How do I know for sure I'm saved

[my3boys]

Okay, I'm sure this has been discussed a thousand times (at least I hope I'm not the only weirdo). I was raised catholic and have kind of turned away from their. My DH is a newly saved christian. He went to a promise keepers thing with a brother and friend and came back totally changed. I know for sure he is "save" because he was a non church goer before. He thought hunting on sunday morning was more important than church. He came back a totally different person and has joined an awesome Baptist church which is growing very quickly here in town.

Now, here is my problem. I always secretly wanted this for him. I even had people at my MOPS group pray for him. Now, I felt like the lost one. I went up front after a sunday evening church service with some questions on being saved etc. The pastor talked to me for a while and then he asked if I wanted to do it then and there and I said yes. We said a prayer and everyone congratulated me on my decision for Christ. I kept telling them I didn't feel different. I left there feeling like I had fooled everyone (maybe myselft) With my DH it was a total turn around. He said it was an awesome feeling. I didn't have/get that awesome feeling so I totally questioned myselft. I spent the whole next week looking up salvation and how do you know you have it. I became obsessed with it. Finally I told myselt I had to let it go and I pretty much did. This was a month ago. Last night I was baptized. I still don't feel any different. I always considered myself a "good" person. But I know that doesn't mean anything. My parents and sister are devout catholics and I wonder if part of my problem is growing up I knew nothing about salvation etc.

My main question is they say salvation is a free gift from God. How do I know I've "received" the gift and not trying to get it on my own. It seems like I'm working awful hard on it but I don't know what else to do. If I just "give it up" will I stop reading my bible? Sometimes I have to "make" myself read the bible and pray so how do I really know if this is just me trying to do this or God is really trying to reach me. My problem is I overanalyze everything.

I always hear eveyone say they know if the holy spirit lives in you. Well, sometimes I don't know. How do I know its the real thing and I'm not just doing it because my husband is? Can anyone help me here? Am I totally lost on the whole thing. Should I "give it up" or keep looking for answers?

 

[biblecatholic]

My main question is they say salvation is a free gift from God. How do I know I've "received" the gift and not trying to get it on my own. It seems like I'm working awful hard on it but I don't know what else to do. If I just "give it up" will I stop reading my bible? Sometimes I have to "make" myself read the bible and pray so how do I really know if this is just me trying to do this or God is really trying to reach me. My problem is I overanalyze everything.

I'm not sure you want an answer from a catholic, but I'll try to help...

First I want to say that God's name is Mercy, and as long as you repent you will be forgiven. But you must ask. Just trust in the Lord he is faithful. Ask Him for the grace to know His Love...

that being said, I'd like to clear somethings up salvation is a free gift from God.(and we must be thankful for this gift) But it's not a one-night-stand with Jesus. It's not ,I said this "prayer" and I'm going to heaven no matter what..... As far as the feelings go with the Lord they will come and go. The best advice I can give is to ask the Lord to Let you know how much He loves you, ask Him to wrap His arms around you and ask for the peace that He promised, not to worry if you're saved or not, just trust in Him, follow His commandments, when you fall confess your sins and begin again. Know that He loves you as if you were the only one He created, and if you were the only one who would accept His mercy he still would have come down and died on the cross


Salvation is a "I have been saved", "I am being saved", and I will be saved"

I have been saved: Rom 8:24, Eph 2:5,8, 2 Tim 1:9, Titus 3:5

I am being saved: Phil 2:12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;,
1 Peter 1:9 receiving the end of your faithâ€â€the salvation of your souls

I will be saved: Matt 10:22 And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.
Matt 24:13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved., Mark 8:35 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it....and many more

 

[my3boys]

Thank you biblecatholic for your reply. I don't mind that you are catholic. My mom and dad both are. I love both of them and my dad has taught me a lot about the bible when I am confused. I just kind of fell away from that church. Never felt closeness there or heard messages that really made me think about things.

I'm so glad you said being saved is not always a "one time deal". That is how I feel often. Sometimes I'm excited about God ready to learn more and do what he wants. And other times I feel that this is too hard and I will never be "good enough" (by that I mean a good enough christian-helpful, forgiving, telling others about Jesus) Sometimes I just have to tell myself to relax about it and everything will work itself out. Sometimes I wonder if I'm jealous of my DH amazing turn around on how he found God. Thanks so much for taking the time out of your day to answer me. I really thank you and it means a lot to me. Sometimes talking to others really helps.

