Thursday, April 6, 2017

So is he saved... or not?

It certainly has been a while since my last post. I guess I've been distracted by other things, no time given for writing...

Well, this past week in Bible Study we were talking about John 5:43-54 which is the section where Jesus heals the royal official's son without being there. We were particularly focused on the official's faith and whether or not he believed in Jesus before the miracle. Somehow, the discussion led to salvation and we were discussing evidence for someone's faith and if you could definitively tell if someone else was saved.

As they were discussing this, I was sitting on the floor contemplating whether we should even be making that kind of judgment call. Who are we to determine if someone else is saved? I was directly asked what I was thinking about, having been quiet for a while, so I answered. I think I came across as little judgmental myself, because the Muffin Man (the one who asked) immediately got defensive.

In his defense, he brought up the fact that as the leader of a ministry who appointed leaders, spiritual leaders, over students, I inevitably had to make that call for people. I had to determine to some degree whether or not I thought someone was saved before I could confidently appoint them as a spiritual leader over my students. He was right of course. I do have to make that call. God has entrusted me with the care and spiritual development of the students in my ministry, and I have to ensure that I am wise about who I appoint as leaders over them. If I just appoint anyone (because who am I to judge their salvation), am I really being responsible with my position? No.

So this of course got me to thinking: By what means can we, as humans, judge the salvation of another? And should we at all?

In 1 Timothy 3 Paul gives instructions on who to appoint as leaders in the church. He gives qualifications like: "above reproach" and "self-controlled" and "able to teach" and "respectable." Paul warns that he should not be a recent convert, or he might become conceited. He also talks of deacons, that they must "keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience." (1 Timothy 3:9) In the next verse he says they must be tested and if nothing is found against them, appoint them. So there is obviously some amount of external evidence that should be there pointing towards someone's salvific status. There is observable evidence that is meant to guide our decisions in appointing leaders.

Galatians 5 has a list of the "fruits of the spirit" which are: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are fruits in a person's life which are born out of life in the Spirit. So, it would seem to follow that by observing these kinds of behaviors in a person's life, you find evidence of their salvation, right? I would think so, and Scripture seems to think so too. James 2 talks about faith and deeds. In verse 17 he says "In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead." There seems to be an element of action that accompanies our faith. When we have truly put our faith in Jesus, out of that faith is born action - obedience to the calling of God. So when you have really put faith in Jesus, that faith leads you to then obey His commands and teachings. Your life changes, and you begin to live the way He has called you to live and not just whatever way you want.

Which leads me to believe that I can at the very least determine whether or not someone shows evidence of salvation. I may not know what is truly in their hearts, but so long as they demonstrate the kind of life that God calls us to, then I can put them in the category of "most likely saved." I say most likely because I won't ever know for certain about someone else's faith, which was my concern in the discussion in Bible Study, but in that regard I simply have to trust that God is in control.

I think the Muffin Man had a good point. In my position, I really do have to determine whether someone is worthy of leading others in the faith or not. But I cannot make that decision on my own. None of us can or should. I have to remain in constant prayer, and trust that God will guide my decisions and bring the right people into leadership over His people.

And I think the danger I was worried about when I voiced my thoughts was that we would start to think that we were judge. That it was up to us to decide if someone else was saved or not. And thankfully, that is not the case. I am not the judge of someone else's salvation. God is the judge, and I gladly relinquish that responsibility to Him.

tl;dr God has given us certain evidences that can be observed that point to someone's faith (or lack thereof). We can use those evidences to help us appoint leaders in the church, but we cannot use them to definitively determine whether someone is saved or not. We are not the ultimate judge, that's God's job.

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