Assurance Builds Confidence: Day 18
“13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life. 14 And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 15 And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him.” - 1st John 5:13-15
As we near the end of John’s first letter we start to see his intentions behind writing. John acknowledges that this entire letter has been written to people who already believe in Jesus Christ. He didn’t write this letter as sort of an evangelistic homely, rather he intended to strengthen the confidence of the readers. He warned them of false teachings and false beliefs, gave them multiple litmus tests, and walked through the reality of a gospel-compelled life. Yet, as he begins to wrap up the letter, he notes that he wants his readers to know that in Christ we have eternal life. Almost as a reminder to say, “You have Christ in this life, but remember, you have Christ in eternal life too.” He wanted them to be assured of their faith and where they were going to be after death.
How many of us can relate to that feeling? The feeling of knowing Christ in this life but being worried and fearful about whether or not there is eternal life? Or the fearful doubting, “Am I truly a Christian?” Maybe it isn’t so much in the light of these questions. Maybe it shows its head in generalized doubts of the faith, maybe it is anxiety and worry, maybe it’s fear of death? Whatever it might be, John wanted to make sure his readers knew that we can have assurance and we can be confident of our place in Christ. The litmus tests weren’t given to cause fear and doubt, rather he intended them to be a measurable goalpost to build confidence. Because of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection, we can have complete assurance of being with Him again in eternal life. Assurance builds confidence.
Where might that confidence grow? In our prayer life. When we grow in understanding of our assurance in Christ, our confidence in prayer skyrockets. We know that when we ask for things according to His will, he hears us. We don’t just have confidence in eternal life, but we have confidence in God which is greater than eternal life. If we know that He hears our prayers, then we can be confident that he will answer those prayers. If we ask according to His will, we can be assured that He will answer every prayer. Now this does not mean that every prayer we ask will be answered in the way we desire, however, it does mean that for every prayer we pray, He hears, and answers. It may just take us some time to hear that answer. Sometimes we won’t see the answer until heaven. No matter what, we can be assured that He hears us, loves us, and answers us. In that assurance, we grow confidence.
