Salvation is not something we have to guess about. John wrote so Christians could say with confidence, “I know I have eternal life.” Because salvation comes through faith in Jesus Christ and not by works, believers can rest in the assurance that they belong to God.
The Assurance of Eternal Life
Pastor Kevin began by sharing how, as a young believer, he struggled with the fear of not being good enough. He wondered if his salvation depended on how well he performed each week. But Scripture makes the order clear. Salvation is not earned by works. It is received through faith in Jesus Christ. If we get this backward, it leads to anxiety and selfishness. We start trying to work our way into God’s love instead of serving Him because we already know He loves us.
“Yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.” – Galations 2:16
The right order is this: we are saved by faith, and then good works follow. We do not do good works hoping God will know us. We know Christ, therefore we sow good seeds.
Christians do not have to live with a 50 percent or 75 percent hope of heaven. God wants His children to know with confidence that they have eternal life through Jesus.
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. – 1 John 5:13
Assurance our Prayers are Heard
Christians are assurance that God hears their prayers (1 John 14-15). Prayer matters because God wants a relationship with His children. He wants us to come to Him, talk to Him, and keep seeking Him. Like a loving father, God hears us, but that does not mean He says yes to everything we ask.
A good father sometimes says no because he knows what is best. In the same way, God answers according to His will, not according to selfish desires or prayers that contradict His Word.John also tells believers to pray for brothers and sisters who are caught in sin.
If we see someone committing sin, we should pray that God will change their heart, convict them, and draw them back to Himself.
Prayer is not a last resort. It is one of the ways believers depend on God, seek His will, and care for one another.
Assurance of Protection
“We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him. – 1 John 5:18
Pastor Kevin explains that this does not mean Christians never sin. It means they do not continue in sin without conviction. The Holy Spirit lives in believers and works to pull them back to God. Jesus gives eternal life and that no one can snatch His people out of His hand. Jesus says He guarded those the Father gave Him(John 17:12). If we belong to Christ, He keeps us.
This assurance matters because believers do not have to fear losing salvation every time they fail. Jesus protects His people. The Holy Spirit convicts, guides, and draws them back.
The Assurance That We Are His
Believers who have trusted Christ, they belong to Him. They are His children (1 John 5:20).
Jesus is the true God and eternal life. Because of Him, believers can know truth, receive salvation, and live with confidence that they belong to God.
The world lies in the power of the evil one, which is why lost people often cannot see the spiritual danger around them. But believers have been given understanding through Jesus Christ.
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