Perseverence: How can I have assurance I am saved? pt. 2

Last time we looked at one question to help you examine yourself to see if you should have assurance of salvation. Let's look at question number two now.


 2. Do I see evidence of the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit in my heart?
Your heart is the real you.  It is the seat of your thinking and affections.  Apart from Christ, a person's heart is evil, seeking to live for self, and has no true love for Jesus or holiness.  However, at salvation, the Spirit of God gives us new life- he regenerates us and gives us a new heart (Titus 2:5).  How can you know if this has happened?

The Holy Spirit provides subjective witness in our hearts that we belong to God (Rom. 8:15-16).  This subjective, inward testimony is then seen in our outward life as the Holy Spirit makes us more holy.  The fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control) begins to be develop and blossom in your life.  A non-believer can't produce these things at the truest level.  He can staple fake fruit on the tree of his life, but he can't produce the reality of this fruit apart from the working of the Holy Spirit (Matt. 7:16-20).  


Other outward evidence of the Holy Spirit's regenerating work is obedience to God's commands.  Jesus says that if you love him you will keep his commandments (John 14:21).  John says,

Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, ⁵but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: ⁶whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked (1 John 2:4-6).

James 2:17-18 says that our saving faith (which alone saves us) is not alone.  It produces good works.  Living, saving faith works.

One more piece of evidence that the Holy Spirit has indeed given you new life is that you love God and do not love the world.  1 John 2:15-17 says,

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. ¹⁶For all that is in the world— the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride in possessions—is not from the Father but is from the world. ¹⁷And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever.

If you have this new life in you, your affections are new.  You are not drawn to the world's pleasures and empty promises that are in opposition to God.  Instead, you love God and seek to do his will in this world.  You forsake the fleeting pleasures of sin for the everlasting pleasures of knowing God.  It's not that you avoid happiness or joy.  It is, instead, that you find true joy and happiness which is only found in knowing and obeying God.

This is what a regenerate heart looks like, and a regenerated heart is one that is sealed by God's Spirit.  Next time we'll look at question 3.