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I'll just begin reading in paragraph 
1 of chapter 18. Although temporary believers 
and other unregenerate men may vainly deceive themselves with 
false hopes and carnal presumptions of being in the favor of God 
and in a state of salvation, which hope of theirs shall perish 
Yet such as truly believe in the Lord Jesus and love Him in 
sincerity, endeavoring to walk in all good conscience before 
Him, may in this life be certainly assured that they are in the 
state of grace and may rejoice in the hope of the glory of God, 
which hope shall never make them ashamed. This certainty is not 
a bare conjectural and probable persuasion grounded upon a fallible 
hope, but an infallible assurance of faith, founded on the blood 
and righteousness of Christ revealed in the gospel, and also upon 
the inward evidence of those graces of the Spirit unto which 
promises are made, and on the testimony of the Spirit of adoption, 
witnessing with our spirits that we are the children of God, and 
as a fruit thereof keeping the heart both humble and holy. This 
infallible assurance doth not so belong to the essence of faith, 
but that a true believer may wait long and conflict with many 
difficulties before he be partaker of it. Yet being enabled by the 
Spirit to know the things which are freely given him of God, 
he may, without extraordinary revelation, in the right use 
of means, attain thereunto. And therefore it is the duty 
of everyone to give all diligence to make his calling and election 
sure, that thereby his heart may be enlarged in peace and 
joy in the Holy Spirit, in love and thankfulness to God, and 
in strength and cheerfulness in the duties of obedience, the 
proper fruits of this assurance. So far is it from inclining men 
to looseness. True believers may have the assurance 
of their salvation diverse ways shaken, diminished, and intermitted, 
as by negligence in preserving of it, by falling into some special 
sin which wounded the conscience and grieved the spirit, by some 
sudden or vehement temptation, by God's withdrawing the light 
of His countenance, and suffering even such as fear Him to walk 
in darkness and to have no light. Yet are they never destitute 
of the seed of God and life of faith, that love of Christ and 
the brethren, that sincerity of heart and conscience of duty, 
out of which, by the operation of the Spirit, this assurance 
may in due time be revived, and by the which in the meantime 
they are preserved from utter despair. Well, I want to read 
a quote from C.H. Spurgeon on 1 John 5.13. Now, 
certainly there's two problems when we deal with the doctrine 
of assurance. On the one hand, giving assurance 
or providing assurance to those who shouldn't have it, those 
who are unsaved, those who are dead in their trespasses and 
sins certainly shouldn't have assurance. but then there are 
those who are genuine believers in the Lord Jesus Christ that 
don't have that assurance. And so Spurgeon is speaking to 
that latter group, genuine believers who do not have assurance. He 
says, many who believe on the name of Jesus are not sure that 
they have eternal life. They only hope so. Occasionally 
they have assurance, but the joy is not abiding. They are 
like a minister I have heard of who said he felt assured of 
his salvation except when the wind was in the east. Spurgeon 
says it is a wretched thing to be so subject to circumstances 
as many are. What is true when the wind is 
in the soft south or the reviving west is equally true when the 
wind is neither good for man nor beast. John would not have 
our assurance vary with the weather glass nor turn with the vein. He says, these things I have 
written unto you that you may know that you have eternal life. 
He would have us certain that we are partakers of the new life, 
and so know it as to reap the golden fruit of such knowledge, 
and be filled with joy and peace through believing." Amen. I think 
Spurgeon's absolutely spot on. And we just sang, my hope is 
built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness. I dare 
not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus' name. 
I think that many Christians, many persons trust in sweet frames, 
or they trust in experiences, or they trust in emotions, rather 
than where our confession directs us, and where the entirety of 
God's Word directs us, to the blood of Christ, to the gospel, 
to the cross. That's where in our hope lies, 
and Edward Mote was right. My hope is built on nothing less 
than Jesus' blood and righteousness. Well, as we look at this particular 
chapter, there's four paragraphs, four sections. First, there is 
an explanation of assurance in paragraph one. Secondly, the 
foundation of assurance in paragraph two. Third, the attainment of 
assurance in paragraph three. And then the difficulties associated 
with assurance in paragraph four. So these are the main heads that 
we hope to consider this morning. But note in the first place, 
qualification that the confession starts off with, although temporary 
believers and other unregenerate men may vainly deceive themselves 
with false hopes and carnal presumptions of being in the favor of God 
and in a state of salvation, which hope of theirs shall perish. 
a parish. Now certainly there are many 
people out there that have deluded themselves, that have not genuinely 
come to Christ. They perhaps go to a church, 
or they go to Sunday school, or they have an uncle that taught 
Sunday school, or some sort of thing like that. And so they 
have this assurance that is faulty. It is not founded on the blood 
of Jesus Christ the righteous. It is not founded upon him who 
has died and risen again for sinners. So the confession acknowledges 
there is a temptation on the part or a reality practiced on 
the part of those who are not believers to have this sort of 
assurance. Note that the chapter itself, 
however, helps us with this problem immediately. It is the assurance 
of grace and salvation. Nobody should ever have this 
idea that they have salvation if they are not partakers of 
the grace of God. they are trusting in themselves, 
or they're trusting in a works plus, or a faith plus righteousness, 
or they're trusting in anything save the grace of God through 
faith in the Lord Jesus, then they are deluded, and we need 
to appreciate that reality. But then notice it goes on to 
highlight that there is such a thing as assurance. Yet such 
as truly believe in the Lord Jesus and love Him in sincerity, 
endeavoring to walk in all good conscience before Him, may in 
this life be certainly assured that they are in the state of 
grace. So those who believe in the Lord Jesus, that is the decisive 
factor, that is the contrast between those who are either 
A. temporary believers, some false religionists, some secular 
humanists that may delude themselves that all is well with their soul. 
