Paul confided, “For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day” (2 Timothy 1:12). He said, “I know whom [not merely what] I have believed.”
The Christian’s assurance is linked to God the Father’s character. God the Father has some astonishing metaphysical attributes:
- Self-existent (Psalm 90:2; John 5:26);
- Eternal (Psalm 90:1–2);
- Omniscient (Hebrews 4:13);
- Omnipotent (Daniel 4:35);
- Holy (1 Peter 1:15–16; Revelation 4);
- Faithful and just (John 7:24);
- Merciful (Titus 3:4–7).
He has an even more amazing moral characteristic: God is a being of absolute love (1 John 4:8, 11). This is one of the great themes of the New Testament (John 3:16; 10:28–29; Romans 8:31–39; Ephesians 2:5, 8–9; 1 Peter 1:3–5; 1 John 4:7–21). God’s love shows that He gave His Son to die in our place (John 3:16), while we were yet sinners (Romans 5:8). It also shows that He does not want a single person to be lost (2 Peter 3:9; 1 Timothy 2:4).
God’s faithfulness also leads us to confidence in our salvation. He promised (1 Peter 1:5–7; 2 Peter 1:1–2). A faithful Christian’s “I don’t feel saved” equals a lack of faith in the promises of God. —Anonymous
