How can I know if I’ve been genuinely converted?
9MarksJohn’s first epistle offers several “tests” to help Christians know if they have savingly come to faith in Christ:
What does God do in conversion?
9MarksConversion does not mean that “God helps those who help themselves.” The change we need is so radical that only God can do it. In conversion, God gives life to the dead and sight to the blind. In conversion, God gives the gifts of repentance and faith.
What are people responsible to do in conversion?
9MarksPeople are responsible to do two things: repent and believe. Conversion is a radical turn away from sin and to God through faith in Christ. Jesus summed up what humans must do in conversion when he commanded his hearers, “Repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15).
What does it mean to repent?
What is conversion?
9MarksConversion is a U-turn in a person’s life. It is turning with one’s whole person away from sin and to Christ for salvation. From idol worship to God worship. From self-justification to Christ’s justification. From self-rule to God’s rule.
Conversion is what happens when God awakens those who are spiritually dead and enables them to repent of their sins and have faith in Christ.
On what basis can a person be declared right in God’s sight?
9MarksWhat is the place of good works in salvation?
9MarksIs repentance necessary for salvation?
9MarksIs faith in Christ the only way to be saved?
9MarksIs conscious faith in Christ necessary for salvation?
9MarksDoes the gospel include the transformation of society?
9MarksThe gospel is the good news that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners by living in their place, dying in their place to bear God’s wrath against their sins, and rising from the grave in order to give his people eternal life and usher in a new creation.
What is “the gospel of the kingdom”?
9MarksIt’s very popular these days to talk about “the gospel of the kingdom.”
Many people claim that when Jesus came “preaching the gospel of the kingdom” (Matt. 4:23) he was preaching a message about the overthrow of evil government powers, the transformation of society, and the lifting up of the poor. All kinds of revolutionaries can get behind these ideas.
But is that what the Bible means when it speaks about the gospel of the kingdom? Not exactly.
How does the gospel address both guilt and shame?
9MarksSome church leaders today argue that the gospel addresses shame rather than guilt. Or they say that shame is a more primary category in Scripture and that we should de-emphasize the idea of guilt when we share the gospel.
What’s the most fundamental problem the gospel addresses?
9MarksIs there a contradiction between God’s love and wrath?
9MarksHave you ever heard the following? “God is love! He would never judge anyone or send anyone to hell! That’s just not loving!” Pitting God’s love against God’s wrath is as common these days as the biblical illiteracy which feeds such a sentiment.