The thing that separates the people of God from the non-people 
of God is indicated first, yet such as truly believe in the 
Lord Jesus Christ." Now, those who truly believe in the Lord 
Jesus Christ will do what it goes on to say there. They love 
Him in sincerity and they endeavor to walk in all good conscience 
before Him. You see, faith ultimately produces 
sanctification, or that faith that we are saved with, that 
alone faith, is not alone, but it's ever accompanied with all 
other saving graces. So justifying faith will necessarily 
produce a sanctification in the lives of God's people, wherein 
they will endeavor to walk in all good conscience beforehand. 
And then it highlights here the benefits of assurance, that they 
may be certainly assured. Again, when we get down further, 
it's going to indicate that assurance is not of the essence of faith. 
And essentially what that means is that our salvation doesn't 
depend upon whether we think we're saved. That's a crucial 
distinction. Our salvation does not depend 
on whether or not we think we're saved. It's by grace through 
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, that may seem a subtle distinction, 
but as the Confession makes clear, there were those, probably antinomians, 
who denied the whole idea of assurance, suggesting that if 
we have faith in Christ, well, then we have assurance. But the 
Confession notes or indicates there are those who are genuine 
believers, they manifest all these saving graces, and yet, 
for various reasons, they have not come to that place of assurance 
of faith. Look at 1 John 5, 13. I write 
these things so that you may know you have eternal life. He 
spends a lot of time developing that particular theme. We must 
ask the question, why? Perhaps it was the case that 
there were those who had eternal life, but didn't know it. And 
so we need to appreciate there is this contrast, but in terms 
of the benefits of assurance, that they may be certainly assured 
that they may rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Look 
at Romans chapter 5. Romans chapter 5, this rejoicing 
in the hope of the glory of God. Romans 5.1, Therefore, having 
been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord 
Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into 
this grace in which we stand and rejoice in the hope of the 
glory of God. You see why this whole idea of 
assurance is so practical and so necessary? If we do not have 
assurance, then most likely we're not going to manifest the sorts 
of things envisioned here by the Confession or by John in 
1 John. There won't be that joy, there won't be that hope, there 
won't be that delight. There's more often than not associated 
with believers who lack assurance a melancholy and a sorrowful 
spirit. They're not typically the ones 
that are, you know, raising their hands in praise to Jesus. They 
are those who are struggling with the thought as whether or 
not they are in Jesus. And so this idea of assurance 
is important, and that's why the Confession develops it, and 
says it is the duty of believers to pursue this, to attain this, 
to have this, so that you may manifest the hope of the glory 
of God, that you may manifest this joy, and this thanksgiving, 
and all of these things that the Scriptures set forth before 
God's people. and as well that they may live 
without shame." 2 Timothy 1. I love what Paul says there. 
It's a very familiar passage. 2 Timothy 1. There's a hymn based 
on that particular passage. But notice, he says, I know whom 
I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to keep what 
I have committed to him until that day. For this reason I also 
suffer these things, nevertheless I am not ashamed." He knows whom 
he's believed. He knows that this one in whom 
he's believed is able to keep that which has been committed 
to him until that great day. This emboldened Paul, this empowered 
Paul, this enabled Paul to go out and face the various opponents 
of the Christian gospel and to set forth the truth of Jesus 
Christ and Him crucified. So assurance is absolutely crucial 
to pursue on the part of God's people. So that's the explanation. 
Notice in paragraph 2 we have the foundation of assurance. 
Paragraph 2 beginning in section 1. This certainty is not a bare 
conjectural and probable persuasion grounded upon a fallible hope, 
but an infallible assurance of faith founded on the blood and 
righteousness of Christ revealed in the gospel. Now you should 
know historically there were opponents to the doctrine of 
assurance. There were those who opposed the idea that a believer 
could actually have assurance. Robert Shaw writes concerning 
Roman Catholicism. He says, the Church of Rome denied 
that it is possible for any man in this life to attain more than 
a conjectural and probable persuasion of salvation, except by extraordinary 
revelation. So for the basic rank-and-file 
Roman Catholic, the basic garden variety Catholic, the best he's 
ever going to have is sort of a probable or conjectural hope. 
You know, something that comes and goes and something that fades. 
And then he says, except by extraordinary revelation. If God opens the 
heavens and says, hey, you're actually mine, well then that's 
something that you can bank on. He goes on to say, and they build 
some of the most gainful part of their traffic upon that perpetual 
doubt and uncertainty. I think this is very perceptive. 
