Can I Be Sure I'm Saved? (Crucial Questions)

by R.C. Sproul

The only works of righteousness that serve to justify a sinner are the works of Christ. So when we say that we are justified by faith alone, we mean that we are justified by Christ alone, by His works; our works do not count toward our justification.

When one is immersed in a Christian subculture that puts a great deal of stress on making decisions, responding to altar calls, and praying the sinner’s prayer, it is easy to miss this important point—making a decision to follow Jesus has never converted anyone. This is because it is not a decision that converts a person; it is the power of the Holy Spirit that does so. We get into the kingdom not because we make a decision, walk down an aisle, raise a hand, or sign a card. We get into the kingdom because there is true faith in our hearts.

Here’s where the plot thickens and becomes a bit problematic. No one is half-regenerate or semi-regenerate; you are either born of the Spirit of God or you are not. Regeneration, which is that work of God by which we are transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light, is a real work of conversion, and it happens instantly by the work of the Holy Spirit, so that a person is either in that state or not. There is no process of regeneration; it is instantaneous.

In fact, as much as I talk about my conversion experience—which, as I said, I can pinpoint to the day and hour—I realize that such an experience may not actually correspond to the work of God in a person’s soul. God the Holy Spirit may regenerate a person a week, a month, or even five years before he experiences the reality of what has already happened internally. So even my confidence with regard to a particular date and time of conversion applies only to my experience of conversion, not to the fact of it, because we can fool ourselves in terms of our experience.

Finally, in the so-called evangelical world, we have a few other sources of false assurance: praying the sinner’s prayer, raising one’s hand at an evangelistic event, going forward during an altar call, or making a decision for Jesus. These are all techniques or methods that are used to call people to repentance and faith. The danger is that people who say the prayer, raise a hand, walk the aisle, or make a decision sometimes end up trusting in that particular act. Outward professions can be deceiving. One can go through the external motions of a profession but not truly be in possession of the inward reality of salvation.