What is the assurance of salvation means? Is your salvation assured? Are you sure you are saved forever from God’s wrath and eternal damnation?

This question about the assurance of salvation and eternal life in heaven with God is dazzled the minds and hearts of people over the centuries. Many people do not know if assurance of salvation and eternal life is possible. If you ask people, generally they say like this –“I hope so, I expect, do not know sure, I believe my good deeds exceed my bad deeds, I did many charities, I helped poor people”. These are the typical responses of many people.

However, the Bible and God assure with no shadow of a doubt your salvation and eternal life. God does not you want you to doubt his offer of salvation and eternal life. He made it clear the surety or assurance of it.

First of all, let us read three passages that say God can not lie.

God promised.

God who cannot lie promised your salvation and eternal life.

“God is not a man, that he should lie.” Numbers 23:19
“In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began..” Titus 1:2
“That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us..” Hebrews 6:18

You see the assurance of your salvation and eternal life is based on the promise of God who cannot lie. Did you note when you read the above verse it says – the eternal life is promised by God, who cannot lie, even before the world began?

Where is salvation/eternal life available?

1st John 5:11:12 says, this, “And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.”
Let us read this again and analyze it. Who gave us eternal life and where is it? God gave us eternal life and eternal life is in his Son- Jesus Christ. Now the next question is this- who possess eternal life and who does not possess eternal life? Whoever has the Son (Jesus Christ) has eternal life, and whoever does not have the Son of God (Jesus Christ) does not have eternal life.

Did you notice the verb used is “has”? It is a present tense verb simply means if you have Jesus Christ, you have eternal life right now when you live on this earth. In other words, you possess eternal life right now and it will be a reality in the future when you die or Jesus comes back to take you to heaven.

What is having the Son means? Having Jesus Christ means believing in Jesus Christ as your savior. John recorded in John 3:16 what Jesus himself said. Because these are words of the Son of God, Jesus Christ, let us carefully read each word in this verse.

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” NLT. Now compare this verse with 1st John 5:11. Basically, both mean the same thing. “Whoever has the Son has life.” John 3:16 says, “everyone who believes in him (Jesus) will not perish but have eternal life.” Therefore whoever has the Son means whoever believes in the Son (Jesus Christ).

Now we learned a few points- let us recap.
• God, who cannot lie, promised eternal life before the world began. It is a promise of God who can not lie. You can fully trust the promise of God because He never lies.
• Your salvation and eternal life are in God’s Son (Jesus Christ). Remember whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.
• Whoever has the Son of God means whoever believes in Jesus Christ
• It is a present reality because of the use of the verb. John 3:16 shows a simple present tense which means it is true always. Whoever believes in him (Jesus) will not perish and ‘have’ eternal life. The moment you accepted the Gospel and believed in Jesus, you will be granted full salvation and eternal life.

God’s eternal plan fulfilled by Jesus Christ.

God eternal plan even before the foundation of the world was this –“ For God’s will was for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all time.” (Hebrews 10:10). Did you notice the words? First, God’s will is to make you holy (eligible to come to heaven and live with him at the time of your death). Second, How did God accomplish it? “by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ.” God put all your sins-past, present, and future- on the body of Jesus so he paid it all with his divine and sinless blood. Third, it was accomplished “once for all time.” In the olden times before the incarnation and death of Jesus on your behalf, each time when you do sin, you had to bring an animal sacrifice and shed its blood to pay for your sin. Not any more. Jesus, the Son of God, whose divine and sinless blood, paid for all your sins-once for the all time. No more sacrifice or no more self-works needed. Your good works would be the result of your salvation. In your gratitude toward God, because he saved you forever and granted you eternal life by one sacrifice of Jesus, you will do all good works. In other words, works are not the reason for your salvation or eternal life. The blood of Jesus poured out on your behalf is the reason for your salvation and eternal life. However, good works are the result or the outcome of your salvation and eternal life because you are filled with gratitude toward God. This is why Christian missionaries throughout the history built schools, hospitals, and orphanages not to get saved but as a sign of their gratitude toward God’s gift of salvation and eternal life in and through His Son, Jesus Christ.

Hinge only on one thing.

Bible says in John 3:17-18, “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”

Stop and read it again. God did not send the Son (Jesus) into the world to judge the world. Why did God send him to this world? It says, “that the world (you and I) might be saved through Him. Then it gives the assurance or promise. He who believes in Him (Jesus) is not judged. However, he who does not or would not believe in Jesus have been judged already. Why they have judged already? Because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

People’s salvation and eternal life hinge on only one thing -what they did with the Son of God- Jesus Christ. God so loved you and want you to come to his heaven that He gave his only begotten Son for your sake. God put all your sins, its condemnation and judgment on him to make you holy to stand in front of him. Either you can come to him in repentance of your sins and accept him as your savior and get complete forgiveness/salvation and eternal life. Or you can simply reject him and end up in eternal judgment. Bible says in Romans 8:1, “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Paid in full.

Bible record what Jesus said just prior to his death in John 19:30 and it says, “When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.” He said God’s eternal plan even before the foundation of the world was your salvation and reconciliation with Him. Jesus came for this purpose. He stated in a loud voice, “it is finished.” What is finished? The work of your forgiveness and salvation is finished. The work to get you to heaven when you die is finished. You would never be able to pay for your sins. You would never be able to pay for your salvation and eternal life. According to God’s perfect and eternal plan, Jesus, the Son of God did it.

Say, it is finished. It is done. It is completed. Your debt to God is paid in full.
I will give you a few more verses that assure your complete salvation and eternal life when you believe in Jesus Christ.

John 3:36 says, “the one who believes in the Son has eternal life.”
John 6:45-47, Jesus said, “Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me. No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father. Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life. Jesus said about believing in him.
John 10:28 records what Jesus said, “I gave them eternal life, and they will never perish.”
John 20:31, “these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God and that by believing you may have life in his name.”
John 3:16, “Everyone who believes on Him (Jesus) will not perish but have eternal life.”
If you want to get the assurance of the forgiveness of all your sins, salvation and eternal life, please pray now, accept and believe in Jesus Christ. This will be the most cardinal decision you make when you live now on this earth.
Your forgiveness, salvation and eternal life are promised by God and assured by Him when you put your belief and trust in His Son, Jesus Christ.

Let us pray. “Father in heaven, I repent of my sins and believe in your Son, Jesus Christ. I believe he died and rose again for my sins and his blood paid it all for me. Please accept me now and I thank you for saving me and granting me salvation and eternal life. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen.”