Introduction

Is it possible to know for certain that one has eternal life and as a result has peace with God and will go to heaven?

The Bible affirms that repentance (turning from sin), confession of sin, and belief in Jesus' death and resurrection will lead to eternal life. In the next pages we will investigate the promise of salvation, the process of gaining assurance, the biblical proof of assurance, and its profit in our spiritual life. This book is both a Bible study and a spiritual journal. Together these will help you gain insight and confidence regarding your salvation.

Bible Study

NOTE: Please complete the Bible Study before reading this chapter; complete the journal as the opportunity is provided in the chapter.

1. Jesus gave a threefold promise to those who hear his word and believe in the God who sent him. List these three promises or outcomes of hearing and believing found in John 5:24.

a.

b.

c.

2. According to Romans 10:9, what two steps are required in order to be saved?

a.

b.

3. God is faithful and can be trusted. In 1 John 1:9, the confessions of sins results in two promises from God; what are they?

a.

b.

4. Revelations 3:20 pictures Christ standing at the door of our life, knocking to gain entrance. To those who hear and open their life to him, he promises to _____________ and ___________ with them.

5. John tells us that his gospel is written so that people “may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.” In John 20:31, he tell us that the result of believing this is ___________________.

6. 1 John 5:11 tells us that God has given us _______________. Through whom does this gift come?

7. If you have the Son [Jesus], what else do you have? (1 John 5:12)

8. Look up 1 John 5:13. 1 John is written to those who believe in the name of the Son of God in order that they may _______________ that they have ________________ _________.

Faith Affirmations: You can have Eternal Life.

In days of confusion and uncertainty, we've come to question most things—especially religion. A popular bumper sticker reads “Question Authority”; this is only one illustration that our society views life with a question mark. When it comes to religious philosophy and the Bible, no one is to know anything for sure. Consequently, if you were to ask many church members about their assurance of eternal life and going to heaven, many would say, “I'm not sure you can know that.” It is the central affirmation of that study that it is possible to know that you have eternal life.

The Gift, the Promise, and the Assurance of Salvation.

Scripture attests that God desires that everyone receive salvation. John 3:16 demonstrates the extent to which God has already gone to achieve our salvation—“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” It is Satan's desire to destroy life and cause people to perish, but it is God's intention to show his love for us in the gift of Jesus. This Jesus is the Son of God who died so that we would not perish but would have eternal life.

John 3:17–18 verifies that God is not the mean judge that many picture. Throughout scripture and through the life of the church, God seeks to save us. We find this truth portrayed in the story of Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1–10). Zacchaeus was the “chief tax collector and was wealthy.” He was a Jew hated by the Jews because he represented Rome, their oppressor. He was the one who climbed into the sycamore tree so he, a short man, could see Jesus as he passed by. But Jesus stopped, looked up, saw him, and insisted on going to his home to stay with him. He could have judged Zacchaeus, for he really was a thief as well as a sinner. Instead, Jesus saved him. When Zacchaeus repented and was willing to give back four times as much as he had taken in excessive taxes, Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:9).

God has done everything possible to assure that we have salvation. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, the Son of God, the provision of God is for full and free salvation.

A common response to this gracious gift is humility—I don't deserve this. The Old Testament prophet, Isaiah, agrees. He tells us that even righteous deeds are like filthy garments in God's sight. There is nothing that can be done to earn or deserve salvation, yet God has freely provided it for us. Romans 5:6–8 clarifies this further: “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly … but God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” The greatness and graciousness of God in this gift of eternal life are seen in the fact that it was given to us when we were helpless and undeserving—and it was given without a price tag for us.

The Process of Gaining Assurance

It is appropriate to say that this gift has no price tag, but it does not come cheap. Thoughtfully, the questions arise:

What do we have to do to be assured of this gift of salvation?

Is there a process that we must pass through in order to gain it?

There are certain necessary steps that are needed to acquire the assurance of salvation. The Bible teaches that God loves everyone and wants to be known by everyone. Sin, however, creates a separation between God and humanity. The Bible tells us that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

There is within every person a desire to know God; an obstacle that stands in the way of knowing God; and a desire to overcome this separation. Often people try to satisfy God through good works (for example, being good parents, attending church regularly, or living by the golden rule.) But the Bible tells us that these are ineffective and will not save us: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no on can boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9). Even though good works are important, solve serious social problems, and effectively bring people together, they can do nothing to bridge the separation between people and God.

This verse, however, also tells us that salvation is a gift that comes through faith. The faith assumption is that the cross of Christ spans that separation and bridges the road to God. The Apostle John writes, “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:10).

Journal: Look up in a dictionary what atonement means and write a definition in your own words. What feelings does this definition create in you?

What is my Responsibility in this Process?

Forgiveness is from God, but there is a necessary human role. A person's responsibility in this process is to repent (that is, be sorry) for sins and confess (that is, openly admit to those sins) to God in prayer. Also, a person must turn away and move in a new direction. It is also that person's responsibility to believe (that is, affirm as a matter of faith) that Christ's death atones for our sins. Then, one must ask Christ to live within. The Bible says, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me” (Revelation 3:20). This is a picture of Christ standing at the door of each person's life, knocking and wanting to gain entrance so that he can live in us. If the door is not opened, Jesus cannot come in. If the door is opened, Jesus will come in. If door is opened through faith and belief in Jesus, we have this promise, “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12).

Journal: What does it mean to me to realize that Jesus cannot come in if I do not open the door? How does that really apply to the rest of my faith-journey?

The Prayer of Repentance

If you have not prayed for forgiveness and sought to know Jesus as Lord and Savior; if you have not prayed to receive Christ into your life; if you are not certain that you have gone through this process, this is such a prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father, I confess that I have sinned against you. I am truly sorry for those sins. I ask your forgiveness. I believe in your son Jesus and that he died for my sins. By faith I invite you now to live in me. Thank you for forgiving me and coming to me now. Amen.

