Some people enjoy flying…others are deathly afraid of it. Even though both are on the exact same craft…one’s faith in the plane allows them security and varying degrees of pleasure as they travel, the other’s faith is enough to have them on the plane…but with lesser degrees of security and joy. The one passenger calmly reads, watches a movie and even sleeps. The other breaks out in a cold sweat, has to take meds to keep calm and worries the whole flight.
Does the safety of the flight depend on the amount of faith of the passenger? Does the passenger’s security rest on the level of their faith…the level of their assurance…that they will make it to their destination? No.
Their safety and security rest on the dependability of the plane and the competency of the pilot. When the plane is dependable and the pilot is competent then the passengers will make it safe and sound, if they had enough faith to get on the plane…and stay on it.
The same goes with our Christian faith. I have known people who have struggled with doubts about their salvation for years! These poor Christians trust Jesus, follow Him, love Him and yet for some reason struggle with the assurance of God’s love for them!
We need to remind ourselves often that it has never been about us and our great faith or our great anything for that matter. What condition was I in when Jesus’ pursued me with forgiveness in His hand? The Bible says I was ungodly, an enemy of His, a sinner. In this state, with nothing positive to offer God, Jesus loved me enough to suffer and die to pay for all my sins. Salvation has always been about what a great Savior we have…never how great our faith in that Savior is! If you are a Christian and you trust Jesus to forgive you, to cleanse you, and to change you more and more into His image…then your assurance doesn’t come from your “feeling” of assurance…your assurance comes because you are “in” Christ. Jesus is dependable…Jesus is competent…He is not only the Author of our faith…He is also the Finisher of it.
Let me end with a little advice from Charles Spurgeon. With every 1 time you look inside your heart [you will find much to shake, rattle and roll your assurance in there] take 10 looks to what an AWESOME Savior Jesus is…He is our ultimate hope!