Much of Roman Catholicism does depend upon ripping away from 
believers the doctrine of the assurance of grace and salvation. 
because it is the place then of the Roman system to try and 
ameliorate or try and supplement and try to assist 
and aid the consciences of those in Rome. He says, they build 
some of the most gainful part of their traffic upon that perpetual 
doubt and uncertainty with respect to their final salvation, in 
which they keep their votaries, in which they profess in some 
degree to remove by the prayers of the church the merits of the 
saints and martyrs and the absolution which the priests pronounce in 
the name of God. The absence of the assurance 
of grace and salvation is a great money-making mechanism in the 
Roman Catholic system. This is precisely one of the 
things that caused Martin Luther to begin that revolt, or that 
reformation, or that protest against the Roman system. And 
then obviously, Arminians must deny the assurance of grace and 
salvation. Again, Shaw says in Arminianism, 
"...in consistency with their denial of the certainty of the 
saints' final perseverance." See, if you do not affirm the 
perseverance of the saints, if you do not affirm the absolute 
sufficiency of the death of Christ and atoning for the sins of sinners, 
if you don't affirm that there is therefore now no condemnation 
for those who are in Christ Jesus, you can't affirm assurance of 
grace and salvation. If you're an Arminian who thinks 
you can lose your salvation, if you're standing at the bus 
stop and you have a lustful thought and you get hit by the bus, you 
don't die with probably any assurance of grace and salvation. There's 
no certainty in the lives of these persons because of their 
faulty understanding of the gospel, their faulty understanding of 
the grace of God and salvation. So he says, in consistency with 
their denial of certainty of the saints' final perseverance, 
they hold that it is not possible for any man to attain greater 
certainty of salvation than this, that if he shall persevere in 
the faith to the end, he shall be saved." You see the difference 
in terms of assurance. We're assured because of the 
hope and blood, or the blood of Christ the righteous one. 
They have assurance in the hope that they'll persevere until 
the end. What a miserable assurance and what a miserable hope, if 
it is contingent upon our persevering to the end. Now, there is a world 
in which persevering to the end makes sense, even in terms of 
the five points of Calvinism, but it's not that universe of 
discourse in which the Arminian trots. So we need to appreciate 
that Roman Catholicism and Arminianism ultimately have to deny this 
assurance of grace and of salvation. But notice wherein the foundation 
of the basis lies. It is founded on the blood and 
righteousness of Christ revealed in the gospel. So the first paragraph 
describes them as those who truly believe in the Lord Jesus. And 
here they are as those who are endeavoring to walk in all good 
conscience, and it will give further evidences of that commitment 
to Christ in this particular paragraph. But when we come to 
evidences, when we come to fruits, we need to appreciate that those 
are consequences of grace alone through faith alone in Christ 
alone salvation. Those evidences or those fruits 
that John speaks to in 1 John very specifically give evidence 
to the presence of saving faith. So we need to appreciate that. It's by faith in Christ. It's not because we love the 
brethren. It's not because we love God. We do those things 
because of this faith in Jesus Christ. So you see where the 
confession is shining the light upon the hope of our assurance 
of grace and salvation. It's not even on the fruit that 
you engage in. Those are good evidences, but 
it's upon the finished work of Jesus. You know, we say oftentimes 
in our confession studies, it's a systematic document, it's a 
systemic document. It all holds together and it 
sets forth the glory of God and a perpetual and continual emphasis 
upon the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. In other words, there 
is no good thing in our Christian lives apart from the Christ of 
the cross. If we don't have that, we're 
never going to have this assurance of grace and salvation. So then notice, it goes on to 
indicate some of those evidences or those manifestations. It's 
founded on the blood and righteousness of Christ revealed in the gospel, 
and also upon the inward evidence of those graces of the Spirit 
under which promises are made, the testimony of the Spirit of 
adoption, witnessing with our spirits that we are the children 
of God, and is a fruit thereof, keeping the heart both humble 
and holy." Let's look specifically at this whole idea of the testimony 
of the Spirit. Notice in Romans chapter 8. Romans 
chapter 8. I think we undercut this testimony 
of the Holy Spirit at times. We do it with reference to the 
inspired Word of God and to our own comfort in the Christian 
life. In other words, it almost feels 
charismatic to put emphasis upon the work of the Holy Spirit. 
It almost feels Pentecostal to put the emphasis on the Holy 
Spirit. You know, the theologian of the 
Reformation of the Holy Spirit was John Calvin. It's been observed 
that so much of the Institutes is so rich and heavy with the 
doctrine of the Holy Spirit, both doctrinally and practically. 
As Reformed believers, we need to have a robust appreciation 
of God the Holy Spirit. We need to have a robust appreciation 
of His work and His ministry in our lives and in our hearts. 
The Apostle Paul does so, and I wonder at times, maybe not 
for you, but I wonder for myself, if I put as much emphasis upon 
this testimony of the Spirit as the New Testament scripture 
writers do. Notice in Romans 8, 16, the Spirit 
Himself bears witness with our spirit that We are children of 
God. Now, this may just be more difficult 
to quantify. Say, for instance, we get to 
1 John, and John says, we know that we've passed from death 
to life if we love the brethren. And we reflect upon brethren 
in the church, and we say, I love that. Say, wow, that's a good 
sign, right? Because they're brethren, I love 
them for that very fact. I mean, I hope there's other 
things we love about each other. I mean, the only reason I love 
you is because you're a brother. That's good. Thanks be to God 
that you do love us for that reason. But hopefully there's 
some other endearing qualities about the saints of Christ. Or 
we know we've, you know, we pass from death to life if we practice 
righteousness. You know, we don't do the sorts 
of sins we used to do. and we find ourselves in this 
struggle and perpetual desire to rid ourselves of wickedness 
and depravity. Those are all very quantifiable 
and objective sort of realities that we can measure and sink 
our teeth into. When we get to this testimony 
of the Spirit, however, and I'm just, you know, throwing this 
out. It's not in the notes, just thinking through this. Isn't 
it more difficult to quantify this? Because we don't want to 
fall into subjectivism. I mean, just because I feel a 
particular way or I know a particular thing, you know, is that the 
Spirit? There's just a whole lot of dynamics there. I'm not 
sure I have all the answers, but look at the testimony of 
the Spirit. The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit 
that we are children of God. And if children, then heirs. 
Heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. If indeed we suffer 
with Him, that we may also be glorified together. Galatians 
4. Galatians chapter 4. Paul's Trinitarian theology is 
never more conspicuous than when he is expounding the truth of 
salvation. Notice in Galatians 4.4, but 
when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth his 
Son. We've got the Father sending 
forth the Son. Born of a woman, born under the 
law to redeem those who were under the law that we might receive 
the adoption as sons. Now again, I think we make a 
lot of emphasis here, and we should. The Father sending the 
Son in the economy of redemption. He's born of a woman. He's born 
under the law. He does this in order to redeem those who are 
under the law. But then notice He doesn't forget the third person 
of the Trinity in verse 6. And because you are sons, God 
has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying 
out, Abba, Father. Therefore, you are no longer 
a slave, but a son. And if a son, then an heir of 
God through Christ. And then first John. First John. While we're there in 1 John, 
let's just look at several of the things that the Confession 
refers to in terms of evidences or manifestations or fruits, 
rather, of those who indeed believe the gospel. Notice in 1 John, 
let's say, verse 2, beginning in verse 2, 3. Now, by this we 
know that we know Him if we keep His commandments. That's a very 
tangible, very objective, very clear way. If you are a consistent 
adulterer, a consistent murderer, a consistent liar, a consistent 
thief. Notice I'm saying consistent. 
I don't think it's a, you know, it's just coincidental. I don't want to even use that 
word. It's providential that this study precedes this morning's 
sermon. I mean, Peter does a horrible 
thing in Matthew's Gospel. Absolutely terrible. And I'm 
going to preach it that way. Not to pick on Peter, because 
I've got as many or more problems than Peter, but because I think 
it magnifies the goodness and the grace of God. It just sets 
forth in all the glorious beauty God and His forgiveness and restoration 
of sinners. But this whole idea here of objective 
truth, of objective commandment keeping, we know because we aren't 
consistent in this. We know because we don't persist 
in this. We know because there is a tendency or trajectory toward 
obedience. Notice in 3.14, We know that 
we have passed from death to life because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother 
abides in death. Notice in verse 18, my little 
children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed 
and in truth. And by this we know that we are 
of the truth and shall assure our hearts beforehand. You see, 
there are these objectable, tangible ways by which we know that we 
are in Christ. Notice in 324, now He who keeps 
His commandments abides in Him, and He in Him, and by this we 
know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given 
us. That's actually one of the texts I want to look at in just 
a moment. Verse 13, by this we know that we abide in Him, and 
He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. You see, these 
are the testimonies. There's both these external, 
objective, quantifiable, tangible, sort of testable things. We love brethren, we love God, 
we obey the commandments, but we ought not to minimize the 
presence and the power of the Holy Spirit who is in us. and 
by the Spirit whom He has given us. By this we know, verse 13, 
we abide in Him and He in us because He has given us of His 
Spirit. Verse 2 in chapter 5, by this 
we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and 
keep His commandments. Verse 11, this is the testimony 
that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His 
Son. He who has the Son has life. He who does not have the Son 
of God does not have life. Verse 13, the grand particular 
theme is that you may know. Verse 18, we know that whoever 
is born of God does not sin. Again, the idea there is not, 
does not sin. He's not teaching Wesleyan perfectionism. It's not a pattern. It's not 
consistent. It's not persistent. It is not overarching. It is 
not reigning. He breaks the power of reigning 
sin. He sets the captives free. But 
there is nevertheless this idea of remaining sin in the lives 
of God's people. So there are these tangible, 
these objective, these quantifiable, testable means by which we know 
we obey God, we love brethren, we love God, we love the truth. 
but we never ought to underestimate the power and presence of the 
Holy Spirit. In fact, we would argue that those things are there 
because of the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit in us. 
So, let's not minimize this testimony of the Spirit. Now, let's look 
at paragraph 3 in terms of the attainment of assurance. The 
attainment of assurance, beginning in verse... It's always hard 
teaching a confession. You always want to say verse... 
