Welcome to the last week of our September series, “Loud Ideas, Quiet Truth,” where we have explored 5 “loud” cultural ideas – widely held beliefs that everyone talks about —and learned how to think about them Biblically. I hope you have seen the quiet truth of the Bible—Scripture’s enduring relevance and stable power to meet the challenges of our loud world.

We haven’t tried to explore each of these wide-ranging topics to their depths, but to just broadly identify the world’s perspective on each idea, and then gone to Scripture to understand it in God-honoring ways and to learn to speak about it confidently and faithfully. I pray that through this series you have really seen how applicable the Bible is for our everyday lives. 

We’ve explored aesthetics, attitude, attention, and approval.

Finally now, we will dive into ASSURANCE. 

We all love guarantees, especially as we get older. When we’re younger I don’t think we worry as much about the “What ifs?” But as we age, our experience has taught us that it’s important to have some promises we can bank on and some safety nets to fall into. That’s why we get insurance, have savings accounts, and love Amazon Prime’s free returns. 

Yet, when it comes to our faith, what kind of assurances do we have? 

If you were to come over to our house for dinner tonight and confess that you were feeling unsure about your faith–maybe worried about the reality of some of God’s promises, doubtful about God’s Word in some way, or nervous because you don’t “feel” like some aspect of your faith is real or that your salvation is true–here’s what I would want you to know:

God wants us to have assurance that our faith, salvation, and his existence are real. That is why he has given us His infallible, inerrant Word to confirm that our hope in Him is well placed and everything we believe is secure. We don’t have to take anyone’s word for it. Scripture is full of reasons, arguments, and proofs so we can know (not guess or blindly hope) that what we believe is real and true. And while the world trusts in self, Scripture calls us to trust in the one, true Almighty God, creator of heaven and earth, who never lies or changes. There is nothing more secure, higher, or better than Him to trust in. So, we don’t need a backup plan, to secretly trust in ourselves, or to live with perpetual doubts about our beliefs. 

(This does not mean that we will never have questions or doubts–we all do at times! I once read that God knows the difference between an honest seeker and a disbelieving scoffer–and it’s so true! So ask, seek, and knock, friends. He will meet you at the door of your worries and questions and invite you into His presence to know Him and His Word in deeper ways than you ever have before. Living with confidence also does not mean that we will always feel equally confident about every single thing we believe. That’s ok, just don’t stay in that place. Pray, study, and pursue answers so that overall, your life reflects confidence in God.)

Most Christian authors and theologians discuss “assurance” within the context of our salvation–that our salvation is sure, we can rest assured. But I want you to have confidence that God has assured us about a lot of things, including our salvation! So, below you will find 5 key topics that Scripture assures us about with verses for you to read and meditate on. Joel Beeke says, 

“If we lack assurance, we should seek it diligently, by the light of God’s Word, and with the help of His Spirit.” 

Therefore, Scripture is what I’ve mostly provided you with here (and if you struggle to trust the Bible for some reason, see the “Inspiration for the Week” section at the end of the Newsletter!). Plus, I’ve included a few ideas for “Further Study” if you want to pursue one of these 5 topics in more detail. 

We can have assurance about the following, according to Scripture:

1. Assurance of the reality of God:

Scripture explains that we all observe God through nature:

Romans 1:20

“For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.”

 Psalm 19:1

“The heavens declare the glory of God,

and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.”

But Scripture explicitly reveals who God is and how we are to relate to Him:

Psalm 103:8-12

The Lord is merciful and gracious,

slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

He will not always chide,

nor will he keep his anger forever.

He does not deal with us according to our sins,

nor repay us according to our iniquities.

For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;

as far as the east is from the west,

so far does he remove our transgressions from us.

And Scripture explains that we definitively know God through Jesus Christ (and all of Scripture points to Christ–Luke 24:27):

John 14:9

“Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?”

Col 1:15 (NIV)

“The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.”

Heb 1:1-3

“Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high…”

Further Study:

Believing that God is real and has revealed Himself to us is the foundation of our faith. Here is a great video about this topic and 11 other foundational beliefs of Christianity. 

2. Assurance of our salvation:

Romans 10:9

“…because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” 

John 20:31

“…but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”

1 John 5:11-13

“And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.” 

Assurance that a true child of God cannot lose his salvation:

John 6:37-40

“Everyone the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will never drive away. For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but to do the will of Him who sent Me. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall lose none of those He has given Me, but raise them up at the last day. For it is My Father’s will that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”

John 10:27-30

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”

For Further Study:

If you struggle with having assurance about your salvation, this is a practical and thoroughly helpful book.

Also, here are three helpful articles:

How can I have assurance of my Salvation?

A Basic Guide to Christian Assurance

Four Distinguishing Characteristics of Christian Assurance

3. Assurance of Heaven:

Acts 7:48-49

“Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands, as the prophet says,

“‘Heaven is my throne,
and the earth is my footstool.”

Hebrews 9:24

“For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.”

Philippians 3:20

“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ…”

For Further study:

Here is a helpful interview video with Lee Strobel and Alisa Childers on the reality of heaven and hell.

4. Assurance that we can know God’s will for our life:

“God’s will” is a big and heavy theological category, but we don’t have to make it complicated. First and foremost, we can begin with the understanding that God wants us to be saved and sanctified (live holy lives):

2 Peter 3:9

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

1 Thess 4:3-7

“For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness.”

For Further Study:

A great book: Walking in God’s Will: Demystify God’s Plan for Your Life and Make Decisions with Confidence by Costi Hinn.

A great video from Costi that dives into 10 things that are God’s Will for every Christian. 

5. Assurance that God will take care of His children:

Matt 6:26 

“Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”

1 Peter 5:7 (NIV)

“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

Philippians 4:19

“And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

For Further Study:

If you are struggling with problems or suffering,  be assured of God’s love and care for you. I’d love for you to read my free resource, The Bible if You’re Hurting and I pray that you are encouraged by God’s Word today! This topic is very dear to my heart, so stay tuned for more resources on this soon!

The enemy will do all that is in his power to erode our confidence in God. Be aware of this tactic. We are supposed to live confident, steady lives assured of God’s work and provision. Choose to cling to the Word of God so you know the promises of God. And walk with assurance!