Christianity Defined

Am I really saved?

So much hangs in the balance from this one question. But the fact that you are questioning where you stand in eternity is a good thing. It means you care. It means you understand the importance of salvation. So let’s get cemented in some biblical truths, that I believe will help you gain both clarity and confidence, as to where you stand, and in what areas you need to grow.

One of the first things you need to know is, you are saved by grace. Salvation is a free gift from God through Christ Jesus. It is not something you can earn by being “good” enough.

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Through a simple prayer, often called the “sinner’s prayer,” with a sincere heart you can confess to God that you’re a sinner in need of a Savior, and invite Christ Jesus into your life, to be your Lord and Savior. If you have never done this, I invite you to use our Prayer for Salvation.

Romans 10:9 tells us that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

Assuming you’ve done this, and are still struggling with doubt, let’s look at some possibilities as to why.

Before we jump in, I do want to note something very important that Jesus said. He said, “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.” (Matthew 7:21).

With that statement in mind, I’d like to draw your attention to four pillars. Four pillars within our faith, that are the will of God for each one of us. Four pillars that should be evident in the life of every follower of Jesus.

PILLAR ONE: Faith

Faith is central to our relationship with God. It is simply believing He is who He says He is, and that He will do what He says He will do.

Hebrews 11:6 tells us: But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

When we doubt God and His promises in our lives, we open the door to idols. To false gods.

Suddenly, the Word of God and His way of living is no longer the standard in our lives. Instead, we choose to listen to other people, follow the culture, rely and depend on ourselves, and put our trust in our money or other things. Our dependence and our reliance on the one true living God, begins to fade.

A lack of faith is costly.

We see this play out in contrasting ways through the life of Abraham and the Israelites.

Let’s take a look at Abraham first:

And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform. And therefore “it was accounted to him for righteousness.” (Romans 4:19-22).

God promised Abraham a son, and through that son, he would become the father of many nations. The only problem was, both Abraham and his wife Sarah were old. So old that they were well past child bearing years.

This is what many of us today would deem as an impossible situation.

We have an elderly couple and a barren wife, well beyond menopause. And they’re believing for a baby! How many people would laugh and encourage them to give up on that foolish idea?

But it wasn’t foolish to Abraham. He had a promise from God, and he chose to believe it.

He chose faith.

And according to the verse above, it was accounted to him for righteousness.

The Word of God is saturated with promises from God to us as well. But like Abraham, we have to choose to believe them.

The Israelites on the other hand were completely different. They also had a promise from God. A promise that He would be their God, that He would give them a land flowing with milk and honey, and that He would bless them.

But unlike Abraham, they doubted, disbelieved, walked in fear, and chose to place their faith in false gods over and over again. And you know what, they lost out on their blessing.

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Send men to spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel; from each tribe of their fathers you shall send a man, every one a leader among them.” (Numbers 13:1-2).

When God had delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, He promised to give them their own land. A land flowing with milk and honey, a land He assured them would be given into their hands.

So Moses did as the Lord commanded him, and sent twelve men, one from each tribe of Israel to spy out the promised land. (v. 3).

Unfortunately, when the twelve Israelites returned from spying out the land, only two of them came back with faith, the others had succumb to both fear and doubt.

Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.” But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.” And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. (v. 30-32).

Unlike Caleb, these ten men were led by what they saw, not what God said. And unfortunately, their fears and doubts spread like a wildfire.

So all the congregation lifted up their voices and cried, and the people wept that night. And all the children of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if only we had died in this wilderness! Why has the Lord brought us to this land to fall by the sword, that our wives and children should become victims? Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt.” (Numbers 14:1-3).

Not only did the whole company of Israelites choose to believe the thoughts and opinions of the ten spies over God and His promises, but they clearly didn’t believe God could protect them and their families. They were ready to turn around and head back to Egypt; to a life of slavery.

They had no faith. And it cost them.

And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “How long shall I bear with this evil congregation who complain against Me? I have heard the complaints which the children of Israel make against Me. Say to them, ‘As I live,’ says the Lord, ‘just as you have spoken in My hearing, so I will do to you: The carcasses of you who have complained against Me shall fall in this wilderness…except for Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun, you shall by no means enter the land which I swore I would make you dwell in. But your little ones, whom you said would be victims, I will bring in, and they shall know the land which you have despised.’” (Numbers 14:26-31).

The difference between Abraham and the Israelites couldn’t be any more vibrant.

Abraham put his faith in God and it was accounted to him as righteousness, and he received what God promised him. The Israelites did not put their faith in God, and it was accounted to them as evil, and they missed out on the promised land and the blessings God had in store for them. Instead, the blessing was given to their children.

Faith in God, believing that He is who He says He is, and will do what He says He will do, is one of the evidences we look for, when contemplating whether or not our lives are in right standing with God.

Because remember, without faith, it is impossible to please God.

PILLAR TWO: Truth

Believing the truth, living according to the truth, and speaking the truth are all paramount to a right relationship with God.

“But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:23-24).

When we receive God’s free gift, and become saved in and through Jesus, we receive the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13-14). And when the Holy Spirit comes into our lives, He guides us into all truth (John 16:13). We then become individuals who worship the Father in spirit and truth.

