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1 John 3:4–10
“No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother” (vv. 9–10).
Even though many professing Christians in church history have held that having assurance that one is truly saved is possible for only a select few, the Bible actually teaches that every true believer can be assured of salvation. John’s first epistle tells us as much. “I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:13). Such texts prove Westminster Confession of Faith 18.1: “Such as truly believe in the Lord Jesus, and love him in sincerity, endeavoring to walk in all good conscience before him, may, in this life, be certainly assured that they are in the state of grace, and may rejoice in the hope of the glory of God, which hope shall never make them ashamed.”
Note that in that statement from the Westminster Confession, those who may be assured of salvation are said to be those who are “endeavoring to walk in all good conscience before him.” This brings us to a second indication that we have true, saving faith in Jesus Christ—namely, right ethics. Those who seek to know and put into practice the law of God, sincerely striving to obey Him, may know that they are saved.
Today’s passage is one of many in Scripture that connect assurance of salvation with doing what the Lord commands. John says that those who are born of God do not make “a practice of sinning” (1 John 3:9–10). The phrase “practice of sinning” aptly reflects the underlying Greek and helps us understand that the Apostle is talking about habitual, impenitent sin. He does not mean that true Christians never sin; if he did, then his statements earlier in the epistle would be pointless (1:8–9). John means that those who have been born again are not defined by sin, are not content in their sin, and are not stubborn in their sin. When they fall, they repent and their lives are marked by the pursuit of righteousness. This pattern of repentance, mortifying sin, and pursuing holiness is something that we recognize in ourselves over time. We also need other Christians to encourage us and help us see this pattern when we cannot.
Robert Letham writes in his Systematic Theology that “it is incongruous and wrong to expect assurance of salvation if we have willfully plunged into sin.” Those who are utterly devoid of holiness will not see the Lord (Heb. 12:14), so we cannot think that we are in Christ if we do not pursue personal holiness.
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
We do not need to be sinlessly perfect to have assurance of salvation, but we do need to be concerned for our holiness and daily turning from sin and pursuing righteousness. If we are living lives of repentance and faith, seeking to grow in our obedience to the Lord, however imperfectly, we can be assured of our salvation.
For futher study
- Isaiah 62:10–12
- 2 Corinthians 7:1
- 2 Peter 1:3–11
- 3 John 11
The bible in a year
- Jeremiah 23–24
- 2 Timothy 3