Converted?

Every time I have asked a congregation whether or not they believe they have been converted, the response has been muted.

One person might say “Amen”; another person coughs and half-says “Amen,” while most people look like deer caught in the headlights, unsure what to say or where to look. There might be several reasons for this.

It could be that someone knows that should he or she say, “Amen, I’m converted,” they will be asked by their spouse after church why a converted person doesn’t act with more kindness. Some people manifest what they feel is humility and say, “Well, I wouldn’t want to go so far as to say I’m converted, but …” The same holds true when one asks a group of people whether they are saved and have everlasting life.

While my experience may be anomalous to that of others, I have found it is uniformly the case that when asked if they are saved, the vast majority of people in the church will not state that, yes, they possess the gift of everlasting life.

It is not humility that prevents a person from confidently claiming they have everlasting life but bad theology. Ephesians 2:8 could not be clearer: “For by grace you have been saved through faith.” While the King James Version says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith,” this refers not to a manner of process but to a state of being. By grace, you are saved—or “have been saved”—“through faith.” Paul was not undecided on the subject of salvation. He categorically stated that those who have accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior possess the gift of salvation and “have been saved.” Believing one has possession of the gift of salvation does not lead a person to laxity in spiritual matters.

The knowledge of salvation instead produces in the believer gratitude and confidence. There is no place for uncertainty in salvation.

God does not want His children to wonder whether they might ever go to heaven. If you have accepted Jesus, you have everlasting life.