One of the greatest allegories of the Christian life is Pilgrim’s Progress. In it, John Bunyan deals with nearly every aspect of Christianity, including assurance of salvation. In fact, Bunyan ends his book in a most unusual fashion with the story of one named Ignorance.
Ignorance had met Christian and Hopeful earlier in the story. There they tried to converse with him about the nature of true faith and the need to examine himself honestly. But Ignorance would not listen to them. After Christian and Hopeful receive a grand entrance to the Celestial City, Bunyan turns the reader’s attention back to the character of Ignorance. Rather than cross the River of Death as do the others, Ignorance finds a ferry-man named Vain-Hope to take him across the River. When he reaches the gate of the city, he expects to be granted entrance, but he is denied. In fact, the King commands two shining ones to bind him hand and foot, carry him to a door in the side of the hill, and put him in it. Then Bunyan ends with the most solemn of warnings: “Then I saw that there was a Way to Hell, even from the Gates of Heaven….”
Assurance of eternal life is important. Jesus reminded His disciples that on the last day, “many will say unto me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ but I will say to them, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, ye workers of iniquity.” Obviously many will experience the same surprise that Ignorance received when he discovered “that there was a Way to Hell, even from the Gates of Heaven.”
However, God has given us evidences in His Word by which we may know if we are really His children. Many of the passages on assurance point to the fact that a believer is one in whom God has placed His life. Those who are indwelt by the Spirit have the “seed” of God in them. They are “partakers” of His life and, as a result, are changed. (See 1 John 3:9; 2 Peter 1:4; 2 Corinthians 5:17; 13:5; Romans 8:9). But what are the evidences of this change?
1 John has been written for just such a purpose. In 1 John 5:13, John states his purpose in writing: “These things have been written to you who believe, that you might know you have eternal life.” Notice he is writing to believers who need assurance. Throughout his epistle, he frequently makes statements like “by this we know that we are the children of God….” These are clues to evidences of eternal life. They are written to help believers have assurance. As we examine them, please examine yourself honestly to see if you are really in the faith.
To facilitate understand, we’ve called these evidences of eternal life “vital signs.” In the medical field, one’s physical condition is often monitored by the use of vital signs. Whenever an unconscious body is discovered, the first things examined are the vital signs to discover if the person is alive. In a similar fashion, the Bible gives us spiritual vital signs to help us have assurance that we are alive spiritually.
Before we look at these, let’s consider a few important facts about vital signs. First, vital signs are indicators; they do not cause or create anything. They only report the person’s condition. This is especially important when we speak about spiritual vital signs. They do not “make” anyone a Christian. Instead, those who have been born again by the Spirit of God have been made alive and therefore have these signs.
Second, they are accurate. They leave little doubt as to the physical condition of the person. As you examine the vital signs in your own spiritual life, do not fool yourself into thinking that you are on your way to heaven if the signs are absent. Just as a person whose vital signs are absent is physically dead, you are dead spiritually and need to be born again if these signs are not present.
Third, they are all necessary and related. Can you imagine a doctor arguing with his nurse: “I know there is no pulse, blood pressure or respiration, but I’m sure he’s alive because his temperature is not bad.” The body may have a temperature because it has recently expired — but it is still dead! Don’t use the vital signs as a checklist and conclude that you’ve got one vital sign so you must be okay. All the signs must be present for assurance of eternal life.
Finally, let me give you one important caution when examining the vital signs: You need to look to see if they are PRESENT not to see if they are PREFECT. Can you imagine someone discovering he had a high temp or high blood pressure and pronouncing, “I guess I’m dead after all”? In the same way, you need to look for the presence of these signs, not for perfection in them. However, should you find an area that is weak, this should be a warning that shows that, though you are alive spiritually, you are in ill health and need to take some corrective measures.
1. A Love of Fellowship with Believers. According to 1 John 1:6-7, believers have 2 basic characteristics: they are forgiven and they fellowship. Those who profess to the followers of Christ that do not enjoy fellowship with other believers are to be held in suspect. The new nature of the believer leads him to desire to e with his brothers and sisters in Christ. Also consider 1 John 2:9-11; 3:10-5; and 4:20-21. Each of these passages indicates that believers fellowship.
In the case of John Bunyan’s Ignorance, unlike Hopeful and Christian, he “prefers to walk alone.” I would be deeply concerned about my salvation if I called myself a Christian and did not desire to be with other Christians. One vital sign of spiritual life is a new desire to be with other believers.
2. A Deep Awareness of Sin. According to 1 John 1:8-10, another vital sign of faith is the awareness and admission of sin in our lives. Often believers are criticized as those who think they are sinless. However, a mark of true faith is that we come to acknowledge the fulness of our sin and flee to Christ. John makes it quite clear — those who say they have not sinned are simply liars. Believers sin, but they honestly admit their sin. In contrast, non-believers are always denying their sin, or minimizing it rather than confessing it.
Therefore, one good sign of God’s work in our lives is admission of sin. John Owen noted that he did not know any believer to whom sin was not a burden and a sorrow. Richard Baxter said: “I think, if I could stand and mention all the other marks of grace…, it would appear that the truth and life of all of them lieth in this one.” The difference is clear: Non-believers leap into sin and love it; believers lapse into sin and loathe it.
3. A Lifestyle of Willing Obedience. In 1 John 2:3-4, the lifestyle of the believer is contrasted with non-believers. At first glance, it would appear that John is requiring sinless perfection. 1 John 2:29, 3:4-6, and 5:2 seem to echo the same. However, an examination of the context (especially 1:8-10) and the grammar (the use of a present tense verb indicating continuing action) obviously lead to another conclusion. The passage is best translated with the idea that believers do not live lifestyles of habitual disobedience.