And, you know, treat it like biblical, like the Bible sort 
of address. It's not. I'm not saying it is. It's just tough when you go from 
one to the other. But notice in paragraph three, this infallible 
assurance does not so belong to the essence of faith, but 
that a true believer may wait long and conflict with many difficulties 
before he be partaker of it. Now, we need to be careful here 
because we cannot sort of base everybody's experience on our 
experience. You'll hear this at times. I 
don't know why this guy struggles. I'm just so happy and holy in 
Jesus. I don't know why this guy has such sorrow and melancholy 
and grief in his heart, because when the Lord saved me, I knew 
it. Well, brethren, God doesn't deal with everybody in exactly 
the same way. He just doesn't. And we need 
to exercise charity. Another point I'm going to give 
you, even before the Peter sermon. Does the account of Peter not 
teach us? We better exercise charity toward 
one another. If Peter denies his Lord three 
times, are we going to be so quick to jump on somebody else 
when they do something less because it's against us? We need to exercise 
a charitable spirit. I'm not saying allow sin to go 
unchecked, let them run roughshod, you know, never exercise church 
discipline. But brethren, if this chief apostle 
could do what he could do, then it never should surprise us that 
God's people do some of the things that they do. I mean, we are 
just a terrible, judgmental lot at times, and I think it happens 
here. Our experience is, we were Matthew 
at the tax office, counting our loot, and Jesus said, follow 
me, we got up, we followed him, we never doubted, we never questioned. That's just not the way it is 
for everybody. Has anybody read Grace Abounding 
to the Chief of Sinners by John Bunyan and his sort of conversion 
account? When the kids were little, we 
were going through that in family devotions, and finally I concluded, 
this isn't good to go through, because I don't want them to 
learn that conversion looks like bunions. I mean, he would be 
a champion at the NRC and the RCNA in terms of misery. I felt like the creation wanted 
to swallow me up and destroy me for being a blot and a sinner. I just thought, I don't want 
my kids to learn that this is the only way of salvation, you 
see. But we don't discount or deny 
that that was Bunyan's way. That's what happened. There are 
different ways that God deals with different people and we 
don't know why. Other than, you know, that beautiful 
hymn, William Cooper, God moves in a mysterious way his wonders 
to perform. William Cooper displays this 
or demonstrates this. Talk about a melancholy fellow. Talk about a sorrowful wretch. 
Talk about a guy who had, you know, the poetry of the gospel 
in him to compose these glorious hymns and at points in his life 
was suicidal. It was John Newton that God used 
as a human instrument to save Cooper. I mean, there was a season 
in Cooper's life when he was so depressed, and so discontent, 
and so down, and so Asaphian. You know, those Psalms ascribed 
to Asaph. There's another melancholy spirit. But he was in such a 
place that Newton came along and said, we ought to write a 
hymn book together. Okay, what a great way to deal with the 
doldrums is to write a hymn book of praise to God, the only hymns. 
That's a beautiful thing. So we need to be careful that 
we don't look at something like this or look at a believer, a 
genuine believer, manifest those fruits and evidences, but he 
struggles with assurance. And this struggle with assurance 
is oftentimes deep-rooted, deep-seated. It's often manifested in people 
who have been saved from much. I think one of the most difficult 
things, experientially or existentially, to understand about the Scripture 
is that God really does forgive us. Isn't that just amazing that 
he really does forgive us? Some people like me and you say, 
wow, it's great, praise God. Others, it really just concerns 
them. How in the world could God forgive 
me? How in the world could God convey such mercy to such a wretch 
like me? So we need to be careful that 
we don't just say, well, my experience is this, and therefore your experience 
must be thus. Oh, you're just struggling with 
assurance. Read 1 John, and everything will be all right. No, I suggest 
you do read 1 John, and that will certainly help you in that. 
But we don't want to minimize the spiritual difficulties and 
trials that the people of God actually undergo. See, we cannot 
make ourselves the measure of what God's saving dealings looks 
like in every other human being on the face of the earth. This 
is precisely one of the reasons why I just have trouble with 
some of these hyper-Calvinistic churches, because they take the 
most miserable, the most misery-saturated, the most long conversion, and 
they hold him up as the example that everybody else must be in. 
There's one thing that's evident as we look through the pages 
of Scripture. It's not a one-size-fits-all. Spurgeon says, with reference 
to gospel preaching, God is like a master fisher. He uses different 
bait for different fish, right? Some people are conquered by 
hearing of the love of God in Christ Jesus. Others are conquered 
by, you know, a sermon on hell, threatening the judgment and 
wrath of God Almighty. We, as those who perhaps were 
conquered by love, shouldn't, you know, call into question, 
well, you came out of fear. The fact is they came, praise 
God Almighty, from whom all blessings flow. It's always like us to 
want to compartmentalize our experience and impose that on 
others. So when we come to this discussion of assurance, the 
difficulties of it, the fact that some don't even have it, 
we ought to be careful before we say, well, you know, you believed 
in Christ, I don't know why you just don't have assurance. It 
says, this infallible assurance doth not so belong to the essence 
of faith. The confession indicates that 
faith in the gospel is not the same as faith that we are partakers 
of the gospel. Again, subtle distinction but 
a real distinction. The confession indicates that 
the gospel is not, faith in the gospel is not the same as faith 
that we are partakers of the gospel. That's important. The confession indicates that 
one may have the former without the latter. You may have faith 
in the gospel and yet you may wait long and you may conflict 
with many difficulties before you be a true partaker. of this 
assurance of grace. The confession highlights that 
assurance does not belong to the essence of faith. In other 
words, if we say you not only need to believe the gospel of 
our Lord Jesus, but you need to believe that you believe the 
gospel of the Lord Jesus. You see what we've done? We've 
committed the Galatian heresy. It may not be faith plus circumcision, 
it might not be Roman Catholicism, faith plus the sacramental system 
of the Whore of Babylon or the Romish Whore, but it's nevertheless 
something additional. Believe in the gospel and believe 
that you are believing in the gospel. No, it's not of the essence 
of faith. We may look and live without 
even recognizing that we've looked and lived. God is that good and 
that glorious and that wondrous. Dixon asks the question, do not 
antinomians err who maintain that the assurance of salvation 
is faith itself and that faith is nothing else but the echo 
of the soul answering the spirit, my sins are forgiven me? To which 
he answers, yes. They err. It's not of the essence 
of faith. The presence of saving faith 
does not necessarily dictate the presence of assurance of 
grace and of salvation. And our confession, pastorally, 
reflecting upon scripture, I think addresses this properly. Because 
these men not only were divines or theologians, they were pastors. They met with people. They knew 
the struggles of the faith. They knew there wasn't a one-size-fits-all. Oh, everybody's got to go through 
what Bunyan went through in order to be saved. Or everybody's got 
to be a Matthew who just left his loot, followed Jesus, and 
never looked back. That's just not the way it is 
for every single human being. God has differences among his 
people, and God ministers to them. in different ways. Same 
gospel, same truth, same blessedness. But the proof of this is the 
reality of 1 John. If everybody just knows they 
have saving faith when they have saving faith, then why does John 
say, I'm writing so that you may know you have eternal life? 
