How To Know If You're Saved

HOW TO KNOW IF YOU ARE SAVED

Assurance of salvation is being sure that you are saved and going to Heaven. Eternal security is an important part of assurance, because it is knowing that you are saved forever, and will never lose your salvation. The Bible teaches that we can know with absolute certainty that we are saved, and that we will never lose our salvation. The epistle of 1 John was written so that we can have assurance of our salvation (1 John 5:13).

The Bible says: “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.” - 1 John 5:13.

Tragically, there are many who have a false assurance of salvation. That is, they think they are saved, but they are not. Jesus said: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’” - Matthew 7:21–23.

Many well-meaning preachers rush people into repeating a prayer without any time to count the cost, or to search their heart. They simply say “repeat this prayer after me” or “just accept Jesus”. But we are not saved by half-heartedly repeating words or just “accepting” Jesus. We need to sincerely repent and place our trust in Jesus. Faith must be sincere, and it must be a repentant faith. Saving faith is a repentant faith that submits to Christ as Lord. We need to be willing to follow Jesus even if it costs us our freedom or our life.

If someone says “I have faith”, but there is no evidence in their life, then their faith is dead and not real. As it says in the Bible, “For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.” -James 2:26. To be sure, we are saved by grace alone, not by works (Ephesians 2:8–9). We are saved by what Christ has done for us, not by keeping the law (Galatians 2:16). But true faith will result in the fruits of the Holy Spirit in our life. True faith will have evidence that it is real.

So how can we know with certainty that we are truly saved, and will never lose our salvation?

There are 2 main ways that we can know that our faith is real and that we are saved:

1. Have you sincerely repented and received Jesus as your Savior and Lord? The Bible says: “for “Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.” - Romans 10:13.

2. Are there evidences in your life that you have the Holy Spirit within you? The Bible says: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. “ - Galatians 5:22–23.

First, have you sincerely turned from your sins and asked Jesus to forgive you and to be Lord of your life? The Bible says that if we sincerely call on the name of the Lord to save us, we will be saved (Romans 10:13). The moment we truly repent and receive Jesus, we can know that He has saved us. It's not our repentance and faith that save us, but the grace of God that saves us, because of what Jesus has done for us. Repentance and faith are the channel through which we receive God's grace. If you have sincerely placed your trust in Jesus, you can be sure that God saved you, just as He has promised He would.

Secondly, there will also be ongoing evidences in our life that we are saved, and that we have the Holy Spirit within us. The late John MacArthur said in an interview, that four ways we know we are saved are: Love, Humility, Obedience, and Perseverance. [1]

1. Love: What do you love? Do you love God? Do you love His word? Do you love other Christians? If we have the Holy Spirit in us, we will love God and reject the things of the world. (Galatians 5:22-23, Mark 12:30, 1 John 4:21).

2. Humility: Do you know in your heart that you are a sinner who was saved by God's grace, and are you truly thankful to God for His grace towards you, even though you were unworthy? Humility is another mark of a saved person. (James 4:6, Colossians 3:12).

3. Obedience: Do you have a strong desire to obey God out of thankfulness for all He has done for you? Do you see an increasing pattern of obedient living, and a decreasing pattern of sin? Are you sensitive to sin in your life? These are all evidences that you have the Holy Spirit in your heart. (1 John 2:3, 2 Corinthians 5:17).

4. Perseverance: When difficulties and trials come into our life, and we still keep our faith in Jesus, this proves the genuineness of our faith (James 1:12, 1 Peter 1:6-7). If we give up, and walk away from God, and return to the world, that shows that we didn't have saving faith (1 John 2:19). Saving faith perseveres. A Christian may temporarily backslide, but will never fall away totally and finally. A sheep will always return to his Shepherd.

The Bible says: “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” - 2 Corinthians 5:17. The Bible also says: “By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments.” - 1 John 2:3. Do you see these evidences in your life in increasing measure? Do you see spiritual growth in your life?