Journal: Or write your own prayer of confession:

If you sincerely pray for forgiveness, then the Bible says that God forgives you through your faith in Christ. It has nothing to do with what you have done to earn it, for it is what Christ has done for you at the cross.

Journal: Read John 19 and think about the fact that the crucifixion happened for you. Record your thoughts and feelings:

Promises are for Standing on

That's the process, but now you need to stand on the promises of god. Many people put too much dependence on their feelings in regard to the assurance of salvation. They would say, “I feel saved,” or “I don't feel saved.” Basing our conviction of salvation on our feelings is very dangerous ground.

The late preacher, R. A. Torry, used the following illustration. Suppose that you were sentenced to life imprisonment but your friend secured a pardon for you. The legal document announcing your pardon is in your hands. You read that you are pardoned; the legal document says so, but the news is too good and so sudden that you are amazed by it. You do not realize that you are pardoned. Someone asks you, “Are you pardoned?” Your reply is, “Yes, I am pardoned, for this paper says so.” Then you are asked, “Do you feel pardoned?” And your reply, because of the suddenness of this situation, might be, “No, I don't feel pardoned. It's too wonderful for me to realize it yet.” Then you are asked, “How can you know that you are pardoned if you cannot feel it?” You simply hold out the document that declares that you are pardoned.

The promises of scripture are the evidence that we are pardoned in Christ. Romans 10:9 does not say, “If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will feel saved.” Rather that verse emphatically states “you will be saved.” The spiritual life works only as we take a faithful stand upon the firm statements of scripture. [1. Christian G. Weiss. On Being a Real Christian, (Lincoln, Nebraska: Good News Broadcasting Association, 1951), p. 27.]

Journal: Is there a story in your life that illustrates the same point? Write it down here and then find someone to tell.

So much of life in our society is based upon feelings. A popular statement hat summarizes a far too prevalent belief is “If it feels good, do it.” I pastored a man who never really had emotions connected with his spiritual life. He had never had a tingling of the spine; he had never felt any exuberance in his spirit. But he told me often that he lived as a Christian solely by his faith in the promises of God's Word. He may have been on much safer ground than most people who want to feel a sense of emotion in their spiritual life. Feelings are also God's gifts to us so they are not bad, but to base the assurance of salvation solely on feelings, rather than God's promises creates a dependence on feelings rather than God and can leave a person to the dangers of emotional upheavals.

God has promised; God will come—if invited.

God has promised; God will save—if asked.

God promises that the sincere confession of sin results in forgiveness and cleansing from sin. Our assurance will come as those promises are believed and acted upon.

The Proof of Assurance

The proof of our assurance is based upon the word of God, the ministry of the Holy Spirit, and the witness of the church. Romans 8:15–16 gives us the picture of God's Spirit working in our lives. It reads, “For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ” (NRSV).

William Barclay, in The Daily Study Bible, helps us to understand an old Roman practice that Paul may have had in mind as he wrote that verse. The adopted son would lose all of his rights in his old family, but would gain new rights when he became the son in his new family. Legally, then, he would become the heir to his new father's estate. The old life of the adopted son was wiped out—including debts. When Paul says that God's Spirit witnesses with our spirit that we are children of God, he had in mind a part of that adoption ceremony. The ceremony was carried out in the presence of seven witnesses. If the adopting father would die and there was some dispute as to whether or not this son had been adopted, then those witnesses would come forth to testify. The Bible is saying that the Holy Spirit gives witness along with our spirit that we are one of God's children. [2. William Barclay. The Daily Study Bible. Volume Romans, (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1957), pp. 109–112.] In addition to this inner witness of the Holy Spirit is the testimony of a changed life. As growth and change come in the life of the new convert, they give evidence of real belief in Jesus and of true commitment to follow him. Second Corinthians 5:17 indicates the kind of change that will come: “So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new” (NRSV). So, faithful belief results in life changes.

A checklist is presented in 1 John. (Turn to 1 John and follow along.)

Journal: Is this true in your life? What “proofs” can you record that show how life has changed for you?

1. “We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands” (1 John 2:3).

Here it's made very plain that if we are Christians we will be obedient to the commands of Christ. The word obey comes from a verb meaning “to hear.” Obedience, then, means an active, rather than passive, response to something that one hears. Hearing, believing, and obeying are intimately linked together in the Bible.

2. “God is light” (1 John 1:5). In verses 5–7 John says that we know we're abiding in Christ if we are walking in the same way Christ walked. It's another way of stating that if we obey Christ's teachings we have the assurance that we really belong to him.

3. “Do not love the world of anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 John 2:15).

A positive way of stating this is that we are to love God more than any other. In this verse, “world” does not mean the universe or earth. By “world” John mans the things that we desire and are enticed to with our eyes in the boastful pride of our life (see v 16). It doesn't take long watching television to understand this phrase. The emphasis in TV is on the accumulation of money, power, violence, and sex—all that is in opposition to what God wants to happen in the world and the life of all people. When you begin to love God's will for your life more than the world, a new assurance comes to you.

4. “No one who is born of God will continue to sin” (John 3:9). One of the changes that comes as a result of conversion is in your desires—you no longer want to continue in the sins of the past and you want to live to please God. The emphasis of this verse is upon the person who continues to practice sin. If you know that something is wrong and you continue to do it, then you sin, indicating that an inner change has not occurred. The individual who comes to know God begins to detest sin. One of the keys to overcoming sin (v 6) is that we abide in Christ. When we come to Christ, we receive a new nature, and we begin to do what is right, losing our desire to live any longer in the ways of sin. When there is a close association with Jesus, we desire to become more like him and less like sinful persons.