Why does Paul say in 2 Corinthians 13, examine yourselves, test 
yourselves to see whether you be in the faith? Why does Peter 
say, make your calling and election sure? Why would they say that 
if it was the case that assurance of grace and salvation was of 
the essence of faith? If the antinomians are right, 
when we look and live, therefore we automatically have assurance 
then why do those passages exist in Scripture? Why is 1 John in 
the Scripture? I think this is the proper way 
that we ought to approach it with the confession. The reality 
is, is that true believers may wait long. And the last thing 
they need to hear is us saying, I don't know what's your problem. 
I don't know why you don't have assurance. I mean, come on, I 
believed and I'm assured. That's not probably the best 
way you can approach things. You can pray for them, you can 
encourage them, you can have a Bible study in 1 John, but 
don't beat them up. Do you think they're happy not 
having assurance? Do you think they're thrilled 
being an Asaph? Do you think they're thrilled 
being like that minister that Spurgeon said, I've got assurance 
unless the wind is in the east. That's a miserable place to be. 
Perhaps a little bit of compassion and pity and mercy on our part 
may indeed assist them and conflict with many difficulties before 
he be partaker of it. Spurgeon says full assurance 
is not essential to salvation, but it is essential to satisfaction. You see, you can be saved without 
full assurance. You can be saved without no assurance 
because it's that look and live, right? It's the gospel. It's the emphasis upon Christ 
and His cross that is most essential. My hope is built on nothing less 
than Jesus' blood and righteousness and my approval of my appropriation 
of... No, it's His blood and righteousness. It's not of the essence of faith. 
Notice what it goes on to say, there is provision of this assurance 
by God. And as we move through the confession, 
it may very well be that the person is sluggish, that the 
person is lazy. I mean, if we see as they present 
to us this pursuit of assurance through the due use of ordinary 
means, somebody that doesn't use the means of grace, yeah, 
you're not going to have assurance. It's probably that simple. So 
yeah, there may be a dispositional ASAPH that you're dealing with, 
a dispositional bunion that you are dealing with, but you may 
be dealing with somebody that's just lazy and sluggish, and you 
may need to, spiritually speaking, slap them in the face and tell 
them to read your Bible, attend corporate worship, and feed your 
soul with the means of grace, because that's the raw data by 
which the Spirit's going to work this assurance of grace and salvation 
in your heart. So you're always dealing with 
different kinds of people. We need to be careful that we 
don't just, you know, shove the same thing down everybody's throats. 
So notice the provision. Yet being enabled by the Spirit 
to know the things which are freely given him of God, he may, 
without extraordinary revelation, in the right use of means, attain 
thereunto. So we have the enablement of 
the Spirit who make clear the word. The believer does not require 
extraordinary revelation. You know what you should never 
tell somebody struggling? Get a day pack, go up to Mount 
Sham and meditate, because up there God may speak to you. No, 
it's not extraordinary. The Westminster and Savoy highlight 
here the right use of ordinary means. The same idea here in 
the Baptist Confession, in the right use of means, ordinary 
means, contra-extraordinary. You don't have to go and fast 
and pray for 40 days before you're a partaker of the full assurance 
of grace and salvation. It's a right use of the ordinary 
means. Pick up your Bible and read. 
Pray to God Most High. Attend morning worship. Attend 
evening worship. Attend the supper. Attend the 
Bible study. Be where the people of God are. The pursuit of assurance 
of grace and salvation doesn't come from suspending your rational 
faculties, putting yourself in some transcendental meditative 
mode, and hoping that God tells you you're the elect. That's 
not what the divines say. Without extraordinary revelation, 
in the right use of means, attain thereunto. And then notice, it 
goes on to specifically say it's our duty, and therefore it is 
the duty of everyone to give all diligence to make his calling 
and election sure. That's a good gentle thing to 
say to someone. You need to pursue this, because 
if you don't have this assurance of faith, or assurance of grace 
and salvation, you're not going to manifest hope, you're not 
going to manifest love, joy, peace, joy, and all those things. You're going to walk around looking 
like the world's about to end. You've seen those people, brethren, 
I think. You might be those people from 
time to time. When it's like, you know, the 
clouds come and the tunnel narrows and you just feel like you're 
cut off from all God and hope, you're generally not your best 
you at that particular time. You're not walking around with 
a big smile. You're not encouraging others, you're not witnessing, 
you're not evangelizing, you're not presenting the truth. You're 
just wondering, am I gods or not? So there's a duty required 
here that we pursue this, that we have this peace. It is the 
duty of everyone to give all diligence. to make his calling 
and election sure, that thereby his heart may be enlarged in 
peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, in love and thankfulness to God, 
and in strength and cheerfulness in the duties of obedience, the 
proper fruits of this assurance." You see the blessed trajectory 
there. This assurance will enlarge you 
in the peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. It will produce love 
and thankfulness of God. There will be a strength and 
cheerfulness in the duties of obedience. These are the proper 
fruits of this assurance. It's a blessed, wonderful thing. 
