Unsure of salvation

[ladylins]

I need help because I've been struggling with this...I made reassurance of my salvation myself by reading a track a couple of years ago...since then I've prayed numerous times because I'm scared to go to hell. I always doubt my salvation and think I'm not really saved.
I believe Jesus died on the cross for my sins and rose again.
I read something today that was talking about people who died and came back to life and one guy said that he died and was in hell and that he was screaming I belong to Jesus and that Satan said I tempted you and you fell you are mine...and said he had committed his life to Jesus. But if he was saved wouldn't he go to Heaven no matter what?
Then I read something that said when you're saved that when you read or hear about Jesus that you look on him as this miraculous, wonderful figure...and honestly I don't feel nothing when I read about Him or hear about him and that scares me...I just don't want to go to hell and I really want to be saved...please help me.
Do y'all think I'm saved? What should I do?

 

[Goinheix]

Read the letter of John, the first. It will give you asurance. Your salvation does not depend on you; the security on salvation is in God not being a lier. If He has chosen you, if the Holy Spirit has make you understand that you are a siner, if you did confes that you are a sinner and need the work of Jesus Christ at the cross, if you take Christ as your personal savor, if you accept the resurrection of Christ for providing you eternal life...then you are saved, and there is not reason to ear the Devil telling you the oposite.

 

[faceofbear]

Those who believe on the name of the Son of God are not condemned but those who do not believe are condemned already. You're basing your security on a track, a confession, a prayer. None of those are able to save you. Give those up and lean on Christ, Who died for powerless sinners.

 

[Jeffwhosoever]

Read the letter of John, the first. It will give you asurance. Your salvation does not depend on you; the security on salvation is in God not being a lier. If He has chosen you, if the Holy Spirit has make you understand that you are a siner, if you did confes that you are a sinner and need the work of Jesus Christ at the cross, if you take Christ as your personal savor, if you accept the resurrection of Christ for providing you eternal life...then you are saved, and there is not reason to ear the Devil telling you the oposite.

Well said. I totally agree.

 

[98cwitr]

Your fruits will tell you...2 Corinthians 13

 

[Jeffwhosoever]

Galatians 5:22-23.

 

[faceofbear]

Your fruits can only go so far before you begin questioning the genuineness of your fruits, or if you have enough fruits to "pass the test." Personal experience. Again, the issue is that you're looking to yourself, but you're the problem, Christ is the Solution. You won't ever have the right amount of fruits, the most penitent repentance, nor the most perfect faith. You won't ever be able to persuade God with the right words to save you, you'll never be able to do anything that commends yourself to God. Anything you can do/will do/have done is only more condemning, and increasingly so. Even asking God to save you is essentially blasphemous to the blood of Christ because you don't believe what was accomplished. That's why you need Christ, because we're imperfect, and can only be imperfect. And that's also the only way you can have assurance. At least from my experience (and if you look at all the posts of people questioning their salvation, they never question Christ, they question themselves -- how can yourself provide you with any security when looking at yourself only brings damnation?).

 

[savedfromdistruction]

I need help because I've been struggling with this...I made reassurance of my salvation myself by reading a track a couple of years ago...since then I've prayed numerous times because I'm scared to go to hell. I always doubt my salvation and think I'm not really saved.
I believe Jesus died on the cross for my sins and rose again.
I read something today that was talking about people who died and came back to life and one guy said that he died and was in hell and that he was screaming I belong to Jesus and that Satan said I tempted you and you fell you are mine...and said he had committed his life to Jesus. But if he was saved wouldn't he go to Heaven no matter what?
Then I read something that said when you're saved that when you read or hear about Jesus that you look on him as this miraculous, wonderful figure...and honestly I don't feel nothing when I read about Him or hear about him and that scares me...I just don't want to go to hell and I really want to be saved...please help me.
Do y'all think I'm saved? What should I do?

Ladylins
the bible tells us how to know. So there is nothing wrong with seeking to be sure. Here are a couple of messages that after you listen you will know one way or the other.

The almost Christian (John MacArthur/Audio)

Evidence of a True believer (Adrian Rogers/Audio)

 

[98cwitr]

Your fruits can only go so far before you begin questioning the genuineness of your fruits, or if you have enough fruits to "pass the test." Personal experience. Again, the issue is that you're looking to yourself, but you're the problem, Christ is the Solution. You won't ever have the right amount of fruits, the most penitent repentance, nor the most perfect faith. You won't ever be able to persuade God with the right words to save you, you'll never be able to do anything that commends yourself to God. Anything you can do/will do/have done is only more condemning, and increasingly so. Even asking God to save you is essentially blasphemous to the blood of Christ because you don't believe what was accomplished. That's why you need Christ, because we're imperfect, and can only be imperfect. And that's also the only way you can have assurance. At least from my experience (and if you look at all the posts of people questioning their salvation, they never question Christ, they question themselves -- how can yourself provide you with any security when looking at yourself only brings damnation?).

Dont you know that the fruits that are produced by the Spirit are not of yourself? All you have to do is observe your fruits for evidence of the Spirit's work in your life, carnal unregenerate man cannot do the things that the Spirit does...therefore it's by their fruits you will know them.

 

[ladylins]

It says in the Bible "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed."
But what does it mean to believe in your heart? Because it also says "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”
It says on a website that The person may sincerely believe they have believed with their heart, when in fact they just gave mental assent. So how will I ever know if I really believed in my heart?

 

[98cwitr]

Your fruits dear girl, your fruits....read Gal. 5 and then read it three more times!

