Assurance of our Life
Ephesians 2:4-10
“Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine! Heir of salvation, purchase of God, Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood. This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all day long!” Fanny J. Crosby wrote over 8000 hymns during her lifetime. Among all those songs “Blessed Assurance” is very dear to our hearts. The song illustrates that Blessed Assurance is a personal possession that God wants each of His children to experience.
Fanny Crosby writes about her daily walk with the Lord. She had blessed assurance throughout her life, and God did many great things through her life. Although blinded by an illness at the age of 6 weeks, Fanny never became bitter. One time a preacher in sympathy remarked, “I think it is a great pity that the Master did not give you sight, when He showered so many gifts upon you.” She quickly replied, “Do you know that, if at birth I had been able to make one petition, it would have been that I should be born blind?” “Why?” asked the surprised clergyman. “Because when I get to heaven, the first face that shall ever gladden my sight will be that of my Savior!”
Fanny Crosby shows us what it means to have Blessed Assurance as a personal possession. She was able to see with 20/20 vision through the spiritual eyes of faith. Some may ask, “What gives someone the Blessed Assurance of Jesus?” Some say, “I believe I am a Christian; I’ve repented of my sins and put my trust in Christ, but I don’t feel like I have assurance. What am I missing?” To address these concerns, the Apostle Paul points out 5 truths that we need to understand before Blessed Assurance is experienced in our daily lives.
Listen to Paul’s words to the churches at Ephesus 2:4-10 “4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
I. God Made Us Alive in Christ:
The first truth of salvation we need to understand to experience Blessed Assurance is that God made us alive in Christ. Ephesians 2: 4-5 says “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved).” When God makes you alive together with Christ: the dead live the blind see, the deaf hear, the lame walk, the empty are filled, the hungry are fed, and the weary rest. We are made alive to a life we cannot fathom-- a life that brings enrichment and fulfillment. Our Lord promises us in John 10:10, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
Understand, God made us alive, not we ourselves. All glory, all credit, and all claim goes to God for He is rich in mercy. His love for us is great (John 3:16, 1 Cor. 6:19, 20). This salvation has brought us life, and that life is found in Christ and Christ alone. We are separated from the enslaving power of our sins and are now together with Him. We will never be alone again -- we will never be left behind or forsaken because grace and mercy have been extended to us at the Cross. And we accepted it as truth, repented, and believed.
You may have heard of the many stories of Commander Napoleon. There was once a mother who went to Napoleon, seeking the pardon of her son who had been condemned to death. Napoleon told this mother, it was the man's second offense, and justice demanded his death. The mother said, "But sir, I'm not asking for justice. I am pleading for mercy." Napoleon said, "But lady, he does not deserve mercy." The mother replied, "Sir, you are exactly right. It would not be mercy, if he deserved it. Mercy is what I'm asking for." Hearing this Napoleon said, "Well then, I will show mercy." And her son was saved.
In the same sense, Christ also had mercy on us and made us alive in Him. Thank God, for His mercy. If God judged by justice, we would all be condemned to death for our sins. But God pours out His mercy to all those who believe.
II. God Rose us up with Christ:
The second truth we need to understand to experience blessed assurance is that God rose us up with Christ! (Vs.6). We have been raised to a new level of existence. We have a life available that exists on a higher plain and that life is found in Christ and Christ alone. It is a life of faith that desires to seek things above not things of the earth (Colossians 3:1-3). It is a life that should challenge us to shed the grave clothes of our old existence and put on the righteous robes of our new existence (see 2 Corinthians 5:17) found in Christ every day. It is a life that should exchange our mortal eyes for spiritual eyes. But understand, being raised up with Christ is not only an event, but also a process. The Apostle Paul said, “but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him, who is the head, even Christ,” (Ephesians 4:15) He told the churches at Galatia, “my children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you” (Galatians 4;19) And Paul tells us in Romans 8:29: “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the first-born among many brethren.” (Romans 8:29)
I want to tell the moral of a story which came across the news. Police officer Ray Hicks was 27 years old. He left a wife, three children and a bullet-proof vest in the trunk of his car parked thirty feet from where he fell.
What is the moral of the story? An officer can believe in vests all he wants to, but he must take his belief to the point of personal commitment where he puts that vest on and wears it at all times.
It is not enough just to believe that a man named Jesus Christ lived two thousand years ago, nor even to believe He was born of a virgin, nor even to believe He performed miracles, nor even to believe He died on the cross, nor even to believe He was raised from the dead. Saving faith is when you take your belief to a point of commitment and you put on that risen Christ as your Lord and as your Savior. Put on the risen Christ Jesus always with you.
