Lesson 2: Faith that Knows for Sure
Purpose: to show the disciple how he can be certain that he is
a Christian and that his salvation is eternally secure,
thereby freeing him to go on to maturity in Christ
Objectives:
1. to discover and define the disciple's view of salvation
2. to show the disciple that salvation gives eternal life
3. to show that security of salvation rests in God's immutability
4. to show God's faithfulness in keeping us in Christ after salvation
5. to list some of the evidences of salvation in our lives
Introduction: Last time we discussed God's love, mercy, and grace.
We saw that His goodness led Him to send
His Son to bring us forgiveness. This time we're going to discuss how
we can know we have salvation and how we
can be certain we cannot lose this salvation. And once again, we'll
see that our security rests not in our goodness,
but in God's goodness, in his attributes of eternalness and immutability.
Q. On the basis of
what we have talked about so far, what are some truths that a person ought
to understand in order to
become a Christian?
[This should be a good opportunity for your group to review.]
A. A person should understand:
1. ...who God is.
2. ...what sin is.
3. ...that he is a sinner.
4. ...that because he is a sinner, he deserves God's judgment.
5. ...that Christ took God's judgment in his place.
6. ...that he must turn from his sin to Christ, thus accepting God's provision for our sins.
7. ...that he must believe that God has done what He promised.
Read John 17:1-3
Q. Once you have become a Christian, what does the Bible say that you have?
A. Eternal life
Q. What is eternal life?
A. To know the
only true God and His Son Jesus Christ. "To know" here indicates an intimate
personal
relationship
with God, in which we actually come to share His quality of life. This
relationshi p will last
forever.
Q. When do we begin to experience eternal life?
A. When we come to know Christ personally and, through Him to know God.
Q. Have you personally received eternal life?
A. [Answer should
be yes. Read John 5:24 to confirm his or her answer. If the person has
not
received Christ
as yet, review the truths listed at the first of this lesson.]
In our past discussions we saw how the attributes
of God's holiness, love, mercy, and grace affect our relationship
with Him. Now we see how another of His
attributes affects our lives. God is eternal; and since He is eternal and
He has shared His life with us through
His Son, we have the opportunity to experience eternal life.
Read Exodus 3:4
Q. What does God's name "I AM that I AM" tell us about God?
A. It tells us that He is in a constant state of being, with no beginning and no end (see also Psalm 90:2).
Read John 3:16
Q. How do you know you can trust God's promise to forgive you, save you, and give you eternal life?
A. God is true to His word (cf. Hebrews 6:13-20).
Read Acts 2:38-39
Q. How do we come to God according to verse 39?
A. By God's calling.
Read Romans 11:29
Q. Can God change His mind about your calling?
A. No.
Here we see one of the main reasons the
believer is secure in His relationship with God. God is immutable (see
Malachi 3:6); that is, He does not change.
Change implies inconsistency for whatever reason. God is immutable in
that He always acts in accordance with
His unchanging and perfect character (Jeremiah 18:7-10). This means that
He will never change His mind concerning
whom He calls.
Read Ephesians 1:13
Q. What has God done for us by giving us the Holy Spirit?
A. He has sealed us in Him.
Q. What does Paul mean when he says we are Sealed?
A. When a king's
seal was placed upon something in Christ's time, the contract or promise
was final
and could not
be changed. Thus, when God sealed us in Christ, the relationship between
Him and us
was finalized
and could never be broken.
Read 1 Corinthians 1:9; 1 Thessalonians 5:24; and 2 Thessalonians 3:3
Q. What word is used in each passage to describe God's promise to keep us in His Son?
A. His faithfulness.
God does not stop working in our lives when
He saves us; in fact, His work in us has just begun. And because God
is faithful to work in our lives, He will
protect us and keep us in a relationship with Him forever. If it were up
to us to
keep ourselves there, we would be in real
trouble.
But how can we be sure we were really saved?
That we really entered that relationship in the first place? Let's look
at two ways we can know we have entered
a relationship with Jesus Christ.
Read Romans 8:14-16
Q. How does this verse say the Holy Spirit lets us know we're God's children (vs. 16)?
A. By bearing
witness with our spirit. This witness is eternal. Through the Spirit's
continual, internal
confirmation
you can know that God has saved you.
Q. What does this mean?
A. It means that
you will have a deep down sense that you are a child of God, but it does
not mean you
will have an
emotional "lightning bolt" experience or feeling.
Thus, the first way to know if we are believers
is the internal confirmation of the Spirit. The second is the external
changes produced by the Holy Spirit. The
first epistle of John describes some of the changes we can look for in
our
lives if we have truly come to know Christ
personally.
Read 1 John 5:11-13
Q. What does God want us to know for certain?
A. That we have eternal life. He wants us to "know so" and not "hope so."
Read 1 John 2:3-6
Q. What evidence does John give to indicated we have come to know Christ?
A. Obedience
to Christ. If we have come to know Him, we should have a new desire to
know God's
will and to
obey it.
Q. Have you experienced
a new desire to know and follow God's will since you became a Christian?
how has this
expressed itself?
A. [Let them respond.]
Read 1 John 3:19-21
Q. What is another evidence that we have begun a relationship with Christ?
A. Love for God and for each other.
Q. Have you experienced
a new love for others and for God since trusting in Christ for salvation?
Give
some examples
from your life.
A. [Let them answer.]
Read 1 John 2:15-17
Q. What additional result will love for God have in our lives?
A. A separation
from the world and the things of the world which stand in opposition to
God. Love for
God and love
for worldly things are mutually exclusive.
Q. Have you experienced
a lessening of your love for worldly things and a deepening of your love
for
God since you
accepted Christ? What has this looked like in your life?
A. [Let them respond.]
Read 1 John 5:1,5
Q. What other evidence is listed in these verses which indicates we have been born again?
A. Faith in Jesus Christ.
Q. Have you found
yourself praying more in your struggles since turning from sin to Christ?
Or have
you noticed
any other signs of fait h and trust in Him? Give some examples.
A. [Let them respond.]
A person whose life has begun to be changed
by Christ in these ways can be certain that he or she has come to
know God. Scripture also lists many other
evidences of lives renewed by the Holy Spirit. The true believer will begin
to love God and others. He will have a
new desire to obey God. He will demonstrate faith in Jesus Christ.
Read Philippians 1:6
Q. What has God promised to do?
A. Finish the work He has begun in us.
All these qualities of faith, love, and
obedience may not be perfect in us at this moment, but God has promised
to
perfect these qualities which He has begun
to work in us. What is important to determine is whether or not this
process has begun. Only when a person does
not see any of these changes beginning should he consider
reevaluating if he has ever truly repented
from sin and trusted Christ for salvation. But if we just begin to see
our
attitudes improving, we have a basis for
knowing that we are Christians and thus eternally secure in Christ.
Q. Do you have any doubts concerning whether
or not you are a Christian or whether or not you can lose your
salvation?
A. [Let them answer. If they do have-doubts,
go back to the Scriptures listed in this lesson and remind them of what
God has promised. Explain that assurance of
one's salvation comes only from trusting God's faithfulness; it never
comes from conjuring up an emotional feeling.
If he knows that he has repented of his sin and is trusting Christ alone
for his salvation; he is saved. He can base
that knowledge on God's word and God's character.]
Assignment: Write down what you learn about God and yourself from Romans 8.