grow spiritually. It also hinders a person’s ability to share the good news of eternal life. If I am not certain I possess eternal life, then how am I supposed to share that message with others? Their uncertainty renders their evangelistic attempts problematic.  

A faulty view, suggested by a number of Christians, to know if you are a Christian or not is by examining your works (i.e., what we do for God and/or others). The reasoning goes something like this: if you have good works then it proves you are a Christian. To support their point, Matthew 7:21-23 is cited: “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!’” (NKJV).

The words above are the words of Jesus in His most famous sermon, the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7). It is argued that a person can know if he/she is a Christian by examining whether they have good works. The problem with this passage is that it teaches the very opposite; that is to say, good works do not prove a person is a Christian (i.e., possesses eternal life). The context of this passage indicates that the people standing before Jesus are non-Christians (i.e., they do not possess eternal life). Actually, they attempt to make a case that they know Jesus because of the good deeds they performed. They prophesied, performed exorcisms, and did “many wonders” all in the name of Jesus. Surely these people are Christians, right? Jesus says they aren’t. Notice Jesus never disputes their good works, yet He says He does not know them. In other words, they are not sons or daughters of God.  

The passage backfires as proof works are a good criterion for whether a person possesses eternal life. To complicate matters worse, the Bible does not prescribe how many good works are enough or how long we should carry them out. Then how can a person be sure they are a child of God (i.e., will go to Heaven when they die, they are right with God)?

The verse in Matthew says that only those that “do the will of my Father” will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. What is the will of the Father? We find the answer in John 6:39-40. The will of the Father is to believe in Jesus. But we don’t believe in Jesus for something vague. We believe in Jesus for something specific, namely eternal life (see John 3:16-18, 36; 5:24; 6:47; 11:25-26). The moment a person believes in Jesus for eternal life God transfers that individual from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of His Son (see Colossians 1:13-14), justifies them (i.e., declares them righteous in God’s sight, see Romans 4:5), and makes them spiritually alive (i.e., they immediately possess eternal life, see Ephesians 2:4-10).

How can a person know they are saved? Delivered from spiritual death and made spiritually alive? They do so by answering one question. Am I trusting in Jesus alone for eternal life (I am using the word “trust” as a synonym for “believe”)? Certainty or assurance of your salvation is based solely on the promise of God that “he who believes in Me has everlasting life” (John 6:47, NKJV). If you look at your works to provide assurance, you will never have it because your works will never be perfect. The Bible encourages us to look to the promise made by Jesus. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16, NKJV).

We can know for certain we are one of His children when we answer “yes” to the question: Am I trusting in Jesus alone for eternal life?  

For more on this topic, I recommend the book Secure and Sure: Grasping the Promises of God by Robert N. Wilkin.