5. “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love our brother,” and “Anyone who does not love remains in death” (1 John 3:14–15). God has a way of welding Christians together so that they will love one another. They love because they are motivated by the love of God. The possession of concern and love for others, especially Christians, is a clear indication that you are a child of God—something has transpired in you that we call eternal life.

6. “Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God” (1 John 4:15 NAS); and “This is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:11–13).

If you have confessed your sins and invited Jesus into your life, then you have the Son of God. John says that if you have the Son of God, then you have eternal life. In fact, all of 1 John was written so that persons could have the assurance that they are Christian and have eternal life.

The “Profit” of Assurance

The assurance of salvation gives us peace. That isn't idle talk; in Romans 5:1, we read, “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Without Christ, the only way by which sins might be atoned is good works. Yet it is impossible to find peace that way because of the inability to know how much is enough atonement for the sins that you had committed. But when Jesus came, he took our sin on himself and died on the cross for us; thereby atonement was made. Therefore when we claim faith in Jesus and are put into right relationship with God, we can enjoy peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. So people are, then, no longer dependent upon their own ability but upon Christ who is acceptable in God's sight.

The assurance of salvation enables the believers to move forward in Christian faith with new confidence. There is no longer unrest, uncertainty, and dissatisfaction; it is now possible to legitimately feel good about our personal relationship with God through Christ. In other words, believers can begin to feel better and to walk with a new and more faithful confidence.

Summary of Assurances

1. God promised salvation for you and gave the Son to die so that you might have that salvation.

Journal: In my own words:

2. According to scripture, there are certain steps that you should take in order to gain salvation and assurance. The steps involve confessing and repenting of your sin, asking for Christ's forgiveness of those sins, and inviting Christ to live in your life.

Journal: In my own words:

3. When this happens, the word of God and the Spirit of God attest that you really are a believer. One of the evidences of this is that changes will take place in your life and many of those changes are mentioned in 1 John.

Journal: In my own words:

4. Certain benefits come to our lives as a result of the assurance of our salvation. We have peace with God and can move forth with a new confidence in Christ.

Journal: In my own words:

5. The primary key to all of this is our belief and trust in Christ. John 6:47 says, “I tell you the truth, he who believes [in Jesus] has everlasting life.”

Journal: In my own words:

6. You are God's child; you already possess eternal life, and, therefore, you are assured a place with God forever in heaven.

Journal: In my own words:

Chapter Two
What Happened?—Forgiveness

Introduction

Society cannot deal effectively with human sin and guilt. Many counselors attempt to explain away sin and guilt failing to get at the root of the problem. Guilt can be removed only when a penalty has been paid and forgiveness offered.

In this chapter you will discover that when you honestly confess your sins, God forgives and releases you from any guilt. Indeed, that is unbelievable but great news.

Bible Study

NOTE: Please complete the Bible Study before reading this chapter; complete the journal as the opportunity is provided in the chapter.

1. In Psalm 103:3 what will God do regarding our sins?

2. Psalm 103:12 relates that God removes our transgressions as far as the _________________ is from the ______________________.

3. Isaiah 55:7 assures us that when we forsake our wicked ways and turn to the Lord, God will have _________________ on us and freely ___________________ us.

4. Isaiah 43:25 affirms that God will ______________ out our transgressions and __________________ our sins no more.

5. What does Christ do for us when he redeems us through his blood according to Ephesians 1:7?

6. Luke 7 tells the incident of Jesus being confronted by a religious leader for letting a sinful woman cry at his feet in repentance. What did Jesus say to her in verse 48?

7. In Romans 4:7–8 for what reason is a person called blessed?

8. “If we confess our sins,” 1 John 1:9 tells us that God “is faithful to ________________ us our ____________.”

9. Read the parable of the “unmerciful servant” in Matthew 18:21–36. What will happen to us if we have an unforgiving spirit toward others?

Journal: The two major guilt problems that I seek release from are

Understanding Forgiveness

Before we understand the meaning of forgiveness, we must speak of the debt that we owe to God. The word debt has a wide range of meanings, but is basically understood to mean something that is owed, something that is due, or something that it is our duty or obligation to give or pay. In one sense, it could mean money that is owed; in another sense, it is any moral or religious obligation that is our duty to perform.

Could you ever begin to pay the debt that you owe to your parents? Could you ever begin to pay the debt that you owe to your closest and dearest friend? Could you ever begin to pay the debt of appreciation and love you have for your own children? Could you ever repay the debt that you owe to the church or to God?

Read the parable that Jesus tells in Matthew 18:21–35. It is a parable about the tremendous debt that all of us have and our inability to repay that debt. This is the story of a slave who owed a debt so large that he would never be able to pay it in all of his lifetime. Jesus deliberately exaggerates the details of the story. Someone said that the slave owed an estimated ten million dollars which was ten thousand talents in Palestinian money—ten times the total taxes of his country. Jesus illustrates that our debt to God could never be reconciled by anything that we might be able to do. It is simply beyond our ability to make amends with God for our sins.

Journal: My definition of forgiveness is

The word that is most often used in the New Testament for sin means to “miss the mark.” It is failure to realize life's true purpose or to be and do all that God wants. A different word for sin, “trespass,” means to make a false step, a slip, or a blunder. It can simply mean a slip in one's usage of grammar or something more drastic.

Every person has sinned and missed the mark that God has set. Consequently, everyone is in debt to God. As a result of that debt we have a tremendous sense of guilt in our lives. We can become deeply troubled in our spirits because of the guilt feelings over sin. It can actually become a deep torture in our minds as we attempt to cover over or conceal our sins.

Journal: What are my greatest debts?

David declares something of that tortured mind in Psalm 32:3–4 (NAS, emphasis added) when he writes,

When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away Through my groaning all the day long. For day and night Thy hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was drained away as with the fever-heat of summer.

