Absolute Certainty

Absolutely Certain ...

Of course absolute certainty is desirable. The writer's conclusion in the photo quote above is wrong but he is right in one sense. It is impossible to be certain of anything when looking at things from a worldly point of view; but when considering the things of the Spirit ... Absolute Certainty is a promise that Jesus has given everyone who believes in Him.

"Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life." John 5:24

"And I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.”John 10:28

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." John 3:16

"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Romans 10:13       

"These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that 
you may know that you have eternal life." 1 John 5:13

And this is a most important question that every person needs to be able to answer ... 

If you died today, are you absolutely certain you will go to heaven? 
“Yes, I am Absolutely Certain.”

Without understanding and establishing God's Truth as the foundation of our beliefs ... 
a Christian is destined to a life of confusion that is lacking the assurance of salvation.

Some would say that nobody can be absolutely certain. That view would reveal a lack of faith and understanding. According to Jesus, we can know the truth and be absolutely certain about the things of the Spirit. When we believe that Jesus is God, we are saved at that moment spiritually for eternity. My confidence is not because I have somehow qualified as a result of my good deeds, but rather as a result of the fact that Jesus died as the penalty for my sins and failures … past, present, and future. 

My certainty is in Him that died for my sins ... NOT ME.

The foundation of our beliefs must be Jesus Christ who is the eternal Truth. When our worldview is measured up against His eternal Truth … only then can we know spiritual Truth and the Truth will set us free for eternity. This is what it means to live by faith in Him.

 “for we walk by faith, not by sight - we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord. Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” 2 Cor. 5:7-10

I know that when I say that we can have absolute certainty, or absolute truth ... this sounds like a "know it all" who fell and hit his head. So let's clarify what I'm saying. When considering spiritual things ... when we stand upon the Truth and promises of the all knowing Creator, then and only then, we can have absolute certainty about those things which He has made clear. 

Now could I be wrong?  Yes, there are a number of ways we can be wrong. We could misunderstand what Jesus is saying, or cloud our thinking by opinions, feelings, logic, experiences, false religion, or the false teachings of the world. So we can only have absolute certainty when we are standing on the absolute Truth of the Creator in regards to spiritual things. 

We must continually test our beliefs up against the absolute Truth ...
of the all knowing omniscient Creator of all things.

"Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God. For it is written, "[He is] THE ONE WHO CATCHES THE WISE IN THEIR CRAFTINESS"; and again, "THE LORD KNOWS THE REASONINGS of the wise, THAT THEY ARE USELESS." 1 Cor. 3:18-20

As Christians, we are to no longer follow our feelings, human understanding, and the teachings of men; but rather we test all things up against the eternal Truth of God and then faithfully follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God. Therefore for example, I can know with absolute certainty that there is a Creator, and that Darwin’s Theory of Evolution is a false theory based upon the reasonings and conclusions of men and their worldly logic.

True arrogance is rejecting God and assuming that the truth about the miracles and mysteries of life are learned or determined by men through experiences, training, and feelings; and rejecting that which has been revealed by the all knowing God.

 The fact is that our personal opinion is not what’s important … do you believe that Jesus is God?” If yes … then don’t you think that what we need to know is: how would Jesus answer this question, and what are His promises for us as Christians?” The answer is clear in the five verses above and many more. You must only believe in Jesus. And at that moment you will be born again and you pass out of death and into eternal life. John 3:1-18

When we believe in Him, there is no judgment for our sins ... past, present and future; because Jesus already paid the penalty for our sins on the cross. 1 John 2:2  John 3:16 We are forgiven. Quite Often, a person’s church doctrine is wrong ... or some other false teaching comes between the person and this eternal truth. We are called to test our views and the teachings of our church by the truth of God’s word.

The words of Jesus are the eternal Truth and are perfectly clear.

"But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will 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. I and the Father are one." John 10:26-30

 “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me” John 14:6

So do you believe in Jesus and that the words of Jesus are true or not?

Some believe that you must change and live a godly life in order to receive eternal life, but they have God’s Truth backwards. The love of Christ controls and guides us only after we believe and are born again into eternal life. 2 Cor. 5:14 Apart from Him we can do no good thing. Good deeds come by the leading of His Holy Spirit who guides us in His truth and His righteousness. His eternal salvation is a free gift by His grace so that no man can think he qualifies and be arrogant. Ephesians 2:8-9

Salvation is by grace. When we believe in Jesus, He has given each of us his blessed gift and his gift is free. We do not need to earn eternal Life. “And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.” Romans 11:6

What about when we stand before God at the Judgment seat of Christ?

There are a number of different judgments described in the bible.

The first judgment is in Genesis 3 at the fall of man. From the point of the fall, we are all judged by God and born with a sin nature and guilty of lust and pride. God requires payment for the penalty of our sins. The purpose of God's free gift is so that we can be made right with God. God loves us and wants for no man to perish. Jesus paid the penalty for our sins on the cross. We must only believe in Him to receive forgiveness and His free gift of eternal life.

A most important judgment is the judgment of mankind’s sins on the cross at Calvary. When Jesus Christ bore our sins in His own body on the cross, the result was death for Christ and justification for those who choose to believe in Him. We are now free from condemnation and our eternal life can never again be put in jeopardy. When we believed in Christ as our God and Savior … at that instant, we pass from death to eternal life.

The Bema judgment is for those who have already believed in Jesus for the forgiveness of their sins. This judgment happens at the moment we are caught up to be with the Lord.  This judgment is to determine the motives of our heart and provide spiritual gifts for any works that are deemed righteous by God. The believer's eternal life is already secure on the basis of our belief in Jesus and the Lord’s sacrificial death. The following verses explain further.

To be continued Read  Absolute Certainty 2

God Bless you Friends, Bob