In fact, Paul’s experience in Romans 7 indicates the struggle in believers. We are not sinless, but struggle with sin and desire to be free from it. Such is not the desire of non-believers. They may desire to be free from the consequences of their sin, but they would like to hold on to the sin itself. True believers cry with the Apostle: “For what I want to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do.” Believers do sin, but they deeply desire to be obedient and pleasing to God.
Be careful, at this point, not to delude yourself about your attitude toward your sin. Does it really cause you grief? Do you really desire to be free and obedient or do you just claim such a desire when it really is not present? Be honest at this point — remember, a false assurance is worse than no assurance at all.
4. A Witness of the Spirit Within. John speaks of this vital sign in two places: 3:24 and 4:13. Paul speaks often of the witness of the Spirit (see Romans 8:9, 16). What is this “witness” of the Spirit? It is not an emotional experience or certain spiritual gifts. The witness of the Spirit may be measured in many ways but here are a few of the most obvious.
In Romans 8:15, Paul says, “For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, ‘Abba, Father.'” One mark of this witness is that we are now drawn to God and we cry out to Him as our Father. In Romans 8:14, we read, “As many as are lead by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God.” This may indicate that believers are guided by God, but it most certainly indicated that they willingly follow His guidance. Jesus also mentioned this as a characteristic of believers in John 10:3-5, 27-30. The Spirit not only gives guidance but more importantly leads us to follow the direction of the Lord.
In I Corinthians 2:12-14, we learn that a mark of a believer is a fresh understanding of the Scriptures. The natural man cannot understand these things “because they are spiritually discerned.” However, one mark of the work of the Spirit in a believer is that the Bible and the gospel which were once mysteries to him now make perfect sense.
In Ephesians 4:30, another witness of the Spirit is noted. When a believer sins, the Spirit is grieved. According to Galatians 5:22-23, another mark of the presence of the Spirit in our lives is the fruit He is producing. There are other ways to examine the witness of the Spirit in our lives, but these are a few to get you started.
5. A Hunger for God’s Word. This is one vital sign John does not directly spell out, but other passages indicate that this is the nature of a true believer. In 1 John 4:6, John indicates that those who are truly believers listens to the teaching of God’s Word. Such was the response of new believers in Acts 2:42. Peter also indicates that new believers “desire the pure milk of the Word” (1 Peter 2:2-3). Those who say that they love God but have not an appetite for God’s Word are only fooling themselves.
6. A Willing Confession of Christ. 1 John 2:19 states: “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.” Here, John gives a couple of evidences. One is the issue of perseverence which we will examine in another article. The other evidence is identification with Christ. Anyone who claims to be a follower of Jesus who does not openly identify with Him is to be held suspect.
Jesus said the same: “whoever is ashamed of Me and My Words … of him also will the Son of Man be ashamed…” (Mark 8:38). The Apostle Paul echoes the importance of open identification with Jesus: “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.” Are you unwilling to be known as His? Are you unwilling to be identified with Him? Those who truly believe “cannot help be speak the things which we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20).
These are some evidences that you are a child of God. Would you honestly examine yourself by them? As you do, let me leave you with two cautions and one warning.
Two Cautions
1. Beware of Impatience. In 1 John 3:9, God’s life in us is described as His “seed” in us. The analogy refers to the seed of the male bringing about conception, but the similarities to a seed planted in the ground are also helpful. In both cases (the baby and the plant), one must give the seed time to grow before all the evidences of life are clear. If you are a new believer, you should expect to see some evidence of God’s life in your life. However, just as one would not plant a seed one day and uproot it the next because it did not bear fruit, so you must be especially patient with new believers and allow time for the evidence of life to grow.
2. Beware of Perfection. As we mentioned at the outset of this article, you need to look for EVIDENCE not for PERFECTION when examining these vital signs. Matthew Henry notes that the Holy Spirit usually changes the “affections and the attitudes” before He changes the “actions.”
One Warning
Beware of Presumption. Don’t take for granted that you are a believer just because you made a decision, had a religious experience or are a member of a church. You must “examine yourself to see if you are in the faith” (2 Corinthians 13:5). Many have thought themselves to be saved only to discover that there really was no life in them.
Such was the case with John Wesley. In his days at Oxford, Wesley was very serious about religion. Along with Whitefield and his brother, Charles, he formed a group that met together that was so pious that they were scornfully called “the Holy Club.” Wesley even felt the call to missions and went to preach to the Indians in Georgia. His experience there only led him to realize that he lacked the life about which he preached. He left dejected saying, “I came to convert the heathen, but who shall convert me.”
On the ship home to England, he met a German Moravian pastor who quizzed Wesley about his salvation: “Does the Spirit of God bear witness with your spirit that you are a child of God?” Surprised, Wesley could not answer. “Do you know Jesus?” the Moravian persisted. “I know He is the Savior of the world,” Wesley replied. “True, but has He saved you?” the German queried. Wesley responded, “I hope He has died to save me.” “Do you know yourself?” the pastor pressed. “I do,” Wesley affirmed, but later added in his journal, “I fear they were vain words.”
Wesley knew that something was missing in his life but he was not about the let the Moravian know his plight. Upon his return to England, John Wesley really “heard” the gospel and became a new creature in Christ. But many in their presumption are never honest about their condition as was Wesley. They live their entire lives confident that they will enter into heaven though the evidence of their life indicates otherwise. If this is your condition, you, like Ignorance, will learn that there is “a way to hell even from the Gates of Heaven.”
Copyright Jim Ehrhard, 1999. You are permitted to reproduce and distribute this material in any format provided that: (1) you credit the author; (2) any modifications are clearly marked; (3) you do not charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction; and (4) you do not make more than 100 copies without permission. If you would like to post this material to your web site or make any use other than as defined above, please contact Teaching Resources International
Teaching Resources International 