How do you know if you’re a Christian? Are you a Christian if you were raised in a Christian family, or baptized as a child? Does walking to the front of a church service during an evangelistic “altar call” make you a Christian? This question is critical for helping real Christians deal with doubts about their salvation. It’s also vital for challenging nominal Christians to reevaluate their confidence. 1 John deals extensively with this question. It was written so that we may know whether we truly have eternal life.