decision

A number of years ago while doing youth ministry at Vineyard of Faith in Windsor, CA, I was looking at various options of places to go to continue my education. I didn't really want to go to Seminary at the time, so I was looking at a variety of places that had distance education programs that would help me in youth ministry. Given that I didn't get the nuances of theology and thought the school didn't matter as long as it was Christian, one of the places I considered going was the Talbot School of Theology at Biola University.

After reading this article from Christianity Today which seeks to answer, "How can I know I'm a Christian if I can't remember when I first responded to the gospel?" I'm really glad I didn't. Why? Here's the author's conclusion:

For those who question their salvation, the best evidence is not the memory of having raised a hand or prayed a prayer. Nor is it having been baptized or christened. The true test of the authentic work of God in one's life is growth in Christ-like character, increased love for God and other people, and the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-25; James 2:18). A memorable conversion experience may serve as an important referent to God's saving work in one's life. But the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in making a person more like Jesus is the clearest indicator that one has been made a new creation in Christ.

Now, I think the guy nails it when he writes, "one can doubt the 'decision' was real, leading to numerous journeys down the aisle (just in case)." I've run into so many people who are in this camp. They've done the decision and then, days, weeks, or months later, found themselves doubting their faith and wondering if they really decided. So the decide again and then doubt again and then decide again. The whole time, they always find themselves wondering where they stand in relationship to God.

But, as for his final answer, that we know if we're save based upon the fruit in our lives, talk about setting people up to experience hell on earth! I mean, I have good days and bad day (we could even say moments in place of days). There are times my life looks really fruitful and times it doesn't. If I'm looking to the fruit, I'm going to be save now, damned in 5 minutes, and back to salvation an hour later. In other words, I'm just about as comforted as the person trusting a decision made for Jesus.

Now, I'm all in favor of doing good works, as long as we understand that the only good they do is to help out our neighbor, that even our non-Christian neighbor can figure out and do these same good works (and thus, based on the article, appear more Christian than many Christians), and that, before God, even our good works need to be justified. Of course, all this rules out the idea that we know we're good with God because of our works.

So, how do I answer the question? Yesterday, Christians around the world celebrated the Baptism of Jesus, an event where Jesus stepped into and bound himself to the human experience so that, in our baptisms, we could be bound to his divine experience. In other words, I point to baptism, not, as the author suggests, because it connects you to the church, but because in it, Jesus makes a promise to you and connects himself to you.

What's the beauty here? I never have to wonder about my salvation, because it's connected not to me, but to Jesus. I'm good with God because of Jesus promise, and knowing my status with God is secure, I'm now free to go and serve my neighbor and let the fruit grow as it will.