There is evidence here that a sin has been committed and has made David's life one of real discontent. Scholars are agreed that the sins referred to are the sins of adultery with Bathsheba and murder of Uriah the Hittite.

Journal: How I would define sin

The psychological problems that one encounters because of the guilt of sin can cause actual physical pain within the body. David's debt was so great he could never pay for the sin he had committed. There was only one thing for him to do. We find recorded in Psalm 51 his prayer of confession for that sin. And it was only then that he found release and experienced the forgiveness of God. In Psalm 32:5 David sings,

Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD”— and you forgave the guilt of my sin.

God always forgives after genuine confession of sin. The word “forgiveness” means to release or send away. It carries with it the idea of removal. Forgiveness is an act of God whereby all of the condemnation and the guilt of the sin are set aside—by judicial decree. Forgiveness means a fresh start and another chance; it is a new beginning. Forgiveness cancels out of all previous debts blotting out the sins of your past.

Conditions of Forgiveness

There are three primary conditions for forgiveness set forth in the Bible—confession, repentance, and forgiveness in turn.

1. Confession.

Confession is an acknowledgment to God that you have sinned. In other words you simply agree with God that you are a sinner. This confession is done in a very simple prayer, stating that you have sinned against God's standards for your life.

Growing out of our confession to God is the matter of our relationship with others. In order to receive forgiveness from another person whom we have wronged, we need to confess to them. The confession of our wrongs to others is limited to the people involved in the wrongdoing. Furthermore, that confession needs to deal with the basic root problem. For instance, if you have a deep bitterness toward a person, your confession needs to deal with bitterness. You should not pick out some superficial idea to confess. Always go to the basic root problem for confession.

2. Repentance.

“Let the wicked forsake his way, and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon” (Isaiah 55:7). Incorporated into the idea of repentance is the need to turn around and head in the right direction, forsaking the sins of the past. To repent means that you are genuinely sorry that you have sinned against God and intend to turn from those sins. It involves a change of mind toward the sins of the past. This change of mind leads to a change in conduct and lifestyle. The lack of genuine repentance results in continued sins.

“There must be what the Apostle Paul calls godly sorrow.” Then there will be a change of lifestyle. In 2 Corinthians 7:9–11, Paul talks about two kinds of sorrow. There is a sorrow that is genuine and leads to the forgiveness of sin, and there is a different kind of sorrow that produces nothing but death. The difference is easily seen. A person robbed a bank. He may not get caught, thereby escaping judgment and punishment, but his conscience may get the best of him. This results in the confession of his wrongdoing to the police. This is genuine sorrow. He knows he has gotten away with it, but the grief in his heart is heavy. Genuine sorrow motivates a change in his life.

Journal: My confession

That same bank robber might never have confessed if he had not been captured by the police. In this case, he too would be sorry, but the sorrow would be of a different nature. He is not sorry that he robbed the bank; he is sorry that he got caught. There is a difference—one leads to a change of lifestyle; the other leads to nothing more than regret for being found out. There must be genuine confession of sin joined by genuine repentance of sin.

Journal: I know I need to be forgiven by __________ I will do that before this week is over.

3. Forgiveness in Turn.

The third condition of forgiveness is that we must become a forgiving person ourselves. An unforgiving spirit stops the flow of God's forgiveness in our lives. Matthew 18 and the parable of the unmerciful slave sheds light on this condition as well. In verses 32–35 Jesus says, “Then summoning him, his lord said to him, ‘You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you entreated me. Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow-slave even as I have had mercy on you?’ But his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. So shall My heavenly Father also do to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart” (NAS).

Journal: What is one change I can make in my life that will demonstrate to me and to God how serious I am in my new life?

Jesus told this story to show that people who are not forgiving are not forgiven. They have no kinship with the Father unless they possess the Father's spirit. All of God's forgiveness is wasted on us unless we are moved by that mercy to be merciful. Jesus was thinking of the corrosion in the human heart that harbors hate and resentment toward another person, and how impossible it is for God's grace to live in a soul that has no grace.

It may seem wrong to say that God would not forgive us unless we forgive others, but that is what scripture is saying.

Norman Elliott illustrates this in his book titled How to Be the Lord's Prayer. He writes, “Suppose someone went up to a track coach and said that he wanted to be a runner; and suppose this young person insisted upon carrying a heavy stone with him. The first thing the coach would do would be to tell him to let go of the rock. Perhaps the imaginary conversation would be something like this: ‘Fine. I can make you a runner, but you must first let go of that rock.’ ‘I can't do that. I've carried it around with me for a long time and I'm used to it—it's part of me.’ But the coach replies, ‘I'm sorry, you've got to let go of that rock if you want to be a runner.’ But the young man says, ‘You're being temperamental! You just want to do it your way I want to be a runner, but I want to keep my rock.’ And the coach replies, ‘No, it can't be done that way. Either you drop the rock or I won't teach you.’ And even though the young runner laments again, the coach replies, ‘I say that I won't as another way of saying that I'm not able to make a runner out of you if you insist on carrying that heavy stone. To be a runner you've got to rid yourself of every weight that is unnecessary. It isn't that I don't want to help you. You make it impossible for me to help you.’ ” [1. Norman Elliott. How to Be the Lord's Prayer. (Westwood, NJ: Fleming H. Revell, 1954), 99–100.] Thus, Jesus is saying to us that when we hold an unforgiving spirit we make it impossible for him really to invade our lives with his forgiveness.

Journal: More often than not, I am more like the bank robber who

Journal: One person who has offended me, needing my forgiveness is _______________________; I will seek reconciliation with this person before the week is up.

Scope of Forgiveness

To what extent does forgiveness go?

