5. The last class of those who entertain false hopes, are those who say they are saved though they are leading sinful lives. In the case of many forms of sin, a good passage to use is 1 Cor. vi. 9–10. 1 John ii. 29 will also in many cases sweep away this false hope. 1 John v. 4–5 is useful as showing that one who is really born of God overcomes the world and the fact that they are living in sin and are not overcoming the world is evidence that they have not been born of God.
CHAPTER VII.
Dealing with those who Lack Assurance and with Back–sliders
I. Those who Lack Assurance.
Those who lack assurance may be divided into two classes.
1. Those who lack assurance because of ignorance. 1 John v. 13, will show all such that we may know that we have eternal life. Often times when you ask people if they know they are saved, or if they know their sins are forgiven, or if they know they have eternal life, they will reply, “Why no one knows that.” You can say to them, “Yes the Bible says that all who believe may know it,” and then show them 1 John v. 13. John i. 12 shows that Christ gives to as many as receive Him, power to become the Sons of God. A good way to use this verse is to ask the inquirer questions regarding it. “What does every one who receives Him receive power to become?” The inquirer if he is attentively looking at the verse will answer, “A son of God.” Then ask the next question, “Have you received Him?” If he replies “Yes,” then ask him, “What are you then?” It will probably be necessary to go over it several times but at last the inquirer will see it and say “I am a son of God.” John iii. 36 can be used in a similar way. Ask the inquirer “who do these verses say has everlasting life?” “He that believeth on the Son.” “Do you believe on the Son?” “What have you then?” In a little while he will see it and say “Everlasting life.” Then have him say over and over again “I have everlasting life,” and have him kneel down and thank God for giving him everlasting life. One night I found a young man upon his knees at the close of the service in great distress. I showed him from the Bible how Jesus Christ had borne his sins and asked him if he would accept Christ as his Saviour; he said he would; but he seemed to get no light and went out of the meeting in deep distress. The next night he was there again, professing to have accepted Christ but with no assurance that his sins were forgiven. I tried to show him from God’s word what God said of those who accepted the Saviour, but the light did not come. Finally he rose to leave the meeting. I had just shown him from John iii. 36 that God said that “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life.” As he turned to leave me, he said, “Will you pray for me?” I said “Yes.” He walked a little way down the aisle and I called to him and said, “Do you believe I will pray for you?” He turned with a look of astonishment and replied, “Yes, of course.” “Why do you think I will pray for you?” I then asked. “Because you said so,” he replied. I said “Isn’t God’s word as good as mine?” He saw it at once, that while he had been willing to believe my word, he had not been willing to believe God’s word, and he received assurance on the spot and knew that he had everlasting life. John v. 24 and 1 John v. 12 can be used in a similar way.
Acts xiii. 39 is very useful in dealing with this class of persons. Ask the inquirer: “What does this verse say that all who believe are?” “Justified.” Then ask him, “Do you believe?” “What are you then?” It will probably take two or three times going over it before he sees it and when he answers “I am justified,” tell him to thank God for justifying him and confess Christ, and see to it that he does so. Many inquirers of this class stumble over the fact that they have not the witness of the Holy Spirit. Show them from 1 John v. 10 that the witness of the word to their acceptance is sufficient, and that, if they believe not this witness of God in His word, they make Him a liar. Show them further from Eph. i. 13, that it is after we believe the testimony of the word that we are “sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.” The natural order in assurance is this: First, assurance of our justification, resting on the “Word of God.” Second, public confession of Christ, “with the mouth,” Romans x. 10. Third, the witness of the Holy Spirit. The trouble with many is that they wish to invert this order and have the witness of the Holy Spirit before they confess Christ with the mouth. From Matt. x. 32, 33, we learn that when we confess Christ before men, then He confesses us before the Father. We cannot reasonably expect the witness of the Spirit from the Father until we are confessed before the Father. So confession of Christ logically precedes the witness of the Spirit.
It is very important in using these texts to make clear what saving faith is; because many may say that they believe when they do not, in the sense of these texts, and so get a false assurance and entertain false hopes and never find deliverance. There is a great deal of careless dealing with those who lack assurance. Workers are so anxious to have inquirers come out clearly that they urge them on to assurance when they have no right to have assurance of salvation as they have not really accepted Christ.
John i. 12, and 2 Tim. i. 12, make very clear what believing is—receiving Jesus or committing to Jesus. Romans x. 10, will serve a similar purpose by showing that it “is with the heart man believeth unto righteousness.”
2. Those who lack assurance because of sin. The trouble with those who lack assurance is, often, that there is some sin or questionable practice which they ought to confess and give up. John viii. 12; Is. lv. 7; Prov. xxviii. 13; Ps. xxxii. 1–5, are useful passages in dealing with this class of men, for they show that it is when sin is confessed and forsaken and we follow Christ, that we receive pardon, light and assurance. Often times it is well when one lacks assurance to put the question squarely to him: “Do you know of any sin on to which you are holding or anything in your life which your conscience troubles you about?”
II. Back–sliders. There are two classes of back–sliders and they should be dealt with in different ways.