Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine
O what a foretaste of glory divine
Heir of salvation, purchase of God
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood
The lyrics of this much familiar hymn reflect what we read in 1 John 2:23-25: No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also. Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that he made to us —eternal life.
At certain times in life, we find ourselves doubting our assurance of faith. Are we really a member of God’s family? Do I have the Holy Spirit? Has the spirit of Christ set me free from the snares of sin? How do we know that we are surely part of His fold?
Well, we return to Scripture to find the answer. 1 John 5:11-12 says that God gave us eternal life and this life would be in His Son, Jesus Christ. So, the assurance of our faith comes from God’s very act of paying for our sins through the blood of Christ. Romans 8:37-39 reminds us that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. But instead, we are more than conquerors through Christ!
So, as we ponder if we are in the family, cling to the knowledge that Christ has paid the price and gave us an abundant life here on earth and surely for eternity in heaven. If it was up to us, surely, we would have lost our salvation by now. But thanks be to God that our salvation is assured by Him and not us! We have the “foretaste of glory divine” because we have been purchased by God, born of His spirit and washed in His blood! Oh, what blessed assurance that is!