Psalm 103:12 states, “As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.” So far we see that God forgives us of our sins. More than forgiveness, this verse tells us that he remembers our sins no more. Note that this verse does not say as far as the north is from the south. Traveling north from whatever point, one arrives at the point at which you have to begin going south. The same would be true of starting south—at the south pole one can only go north. But from your home you could begin going east and travel east forever. Conversely, you could start going west and never stop going west. God says to us in this verse that when he forgives you of your sin, it is erased from his record and never again held against you.

Picture this: All of your sins are written down on large board and then that board is erased and washed perfectly clean. No one could ever know there was anything on your record. That's the extent to which God forgives us. As you read Isaiah 43:25, be thankful that God has a poor memory when it comes to forgiven sin. Through Isaiah, God says, “I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.” Read the phrase again “and remembers your sins no more.”

If God is willing to forgive your sins and to remember them no more, then self-forgiveness is possible.

One of the great difficulties of this concept of forgiveness is that we are unable to forgive ourselves for the things that we have done that are wrong. William White wrote these words in the February 16, 1986, issue of VITAL CHRISTIANITY:

What can I do to begin to learn the art of forgiving yourself? I can begin by not taking myself so seriously. I am a human being. I will make mistakes and I have a loving Father who understands me. I am not perfect and I don't have to be angry about it. I can begin to lower my expectations of perfection. From what I've read, it's okay to want to do things right and to strive for that. It's wrong to expect to do things right every time. [2. William White. Vital Christianity. (February 16, 1986), 4.]

Human beings are not without flaw. We are to stop sinning, but all of us at times are capable of making mistakes. If God is willing to forgive us, then certainly we ought to forgive ourselves.

In the story of the prodigal son, Luke 15, the father had a willingness to forgive the son for his riotous living and the squandering of his wealth. The son recognized that he had done wrong and desired only to be as one of his father's hired servants. The father refused to allow that to happen. He forgave the son and restored him to the place of sonship. If the son had not accepted that forgiveness, he would have had to continue to live in the pressures of his guilt for sin. But instead, he accepted it, forgave himself, and got on with life.

This challenges all to confess to God any sins that you have, accept forgiveness, forgive others, and then forgive yourself. God promises to forgive you—and has.

Journal: The one matter I need to forgive myself for is

Chapter Three
I Am Worthy

Introduction

Most people regard themselves as either superior or feel considerably inferior to others. Your self-image and the conception you have of God largely determine the kind of life you will experience. Self-worth for many is determined by how we feel others are thinking about us. Others' feelings regarding our looks, intelligence, weaknesses, strengths, family, environment, and friends affect the way we feel about ourselves. Our personal esteem, however, should not be determined by people's opinion of us, but rather by the value God places on us.

The big question is “How does God see my life?” In the next few pages you will see that “you are worthy.” You have potential to become whatever you desire.

Bible Study

NOTE: Please complete the Bible Study before reading this chapter; complete the journal as the opportunity is provided in this chapter.

1. When human beings were created (Psalm 8:5), God made them a _______ ___________ than “the heavenly beings,” and crowned them with ___________ and ______________.

2. In Psalm 8:6, what two authorities did God extend to humanity?

(a)

(b)

3. When God created humankind God created man and woman after _____ own ________ (Genesis 1:26–27). And human beings are to __________ every creeping thing, birds, fish, and cattle.

4. According to Ephesians 2:10 we are God's ___________ created in ___________ for good _________.

5. Look up John 1:12 to see how special you really are. After receiving Christ into your life, he gives you the right to become ___________ of _______.

6. Because of the strength Christ gives to those who trust in him, Philippians 4:13 assures us that with his help you can do which of the following:
[ ] a. a few things
[ ] b. some things
[ ] c. everything
[ ] d. none of the above

7. First Peter 2:9 lists four descriptors that characterize every believer. They are
a. a _________ people,
b. a royal ___________,
c. a _________ nation,
d. a people ____________ to God.

8. John tells us in 1 John 3:1 that God has lavished _________ upon us and called us ______________.

Journal: On a scale of 1 (low) to 10 (high) my sense of self-esteem is more often closer to ___ than to ___. What are three reasons for this ranking:

Who am I?

No doubt, you have asked the question “Who am I?” The inward look is essential before we can go outward. Jesus answered this question over and over again but always with the same answer.

The Person I was

Each person is created in the image and likeness of God—the imago dei. In the Garden of Eden an intimacy of fellowship existed between God and humanity. Sin had not yet come to interrupt the communication flow between humanity and the Creator. Genesis 3 tells us that God walked “in the garden in the cool of the day,” calling for Adam and Eve. Then came the decision to disobey God, and the fellowship was broken. The person whom God created, who was to have dominion over all, chose to defy his God and go his own stubborn way.

One of the first results of that falling away was the fear that gripped Adam and Eve when God came for a time of evening fellowship. Adam and Eve hid because they were afraid of God. There had not been that kind of fear prior to that sinful act.

The person that we were before coming to know Christ was one that feared the God of the universe. You knew you had sinned and, consequently, the thought of judgment frightened you. As a child, one of the greatest fears of my life was to stand before God in judgment. I had a picture of this harsh, cruel God waiting to pounce on me for the least offense. Fear is a genuine part of the separation that we have experienced from God.

The Apostle Paul wrote to the church at Corinth and listed a number of sins that he said will never be able to enter in to the kingdom of heaven. We find this list in 1 Corinthians 6:9–11:

Do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

And such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and in the Spirit of our God (NAS).

Journal: What is my answer to this question—Who am I?

Without God we are lost, fearful, and left out of the kingdom. In this godless state there is only emptiness, purposelessness, and frustration. The writer of Ecclesiastes calls that state “vanity of vanities!” It is a futile way of life:

All things are wearisome,
more than one can say.
The eye never has enough of
seeing,
nor the ear its fill of hearing.

