The Word Unleashed - Radio

There are many professing Christians in the world today who do not have assurance of salvation. In other words, they, for a variety of reasons, are not confident that they have been saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. But under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, 1 John 5 presents a series of tests for every Christian to determine if true saving faith is a reality in their own lives.

How do you know if you have true saving faith? The answer to such a crucial question can be found in 1 John 5. There, the apostle John identifies several guaranteed results that are always found in the lives of those who have true saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Keeping with John’s overall message, he writes to help believers have assurance or confidence that they truly are in Christ and do possess eternal life.

In the profound conversation between our Lord Jesus and Nicodemus in John 3, Jesus tells Nicodemus that to have eternal life, one must be “born again’? Theologians call this doctrine regeneration, which means that the spiritually dead sinner must be made alive by a powerful work of God.

True saving faith is rooted in two great realities: the person and work of our Lord Jesus Christ and the gospel of salvation that He preached. To be a Christian, you must believe in the biblical Jesus and the biblical gospel—that is the foundation of true faith.

The doctrine of regeneration is a profound doctrine of the Christian faith—but sadly, many Christians do not fully understand all that it entails. In one of the most well-known conversations in all of Scripture, Jesus tells Nicodemus that he cannot enter the kingdom of God unless he is born again. Jesus makes it clear that no one can be saved without the powerful work of the Holy Spirit.

According to Scripture, man cannot and will not believe in Christ. But once regeneration happens, once God summons you out of spiritual death and gives you spiritual life, you are alive as a new creation in Christ.

Throughout Romans 1, the apostle Paul has emphasized that mankind, rather than honoring and praising the God of creation, is determined to willingly reject and oppose Him. Such a shocking response is common to all of humanity; no one is excluded. But the Bible provides a solution to this very problem—the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Romans 1 is one of the clearest passages in Scripture that describes how God views the sinfulness of mankind. It is crucial to understand that God doesn’t grade on a curve—every sin that has ever been committed, no matter if it is great or small, has been seen by God and has personally offended Him.

False religions are pervasive in our world today. But according to Romans 1, false religions are embraced by those who have rejected the one true God of the Bible, those who have exchanged the truth of God for lies. In Romans 1, the apostle Paul gives several insights into false religions to help people understand that false religions lead people away from the true God and intentionally try to diminish His honor and glory.

In Romans 1, the apostle Paul explains that although the immoral pagan knows God, they have willingly rejected Him—a truly shocking response. But in doing so, man has determined to harden his heart against the God of the Bible and worship several replacements or substitutes—Paul calls them idols.