Mack: Can a believer still have
assurance of Salvation
if he remembers a time in his life?
When he was more godly than he is now.
Yes.
Absolutely.
I believe that God.
What is the greatest way we can glorify
God? Isn't it in what I said (in the previous question)
It is recognizing
He is savior complete savior
that we contributed
nothing to our Salvation,
not even our sanctification.
We contributed nothing to our Salvation
but our sin.
And I want to tell you there are...
I remember when I was younger.
I went through a period of time
where I could pray.
I was consumed by prayer.
For a long period of time in my life.
I could, it was as easy to pray
as it was to breathe.
But I also wondered
why can't everybody else pray?
I mean why do people tell me
they struggle with prayer?
I just can't understand that.
It just seems.
And then one day.
I began to struggle
with prayer.
And I realized it was absolutely necessary
so that I would recognize that any times
of empowering or devotion in my life.
Were the result of God's grace
achieving some purpose in my life.
And so we will always go
through those times
where we think we're doing really well
and then all of a sudden God
will open up a door.
To show us something
that we didn't know was there.
That is, is not what it should be.
We realize hold it, in this area
I'm an infant. I couldn't even see this,
now I see it.
Marriage is a really good means of doing that.
I mean, I was really spiritual
until I got married
and then you know...
There is a sense though.
We're just talking
about the general struggles.
We're not talking about
a believer who supposedly
apostates or something like that.
But yeah, you'll have times
where it'll seem like times of weakness.
Let me just say it this way?
Have you ever had a day?
Where you got up super early.
You prayed for two hours.
You read your Bible.
You go out to the coffee shop
you witness to the first person,
and you haven't done that in a long time.
But by 10:00 o'clock.
You're judging all of Christendom.
Why can't everybody do this?
You know?
And it's those.
It's those little like smackdowns
that shows you hold it
anything I've achieved in my life
is it's not been me as Paul said
but the grace of God in me for a purpose.
Michael: Yeah, I think the
this question really ties
into the previous question.
When we start talking
about assurance and sanctification,
there's a great deal of confusion
going on around here, specially
with the doctrine of sanctification,
and I think the two are connected
because we're all thing
often judging our position with God
by our progress in sanctification,
which is very, very dangerous in fact.
I would suggest that
that is not the test of faith,
and again, as Paul said,
we're not dealing with
somebody's apostatizing.
When I would read the
those biographies of men
like Andrew Bonar's biography
and it's everyday he's bemoaning
the fact that he's
so ungodly so un-Christlike
like he doesn't have a passion for Christ
like he thinks he ought to have.
And I'm reading it
as a younger guy and thinking
what's the problem here?
Now as an older guy.
I get it.
I think that is what sanctification is,
and I think that is the fuel
to drive us to Christ
where he becomes our assurance,
not our progress.
Does that make sense?
He's our assurance, he's our anchor.
Because the closer
you do grow in holiness,
the more you feel unholy.
At least I think that's
the way it's worked in my life
and is working, so...
Yes.
You can feel ungodly
and still be a Christian.
Two of my favorite verses
about lacking sanctification.
David said he shall perfect
that which concerns me.
What a promise.
He will perfect that which concerns me.
And then the Apostle Paul.
God is at work in us
both to will and to do
of his good pleasure.
The Christian, no matter what they feel
or experience, is never not
being sanctified.
Progressively.
Our next question for Michael.