When we stay connected and submitted to the Holy Spirit, we stay grounded in truth. When we drift away from God, we become susceptible to every good argument, the loudest opinions, and our own feelings and emotions. To put it plainly, we become easily deceived.

But deception neither brings us nor keeps us in the presence of God, only truth will.

The Apostle Paul’s life is such a clear example of this. Up until his conversion to Christianity, Saul (also known as Paul), believing he was doing right by God, persecuted anyone who was a follower of Jesus.

And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep. Now Saul was consenting to his death. At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. And devout men carried Stephen to his burial, and made great lamentation over him. As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison. (Acts 7:59-8:3).

Rooted in deception, Saul made life very difficult for Christians. Thankfully, Jesus confronted him with the truth.

Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.” (Acts 9:1-5).

Saul’s confrontation by Jesus was his introduction to the truth; that Jesus is Lord. Soon after, Saul was filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 9:17), and from then on, he preached the truth about Jesus with the same passion and devotion, he once used to persecute His followers.

Immediately he preached the Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God. Then all who heard were amazed, and said, “Is this not he who destroyed those who called on this name in Jerusalem, and has come here for that purpose, so that he might bring them bound to the chief priests?” But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who dwelt in Damascus, proving that this Jesus is the Christ. (Acts 9:20-22).

Saul’s belief in Jesus and being filled with the Holy Spirit, made all the difference in his life. He went from being a non believer, to believing the truth, living according to the truth, and speaking the truth.

Growing in knowledge and understanding of the truth is a journey, but it’s a path we must hold firm to. We do this by staying connected and submitted to the Holy Spirit. Without Him, truth becomes whatever we want it to be. But that isn’t really truth at all, that’s deception. And as I said before, deception neither brings us nor keeps us in the presence of God, only the truth does that.

PILLAR THREE: Obedience

There was a season in my life when I struggled with doubt as to whether or not I was truly saved. It was a question that played over and over in my mind. And the number one thing the Lord shed light on during that time was the importance of obedience.

Obedience to God is an anchor in the life of every Christian. Living according to God’s Word and God’s ways isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s the baseline for our confidence and assurance that we belong to Him.

We know that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him. We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. (1 John 5:18-19).

Disobedience to God isn’t something we have to learn. Sin comes naturally to every single person born into this world. Things like lying, pride, selfishness, and rebellion, to name a few. But obedience to God is unnatural. It only becomes a normal way of life for us, when God gives us a new spirit and a new heart.

“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgements and do them.” (Ezekiel 36:26-27).

When we become saved, we become brand new. We have what we need inside of us to help us live a life of obedience to God. But that does not mean we aren’t still capable of sinning.

Sin, left unchecked, in any area of our lives, can lead us right back to the path of disobedience.

This is where I found myself some years ago. And what God began to show me, was that small compromises in my life were wreaking major havoc in my relationship with Him.

I couldn’t have some of His way and some of the world’s way. He was teaching me, it was one or the other, but not both.

And once I surrendered to Him and began to make a real commitment to living obedient to Him, not only did I experience an abundance of spiritual growth, but I got my confidence back. I knew like I had never known before that Jesus was the Lord of my life, and I belong to Him.

Do not be fooled into thinking that the “little sins” don’t matter. Sin is sin, and they all have the potential to catapult you straight back to the path of disobedience.

Be mindful of how you’re living. It matters for your walk with Jesus and it matters for your confidence in your salvation.

PILLAR FOUR: Love

Love is the bedrock of the Christian faith. It is not optional and it is not expendable. Because if you don’t have love, you don’t know God.

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. (1 John 4:7-8).

If you think about it, love has become so watered down. We say we love our favorite restaurant or our favorite television show. But wouldn’t think twice about saying we love our next door neighbor or the cashier we see frequently at the grocery store.

But love is not meant to be selective. Our love was meant to pattern the same love Jesus had for us when He went to the cross. Jesus didn’t die for some people, he died for all people. Everyone has a chance and opportunity to receive His free gift of salvation. And just as His love is for everyone, so should yours be.

Love challenges us to look past ourselves. Past our own views, past our own traditions, past our own feelings, to see people. People different than us, who were also created in the image of God.

I’ve never forgotten a statement world renowned Bible Teacher Beth Moore shared on her social media some years back. In fact, I still have the screenshot of it in my photo gallery on my phone. She wrote, “Thing is, we have to really be careful about who we hate. Because 10 times out of 10, it’s going to be somebody Jesus loves. And he has a way of taking it personally.”

10 times out of 10. That’ll wake you up. And even more so, like it does me, it’ll help you remember that you are called to love people.

Love is one of the greatest ways we share God with others. When our love dims towards people, our relationship with God dims and our witness dims. If you are questioning whether or not you are saved, it could be that you have grown dim on the great commandment.

But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducess, they gathered together. Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” Jesus said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:34-39).

Love matters. It matters for your walk with God and it matters for your witness as a follower of Jesus Christ. If this has been a strained area in your life, it’s time to get back to loving people.

Jesus said, He who does the will of His Father will enter the kingdom of heaven. It is the Father’s will for you to stay in faith, be grounded in truth, walk in obedience, and choose love. And when you do, you may just find your salvation becoming less of a question, “Am I really saved?” And more of a declaration you know and believe in the deepest parts of you, “I am saved.”

In other words, you get your confidence back!