Can You Know You're Saved?
QUESTION
Can you know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you are saved? I found the following answer to that question posted to a Primitive Baptist website:
“As no man has access to the Lamb’s Book of Life and therefore knows not the names which are recorded there, we must say with the Apostle Paul, “In hope of eternal life” (Titus 1:2). However, that hope is an earnest expectation of the of the creature (Rom 8:19) and not some simple wish. We are confident that the God who cannot lie is going to save those. He loved before the world began, and we have the sweet hope of being in the number. This hope is an anchor of the Soul, both sure and stedfast (Heb 6:19). A humble expression of hope in the mercy of God is far more befitting the little child of grace than a presumptuous boast that he knows he is secure.”
Maybe my understanding is wrong, but to me the author used some scripture references to basically say, “We are cautiously optimistic that we are part of the elect”. Is this a true representation of the doctrine of the Primitive Baptists? (Email Inquirer)
ANSWER
I have heard many of my PB Elder brethren speak in this way. It has become a bit of a trope among our people. The author is correct to point out that none of us have seen the Lamb’s book of life and so we cannot definitively say who is of the elect and who is not on that basis. Paul also speaks of our “hope of eternal life.” (Titus 1:2, 3:7) But Paul also said, “knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God” (I Thessalonians 1:4) followed by the evidence of this knowledge in the form of gospel reception and obedience among those in Thessalonica (v5-6). As a result, I believe it is possible to know our election of God. Indeed, if it were not then how could we ever make our calling and election sure? (II Peter 1:10) I do not believe that those brethren who speak of our “hope” as in the aforementioned answer are denying I Thessalonians 1:4 or II Peter 1:10, but rather are speaking in humility, as if to admit that it is possible for someone to be wrong about their beliefs, even as we ask those who hold different doctrinal positions to admit. Without entertaining the possibility of error, the capacity for biblical correction might vanish, and we all stand in need of biblical correction at times.
Stated another way, I believe that all mature Christians should remain open to the notion of biblical correction. To do that, we must entertain the possibility that we have misunderstood something, insist that any such error be logically demonstrated to us from the scriptures, and be willing to search the scriptures to see if these things are so. But having grown in grace and the knowledge of the word of God, and having endured many insubstantial attempts at so-called “correction,” I believe we should also note that our degree of certainty with respect to our salvation by the Lord Jesus Christ is as high as is humanly possible, given the frailty of our flesh, even if we don’t always express it in that way.
- Elder Daniel Samons