John MacArthur - How do I know if I'm really saved?

pastor john my question for you is how can someone how can i have assurance of my salvation i think it's so important because so much of our growth in christ biblically is rooted in a confidence that we have been saved and for many people they don't know if they've actually been saved they think they have but they don't remember a specific date or then there was a season of sin and so it's hard for them to move forward with confidence that they have been saved and therefore they are dead to sin so help us out how can we have assurance that we are saved well you can eliminate one thing for certain that can take your assurance and that is the idea that you could lose your salvation that that's a lie salvation is forever salvation is eternal there's nothing that can separate you from the love of christ jesus said in john 6 all the father gives to me will come to me and i will lose none of them but raise them at the last day salvation is forever so if you are saved it's forever that faith cannot fail because that faith is not your faith that's a gift of god who's given it to you ephesians 2. so you eliminate that if you get your theology right that salvation is forever so all you want to know is is my salvation forever and here's how you know i think there are three tests and then a fourth comment test number one is what do you love what do you love if any man is in christ he's a new creation all things pass away new things come what what are these new things i like to think of them as new affections so the first mark of a believer it's not perfect love but it's evident love what do you love you love the lord you love his word you know you don't love him like you should needs to be increased you don't love the word like you should but you love those things you love the people of god you want to be with his people you want to be in the church you want to be a part of a worshiping group so love is the first evidence of a transformed heart second one is humility there's a sense in which you are aware of your sinfulness and you never really get over this incredible grace that's been given to you to save you the third one is obedience it's not perfect obedience but it's a longing in your heart to obey the lord you do acknowledge him as lord you want to obey so love humility and obedience and then the fourth thing is this the single most uh validating reality in life for your faith is not some idea in your head it's trials it's what can your faith survive you know people who say well i believe in the lord and something goes wrong in their life and they walk out well that's not a saving faith that's not a faith that's a gift from god because that lasts so you take job as an illustration devastation i mean just devastation every way you could cut it and he says though he slay me yeah well i trust him so when you go through a trial maybe your mom is gets cancer or maybe your dad dies or maybe some horrible thing happens or maybe you're invested in a relationship and you know the the person you're interested in walks away from you or whatever the issue is maybe you get an illness does your faith stay intact through that trial that's what peter's talking about when he says it's those kinds of trials that validate your faith and so i have to say this in all honesty if you're 15 years old you might question your faith more than you do than you would if you were my age because i've i've been through that i've been through a wife that broke her neck and broke c3 and c2 and should have died i've been through you know my son having a brain tumor i've been through illnesses where i almost died blood clots in my lungs and and my faith comes through and just gets stronger all the time so i say this isn't my faith this is this is a faith that stands the test this is i mean the devil said job job just trusts you god because you you bless him so god says okay take it all away take it all away and we'll test his faith and it was all taken away all of it and he said even if you slay me i'll trust you that's that is a gift of god that's a faith that comes from above so as you grow as a christian as you have more experiences that challenge your faith if you come out the other side trusting the lord still loving him still humble still desiring to be obedient those are the acid tests you said a love for jesus christ or who do you love and what do you love because we're new creations the humility that comes from what christ has done for us in the gospel and then you mentioned obedience and trials i have one final question for you regarding obedience because i think the thought in many people's mind might be well i want to obey jesus christ but as i look at my past and have i even as as i consider the previous year i see so much disobedience and i struggle with sin how do i know if i'm obedient enough to evidence a love for jesus christ what would you say well you're not trying to earn your salvation you already have it so it's not your your obedience so you earn salvation paul the apostle says o wretched man that i am he says i do what i don't want to do i don't do what i want to do and this is a mature believer in romans 7 and he's saying i am the chief of sinners so you're never going to be at a point where you're not going to have sin that's part of what humbles you right that's part of what humbles you so if you're looking for perfection in your life you're never going to find it so i like to think of it as direction not perfection what's the trajectory of your life is it toward christ is it toward an honest evaluation of your own sinfulness that causes you to be humble is it in the direction of desiring to be obedient i don't i don't obey the lord perfectly that's why i need to be saved with an eternal salvation because i another way to say it would be this johnny if i could lose my salvation i would right if i could i would because i don't have the power to hold it that's why the bible tells us we don't have to hold on to our salvation god holds on to us and he holds on to us by giving us a faith that will not fail so good so as new creatures we need to evaluate what and who do we love there's a humility that accompanies those who are truly saved they're broken over their sin and they're grateful for what jesus has done there's a desire to be obedient and then there's the test of trials do we come out of the difficulties in our life with stronger faith or do we as you say walk away from jesus that's why you counted all joy when you fall into various trials because the testing of your faith is what validates it yeah well i love it no thank you so much pastor john you

Channel: Jonny Ardavanis

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Keywords: John macarthur, jonny ardavanis, dial in, podcast, grace community church, grace comm, masters, the masters university, tmu, hume lake, bible, really saved, assurance on salvation, saved, how do I know if im saved, salvation, jesus, god, christian

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Length: 7min 17sec (437 seconds)

Published: Fri Aug 06 2021