That You May Know

God has promised life to people who believe in His Son. If you're trusting Jesus to save you, that promise includes you.

In 1 John 5, John says God has given us eternal life, and that life is in His Son. Whoever has the Son has life. Then he explains why he's written: so that the people who believe in the Son of God can know they have eternal life. He means life they already have.

That gives your confidence a reason. Jesus is God's Son. He died for our sins and rose again. You're depending on Him to save you, and God says the person who believes in Him has life.

You don't have to keep examining your feelings to find out whether you believe hard enough. Faith means trust. You're counting on Jesus because you believe He's who He says He is and can do what He says He can do. The assurance comes from His faithfulness.

Jesus knows how to save people who fail. You can admit what you've done and come to Him for forgiveness and help.

Peter denied knowing Jesus three times. He'd been sure he'd do better than that. When he realized what he'd done, he went out and wept. The resurrection meant that his worst failure didn't have to be the end of his life with Jesus. The risen Jesus still had work for Peter to do.

John writes to Christians so they won't sin, and then says that if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father: Jesus Christ. The provision for our failure is already there. Jesus doesn't discover that we're sinners after He agrees to save us.

So tell Him the truth. If you've hurt somebody, admit that too, and do what you can to make it right. Ask for help with the thing you keep getting wrong. With a Savior who's willing and able to deal with sin, there's no reason to hide it.

Your feelings can be wrong about where you stand with God. His promise gives you something dependable to come back to.

Some days you feel grateful and confident. Other days an old memory, a nasty comment, or a miserable week can leave you wondering whether God wants anything to do with you. The feeling is real. It still needs to be examined in light of what God has said.

John knew his readers could condemn themselves. He told them that God is greater than our heart and knows everything. God knows the whole situation, including the things our guilt and shame keep us from seeing clearly.

Sometimes there's a cause you can deal with, like a wrong to put right or somebody else's cruelty that's convinced you you're worthless. Sometimes you're just worn out. Either way, eternal life is something Jesus gives you. You don't have to produce a particular feeling to keep it real.

God is able to save someone who trusts Jesus and still misunderstands things. You can keep learning with confidence in Him.

The Christians in Rome disagreed about food and religious days. Paul knew everybody couldn't be right about everything. He still told them to welcome one another because God had welcomed them.

Then he asked who they thought they were to judge somebody else's servant. The servant answers to his own master, and the Lord is able to make him stand. Paul expected God to uphold a believer whose understanding still needed work.

That doesn't make truth unimportant. It makes learning possible without the terror that one mistaken answer will undo everything Jesus has done for you. God isn't trying to trick you or trip you up. He wants you to know Him, and He's perfectly able to help you learn.

The apostles preached salvation through faith in Jesus. Check what you've been taught against what they actually said and did.

In Romans 10, Paul says the person who believes in the risen Jesus and confesses Him as Lord will be saved. He calls this the message of faith he proclaims. Then he says everyone who calls on the Lord will be saved. He presents that as good news people can believe.

Cornelius gives us an actual event to look at. Peter preached forgiveness through faith in Jesus. God gave the listeners the Holy Spirit while Peter was still speaking. After that, they were baptized. Peter later explained that God had cleansed their hearts by faith.

Baptism is hugely important, because it's God's work, not ours. In it, God publicly marks believers as His children. But Cornelius's acceptance by God had already happened. If you've been taught that a believer remains lost until he completes the right religious procedure, this is a good place to examine that teaching.