For new Christians, one of the most common questions I have heard is, “How do I know I’m saved?” The most common statement I’ve heard is, “When I sin, I feel like I’m no longer good enough for God.”
I’ve had these thoughts myself, and I have found that they are more common than not. And I think they are a natural part of the spiritual battle that rages around us. Once we come to a saving trust in Jesus as our Savior, the battle for our lives doesn’t diminish, but rather intensifies, because if the enemies of God cannot have us, then our witness, our lives following God, become the an object of destruction. And so, when we falter, when we succumb to sin’s beckoning to return, it is natural to question ourselves, and our relationship with God. Yet I have found, that when a believer conquers these two thoughts, the gateway to spiritual maturity is thrown open. That when we fully realize that salvation was never ours to earn, and how much God did on our behalf, then those thoughts of doubting our salvation go away.
This brings us into our fourth week of our Beyond series, where we’re looking at going beyond doubting our own salvation. In this series, we have talked about living in the new creation. If we have accepted Jesus as our Savior, then we no longer live in the old bondage of our sin, that rebellion that separated us from God, but instead we live in the new freedom that is in Jesus. From that point we jumped into talking about trusting God with our tomorrow. Understanding that this means, even though we may make plans, we will seek God to direct our steps, not getting upset if those plans change. This is because our trust is in him and not ourselves or circumstances.
Then in our second week we talked about having grace-filled relationships; relationships where we do not require people to meet a certain standard before we love them, but rather in their failings we extend grace. Within grace-filled relationships we can still correct and rebuke if needed, but our goal must be God’s goal of relationships that are restored to full fellowship.
Finally last week, we looked at how to fully live in this new creation life. We did this by looking at Jesus’ call to abiding life, where we embrace his discipline, fully rely on him, and put into practice his teachings. Only then will we abide in him and experience the full life of God that he has saved us to live in this life and which extends into eternity.
Yet as we walk in the new creation, there are times when that newness is called into question. Last week I encouraged you to read through the ten commandments daily asking God to help you put them into practice. Yet, when we start to put the words of God into practice, there will be multiple times that we succumb to the old life, to sin. It’s in those times when we falter in our application of God’s word in our own lives, that we can call our salvation into doubt. When we sin as believers, there can be those voices, both in our minds and from outside observers, that say things like, “Look at you, you call yourself a Christian, yet you do this or you do that?”
When we falter in our walk it is easy for the thought to cross our minds, “maybe I’m not a believer after all, I’m not doing a very good job at anyway”. Today, we’re going to dive into Hebrews chapter 11, starting in verse 1 and look at the response we need to solidify in our lives, that calls us to go beyond the doubt of our salvation.
As we open up to chapter 11 of Hebrews, we need to understand a few things about this point in this writing. For ten chapters the writer has been meticulously walking the reader through the new covenant which is in Christ Jesus. The Hebrew writer compares and contrasts the Old Covenant made with Israel through the Mosaic Law, and the New Covenant made by Jesus through the shedding of his blood and which is validated by the resurrection. The whole point of which is brought to a crescendo in chapters 11 and 12.
As we make our way through Hebrews 11, we will not be reading every verse, but rather I want to show the emphasis of the passage by pointing out a common phrase that is written throughout the chapter, which then culminates in what we see in verse 32 and into chapter 12. So let’s look together at Hebrews chapter 11, starting in verse 1.
1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for.
3 By faith we…
4 By faith Abel…
5 By faith Enoch…
7 By faith Noah…
8 By faith Abraham…
11 And by faith even Sarah…
20 By faith Isaac…
21 By faith Jacob…
22 By faith Joseph…
23 By faith Moses’ parents…
24 By faith Moses…
29 By faith the people…
30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell…
31 By faith the prostitute Rahab…
32 And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets, 33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35 Women received back their dead, raised to life again. There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection. 36 Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. 37 They were put to death by stoning; they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— 38 the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and in holes in the ground.
39 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, 40 since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.
12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
The Hebrew writer has this common phrase of “by faith”. He uses it nineteen times and in verse 2 of chapter 12 tells us that this faith is realized in the person and work of Jesus on our behalf. The word faith that is used here is the Greek word, pistis (pis’-tis), which carries with it the connotation of complete trust because one has been persuaded to believe with both their mind and their lives, because of what has been revealed.
In others words, the Hebrew writer is saying that through God’s active work, he has shown us that he can be believed and trusted. We are shown with the examples of men and women in the Scriptures who trusted God with everything, and though they didn’t see it themselves, that trust was pointing towards what God was going to do through the life of Jesus. Therefore we, who have placed our trust in Jesus, need to realize that our faith isn’t based on what we have done for God, but 100% on what God has done for us.
