Blessed Assurance

[RETIREDFAN1]

Blessed Assurance

 

“Blessed Assurance” is song #4 in our book. What is assurance? Assurance is a pledge, a guarantee. It is security. It is being certain of something with absolute faith. We all like to be assured of certain things. We want to be assured of our spouses' love for us. We want to be assured of our parents or children's love for us. We want to be assured that our job will be there for us. We most definitely want to be assured of the salvation of our souls. While we can never really be assured of most things, we all want to be assured of our salvation. John tells us that Christians have that assurance of salvation, as long as we remain faithful to God

I John 5: 11 - 13

 

Knowing this, we can sing the words from the song “Blessed Assurance” saying “Jesus is Mine” with great confidence. We have His words in the Great Commission. 

Mark 16: 15 - 16

 

We see it happening in Samaria, where Philip was preaching. 

Acts 8: 12 - 13

 

We see it happen a little bit later on as Philip is preaching to an Ethiopian who had just come from worshiping in Jerusalem. 

Acts 8: 35 - 37

 

Jesus said believe and be baptized. The apostles were told to teach it this way.

Matthew 28: 18 - 20

 

Making disciples is obviously about faith.

Hebrews 11: 6

 

We see faith in action when Paul taught Lydia.

Acts 16: 14 - 15

 

We see faith in action on the Day of Pentecost. Jerusalem was filled with God fearing Israelites. There were devout men from every nation. The sound of the Holy Spirit brought everyone together. 

Acts 2: 6

 

Peter began telling everyone there about Jesus. 

Acts 2: 36 - 41

 

Once we obeyed, we were truly born of His Spirit, washed in His Blood. Just as we sang in “Blessed Assurance”. 

 

We also sing that we are watching and waiting. Do you remember the anxiety of waiting impatiently for something or someone? Truly faithful Christians are anxiously waiting and watching for the second coming of our Lord. 

II Peter 3: 11 - 13

 

We are told to wait patiently. That is something that many of us are not very good at. I’m not very good at being patient at all. I hate being caught behind slow drivers or having to wait a long time at a red light. However, we have to wait patiently for Christ’s return, because we do not know when it will be. No one does except for God, the Father.

Matthew 24: 36

 

It may happen before we finish today. It may not happen for a million more years. None of us knows, so we patiently watch and wait for it while we are alive here on our sojourn to Earth. 

James 5: 7 - 8

 

The word patient also brings with it the idea of suffering. This is where God’s idea of peace and joy comes from. We remain patient under tribulation. We bear up and endure suffering because of the peace and joy we know that God’s salvation will bring us. Like the song says, we are filled with His goodness, lost in His love. 

 

That is the assurance John told us about. As long as we remain faithful and obedient to God, we know that we are saved. There is no guessing. This is my story, this is my song. Praising my savior, all the day long. Know that your salvation is assured by remaining faithful to Him.