In the little book of 1 John, the word “know” is used thirty-six times: “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” (I John 5:11-13). After having talked about “eternal life,” and “everlasting life,” it is helpful to review what “everlasting” means. It means never ending. If it “never ends,” then we are still His child a day later, a year later, ten years later! If we have “everlasting life”, then lose it—then it was not everlasting! God uses words that He means; He does not lie. If He says that life is everlasting, then it does last forever!
Of course, Christians still have a problem with sinning. So what do we do when we sin? God tells us we need to confess sin, not in order to be born again, but to have cleansing from daily sin, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (I John 1:9). In the physical realm, we need to frequently wash our hands. When we get dirty and soiled by sin in our daily lives, we need to confess that sin to God; thus finding forgiveness and cleansing.
Experiencing lack of assurance can cause individuals to be discouraged and backslide. Truthfully, attempting to get to Heaven by our good works does not work! We are never good enough nor strong enough to defeat the devil in our own strength. “Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. 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” (I John 5:10-13).
We do not want to leave anyone with a false assurance of salvation. If I had a choice between (1) falsely believing that I was saved and on my way to heaven, and (2) believing that I was saved but had lost my salvation when I had not; I would without a doubt choose the second scenario! It would be better to arrive pleasantly surprised in Heaven than to have the gut-wrenching experience of waking up in Hell. But still, there is joy and peace in knowing our place in Christ now. If “everlasting” means “never ending” then it is a fact that we cannot lose our Salvation once we truly have it.
Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water [physical] and the Spirit [spiritual], he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” (John 3:5, 6) Being truly born again, there should be a change in ones life. If there is no fruit of the Holy Spirit in ones life, then it is possible that their step towards God was preliminary and not fully from the heart. Just believing about Jesus doesn’t work. It’s not a matter of magic words.
I had a cousin who went forward in a church service. He told us that he did it “because I wanted to get to Heaven, but I have no desire to live the Christian life.” I believe that today, he is more than likely in Hell, not Heaven. God is not a fool. If you talk with an insurance agent about the need for life insurance, but don’t actually sign your signature, then are you serious about getting life insurance?
Are you serious? God will wait for one to become serious. Hopefully, one at a later time will understand and confirm with God through repentance, with no “buts” in dealing with God’s Spirit.