This is why we get passages like Galatians 2:16, “know that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have put our faith in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified.”
And Ephesians 2:8-9, “8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.”
If we have placed our trust into Jesus; if we have accepted his work on the cross on our behalf, then we have stepped into a long line of men and women who have done the same. We have stepped into a lineage of those whom God has called out of their self-focused sinful life, and into the grand plan of his salvation work. A work that is done 100% by him and offered to us as a free gift. With the only condition being that we must accept it.
Listen to how Paul puts it in Romans 3:21-28, “21 But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25 God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26 he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. 27 Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. Because of what law? The law that requires works? No, because of the law that requires faith. 28 For we maintain that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law.”
In other words, there is nothing, nothing that we can do to earn the salvation that God presents through Jesus, we can merely accept it. John writes this in the first chapter, of his Gospel work, “12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God (John 1:12-13).”
So we see that salvation is fully given by God, and all we have to do to gain it, is accept it by trusting in Jesus’ work on the cross. But, we might say, what about when I sin, have I fallen away?
I think there’s two parts when answering this question. First, I love what Jesus’ words in Matthew 7, verses 17-20 reveal, “17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.”
This goes back to last week and what we talked about in John chapter 15. Verse 5 of John 15 reads, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing (v.5).”
As we abide, we bear fruit, and that fruit reveals that we are a good tree. Not good in the sense that we have made ourselves good, but good in the sense that God himself is living out his goodness in our lives by the power of the Holy Spirit. So those who have put their trust in Jesus as their Savior, will produce good fruit. This fruit by be small at first, and take many seasons to produce, but it will come. In most cases it can take up to three years for a vineyard’s grapes to be good enough for sell. If a vineyard looks to sell wine, it can take another two years to produce a good enough wine to put on the market. That’s total of five years before the fruit of the vinedressers’ work is seen. But a good vine will produce a good fruit.
But we may say, what about those that confess to be Christians, yet live ungodly lives. Or those that have said they are Christians, yet have seem to have fallen away. To this, I would look to the lives of Judas and Peter. Both denied Christ in their own way. Both betrayed him and fell to the devil’s schemes. Yet Judas hung himself, and Peter was restored to full fellowship with God. Why? Because there is something inside a Christian that brings them to the condition of conviction. That is the Holy Spirit working in us.
Paul’s words in 2nd Corinthians 7:8-12 can give us understanding in this. Paul writes, “8 Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Though I did regret it—I see that my letter hurt you, but only for a little while— 9 yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. 10 Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. 11 See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done. At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter. 12 So even though I wrote to you, it was neither on account of the one who did the wrong nor on account of the injured party, but rather that before God you could see for yourselves how devoted to us you are.”
If we have accepted Jesus are our Savior, godly sorrow will bring us back into right relationship with God, no matter how far we have strayed. Because of that sorrow over our sin, we can know that our salvation is secure, because we are grieved as God is grieved by it. This should spur us to repentance before God. Except this time repentance isn’t to accept salvation, but to restore the fellowship we have marred by our sin, but which God has forgiven thought the cross of Jesus.
And so, even when we sin, the question should be, are we okay with it? Or do we feel the godly sorrow calling us back to our relationship with God. Are we convicted of our sin, so that we long to be in right relationships with our Savior? This is what is means to have our salvation assured. Because our longing will not be for this world, but for the One who has called us out of it.
Brothers and sisters, we are called the Beloved of God, those called by him and who have accepted that calling. We may falter, we may fall behind, but we can know our salvation is secured, because we seek after reconciliation with our Savior, and we seek to be closer to him more and more. So then let us trust in what he says, that we are his, because he has done all things necessary for a restored relationship with him. And we are secured in it, when we recognize it’s done 100% by him, and if we do falter, we grieve over the sin we’ve committed as the Holy Spirit grieves in us. So be encouraged, the fruit of salvation will come, it will just take a little more pruning to bring it out, and that’s okay.
And it’s in that position of secured salvation that Paul’s words in Romans 8:38-39 ring ever true, “38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
My challenge for you this week is to memorize one of three verses that we’ve talked about today: Galatians 2:16, Ephesians 2:8-9, or John 1:12-13. Let us solidify our understanding that our salvation is not based on us, but on who Jesus is and what he’s done. Let us incorporate the Word of God into our lives, so that we build upon it’s sold foundation. And know that we are secured in Jesus, by his power and not our own. And when those doubts come to mind, we can reject them, because we have been accepted by God through his gift of salvation.
That we have brought nothing to the table, but God has set the table for us. That we may stand in grace, and in that position, extend God’s grace to others, so they too may know the salvation that is found through Jesus alone. Amen.
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