III. God has Seated us with Christ:
The third truth we need to understand is that God has seated us with Christ (VS. 6). What greater honor and proof of assurance could we have? We are seated with Christ, God’s beloved son in whom He is well pleased. Imagine being invited by the President of the United States to sit in his presidential box at the State of the Union address. Think of being his special guest, having all expenses paid trip to go to the Capitol, and being seated with the highest leader in the country. It is an honor. Such is the case for the Christian. We are seated with Christ in the heavenly places. Luke 15:7 tells us, “I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”
Furthermore, being seated with Christ means the work of salvation has been completed for us in Christ. Hebrews 10: 10-14 says, “By this we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest stands daily minister and offers time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; but He having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time onward until His enemies be made a footstool for His feet. For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.” (Hebrews 10:10-14) As our High Priest, Christ is seated at the right hand of the Father, because the work has been done! But notice believers are also seated with Christ, meaning His salvation has been secured once for all time. Jesus said, “and I give eternal life to them and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.” (John 10:28-29)
IV. The Surpassing Riches of God’s Grace Towards us in Christ Jesus.
The fourth truth we need to understand is to accept by faith the surpassing riches of God’s Grace Towards us in Christ Jesus. (VS. 7-9) Listen again to verses 7-9: “in order that in the ages to come, He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast.”
What are the surpassing riches of His grace in Christ Jesus? Paul answers this question in verses 8 and 9. He is saying that due to God’s grace, I can turn from myself and my sins and place my total reliance, dependence, trust, and commitment in God to save me. My faith is based on nothing in myself or my good works.
It is a completed work, meaning all our sins are forgiven. This means past sins, present sins, and future sins. This is what Paul told the Christians at Colossae: “And when you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions” (Colossians 2:13). The surpassing riches of God’s grace is described by Paul as the gift of God. It is a gift beyond human description, and it causes Paul to say to the churches at Corinth: “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:15). Therefore, it is a gift we should not neglect but stir up. (2 Timothy 1:6).
Paul reminds us again with Jonah the prophet. that I will sacrifice to you with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay what I have vowed, salvation is of the Lord (Jonah 2:9). Paul enforces again that these riches are not a result of works that one can boast. The prophet Isaiah describes it this way: “Is the axe to boast itself over the one who chops with it? Is the saw to exalt itself over the one who wields it. That would be like a club wielding those who lift it, or like a rod lifting him who is not wood.” (Isaiah 10:15) Thus, we must agree with the psalmist: “In God we have boasted all day long, and we will give thanks to Thy name forever.” (Psalms 44:8)
V. God’s Workmanship
Finally, we need to understand we are God’s Workmanship (VS. 10). We are His workmanship, which means we are not our own. Paul told the churches at Corinth: “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) We are His people, created in Christ Jesus for good works. These are works that flow from the life of Christ into us. “for it is God who is at work in you; both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:13)
These are the works that God prepared beforehand. God prepared us for good works, and God prepared good works for us. The word for “workmanship” can be interpreted as “beautiful poem.” We are God’s beautiful poem, if we will submit and allow Him to weave His beautiful patterns of our life. “The steps of a man are established by the Lord; And He delights in his way.” (Psalm 37:23) Thus, our prayer should be to the Lord: “Establish my footsteps in Thy word, and do not let any iniquity have dominion over me.” (Psalm 119:133)
Conclusion
Just as Fanny J. Crosby writes in her song: “blessed assurance, Jesus is mine.” Because we have chosen to believe in the name of our Lord and Savior, we are blessed with the assurance of life and Christ. Our lives are blessed and made anew. No matter how hard our situations may seem, we have the assurance that Christ is always by our side. When times become troubling and your spiritual soul grows weak, please remember these five truths.
God has made you alive in Christ. Through the salvation we received as Christ bled on the cross, your life does not end with death. Your soul is blessed with everlasting life. God rose you up with Christ. He gave you everlasting life and has invited you into His kingdom and into His family. God has seated you with Christ. The Lord of heaven has called upon you to come sit with Him for you have been made His child. These are the first three truths we have been blessed with. Even more, God has blessed you with riches of God’s grace through Jesus Christ. Because you believe, God has showered you with blessings and grace. His blessed gift of protection and love. And lastly, God has made you His workmanship. Because you chose to love Him, He will make His mighty works work through you. The heavenly father will use you for the glory of God.
Dear brothers and sister, it is thanksgiving season. These are the blessings God has touched you with because of your faith. Thank the Lord for your houses, cars, and family. But thank and glorify Him greatly for the everlasting life He has given to us. Glorify Him for making your soul anew. Glorify Him for allowing you to enter into His kingdom and sit with Him. Glorify Him for your “blessed assurance.” Amen.
