How Can I Know I Am Saved?

Do you ever wonder if you are really saved? Are you afraid that you might not spend eternity in heaven with God? Most people do wonder at some time in their lives, so don't feel bad. But did you know that the Bible teaches that you can know you are saved, so you don't need to wonder? God's word, the Bible tells us that Jesus Christ is the author of salvation for those who obey Him.

And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him. Hebrews 5:9 (NKJV)

Jesus wrote the book on salvation!!! The Bible also tells us that it was written so that we can know we have eternal life.

These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life... 1 John 5:13 (NKJV)

We are also told that the scriptures can make us wise about salvation, that they are inspired of God, and teach everything we need on how to be righteous.

...you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. 2 Timothy 3:14-17 (NKJV)

How wonderful! We don't have to go by our feelings, always questioning and wondering whether or not we are saved. We don't need to ask a preacher or someone else if we are saved. We don't need to seek out the religious manuals of some denomination or religious organization. We can simply read God's word, the Bible, and be assured that if we do exactly what is in that word, we are saved.

God's word has a lot to say about sin and salvation, and it can speak for itself. What does the Bible say?

The Bible Says...

We must recognize our lost condition:

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23 (NKJV)

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 1 John 1:8 (NKJV)

Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. 1 John 3:4 (NKJV)

But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear. Isaiah 59:2 (NKJV)

Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" Acts 2:37 (NKJV)

We must realize that we cannot earn our salvation and that only Christ can grant salvation:

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 (NKJV)

Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. Acts 4:12 (NKJV)

We must recognize that even though it is a gift, salvation will only be given to those who obey God:

And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him. Hebrews 5:9 (NKJV)

If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me. John 14:23-24 If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love. John 15:10 (NKJV)

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. Many will say to Me in that day, "Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?" And then I will declare to them, "I never know you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!" Matthew 7:21-23 (NKJV)

And to give you who are troubled rest with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Thessalonians 1:7-8 (NKJV)

We must respond to God's offer of grace and mercy by hearing His word and having a working faith that causes us to obey Him.

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. John 3:16 (NKJV)

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. Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV)

So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:17 (NKJV)

But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." And he was called the friend of God. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only. Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way? For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. James 2:20-26 (NKJV)

We must repent or turn from our sins:

I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. Luke 13:3 (NKJV)

Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent. Acts 17:30 (NKJV)

We must confess the name of Christ before men:

Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven. Matthew 10:32-33 (NKJV)

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. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Romans 10:9-10 (NKJV)

We must baptized to wash away or remit our sins:

Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Acts 2:37-38 (NKJV)

Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord. Acts 22:16 (NKJV)

Baptism into Christ is a process where the old man dies and a new man is risen. It is a spiritual birth in which we are put "into Christ Jesus". We become children of God by the process of "putting on Christ":

Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. John 3:5 (NKJV)

Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. Romans 6:3-4 (NKJV)

For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. Galatians 3:26-27 (NKJV)

We are baptized into Christ Jesus, and His body is the church; therefore we are baptized into the church. God automatically adds the saved people to His church:

And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body.
Ephesians 1:22-23 (NKJV)

And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.
Acts 2:47 (NKJV)

Putting it all together... examples of conversions:

The Ethiopian eunuch heard the word, confessed his belief on Jesus, and was baptized.

And behold, a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace the queen of the Ethiopians, who had charge of all her treasury, and had come to Jerusalem to worship, was returning. And sitting in his chariot, he was reading Isaiah the prophet. Then the Spirit said to Philip, "Go near and overtake this chariot." So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, "Do you understand what you are reading?" And he said, "How can I, unless someone guides me?" And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him. The place in the Scripture which he read was this: "He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; And as a lamb before its shearer is silent, So He opened not His mouth. In His humiliation His justice was taken away, And who will declare His generation? For His life is taken from the earth." So the eunuch answered Philip and said, "I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?" Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him. (HEARD) Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, "See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?" Then Philip said, "If you believe with all your heart, you may." And he answered and said, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God." (CONFESSED BELIEF IN JESUS) So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. (BAPTIZED) Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing." Acts 8:27-39 (NKJV)

Paul and Silas were unjustly imprisoned in Philippi and were beaten. They used this opportunity to teach the jailor and his household about Jesus. The jailor had a working faith that lead him to listen and obey. As a result, he repented and was baptized.

But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone's chains were loosed. And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself. But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, "Do yourself no harm, for we are all here." Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. And he brought them out and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" So they said, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household." (BELIEF, BUT WHAT KIND? - READ ON TO FIND OUT) Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. (HEARD) And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes. (EVIDENCE OF REPENTANCE) And immediately he and all his family were baptized. (BAPTIZED) Now when he had brought them into his house, he set food before them (EVIDENCE OF REPENTANCE); and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household. (BELIEVED IN GOD) Acts 16:25-34 (NKJV)

The jailor's working faith led him to bring Paul and Silas to his household. The working faith of he and all his household led them to obey. Had the jailor not believed, he and his household would have never obeyed the commands to repent and be baptized. Their faith thusly saved them.

Once a child of God, our temptations do not magically go away. We must keep on walking in the light, confessing our sins, and living faithfully in obedience to Christ:

But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:7-9 (NKJV)

Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.
Revelation 2:10 (NKJV)

Do you want be sure you are saved? Have you done what God's word says, or did you do something different or nothing at all? If you have not done the things that God's word says, why not do so today and gain happiness and peace of mind, knowing that you have fully obeyed God and will spend an eternity in heaven with Him.

I'm Not So Sure About This...

Does this sound different from what you have been taught all your life? Don't believe these things just because you found them on the Internet. But then, don't believe what any person tells you, even someone claiming to be a "man of God". People, sincere as they may be, make mistakes. Are you willing to risk your eternal soul on what someone tells you without verifying it? God and Christ will judge us in the last day using God's word. (Acts 17:31, Romans 2:16, Matthew 16:27, James 2:12, Revelation 20:12-15) Open the Bible and study for yourself to find out what is true and what is not.

Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 2 Timothy 2:15 (NKJV)

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