How Do You Know You're Really Saved?
“Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”
What evidence should salvation produce in a person's life?
The Bible teaches that we cannot save ourselves. Salvation is God's work, received through faith rather than earned through human effort, but Scripture is equally clear that when God saves someone, He begins changing that person.
In "The Evidence of Salvation," Education Pastor William Hunt turns to Romans 12:1-2 to examine the transformation that should characterize the life of a believer.
Salvation is more than an experience we once had. Scripture presents God's saving work across three important realities: justification, sanctification, and glorification:
Justification is the initial change. Romans 5 teaches that through faith we are justified and have peace with God through Jesus Christ. Our standing before God changes because of what Christ has done for us.
Sanctification is the continual change. The Christian life isn't supposed to remain frozen at the moment of conversion. Galatians 2:20 describes a life in which Christ now lives through us, while Jesus prayed in John 17:17, "Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth." God continually works through His Word and Spirit to make His people holy.
Glorification is the eternal change. 1 Corinthians 15 points toward the day when believers will finally be transformed and the presence of sin will be removed forever.
Between justification and glorification, however, there should be evidence of sanctification happening now:
First, salvation becomes visible in the way we think. Romans 12 calls believers to reject conformity to the world and instead experience transformation through the renewing of the mind. Following Christ changes the way we understand God, ourselves, our priorities, and the world around us.
Second, salvation becomes visible in what we surrender. Hebrews 12 calls us to lay aside the sin that entangles us. Jesus calls His followers to deny themselves and take up their cross. Galatians says that those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Following Jesus necessarily means some things must be left behind.
Third, salvation becomes visible in how we live. The Christian life requires self-control, discipline, and intentional obedience. Grace doesn't make obedience irrelevant; grace makes a transformed life possible.
Finally, salvation becomes visible in what we produce. Galatians 5 describes the fruit of the Spirit. Ephesians 2 teaches that believers were created in Christ Jesus for good works. James warns against a profession of faith that produces nothing, and Jesus says our lives should cause others to glorify our Father in heaven.
Good works do not create salvation. They are evidence of what God has already begun. That's what makes the question so personal.
The evidence of salvation isn't merely found by looking backward at something we once said, prayed, felt, or experienced. We should also be able to look at our lives today and see evidence that Jesus Christ is changing us.
A saved life should increasingly become a transformed life.