 

[McQuacks]

My3boys, you sound a lot like me!

I can completely relate to over-analyzing. Boy, do I have that down! I can have a one-man debate sometimes. ;)

Having said that, God has been able to use all of it for good. He's been able to take my overly-analytical mind and use that to teach me so much. He's had to pull me back and discipline me at times, but through that He has revealed to me more and more of His love and glory. He is patient, and He's ready to show you so much!

I too have grown up in the Catholic church, however, my parents have raised us to be Bible-based first and foremost. I never had an altar-call experience or prayed with a pastor. I prayed in my bedroom after studying the bible for hours. I think growing up in the Catholic church has helped me to see that God is original in everyone's life. I've known some Catholics who are overflowing with God's joy and you can just see that they are surrendered and love Christ. They may not have had an altar-call moment or anything of that nature, but at some point in their lives, they made that decision for Christ and got the reason why He had to come.

And just as biblecatholic said, salvation is not a one time deal. It's a relationship with God, and just like any relationship, the beginning is not everything. Just like in marriage, the wedding day may be exciting and very important, but the days and years that follow are where you grow and mature and work that relationship out in every day life. It's the same with God.

Jesus said we know a tree by it's fruit. A good tree will bear good fruit, He says. So if someone is truly born again of God, they should be able to look into their life and see places where they have changed. Sinful habits that no longer have hold over them. This is a long quote but I think it is a great one:

"16This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. 17If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? 18Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. 19This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence 20whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.
21Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God 22and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him. 23And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. 24Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us."

1 John 3:16-24.

So John is saying here that we know we are God's because we obey His commands. One of His commands, John says, is to believe in the name of Jesus, in Who He is and what He did for us. I don't believe that this is a good work that we do to earn salvation, but a gift that we receive/accept, as John speaks of it in John 1:12.
So to believe in His Son is God's first command for us. The second is to love one another as He commanded us. Those who obey God's commands are the ones who live in Him, John says. This is not to be confused with works as earning heaven though...Obeying God's commands is a by-product of believe in Him. And then John says is plainly - "This is how we KNOW He lives in us - by the Spirit He gave us."
These are the fruits of the Spirit:

"22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other."

Galatians 5:22-26.
When the Holy Spirit is present, these fruits begin to show themselves. The good fruit is born because the tree itself is made good by the power of Christ's forgiveness given through His death and resurrection. Jesus says that those who are born again are born of the Holy Spirit. John 3:5-7. So those who are born again will show these fruits.

Anyway, this post is extremely long! :crazyeyes: If any of that doesn't make sense just ask - I can definitely try to explain it better.
God bless,
-McQ 8-)

 

[francisdesales]

My main question is they say salvation is a free gift from God. How do I know I've "received" the gift and not trying to get it on my own. It seems like I'm working awful hard on it but I don't know what else to do. If I just "give it up" will I stop reading my bible? Sometimes I have to "make" myself read the bible and pray so how do I really know if this is just me trying to do this or God is really trying to reach me. My problem is I overanalyze everything.

He that has the Son has life; [and] he that does not have the Son of God does not have life. 1 John 5:12

And how do we know we have the Son?

And he that keeps his commandments dwells in him, and he in him. And in this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit which he has given us 1 John 3:24

You can be certain you are being saved if you are obeying God's Will in your life, the commandment of Jesus Christ that sums up the Law - Love your neighbor. Because of our cooperation with God's graces, we have physical evidence that Christ abides in us.

I'm Catholic and that is the quickest way to explain it to others. Everything else, as Jesus says, points to this one commandment - love others.

Regards

 

[biblecatholic]

Thank you biblecatholic for your reply.

you're welcome. I use to have a hard time thinking God would forgive me after sinning(badly) since I already knew Him, but taking that to prayer fixed that. He is so forgiving, He just desires a contrite heart... know that He is mercy. Look at David ,he kills a man, steals his wife (he wrote psalm 51 after that)and the Lord says he is a man after God's heart.... I can tell that you thirst for God, and that is a most wonderful desire to possess. as he says in Isaiah 55 "all who are thirsty , come to the waters" ...... the psalms are wonderful to pray, try ps 118 and ps 62

And other times I feel that this is too hard and I will never be "good enough" (by that I mean a good enough christian-helpful, forgiving, telling others about Jesus)

well we'll never be perfect, but it is good to pray to forgive and if you can't ask Jesus to forgive them through you, ask for the grace to be a "saint"(cathiolic meaning)a hero of faith, ask him for the grace to be as Loving as Mary to be as evangelical as Paul etc. I pray daily to have marys heart so that I may love Jesus the way His mom loves Him(this has changed me into a more loving person in general)

Sometimes I wonder if I'm jealous of my DH amazing turn around on how he found God. Thanks so much for taking the time out of your day to answer me.