What has been will be again,
what has been done will be
done again;
there is nothing new under the
sun.
(Ecclesiastes 1:8–9)

Like most, there are times in our lives when we sense that kind of hopelessness and purposelessness.

One of the reasons there is so much discontent in life is that most of life is self-centered.

Journal: The person I was before I became a Christian was a person who

Everyone struggles with selfishness, even Christians, but it was a greater struggle before we came to know Christ. If you were to read Ecclesiastes 2, you would find repeated again and again the personal pronouns “I,” “me”, “mine.” If we keep focusing upon ourselves life becomes empty. The selfish person that I was, was an empty person.

Paul also tells me that before I came to know Christ I was a person without hope. Ephesians 2:12 says it like this, “remember that at that time you were separate from Christ … without hope and without God in the world.”

J. Wallace Hamilton tells of a town in the northeast that was going to be intentionally flooded in a year or two. A large lake would cover the little town. The people lost all hope for their little town and, as a result, devastation and pessimism set in. It became dilapidated because there was no incentive for fixing, painting, or improving any residence or business. Before we came to Jesus there was a similar lack of hope and expectation about life, and a lack of meaning, purpose, and direction to our lives. We began to believe that the songwriter was describing us when he wrote “such a worm as I.”

Prior to conversion to Christ, we felt guilty, fearful, selfish, and rejected—we felt like a worm crawling in the dirt. The certainty that existed was one of barrenness—we felt unworthy to love ourselves, to be loved by anyone else, or to be loved by God. Those times are the moments when God comes looking for us in the person of Jesus Christ to tell us that there is the possibility of change in our life.

The Person I am

In one important sense, scripture does tell us that we are unworthy before God. After all, we are creatures standing before the God of gods, the God who is holy and wholly other. But there is an equally important and parallel teaching that firmly declares that in Christ Jesus, we are worthy. Our worth and value as person is declared in John 1:12, “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.” The holy God of gods thinks we are worthy of love and this God makes it possible for you to be born into God's own family and be called a child of God.

In the Bible and within the church, the important question is not “who am I?” The important question is “whose am I?” All who are forgiven by God are able to answer both questions with the same confident affirmation, “I am a child of God.”

Psalm 8:5 tells us that we are created just a little lower than the angels. The New International Version says, “a little lower than the heavenly beings.” In the New Revised Standard Version this familiar passage is more accurately translated with an even more astonishing declaration—“Yet you have made them [us] a little lower than God.” The word used for angels or heavenly beings is elohim, the same word for God. We are made just a little less than God. And we are “crowned with glory and honor” in that God has given us dominion over all things.

Lloyd Ogilvie writes, “The Lord has given us glory and honor as his agents to be stewards of life. He made the earth and its resources for us. He endowed us with intellect, emotion, will, and body to enjoy the delights of living. We are responsible to him for what we do with the potential he has given to us.” [2. Lloyd John Ogilvie. Falling into Greatness. (Nashville, Tenn: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1984), 35.] These words certainly do not suggest feelings of inferiority and worthlessness, instead they help us to see ourselves as God sees us—as persons of great worth in God's creation.

Many of us go through life with a very low self-esteem that God never intended. When we look at the life of Jesus, we wonder why God placed him in this world the way he did. Yet the life of Jesus helps us understand that wealth, position, and power are not what make a person great. Jesus was born in a lowly stable, not a palace; his parents were poor; his hometown was not the big city of Jerusalem, but the unimportant town of Nazareth. When his contemporaries were discussing his messiahship, they asked the question, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” If Jesus' self-esteem and confidence came from his surroundings, he would have been at a total loss.

Journal: Two significant changes in my life that are a direct result of my conversion are

Self-esteem comes from understanding who we are rather than what we possess. If we focus on our surroundings and position in life for our self-esteem, we may have little self-worth. Robert Schuller tells an old Norwegian tale about a boy who finds an egg in a nest in the woods and brings it home to be placed under a goose who ultimately hatches the egg. Out came a freakish-looking creature with deformed, unwebbed, claw-like feet. It didn't walk like the other geese; it stumbled and wobbled along. Its beak was not flat; it was pointed and twisted. Instead of having lovely cream-colored down, it was an ugly brown color. And to top it off, it made a terrible squawking sound! He seemed to be a genetic freak—ugly and disfigured.

Then one day a giant eagle flew across the barnyard. The eagle swept lower and lower until the strange, awkward little bird on the ground lifted his head and pointed his crooked beak to the sky. The misfit creature stretched his wings out and hobbled across the yard. He flapped his wings harder and harder until the wind picked him up and carried him higher and higher. He began to soar through the clouds. He had discovered who he was—he was born to be an eagle! And he had been trying to live like a goose. [3. Robert Schuller. Self-Esteem (Waco, Tex: Word Books, 1982), 59–60.]

There are so many believers who have not yet discovered who they are in Christ Jesus. They are living like a goose when God intends for them to soar like the eagle.

Can we know who we really are? The Bible firmly asserts that we are saints. Paul writes to the Philippian church, “Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus at Philippi …” (1:1). He does the same when he writes to the church at Galatia and Thessalonica and Colossae. David Needham writes,

A Christian is a person who has become someone he was not before. A Christian, in terms of his deepest identity, is a saint, a born child of God, a divine masterpiece, a child of light, a citizen of heaven …. Becoming a Christian is not just getting something, no matter how wonderful that something may be. It is becoming someone.” [4. David C. Needham. Birthright (Portland, Ore: Multnomah Press, 1979), 47.]

Saint means holy one, a believer who is single-minded in devotion to God. When we came to Christ and were justified by him through faith, he declared us righteous and made us saints. We are not the person we were before; we have been given a new nature by Christ—a person of infinite worth and value. God has clothed us with dignity, and given us dominion over the animal kingdom and the world. God has declared us righteous through Christ Jesus and therefore, made us saints. We now have tremendous potential.