But also remember that no one can come to Christ unless God draws them (John 6:44). So no one is going to confess anything unless God draws them to do so

 

[RobertZ]

It says in the Bible "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed."

Modern day preaching uses this passage of scripture as a basis for praying the sinners prayer which btw this passage of scripture has absolutely nothing to do with what a person must do or say in order to get saved.

This passage of scripture is actually talking about the way a believer lives his life, someone who is truly saved will naturally confess the Lord Jesus Christ but he doesnt do this in order to gain salvation, he does it because he is already saved so he is confessing what he has already believed previously in his heart.

It says on a website that The person may sincerely believe they have believed with their heart, when in fact they just gave mental assent.

Yes, that is possible.

So how will I ever know if I really believed in my heart?

Because eventually you will bear good fruit, the fruit of the Spirit. However I must agree with faceofbear that you shouldnt get to hung up on self examination right from the start because your eyes should be on Christ and not on yourself, if you are really saved the fruits will come in their own time through sanctification.

Remember that a babe in Christ isnt going to have the evidences and fruits that a mature believer in Christ has. Think of an apple tree with no apples, is the tree not an apple tree until it has produced apples? No of course not, its still an apple tree and in time it will bear the fruit to prove it.

 

[GodChaser9]

I need help because I've been struggling with this...I made reassurance of my salvation myself by reading a track a couple of years ago...since then I've prayed numerous times because I'm scared to go to hell. I always doubt my salvation and think I'm not really saved.
I believe Jesus died on the cross for my sins and rose again.
I read something today that was talking about people who died and came back to life and one guy said that he died and was in hell and that he was screaming I belong to Jesus and that Satan said I tempted you and you fell you are mine...and said he had committed his life to Jesus. But if he was saved wouldn't he go to Heaven no matter what?
Then I read something that said when you're saved that when you read or hear about Jesus that you look on him as this miraculous, wonderful figure...and honestly I don't feel nothing when I read about Him or hear about him and that scares me...I just don't want to go to hell and I really want to be saved...please help me.
Do y'all think I'm saved? What should I do?

Hello Ladylin,

For starters, take heed of what everyone has said thus far in this thread.

My suggestion to you is to quit allow satan (1 Thes. 2:18) to have his way with your mind. Begin by testing the spirits (1 John 4:1), ask God to show up in a real way in your life. Praying with His Word over your life, is the key to building your relationship with Him.

I've been in your shoes, when I allowed God to truly take the reigns He showed me not only was I saved, but showed me how He could use me for His purpose.

Lifting you up in prayer today, friend.

God bless.

 

[ladylins]

Your fruits dear girl, your fruits....read Gal. 5 and then read it three more times!

But also remember that no one can come to Christ unless God draws them (John 6:44). So no one is going to confess anything unless God draws them to do so

So you're saying that no one can be saved on their own free will? You could just be doomed to never come to know God? That honestly confuses me more...

 

[phoenixdem]

So you're saying that no one can be saved on their own free will? You could just be doomed to never come to know God? That honestly confuses me more...

John 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me
draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.

James 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your
hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

The Sovereignty of God is always a factor in how the Universe works. The Creator runs His Universe as He wishes. If anyone is saved, it is due solely to the goodness and mercy of God. It is true that God determines how His Universe works, yet man is responsible for not accepting God's mercy. While the two verses above seems to be a paradox, man is lost in sin through the disobedience of Adam. Man continues in sin unless the Holy Spirit intervenes and makes that man's spirit alive to God.

 

[faceofbear]

Dont you know that the fruits that are produced by the Spirit are not of yourself? All you have to do is observe your fruits for evidence of the Spirit's work in your life, carnal unregenerate man cannot do the things that the Spirit does...therefore it's by their fruits you will know them.

You're missing the point.

GENUINE fruits cannot be produced by human, but a human cannot recognize genuine fruits because the heart is entirely deceptive. An vehement atheist who does not give a care about God, sleeping with women every night, addicted to drugs, etc. can think they have "fruits of the Spirit."

In fact, the majority of the world would say they experience those things. I also can point to people of different religions who are very self-deceived, yet outwardly very "godly" people. At least based on judging their "fruits." But guess what? Not a single one of them is saved.

You also failed to answer my question. How much fruit is enough to be assured? I know for certain that anyone questioning their salvation is basing their salvation on fruits, not on Christ. Yet how is someone suppose to recognize THEIR OWN fruits, when the Holy Spirit convicting them, and the Devil accusing them? There's NO assurance in such because they are built on sand. The only thing that can clear the conscience of any guilt and provide any assurance is to look solely to Christ and not oneself. If you're looking at fruits only more questions will arise, as I'm sure you're fully aware of.

I mean, honestly, let's examine Peter in accordance to fruits of the Spirit's based on the Bible and what is given about him in the Epistles. Appears to me, at least to my knowledge, that he missed the mark. But I know he's in Heaven. Why? Because Christ died for him in His grace and did not lose one of His own whom He came to save. Not because Peter believed, or had "x" amount of fruits. But because Christ is sovereign and will not lose His own. Again, honestly look at what Peter is accused of in the Epistles. Look at what he did in the Gospels. He should have had absolutely no assurance. Yet last time I checked he has not one, but two inspired Epistles in my bible.

 

[RobertZ]

yet man is responsible for not accepting God's mercy.

According to Calvinist God simply skips over the non elect so my question is how is it that man can be responsible for not accepting something that was never offered to him in the first place?