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Salvation refers to a person’s being saved before God, which includes being forgiven of his sins, being spared from perdition, being regenerated, having the eternal life of God, and becoming a child of God.
1) “He who believes and is baptized shall be saved” (Mark 16:16). This word was spoken by the Lord Jesus Himself.
2) “For, Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Rom. 10:13). This is the sure word of the Apostle Paul.
The two statements above prove that once a person believes and is baptized, calling upon the name of the Lord, he is immediately saved. This fact should be recognized and acknowledged immediately without dependence on human feelings.
3) “He who hears My word and believes Him [the heavenly Father] who sent Me has eternal life, and will not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life” (John 5:24). The Lord Jesus said this to us with full assurance.
4) “He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life. I write these things to you that you may know that you have eternal life, to you who believe in the name of the Son of God” (1 John 5:12-13). This is a word testified by the Apostle John.
The two portions of Scripture above prove that once a person believes in the heavenly Father and believes into the name of the Son of God (the Lord Jesus Christ), he has eternal life (that is, the life of God). He will not come into judgment and perish, but has passed out of death into life. A person is saved in this way to have the life of God based on what the Bible says and not on his own feelings.
5) “But as many as received Him [the Lord Jesus Christ], to them He gave authority to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born…of God” (John 1:12-13). This is also a word testified by the Apostle John, indicating that the Lord Jesus gives to those who receive Him by faith, that is, to those who believe into His name, the authority to become children of God. This authority is the life of God, enabling those who believe into the Lord Jesus to be born of God, that is, to be regenerated to become children of God. This is also proven by the words of the Bible and not determined by human feelings.
The words in the Bible are trustworthy and can never be changed or annulled. Human feelings will fluctuate according to mood and environment and are undependable. Since the Bible clearly states that a person is saved upon believing in the Lord Jesus, this fact is then established regardless of human feeling. We should stand on the trustworthy words of the Bible and disregard our fluctuating feelings, believing strongly and knowing with assurance that we have been saved.
1) “The Spirit Himself [the Holy Spirit of God] witnesses with our spirit that we are the children of God” (Rom. 8:16).
When we believe in the Lord Jesus, receiving Him as our Savior, God gives His Holy Spirit to us, putting the Spirit into our spirit (Ezek. 36:27). This Holy Spirit is in us to be with us eternally (John 14:17). He witnesses in our spirit that we are the children of God, who are born of God. Every one of us who believes in the Lord likes to address God as “Abba, Father” (Rom. 8:15). It is very natural for us to address God as “Abba, Father.” As we address God in this way, we feel sweet and comfortable within. This is because we are children who are born of God, with God’s life, and the Spirit of God’s Son has entered into us. This is the inward proof of our salvation.
1) “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been begotten of God, and everyone who loves Him who begets, loves him who has been begotten of Him” (1 John 5:1).
Once we believe that Jesus is the Christ, we are born of God. God is love (1 John 4:16), and the life of God is also the life of love. Therefore, everyone who is begotten of God loves God and loves him who has been begotten of God, him who is a brother in the Lord.
2) “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers” (1 John 3:14).
This word states that, as believers, our love for the brothers in the Lord is a proof that we have God’s eternal life. Loving the brothers in the Lord is an experience in the eternal life of God after we have believed in the Lord to be saved. There is an inexplainable joy and feeling of dearness when a saved person sees a brother in the Lord. This kind of love toward a brother in the Lord is also a proof for us to know that we have been saved. It can be called the proof of love, the proof of our experience in the life of God.
Therefore, whether it is by the definite word of the Bible, by the witnessing of the Holy Spirit in our spirit, or by our experience of love in life, we may know assuredly that we are saved. Furthermore, the salvation that we have received is an eternal salvation (Heb. 5:9). Once we have received this salvation, we shall by no means perish forever, and no one can snatch us out of the Lord’s and the heavenly Father’s hands (John 10:28-29).
1) “The joy of…salvation” (Psa. 51:12); “songs of deliverance” (Psa. 32:7).
Salvation is a joyful matter, and God’s salvation brings us joy. Therefore, when we are saved, and especially when we know that we have been saved, joy will flood us and we will overflow with songs of salvation, singing forth the joy of salvation. This kind of joyful singing will spontaneously arouse our gratitude and adoration toward the very God who loves us and the very Lord who saves us.
2) “Behold, God is my salvation…and my song… Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation” (Isa. 12:2-3).
When we are saved and have obtained God’s salvation, we will not only sing for joy, but we will also draw water out of the wells of His salvation, receiving from them a continuous and endless supply. This becomes the very encouragement and strength to us Christians that we may be delivered from sins and lusts and overcome the Devil and the world.