The Person I can Become

God intends for all believers to become growing and maturing persons in Christ. Paul says that “we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life” (Ephesians 2:10, NRSV). Believers are the “God's workmanship” (NIV). Furthermore the verse states that we are created for “good works” so that you can become all that God wants you to be.

Journal: I am more a _________ than an __________ and I feel ___________________ about that.

It's interesting to note that Jesus' choice of disciples probably would not have been our choices. Peter, for instance, was an impulsive, outspoken, quick-acting individual. We would have seen little potential in Peter, certainly none that would qualify him for a position of discipleship.

When Jesus called Peter, he changed his name from Simon to Peter, a name which means “rock.” There was nothing in his life that would make him as solid as a rock, but Jesus gave him the name “rock.” He was saying, in essence, to Peter, “You are not yet all that I envision you to be, but I will give you the power to become that.”

Peter did become that rock.

Paul affirms, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength” (Philippians 4:13). Note also Ephesians 3:20, “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all that we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us …” These verses tell us that anything that God brings to mind, anything that we can think of, anything that we can ask, God has the power to make happen. Again, how do you tap into that? How is it possible to do all things through Christ?

John tells us the allegory of the vine and the branches—with Christ being the vine, and us, as believers, being the branches (John 15). The emphasis of this story is that there must be an intimate connection of the branch with the vine if it is to produce any kind of fruit. So, the way that we develop our spiritual potential is to keep that intimate, close relationship with Jesus Christ. As he lives in us and we live in him, an abiding, vital connection is established. One of the ways we do that is through our devotional life and by using the disciplines of Bible study, scripture memory, and life application. (See Joseph Allison's The Bible, in this series.)

Do you have the picture now of who we are? In and of ourselves, we are unworthy creatures, but in Christ Jesus, we become worthy to be called saints, children of the most high God. There is no longer reason to wallow in the mud of a poor self-image when Christ has made us worthy. Robert Schuller is correct when he says, “The ‘I am’ will always determine the ‘I can.’ “ [5. Schuller 70.] Because of whose and who we are, we can affect any necessary changes in our lives that we want to happen. With God's help everything, spiritually speaking, is possible for us.

Journal: If I were to set a goal for the next ten years of my life, it would be

Journal: What name might Jesus give me—and why?

Journal: What name would I give myself—and why?

Chapter Four
A New Me

Introduction

Once Christ is invited into our life, we really are a new person. We discover new ways of thinking, find new ways of living, and move forward with new goals and ambitions. We begin to live as a new creation in Christ Jesus. The change we are in the process of making is from self-centeredness to Christ-centeredness and other-centeredness. Because we are loved, we are set free to love in return.

In this chapter we will discuss what it means to be a new creation involved in a new fellowship and having a new ministry.

Bible Study

NOTE: Please complete the Bible Study before reading this chapter; complete the journal as the opportunity is provided in the chapter.

1. In Ezekiel 11:19, God promises to give the people of God an undivided __________ and a new ______________. It will not be a heart of _________, but a heart of _______________.

2. According to 2 Corinthians 5:17, what does God do for the person who is in Christ?

When the old things pass away, what happens?

3. Describe what the believer is to “put on” according to Ephesians 4:24:

4. According to 1 Corinthians 1:9, with whom does the believer have fellowship?

5. 1 John 1:7 we learn that believers are to have fellowship with

6. Because God loves us so much, 1 John 4:11 states that we also

7. What command is given to every believer in Romans 12:10?

8. According to Hebrews 10:24–25, what are believers to do for each other?

9. You received the Good News of Jesus from someone. What does 2 Timothy 2:2 instruct you to do with what you have heard?

Journal: Define “Christian”:

My wife came from a family of thirteen children. Needless to say, there were many hand-me-downs. To receive something new was out of the ordinary, but deeply appreciated. Something new not only excites children, but adults as well. As believers in Christ, we are entering into newness. We have traded in the old for a new you.

A New Creation

The idea of new creation comes from the born again concept Jesus teaches in John 3. Nicodemus came to Jesus with a hunger in his life to know more about God. Nicodemus was a religious person and, in fact, a religious leader of the Jews. Jesus tells him that he must “be born again.”

This phrase is a popular way of talking about conversion, and David Needham helps us to understand it in a remarkable way. He writes:

Nicodemus was hungry to know the way to God. All his learning left him empty, questioning. Jesus could have said, “Nicodemus, you must be forgiven.” But he didn't.

Jesus said, “No one can see the kingdom of God, unless he is born again. … ‘You should not be surprised at my saying, “You must be born again” ’ ” (John 3:3, 7). Clearly, Jesus did not mean “birth” as some vague, symbolic, initiatory term, but rather an actual, radical change in one's essential being. Notice our Lord adds, “Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.” To enter the kingdom of God requires that one be of a different species.

Consider physical conception and birth—being born isn't simply someone getting something more than one didn't have before (like getting the Holy Spirit). No! Being born is becoming someone who was not there before. And that is exactly the issue in spiritual new birth!” [1. David C. Needham. Birthright (Portland, Ore: Multnomah Press, 1979), 48.]

In other words, we have been given new natures. We are a “new you!” Human nature is changed! The sins of the past can be put to death. Christ living in us does bring about the change.

How does this change come about?

First, as we saw earlier, we must genuinely repent of our sins. One of the first things we need to do in the battle with sin is to make the commitment of faith that lifts us out of sin's stifling atmosphere. One of the key words of the Christian gospel is the word “repent.”

John the Baptist began his ministry with the message of repentance and baptism. Jesus preached a message of repentance. Repentance must be accompanied with genuine sorrow that causes a person to change direction in life. To repent brings with it the idea of changing direction. When a soldier is marching in one direction and the company commander calls “Halt! About face,” the soldier moves in the opposite direction.