Before we were saved, our life was characterized by a habitual pattern of sinful living. But after we are saved, a new pattern of obedience begins to take place. If there is no change in a person’s life, and they go on living in a habitual pattern of sinful living, they were never truly saved (1 John 3:9). We will not be perfect until we get to Heaven, however, because Christians still stumble and sin sometimes (1 John 1:8). This is because we still struggle against the remnants of our old sinful nature. When a Christian sins, we don’t lose our salvation. God is our Heavenly Father forever, because Jesus eternally intercedes for us as our Advocate, and He is the propitiation for our sins (1 John 2:1–2). Propitiation means that Jesus’ sacrifice satisfied God’s holy wrath and justice against our sins. All of our sins have been paid for: past, present, and future. When a Christian sins, it causes us to temporarily be out of fellowship with our Heavenly Father, until we confess and repent of it, then we are back in fellowship with our Heavenly Father (1 John 1:9). So sin affects fellowship, but not relationship.

Pastor John MacArthur used to say, “It’s not the perfection of your life, but the direction of your life that shows you’re saved”. [2] What is the overall direction of your life? It it towards God, or is it characterized by a love for the world and sinful living? It’s not that Christians are perfect, but the Christian is at war with our sin (Romans 8:12–13). Unbelievers enjoy their sin and settle down into it and enjoy it. The Bible says if you love the world, the love of the Father is not in you (1 John 2:15). But if we love God and the things of God, that is evidence that we have the Holy Spirit. Also, if we are led by the Spirit, that is evidence the Holy Spirit is within us. “For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.” - Romans 8:14.

A Christian never has to worry about losing our salvation, because all of our sins were paid for on the cross, and no one can snatch us out of God’s hand (Colossians 2:14, John 10:27–29). Jesus said: “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.” - John 5:24. How long is eternal life? It is eternal, it lasts forever. Just as a baby who’s been born can never be unborn, so our spiritual birth will never be undone either. The Bible says that when we believe in Jesus, God places His seal of ownership on us, and that the Holy Spirit is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance (Ephesians 1:13–14). The Bible says that we have an inheritance which is imperishable, and will never fade away, and that we are shielded by God’s power (1 Peter 1:4–5). The Bible also says: “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” - Philippians 1:6. What God has begun in us, He will carry on to completion. We can never keep ourselves saved, because salvation is by God's grace, not by our efforts. It is God who keeps us saved by His grace and power, because of what Jesus has done for us.

When we are saved, we are justified, which means that we are made right with God, based on the work of Christ. Then throughout the rest of our life, the Holy Spirit transforms us more and more into the likeness of Christ. This is called sanctification. And finally in Heaven, we will be perfected by the power of the Holy Spirit. This is called glorification. So the process of salvation goes: justification>sanctification>glorification (Romans 8:30). We were saved from the penalty of sin, we are being saved from the power of sin, and we will finally be saved from the very presence of sin. What God begins in us, He carries on to completion (Philippians 1:6).

The fact that we can know for sure that we are saved, does not make us want to sin more, but rather we sin less. This is because we are thankful to Jesus for saving us, and because we have placed our trust in Jesus as our Lord (Master). Jesus has set us free from our bondage to sin, and we now have the freedom to follow and obey Him. Jesus not only saves us from Hell, but He also saves us to make us godly. Knowing what Jesus has done for us causes us to want to obey Him out of thankfulness for all that He has done, and we gladly follow Him as Lord because we love Jesus and want to please Him. We are looking forward to spending eternity with God in Heaven. The reward of Heaven is the treasure that we desire, casting all the rubbish of this sinful world behind us. Sin brings temporary pleasure, but in the end it brings death. Following Jesus brings life and peace, and eternal pleasures at His right hand in Heaven.

If you are not sure if you are saved, you can make sure that you are saved today. Sincerely decide to turn away from your sins to follow Jesus (Repent), and sincerely ask Jesus to forgive you and to be Lord (King) of your life. Trust in what Jesus has done for you to save you, not your works. If you are sincere, Jesus will come into your heart, save you, forgive you, and give you eternal life. Then you will be a child of God forever. We are saved by what Jesus has done for us on the cross, not by our works. The Bible says: "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one my boast." - Ephesians 2:8-9. Grace means "unmerited favor". We don't deserve to be saved, but God graciously saves us when we place our trust in Jesus and what He has done for us. And God will keep us saved forever by His grace and power. Once you are saved, your salvation is eternally secure (John 5:24). This wonderful truth causes us to want to obey God out of thankfulness to Him for all He has done for us.

John MacArthur wrote a great book on this subject, titled "Saved Without A Doubt".

[1]. YouTube: John MacArthur- How Do I Know If I'm Really Saved?

[2]. YouTube: John MacArthur- How Do I Know If I'm Really Saved?

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