tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post8250288332969554439..comments2024-03-07T06:52:34.516+00:00Comments on Exiled Preacher: Ten things on assurance of salvationGuy Davieshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09184743462264437085noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-79629630778802791762013-12-04T21:00:20.599+00:002013-12-04T21:00:20.599+00:00Q: On what should we base our assurance of salvat...Q: On what should we base our assurance of salvation? I know the Word and the promises of the Gospel are our rock, but how do we distinguish between real faith and mere intellectual assent? I ask this because many evangelicals make me nervous when they say that if one has doubts about one's salvation, one is probably not saved, because the Holy Spirit is supposed to provide inner assurance. (I guess this ties in to the whole Pietist problem.) But in the face of emotional ups and downs, moral failings, intellectual doubts, and confusion over doctrine, how can one know if one truly has faith in Christ?<br /><br />A: Lutherans believe that faith is created and strengthened not by looking inside of one's self (to one's own faith and/or doubts) but by looking outside of one's self (to God's Word and promises in Christ). Therefore, assurance of salvation is to be sought by looking to God's Word and promises in Christ (which create and strengthen the faith through which one is saved), not by looking inward at the strength or weakness of one's own faith (which creates either pride and false assurance or doubt and lack of assurance). Anxiety regarding doubts, strength of faith and certainty of salvation are signs of faith (however weak it may be), not signs of unbelief, since the unbeliever has no concern or anxiety about doubts, faith or salvation.Garyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02519721717265344702noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-45679298111330826612013-10-12T22:47:17.777+01:002013-10-12T22:47:17.777+01:00Many Christians have said the following to themsel...Many Christians have said the following to themselves during a very difficult period in their life: Am I really saved? Here are the thought processes on this issue for an Evangelical and a Lutheran:<br /><br />The Evangelical's Assurance of Salvation:<br /><br />1. At age ___ I accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior. At that moment I asked Jesus to come into my heart to be my Lord and Savior and to forgive me of my sins.<br /><br />2. But since I am currently questioning my salvation, maybe I didn't "do it" correctly. Maybe I didn't fully understand what I was doing. Maybe I didn't fully repent. Maybe I didn't really have complete faith. Maybe I did it just because my friends were doing it. Maybe...<br /><br />3. I don't know...maybe I should "do it" again, just to be 100% sure.<br /><br />The Lutheran's Assurance of Salvation:<br /><br />1. Have I been baptized into the name of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, thereby receiving God's promise of the forgiveness of my sins, salvation of my soul, faith, and eternal life? <br />Answer: Yes.<br /><br />2. Have I outright rejected Christ as my Lord and Savior? <br />Answer: No.<br /><br />3. Am I living a life of ongoing sin in willful disobedience and defiance of my Lord? <br />Answer: No.<br /><br />Therefore, I KNOW I am saved!<br /><br />When your assurance of salvation is based on what GOD did and not what you did, it makes all the difference in the world!<br /><br />http://www.lutherwasnotbornagain.com/2013/10/salvation-is-much-simpler-than.htmlGaryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02519721717265344702noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17617194.post-81589269380384408442010-12-14T10:29:46.182+00:002010-12-14T10:29:46.182+00:00Scripture teaches that one’s final salvation depen...Scripture teaches that one’s final salvation depends on the state of the soul at death. As Jesus himself tells us, <b>"He who endures to the end will be saved"</b> (Matthew 24:13; cf. 25:31–46). <br /><br />One who dies in the state of friendship with God (<i>the state of grace</i>) will go to <b>heaven.</b> The one who dies in a state of enmity and rebellion against God (<i>the state of mortal sin</i>) will go to <b>hell.</b> <br /><br />For many Fundamentalists and Evangelicals it makes no difference—as far as salvation is concerned—how you live or end your life. <br /><br />You can heed the altar call at church, announce that you’ve accepted Jesus as your personal Savoir, and, so long as you really believe it, you’re set. <br /><br />From that point on there is nothing you can do, <b>no sin you can commit, no matter how heinous, that will forfeit your salvation.</b> <i>You can’t undo your salvation, even if you wanted to.</i>Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07940745178193985942noreply@blogger.com