Assurance: Assurance Of Salvation

The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.

Romans 8:16

One of Florida’s senior statesmen, a distinguished gentleman in his sixties, exhorted me to spend time with my father. “When he is gone, you will really miss him,” he said.

His father had recently died, and I could literally feel his heartache as he mourned the loss of his natural father.

“Fathers are imperfect,” he continued, “but they are so important to us. My dad, for example, was not much for showing affection. He never once gave me his approval when I was growing up. This caused me to strive to measure up—to get a nod from my dad. It didn’t come. So I redoubled my efforts and worked to get better grades. Nothing. Then I worked on my career and became extremely successful. Still no approval.

“It was not until I was elected as an elder in my church that my father ever gave me his approval. He had been an elder in the same church for decades. As I knelt to be accepted, my father reached over, finally, after all those years, put his hand on my shoulder and said, ‘I’m proud of you, son.’ I burst into tears. That was one of the sweetest moments of my entire life. Fathers are not perfect, but when he is gone, you will really miss him.”

Did your father ever give you his approval? Or do you still long for your dad to say, “I’m proud of you.”

The Need for Approval

The need for approval is the unintended, hidden motivator behind so much of what we do. Whether from our father, our mother, our spouse, our children, our peers, our friends, or our boss—the need for approval is a silent, inescapable influence upon our lives. We need the nod from our dad, the embrace from our mother, respect from our spouse, appreciation from the boss for a job well done. Most of us, if we will be honest, are starving for human dignity. Nothing reduces us to loneliness and indignity faster than withheld approval.

Our eternal Father and God loves us with an unconditional, everlasting love. He does not love us because we have done anything to win His approval, anything to deserve it. Rather, He loves you because He made you. Have you grasped the magnitude of that love yet?

When once we have placed our faith and trust in Christ and His atoning work for us on the cross, then nothing can separate us from the approval of the Father. “‘My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand’” (John 10:27-28). The approval of God secures salvation. Your earthly father may never say, “I’m proud of you,” but your heavenly Father will personally wipe away every tear of yours someday. You have His Word on it. Approved, and secure forever.

Have you accepted the approval of the Father? Do you have the assurance of your salvation? Do you have confidence that your faith has saved you? Or does the drone of doubt still whisper its menacing monologue to your mind?

Eternal Approval

If you have sincerely repented of your sins and received Jesus Christ by faith as your Savior and Lord, then you are immortal and eternal now, by the grace of the living Lord. You have His approval. Jesus said, “ ’And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life.’” (John 6:39-40).

We are saved by faith, not works. His approval of us isn’t contingent upon doing something to be good enough. He loves us because He made us. If your loved ones have withheld their approval, know that God works differently. If your loved ones continue to make you feel guilt, know that Christ’s blood was shed for the removal of guilt. Once you have received Him, your sins are washed away—not by any merit on your part, but solely on the basis of your faith.

What, then, is the motivation to do good works? It is not to gain the approval of the Father. Those in Christ already have His approval. Rather, we are motivated to do good works out of the gratitude of a thankful heart. Because He justified us, we love to obey and please Him. We don’t obey Him to please Him so we can receive justification. Justification (salvation) is by faith alone. Then, with heartfelt gratitude, the surrendered saint joyfully serves Christ.

Knowing Assurance Personally

Have you heard the voice of the Spirit? “The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children” (Romans 8:16). The authority of Scripture is the basis of our assurance. If you have received Christ, shut your eyes and say to yourself: “I belong to Jesus. I am a child of God.”

Do you sense harmony with that thought? That is the Spirit testifying with your spirit that you are a child of God. He loves you with an everlasting love. You belong to Him. He approves of you. He made you. The sense of assurance swelling within you is the Spirit himself testifying with your own spirit that you are born again. You are welcome in the sanctum sanctorum. Abandon your plans to win His approval. At the instant you first surrendered, He approved you unconditionally.

I SURRENDER

My Father and my God, I confess that I have struggled to gain Your affection and approval. I know that I can never do anything to be good enough to win Your love. Instead, You love me because You made me. I surrender my doubts and my guilt to You, and I pray that You will remove them from my life. Thank You, Jesus, for dying on the cross for my sins and for giving me eternal life. Because of You alone, I know that I have eternal life, that I will not be lost, that I will never perish. I know because of the authority of Your Word and the Spirit who testifies with my spirit. Amen.