The second step occurs when Christ is given first place in our lives. This simply means that we must set ourselves apart for God's use—God must have the supreme place in life.

James Kennedy provides a helpful illustration of what the phrase “the lordship of Christ” means. Think of yourself as traveling in New York City for the very first time. You're downtown at rush hour. As far as you can see in front of you, there is traffic, and as far as you can see behind you, there is more traffic, and on both sides there are several lanes of automobiles. You have an address that you want to find, but you are lost in this big maze of traffic. You have circled the block several times and are creating a traffic hazard because you're lost.

Suddenly, there is a knock on the window of your car. As you turn to look, you see Jesus standing there by your door. You roll down the window and he says to you, “I know that you are lost; I know where you want to go; I know how to get there. Would you slide over and let me drive you to your destination?” Because of your deep frustration with the way the last few moments have been going, you slide to the right side of the seat and Jesus drives you safely to your destination. You allow him the driver's seat. That's what it means to make Jesus Christ Lord of your life—let him into the driver's seat of your life. Allow him to be on the throne of your life instead of self controlling your life. [2. Statements by James Kennedy, “Evangelism Explosion III Training Seminar,” Salem Avenue Church of God, Dayton, Ohio, February, 1981.]

The third step in changing our nature is to begin to let Christ renew our mind. Paul says, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:2). The renewing of the mind is a process of growth in our inner spiritual life. Our responsibility is to read the Bible to learn how to apply the principles of the scriptures to our life. Memorizing scripture and meditating (that is, thinking about its meaning) and allowing Christ and his Spirit to lead are ways to transform the way we think.

As we begin to change the way we think, we move from futility of mind to a renewed mind in Christ. In essence, it means we begin to put on the nature of Jesus Christ. When we come to Christ we are given a new nature that transforms us from self-centeredness to Christ-centeredness. This is not about becoming religious; it is about a transformation of our sinful nature into a new Christlike nature.

A New Fellowship

Staying spiritually alive becomes an important part of the believer's life. Throughout scripture we are told that the “new you” must enter into a new fellowship. The fellowship that we now experience is not only with Christ, but also with Christians (Christ's people). In Hebrews 10:25 we are told to “not give up meeting together.” We come together as believers to worship and glorify God, to study the scriptures, and to enjoy each other's fellowship.

This passage also instructs us in the need for mutual encouragement. It tells us that we should “consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds” (Hebrews 10:24 NAS). The word “stimulate” means to provoke or to sharpen. It can be both positive and negative in its meaning. For instance, out in the world you could be easily provoked to anger, jealousy, and envy of other people. In the church, however, the instruction is that we are to provoke one another to good and beneficial ends.

Journal: In my life, giving God first place, means

The “new you,” then, is not only the one loved by God, but is also the one that returns love. We find ourselves loving God and loving others. This is not a passive love; it is a serving kind of love that is actually lived out toward other people. In this new fellowship believers stimulate one another to love by setting a good example for each other. We are encouragers to other people; they, in turn, are encouragers back.

A New Ministry

Jesus said, “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another (John 13:34–35 NRSV).” The new ministry given to each believer by Christ is this: each of us becomes a loving person in relationship with other believers. Charles Schulz, in one of his comic strips, has Lucy making fun of her little brother Linus. Lucy says, “You, a doctor? Ha! That's a big laugh! You could never be a doctor! Do you know why? Because you don't love mankind, that's why!”

Linus, finally aroused, shouts back, “I love mankind … it's the people I can't stand!” This new kind of ministry is not always easy because all people are not always lovely

Another of Schulz's cartoon strips helps us to understand the need for ministry. Linus is plucking petals from a daisy as he recites, “Does anybody up there (out there … down there …) care?” And that really is the big question for many people—does anybody care or understand what I'm feeling and need? Since there are many hurting people in our world, we have a tremendous opportunity as Christians to show them the same kind of love that we have received from Christ.

Journal: Goals—to allow the transforming of my mind:

Many people in the world would be like the little girl who awoke in terror several times during the night with a recurring nightmare. Her mother would hurry to her bedside with comfort and assurance. And each time she would read a Bible verse or tell a story and then pray with her—yet, the little girl's fears persisted. Finally, in desperation the mother says, “Jesus is with you and understands you.” But the little girl, with tears streaming down her cheeks, says, “I know that, but I need someone with skin on—will you stay with me?” [3. William M. Fletcher, The Second Greatest Commandment. (Colorado Springs, Colo: NavPress, 1983), 29.] This is where many people are in our world; they need someone to understand, to care, and to minister to their needs.

Journal: Goals—to more fully participate in the life of the people of God:

We are called to be disciples. To be a disciple means to be “a taught one”—one who is learning from Christ. Our mentor, the one whom we follow, is Jesus. We grow best in relationship—with Jesus and with other believers. An excellent way to learn is to be in relationship with another Christian who is more mature in faith. They, then, are able to help lead into spiritual maturity.

James instructs believers that faith must be accompanied by good works. We are not saved by good works, but are saved to do good works. Our works—in Jesus' name—are living demonstrations of our faith.

When Kurt Salierno was a student at Warner Pacific College in Portland, Oregon, he often went to skid row to minister to those in need. One time, shortly after his father had given him a new heavy coat for winter, he found a drunken man lying on the street, shivering from the cold because he had no coat. Kurt took off his brand new coat and gave it to that man on the street. That's love in action, a living demonstration of what Jesus talks about when he tells us to meet the physical as well as the spiritual needs of people.

Summary

We are a new creation in Christ. As we read the Bible, our minds are being renewed and conformed to his way of thinking. We are linked to a new fellowship of believers and given the opportunity for a new ministry of serving and caring. Jesus challenges us to walk as new persons with God. The “new you” is embarking on a new lifestyle that gives purpose and meaning to life.

Congratulations, new person!