Command 43 : Be Born Again | Day 301

Be Assured of Your Salvation!

Her eyes were filled with fear and she had suffered a mental breakdown. My goal in talking with her was to identify the cause of her deep distress. During our conversation, she explained that she had trusted Christ as her Savior years earlier but now was terrified by the thought that she had lost her salvation. Over the years, I have spoken with many individuals who have been tormented by such fears until they have understood the threefold aspect of salvation.

There is a salvation of the spirit (see Romans 8:15-16), salvation of the soul (see James 1:21), and salvation of the body (see I Corinthians 15:42-54).

If someone asks us, "Is it possible to lose my salvation?" we must determine, "Are you referring to the salvation of the spirit, soul, or body?" The salvation of the spirit is secure for eternity, because it is based on the new birth into God's family (see Galatians 4:4-6). A son or daughter may do things that displease his or her earthly father, and may need to be disciplined by his or her father, but the children are still members of his family.

The permanence of the salvation of the spirit is also based on the eternal seed that God puts in us when we are born again (see I John 3:9). It is an unbreakable covenant in which God gives us a down payment of the Holy Spirit. “Now he which establisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God; who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts" (II Corinthians 1:21-22; see also Ephesians 1:13-14). It is based on the covenant that God initiated with Abraham and all the sons of Abraham by faith (see Galatians 3:7). In addition to these evidences of the permanence of salvation of the spirit, Jesus promised, “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand” (John 10:28).

The salvation of the soul is a different matter. If we do not walk in obedience to God's Word, we will grieve the Holy Spirit and experience His discipline, “for whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth” (Hebrews 12:6). The person who chooses not to follow God's ways in his soul will experience the consequences of a defeated mind, will, and emotions.

The same is true for the physical body. Sins committed in the body will have physical consequences on earth. For instance, Paul warns that if we do not thoroughly examine ourselves prior to partaking of communion, we will suffer weakness, sickness, and premature death (see I Corinthians 11:27-30; see also James 5:16). However, ultimately it is not until the resurrection that our bodies will be saved from the destructive nature of sin (see Philippians 3:20-21).

It is the work of God that brings us to Him and keeps us in Him. (See I Peter 1:3-5.)

Some are troubled over the thought of committing the "unpardonable sin." This sin can be committed only by those who reject the work of the Holy Spirit throughout their lifetime and die without God. The very concern over having committed this sin is an indication that it has not been done, because those who commit it have no conscience toward God or His Word.

In your journal this week, record the time you were born again and then describe the evidences you experienced that confirm your new birth.