Iii. The Connection Between Faith And Assurance:
III
THE CONNECTION BETWEEN FAITH
AND ASSURANCE
a. The Question at Issue FROM the preceding pages it is perfectly clear that Protestants have not always been entirely unanimous on the subject of assurance.
They are not all in full agreement to-day. Even among Reformed theologians there is considerable difference of opinion as to whether assurance belongs to the very essence of faith, so that he who truly believes in Jesus Christ unto salvation always has a certain measure of assurance; or whether it is merely one of the fruits of faith, and a fruit that may not appear until years after one has accepted Christ as his Saviour. Hence the question arises, Does the very act of believing, of accepting Christ in true faith, involve a certain measure of assurance or not?
In any attempt to answer this question it ought to be clearly understood just what the term assurance implies in this connection.
The prevalent expression "assurance of faith" is rather ambiguous. It may denote any one of three or four things, but it may also be used in a comprehensive sense, so as to include all its special meanings.
There is, first of all, what is often called "the assurance of assent to the truth." It is grounded in the acceptance of the Bible as the infallible Word of God, and consists in the conviction that Christ is all that He is represented to be, and that the blessed promises of the Gospel are absolutely reliable. No one will be inclined to doubt that this assurance belongs to the essence of faith. It is found even in faith in its most general sense, for this is exactly the acceptance of something as true on the basis of the testimony of another. It naturally involves a conviction respecting the truth of that which is accepted. Such a conviction is also included in saving faith, as even
the Roman Catholics will admit. But though some would limit the meaning of the term "assurance of faith" to this bare intellectual assent to the truth, it is not generally so restricted. In fact, this certitude respecting the object of faith is not what is ordinarily called the assurance of faith. Yet it is closely connected with it, and is in fact fundamental for any farther assurance. No one who doubts the Scriptural representation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ can have any personal assurance of salvation. They who assume a critical attitude with respect to the revealed truths of Scripture and yet glory in the certainty of their redemption, are deceiving themselves. The one excludes the other. Ultimately personal assurance can only be rooted in a hearty acceptance of Jesus Christ, as He is set forth in the Gospel, and in a conviction of the truth of the Gospel promises.
There is also, in the second place, what has been called the "assurance of application or appropriation," which, in the language of Scripture is called a reliance on God and on Jesus Christ, a trusting in Him and in the word of his grace unto salvation. It is the appropriating persuasion of faith, whereby we embrace the promises of God and Jesus Christ himself, in whom they are yea and amen; apply these promises to ourselves, accepting Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour, and thus appropriate whatever is offered in the word of promise and in the righteousness of him who gave his life for sinners. This means that, where God comes to us in his divine Word with the promise of the forgiveness of sins, of the perfect righteousness in Jesus Christ, and of eternal life in communion with God, we believingly accept the promise and enter into the riches of grace that are freely given us of God, thus becoming "heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ." This assurance consists therefore in a personal appropriation of the general promises of the Gospel. It finds beautiful expression in these words of the Catechism, in which the believer gives an explication of his faith in God the Father: "That the eternal Father of our Ford Jesus Christ … is for the sake of Christ His
Son, my God and my Father; on whom I rely so entirely, that I have no doubt, that He will provide me with all things necessary for soul and body: and farther, that He will make whatever evil He sends
upon me in this valley of tears turn out to my advantage; for He is able to do it, being Almighty God, and willing also, being a faithful
Father."
Finally, there is a third kind of assurance, an assurance that does not terminate on the promises of God, but on the spiritual state of the believer. It does not look to that which is objectively given in the Word of God, but rather to that which is subjectively wrought in the heart of the Holy Spirit. It is frequently called the assurance of sense, as resting upon the inward sense the soul has of the reality of its spiritual experiences. Some theologians restrict the use of the term
"assurance of faith" to the objective assurance of the truth of the promises, of which we have spoken in the preceding, and prefer to speak of the assurance now under consideration as the "assurance of hope." It is the firm conviction, based on the evidence of spiritual graces, that the faith we possess is a true and living faith, and that we are indeed children of God. According to the Methodists it embodies a judgment on the state of believers only as far as the present is concerned, but according to the Reformed it has reference to the future as well. It is not merely a certain persuasion that we are now in a state of grace, but also an assurance of future salvation. And this is undoubtedly in harmony with the Scriptural idea of assurance, which makes the future radiant with heavenly light. It prompts the believer to join the apostle in his triumphant strain: "For ye received not the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit himself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are children of God: and if children, then heirs, heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ."
Now the question with which we are concerned in this chapter is not, whether a real and living faith involves the conviction that the doctrine of salvation, revealed in the Bible, and all the blessed promises of the Gospel are true. There is no difference of opinion on this point. The question is rather, whether saving faith necessarily includes an element of that subjective personal assurance which engenders a feeling of security and fills the heart with confidence for