have this assurance of grace and salvation, it will have this 
beneficial effect upon us in terms of God, in terms of men, 
in terms of obedience, in terms of our lives before God and others. But then notice this necessary 
qualification. So far is it from inclining men 
to looseness. You see, it's a faulty view of 
the gospel to say, well, if people have assurance, then they're 
going to go out and live like the devil. I mentioned the Roman 
Catholic problem with the doctrine of assurance of grace and salvation. 
It's in the sixth session, chapter 9, of the Council of Trent. It 
condemns assurance. It condemns assurance. I mean, 
come on. That's just bizarre, isn't it? 
Don't be happy. Be dependent upon us. Give your 
money to us. Go the way that we prescribe 
to have some degree of amelioration and peace with God. It's a terrible 
thing. That section's called, Against 
the Vain Confidence of Heretics. Wow. So Paul in Romans 8-1 must 
have been a heretic. There is therefore now no condemnation 
for those who are in Christ Jesus. That's just terrible. But notice 
it does tell us that the assurance of grace and salvation does not 
incline men to looseness. See, it is a faulty doctrine 
of justification by faith alone, a faulty doctrine of the assurance 
of grace and salvation, which thinks that licentiousness results 
from the manifold grace of God. Paul combats this in Romans 6. 
What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that 
grace may abound? May it never be. This does not 
promote ungodliness. It is the means by which godliness 
is the result. The gospel logic is a proper 
understanding of justification by faith alone, a proper recognition 
of the assurance of grace and salvation, is the means by which 
you'll actually glorify God, and you'll love brethren, you'll 
obey the law, and you'll do those things that are pleasing in His 
sight. It's not the case that we threaten man that, yeah, believe, 
but also obey in order to be saved. That's going to cripple 
men in terms of their pursuit of biblical holiness. The gospel 
does not promote licentiousness. Ungodly men who don't understand 
the gospel make that conclusion or implication. And then notice 
finally the difficulties associated with assurance. Paragraph four, true believers 
may have their assurance of their salvation divers ways shaken, 
diminished, and intermitted. It's a reality statement, isn't 
it? There may be the case in your 
life, true believers may have the assurance of their salvation 
in divers ways shaken, diminished, and intermitted. Shaken, diminished, 
and intermittent. That's the reality that we face 
as God's people. Now, if we ask the question why 
or how, the confession beautifully gives us answers. Well, in the 
first place, there may be by negligence in preserving of it. In other words, if you don't 
hold on to it, if you don't cultivate it, if you don't use the ordinary 
means, it may slip from your hands. In other words, don't 
absent yourself from where the Word of God is preached, don't 
absent yourself from the closet, don't absent yourself from good 
Christian books or good Christian fellowship, because your assurance 
of grace and salvation may be diminished, it may be intermitted, 
it may be shaken. Because you're not seeking it, 
you're not preserving it. Notice, secondly, the presence 
of some special sin. By falling into some special 
sin, which woundeth the conscience and grieveth the spirit. That 
makes sense, doesn't it? You know, the divines here aren't, 
wow, I can't believe what they're saying. It makes perfect sense. 
Go back to the Psalms for just a moment. Psalm 32. Psalm 32. verses three and four, when I 
kept silent my bones grew old through my groaning all the day 
long for day and night your hand was heavy upon me my vitality 
was turned into the drought of summer David, in that condition, 
didn't look like his normal, happy, peppy self. He wasn't 
dancing before the Ark of the Covenant and getting accused 
by Michael when he was in this phase of his life. He looked 
like a real downer Daniel at that particular point, because 
he had sinned against his God. Notice in Psalm 38, he describes 
more. Psalm 38, verses 3 to 5, "...there 
is no soundness in my flesh because of your anger, nor any health 
in my bones because of my sin. For my iniquities have gone over 
my head like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. My 
wounds are foul and festering because of my foolishness." I 
am troubled. I am bowed down greatly. I go 
mourning all the day long, for my loins are full of inflammation, 
and there is no soundness in my flesh. I am feeble and severely 
broken. I groan because of the turmoil 
of my heart." You see, this is a reality that when believers 
engage in the sorts of sins that David engaged in, their assurance 
will be shaken, diminished, and intermitted. Notice in Matthew 
26. Matthew 26. verse 75 at the end. So he went out and wept bitterly. Peter was not the poster child 
for joyful Christian experience of the assurance of grace and 
salvation at that particular time. He had sinned grievously 
against his God. And so for us, this is the issue. We may have our assurance shaken, 
diminished, and intermittent, by not preserving it or seeking 
to cultivate or preserve what is there, by falling into some 
special sin which wounds the conscience and grieves the spirit, 
and then he goes on, or they go on to say, by some sudden 
or vehement temptation. some sudden or vehement temptation. These things happen in the Christian 
life. You've heard me say it a thousand times, if God keeps 
me twenty more years, I'll say it a thousand times more. This 
is the reason we ought to love this confession of faith, because 
it is so much more practical than, you know, ninety percent 
of the practical books written on Christian living. They deal 
with the real hard issues that believers face. I mean, who gets 
this honest next to God in Scripture? Who actually says with David 
in Psalms 42 and 43, why are you downcast, O my soul? Has 
anybody ever asked you, how are you doing? And you've said to 
them, I am so downcast, I am so depressed, I am so sorrowful. Most often than not, we'll say, 
fine. We're fine. I don't care. We're 
fine. Everything's fine. We're good. 
