The Assurance of Salvation
“If you died right now, where would you go?”
A couple of weeks ago I had an encounter that made me ask all my close friends this question.
Oftentimes it was met with shock or confusion because “Murewa, nobody is dying!” But it was of great importance to me so I asked them all and made sure the majority of them gave me concrete replies.
Many of my friends were born and brought up in the church, so asking them seemed like a dumb question, but I had to know, I had to be assured, that it really is what it is for every one of us.
For those who may be asking
What is salvation?
Let’s take a deep dive.
Salvation occurs when we believe in Christ’s substitutionary sacrifice on the cross and accept his death, burial and resurrection as a payment for our sins. We believe in his Holy name and his divine power and invite him into our hearts, working in conjunction with the Holy Spirit to live sanctified lives.
Oftentimes as believers, we may get swayed and begin to doubt our salvation and its efficacy. Forgetting that our works do not make us sanctified but the Holy Spirit is the one who helps us live victorious lives in redemption.
Too much English!
Let me illustrate the above paragraph using myself as an example.
I was born in the church and I had always known God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. I believed in him and always prayed to him, but I didn’t know Jesus as my Saviour.
By the time I became conscious and aware of my shortcomings as an individual, and I began to realise that these shortcomings were sins, I understood my need for a Saviour and asked Jesus to come into my heart.
The problem is that over the course of 5 years, I asked Jesus to come into my heart more than 100 times. There was a particular time I prayed the Salvation prayer virtually every week.
I had given my life to Christ and I was saved, but I was not assured of my salvation. My sins were too many and very recurrent, how could God accept me as a valid Christian in that state?
So every week, I’d go out for the altar call hoping that it would be my last.
Maybe your experience isn’t similar to mine, but you deep what I’m saying.
Sometimes it feels like God doesn’t hear you.
Sometimes it feels like God loves everybody but you.
Or maybe you think that God is punishing you, so you have a relationship with him, but it’s a painful one.
The whole point of this write-up is that all your doubts, all those voices in your head. They are all lies that the devil feeds us to get us out of enjoying the best relationship we can ever have in this life — a relationship with our Maker.
Once you receive Christ into your heart you are a new creature. Your old sins are not inputted to you and you are free to walk in newness of life. Jesus paid the price once and for all, the cross is the great symbol of our redemption because he shed his blood and his blood covers all our sins, our mistakes, our shortcomings, our insecurities and our failings.
So whenever you feel like you are a sinner and there is something blocking your access to God reaffirm this to yourself.
“Christ has died and has covered my sins. The blood of Jesus has made way for me. I am loved and forgiven by God. Sin has no rule over me because the blood has covered my sins”
You can tweak this affirmation to suit your unique situation but always remember. There is a cross that has blood, and that blood has paid the price for you and covers all your sins, errors and shortcomings.
When in doubt, always go back to the Bible and seek out God’s promises to you. He loves you and wants you to live free from the shame and guilt that come with sin.
