By David J. Stewart
Luke 10:20, “Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.”
Our dear Lord Jesus taught us to rejoice at all times because our
name is written in Heaven. Even in the face of tragedy, inexplicable mental
anguish and personal suffering, there is always joy in knowing that one's
name is written in the Lamb's Book Of Life.
Next to my salvation, the greatest blessing in my life is knowing that I am saved. When I received Jesus as my Savior at age 13, I battled doubts about my salvation for the next 7 years. Finally, at age 20, the Lord gave me the sweet blessed assurance that only comes from understanding the teachings of the Word of God. I was simply ignorant of how salvation worked, and it scared me. I was afraid of the unknown. My doubts were based upon worries over whether I had enough faith, or did I miss something, or what if this and what if that?
The one great truth that I needed to learn was that we are saved by HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, that is, God's righteousness by faith in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:9, “And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.” Whew, that's good stuff! Amen!
I've heard sincere and well-meaning preachers conclude that a person who has doubts about their salvation must not be saved. So they lead that confused person in a sinner's prayer, and then tell the person that they're insulting God if they question God's promises.
Starting Over
(“We all have to start over once and a while!”)
—quote from the sermon,
STARTING OVER by
Pastor Danny Castle!!!
“Too many people let the
failures of yesterday and the fears of tomorrow rob them of the
joy of serving God today!”
—quote from the sermon,
STARTING OVER by
Pastor Danny Castle!!!
“The way to be where you ought to be tomorrow is to do what you ought to do today!” —quote from the sermon, STARTING OVER by Pastor Danny Castle!!!
God has given us all an assigned seat in life. Hope for the best, expect the worst, take what comes, keep your mouth shut and thank God that you're not burning in Hell. If you'll live by that philosophy you can have the victory over your problems in this earthly life. It won't be much sooner my friend, hang in there! JESUS IS COMING SOON! Maybe morning, maybe noon, maybe evening, but He's coming soon!!! Amen! JESUS IS COMING SOON, HALLELUJAH!!! When life gets you down, just remember that if you're a born-again child of God that you're going to Heaven.
Now you cannot have that blessed assurance of you have doubts about your salvation. And as mentioned, don't ever let some ignorant, but well-meaning preacher, tell you that you must not be saved if you don't know you're saved. Nothing could be further from the truth! I doubted my salvation for over 7-long, dreary, years until I had the sweet assurance that only knowledge of the holy Scriptures can give. If you have doubts, I KNOW that it's only because you don't understand how salvation works. You don't have it down pat. Like me you're probably looking to what YOU DID (Did I have enough faith? Did I mean what I said? Did I understand everything the way I was supposed to? What if I did something wrong?... I, I, I).
Salvation is of God alone, in response to our faith in Jesus, the Christ. Salvation is a supernatural miracle of God in response to our faith. We are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus alone. What If I Am Not Saved? (My testimony and 7-year battle with the assurance of salvation). Pray and ask God to help you understand what He expects from you to be saved. You'll find, as I did, that God doesn't expect anything of us except to REST in the finished redemptive work of Christ (Hebrews 4:2), when His precious, literal, physical, blood (1st Peter 1:18-19; Romans 5:9; Revelation 1:5; 1st John 1:7) was SPRINKLED (Hebrews 12:24) upon the heavenly Mercy Seat (Hebrews 9:12) in the presence of God the Father (Hebrews 9:24); just as done year-after-year by the Old Testament highpriest as a foreshadow of things to come (Hebrews 9:6-9).
Redemption was finished, not at the cross; but at the Mercy Seat in Heaven when Jesus' literal, physical, precious, blood was sprinkled upon the Mercy Seat in the presence of God in the Holy Place. You can rejoice in the face of the worst nightmare that life can bring upon you, if you KNOW that you're saved, and you can KNOW for certain... 1st John 5:13, “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.”