Great. None of us have that Psalm 42 
and 43 honesty, right? I don't think we have the honesty 
that is encapsulated here in our... And I'm not saying we're 
dishonest, you're all wicked. I'm just saying that we don't get 
into the Christian life the way the scriptures do and the way 
our confession of faith does. By some sudden or vehement temptation. By God's withdrawing the light 
of His countenance. and suffering even such as fear 
Him, to walk in darkness and to have no light." See, that 
was David in Psalm 38. That's David in Psalm 32. That's 
Peter when he's weeping bitterly, understanding my sin against 
a holy God, the lack of, or the shakiness, or the diminishment 
of, or the intermittentness of my assurance of grace and salvation. I've sinned against a holy God. 
This is the reality associated with it. Notice, the confession 
doesn't end on that negative note. It always encourages us 
with the reality that God is faithful. And when we look at 
Peter this morning, those are the two lessons the text sets 
forth. The weakness of man and the goodness of God. There's 
not much more to it than that. I'm going to probably speak for 
an hour. Yeah, I'm giving you a heads up. An hour on the weakness 
of man and the goodness of God. But look at what the goodness 
of God is. Are they never destitute of the seed of God and life of 
faith? That love of Christ and the brethren, 
that sincerity of heart and conscience of duty, out of which, by the 
operation of the Spirit, this assurance may in due time be 
revived, and by the which in the meantime they are preserved 
from utter despair. What's the difference between 
the end of Matthew 26 and the beginning of Matthew 27? I mean, 
both men cried. One man is restored and one man 
hung himself or hanged himself. What's the difference? The difference 
is that Peter had the seed of God. Peter had love for God. Peter had love for Christ. Peter 
had faith in Christ. Judas didn't have those things. 
So you see, there is this godly sorrow which promotes health. 
There is this worldly sorrow which ultimately leads to a man 
hanging himself because he's such a wretch. So you see, the 
scriptures and the confession rightly reflecting the scripture 
tell us that even in the midst of those things wherein we hinder 
the assurance of grace and salvation, if we are true believers in Christ, 
paragraph one, then it's never going to be the case that God's 
going to let us go. Now, just to conclude, there's 
a quote by Ryle that's not going to make it into the sermon this 
morning, so I thought this would be a fitting place for it. He 
says, we see in Peter's tears the close connection between 
unhappiness and departure from God. Why are we miserable? It's because we're not living 
in harmony and peace with our God. We might be miserable because 
things are tough at work. We might be miserable because 
our kids are rebelling. But when all is said and done, 
what brings misery and despair in the lives of God's people? 
I'm not close to God. I'm not where I should be, I'm 
not where I want to be, I'm not in the presence of my God. He 
says, we see in Peter's tears the close connection between 
unhappiness and departure from God. A heavy heart and an uneasy 
conscience, a clouded hope and an abundant crop of doubts will 
always be the consequence of backsliding and inconsistency. I love Ryle because he's just 
so clear. What do you mean, J.C. Ryle? A heavy heart, an uneasy 
conscience, a clouded hope, an abundant crop of doubts will 
always be a consequence of backsliding and inconsistency. You backslide, 
you're inconsistent, this is what you're going to get. It's 
just that easy. You put, you know, two plus two, 
you get four. It's just the way it goes. And 
then he says this, let it be a settled principle in our religion 
that if we love inward peace, we must walk closely with God. 
Beautiful. And I think it summarizes well 
what we find here, at least in paragraph four, in terms of the 
difficulties associated with assurance. Let it be a settled 
principle in our religion that if we love inward peace, we must 
walk closely with God. Well, let us pray. Our Father, 
we thank you for the doctrine herein contained, and we thank 
you that it does reflect accurately what Scripture sets forth so 
clearly. We thank you for hymnody and 
for the Psalms and for all of the testimony of the Church throughout 
these 21 centuries of the goodness, the faithfulness, the kindness, 
the grace of God. Give us help, Lord, to pursue 
these things. Give us grace to walk in comfortable 
dependence upon our triune God. Give us grace, Father, to know 
the glorious truth of justification by faith alone. Cause us to reflect 
often upon the hope of the gospel, that the blood and the righteousness 
of Jesus Christ. May these things truly promote 
in us an assurance of grace and salvation. Go with us into this 
next hour. Help us to honor you. Help us 
to praise you. I pray for any that are unconverted 
that will be attending with us. We pray that you'd open their 
ears and open their hearts to receive the truth And may Peter 
be a living and a vivid and a beautiful display of the manifold grace 
of God Almighty. And we pray through Christ the 
Lord. Amen.