Lesson 7
A CERTAIN HOPE
I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for
my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have
kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which
the Lord, the righteous Judge will award to me on that day - and not only to
me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing (2 Timothy 4:tr8)
In these verses the apostle Paul speaks without any hesitation or doubt, about
the past, the present and the future. He has no shame about his past as a
Christian; He has no fear of his near departure from this life; and he has no
doubt about the outcome of the future judgment after death.
Since God had turned him towards heaven he had aimed to serve his Lord
consistently. His conscience was clear - and although no one can enter heaven
by the merits of a good conscience alone, it does give comfort when passing
from this world to the next. And he could look forward to the day of judgment
with courageous certainty. There is no hesitancy about his words - no `I hope'
or `perhaps'. Paul had assurance (1) about his salvation.
There are four things that I want to say about this matter of the believer
possessing a certain hope, this assurance of salvation. And I do so humbly,
realising that this is a difficult subject.
1. This assurance is a true and scriptural thing
Assurance is a gift of the Holy Spirit, which every believer in Christ ought to
seek. It seems to me the Bible teaches that true believers may reach such a
state of faith in Christ that they will be entirely confident about the
eventual safety of their souls. There are; however, some churches (2) which
insist that it is not possible for a believer to be so confident, and that, if
they are, they are deceived.
It is true that some may presume that their salvation is sure, who have no real
reason to say so. Yet there is verse after verse in the Bible which insist that
assurance is a true gift of the Holy Spirit. So my reply to those who deny the
existence of assurance is simply this - what does the Bible say?
I know that my Redeemer lives and that in the end he will stand upon the earth.
And
after my skin has been destroyed yet in my flesh I will see God (Job
19:25-26).
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no
evil, for you are with me
(Psalm 23:4).
There are many more references to people experiencing such a certain hope - see
Isaiah 26:3; 32:17; Romans 8:28-39; 2 Corinthians 5:1,6; Colossians 2:2; 2
Timothy 1:12; Hebrews 6:11;10:22; 2 Peter 1:10; 1 John 3:14; 5:13. In all these
passages we find humility and assurance side by side. And the assurance of
which they speak is always a confidence in God, never in themselves. To those
who dislike the idea of a believer being assured I say, It cannot be
presumption to follow in the footsteps of Job, the Psalmist, Isaiah, Paul,
Peter and John. They were humble minded men and yet they spoke of having a
certainty of hope. How can it be wrong to be certain when God has given us his
sure promises?
2. A believer may having saving faith and yet not know assurance
I believe it is of great importance to keep in view the distinction between
faith and assurance. Faith is like the root of our belief, assurance is the
flower. You can never have a flower without the root but you can sometimes have
the root without the flower. Simple faith in Christ will certainly save a
person; yet they may never be free from anxiety and doubts. Faith will bring a
soul to heaven but assurance will bring heaven to a soul.
Faith is Peter's drowning cry,
Lord save rise!
(Matthew 14:30). Assurance is that same Peter declaring later to the Council,
He is the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone. Salvation
is found in no-one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to risen
by which we must he saved
(Acts 11-12). Whoever has faith does well - but whoever has assurance does far
better!
3. A certain hope is a thing much to be desired
I wish that assurance was more sought after than it is. Too many believers live
doubting and die doubting, and go to heaven in a kind of mist.
a) Certainty is to be desired because it gives our souls immediate comfort and
peace. Uncertainty in matters of this life, such as family relationships, money
or work, can ruin our mental and bodily health. Uncertainty in spiritual
matters can ruin the health of our soul.
Assurance will support a believer when loved ones die; it will make it possible
to praise God even in difficulty, and to rejoice when suffering for Christ's
sake. Assurance made it so possible for Peter to sleep soundly the night before
he was due to be killed (Acts 12). Assurance removes the ultimate fear; it
allows the dying believer to say, If
the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an
eternal house in heaven
(2 Corinthians 5:1).
b) Possession of a certain hope releases a believer's energy for Christian
work. Generally speaking, none do so much work for Christ as those who enjoy
the fullest confidence of entrance into heaven. A believer lacking assurance
will spend much time in searching his or her heart about their spiritual
condition. But the believer who, like Paul, has a firm faith and a sure hope,
is free from such distractions. Undivided attention to the work will always
bring greatest success.
c) Assurance does away with indecisiveness in spiritual matters. Many of those
who can only hope they are God's children are continually in doubt about how to
behave. Should they do this, or that? Should they go there? Are they never to
do this or that? And this is because they are not completely sure whether they
are children of God or not! If they knew that the saving work of Jesus was
indeed for them, then they would know they are God's child and that would
decide their actions.
d) Assurance is to be desired because it makes the holiest Christians. All
who have this hope in them purify themselves, just as he is pure (
1
John 3:3). A hope that does not purify is a mockery and a delusion.
From what I have said so far it should be clear that the neglect of assurance
may be the main reason for all our failures in the Christian life. If that is
so with you, then take my advice now. Lay aside your doubts and lean more
strongly upon the Lord Jesus Christ. Begin with simply believing him and
assurance will be added.
4. Some probable difficulties in gaining assurance
There are those whose lack of assurance can be explained by one of the
following causes. Many believe, but fewer are persuaded; many have faith, but
fewer have confidence. Now why is this so?
a) Perhaps there is a defective view of the doctrine of justification. Failure
to understand that Christ's work, not our own, is the basis of our acceptance
by God will rob us of assurance. Nothing but simple faith is required on our
part. Justification is a gift, something entirely apart from ourselves. Simply
to believe is to be fully justified. The weakest believer is as completely
justified as the strongest believer, and can therefore be assured.
b) Perhaps there is laziness about the need to grow in grace. Many appear to
think that they can relax and enjoy their newfound faith. They must be reminded
that this grace has been given to them as a talent which they must use.
Believers need to add to their faith continually (2 Peter 1:5).
There is an inseparable connection between diligence and assurance (Hebrews
6:11; 2 Peter 1:10). Assurance will never come without diligence in the
spiritual life. A teaching of the Puritans is important: Faith of adherence
(i.e. commitment to Christ - Ed.) comes by hearing, but faith of assurance
comes not without doing. `A lazy Christian will always lack four things;
comfort, contentment, confidence and assurance. God has made a separation
between joy and idleness, between assurance and laziness; and, therefore, it is
impossible for you to bring together what God has put asunder. (3)
c) Another reason for lack of assurance could be an inconsistent life.
Inconsistency of life is utterly destructive to peace of conscience. If you
will keep your besetting sins, and cannot make up your minds to give them up,
you will never have assurance.
We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands (1
John 2:3). Our salvation does not depend upon our works, but the comforting
sense of it does depend upon a consistent Christian walk.
I leave these points for your consideration now. They are worth examining
carefully. (4)
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(1) Assurance. Believers may know with certainty that they are believers,
children of God, born again, possessors of eternal life. Believers base their
assurance on several things:
1 The promises of God; e.g. (John 6:37)
2 The inward witness of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:16)
3 The moral evidences of salvation (Matthew 7:20)
4 Three tests in John's first epistle; e.g.
Right belief - 3:23; 4:2; 5:5,10,
Right behaviour-1:5,6; 2:3; 3:6,9.
Love - 4:7,8
(From
A Dictionary of Theology
- Grace Publications)
(2) This would be true of the teaching of the Roman Catholic Church and of some
small Protestant groups also, who fear that assurance is not possible without
presumption.
(3) Quoted from writing by Thomas Brookes, a Puritan preacher in London,1654.
(4) At this point Ryle gives thirty quotations from Puritan preachers to
support what he has said in this chapter. These have been omitted in this
abridged version.
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