Well we can always be jealous, but it's not wrong to desire to experience the Lord in a profound way. Take it to prayer(be patient), ask the Lord to allow you to feel the Love He has for you and to transmit it through you to others, ask Him to lead people in your life that can lead you closer to Him, ask Him for the gift of prayer, the gift of joy, the gift of peace, for Him to conform you into His image......


Blessings

 

[handy]

my3boys, It sounds as though you are getting some pretty good advice here. By an amazing coincidence, I just posted a thread on the whole 'sinner's prayer' fallacy of Christianity. If you haven't done so, you may want to read through it, for there are some pretty good thoughts posted by folks that may speak to you regarding this.

I think that too often, the modern American church is looking to some kind of 'event' that someone must have in order to be a Christian. All too often, this 'event' is a man-made, feel good, construct. Rather, we are a Christian, because the Holy Spirit is at work in our hearts. It seems very sad and even strange to me that so many who love the Lord are doubting their salvation, not because they do not believe in God or want to follow Him, but because they haven't said the right words for the sake of other Christians.

francisdesales said, "You can be certain you are being saved if you are obeying God's Will in your life, the commandment of Jesus Christ that sums up the Law - Love your neighbor. Because of our cooperation with God's graces, we have physical evidence that Christ abides in us."

I think francis is spot on. You were a believer long before your husband was, look at the love you showed your husband by praying for this very thing for him. He had a more emotional experience than you, because you've been faithfully believeing God all this time, and it was more or less 'sprung' on him. Right now, he's as excited and giddy as a teenager in love. As time goes on, he will probably settle down, and may even worry that he is losing his first love. But, as long as both of you are committed to obeying God's will in your life, then you can and should have the assurance of salvation.

The bible very clearly shows us God's will for our lives, remain steadfast in our belief and love for Him, love others by serving them and praying for them, and to do all things for His glory. There are times that this is exciting and fresh. Other times, it's downright drudgery. But, the willingness to follow God, and to seek His forgiveness when we fail to follow through, shows the work of the Spirit in our lives.

 

[my3boys]

Thanks so much for everyones replies. I feel so much better talking with others about this. Everything you all have said has helped so much. Helped me see things in a different light, know that I'm not so different and everything will work itself out the way God wants. I think its awesome that there is a forum where everyone is so helpful on this matter. What one of you said about my husband being almost giddy, in love was dead on...it was so weird to me when he came home from this trip wanting to read his bible, go to bible studies, learn so much. But wow, I have so much I would like to say but can't seem to find the words to say. Thanks everyone.

 

[my3boys]

handy, I just went back and read your post on the "sinner's prayer". A lot of what is said in those posts is a lot of the same questions I have. I think its wonderful your son is getting baptized. It sounds like God is really working in him. I have 3 sons ages 8,5,2. My oldest is no where close to having a deep understanding about God (of course a lot of this is new for us. We didn't make prayer/church/God a big priority earlier than a few months ago) I pray that one day, they will have a deep love for God like that. Of course I am working on my own "salvation" I feel unqualified to teach them about it!!

 

[handy]

handy, I just went back and read your post on the "sinner's prayer". A lot of what is said in those posts is a lot of the same questions I have. I think its wonderful your son is getting baptized. It sounds like God is really working in him. I have 3 sons ages 8,5,2. My oldest is no where close to having a deep understanding about God (of course a lot of this is new for us. We didn't make prayer/church/God a big priority earlier than a few months ago) I pray that one day, they will have a deep love for God like that. Of course I am working on my own "salvation" I feel unqualified to teach them about it!!

Just share what you do believe regarding God with your kids. Believe me, you are far more 'qualified' than you might think. As you live out your life showing love and respect for God and others, and answer your kids questions about God, they will learn so much from you.