Reason #2: They question the commitment itself

If you have heard my testimony, you know how I can relate to this reason.  If we question the commitment we made to the Lord, we may ask some of the following questions.

• “Did I really trust Christ?”
• “Did I just repeat some words someone told me to pray?”
• “Did I say the right words?”
• “What if I left out a few words?”

In this reason, we are really questioning whether we made an actual  request for salvation and made a genuine commitment to the Lord or just repeated a scripted prayer.

I have also found this doubt surface in people who prayed the prayer of salvation alone or in a silent prayer to God. Later, they question the legitimacy of the prayer they prayed and whether God really heard them pray.

It is important to remember that there is not a secret specific prayer that we must repeat to be saved.  In addition, it is important to remember that a prayer does not save.  It is God who saves. The prayer is the way we articulate our request for salvation and make our commitment to God. A powerful truth is God knows the thoughts and the intents of our heart (see Hebrews 4:12).

Reason #1:  We cannot remember the exact time and place of our salvation.

This usually happens when we hear a teacher or a preacher say, “If you cannot remember the exact time and place of your salvation, you are not saved.” This produces fear in the heart.

If you were very young when you were saved, you may not remember the exact moment of your salvation. There are many things we have forgotten about our childhood.  If you have experienced a significant trauma in your life after your salvation and have some genuine memory loss, you may not remember the moment of your salvation.

There are three important points to affirm here.  Number 1: We are saved because of what God did in us.  What someone says about us cannot change that fact.  Number 2:  We are saved at a point in time. There is a specific time of our salvation. We do not evolve into salvation.  Number 3:  As important as memory is, our forgetting does change the fact of our salvation by God.

Our salvation is secure in Christ. As we mature we are growing in our understanding and appreciation of salvation. Prior to our salvation, we realized we were lost and Jesus died on the cross. We didn’t understand all the ramifications of our lostness – but we knew that much. Then we were saved.

As we grow in the Lord, we come to realize that He did save us.  We also learn He is saving us and He will keep saving us. The fact is salvation is not static it is dynamic.  Remember this verse in Phil 1:6:  “Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” and this verse in Phil 2:13:  “For it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.”

I love receiving questions from people who are genuine seekers of truth.  The list of questions I have received during my years of ministry thus far is longer than I could estimate.  Of the many questions I have answered, those concerning the assurance of salvation are near or at the top of the list.

Over the next many days I will present thoughts and biblical evidence relating to this most important truth.  A good place to begin is to read the following link on assurance and then follow the daily posts and promises on this most important subject.  Those new posts will be added each morning.

If it would interest you, I have a three hour workshop on this very subject.  To know how to receive the DVDs and the study guide of this workshop, email me Tom@tomsavage.us.