A Baseless Assurance

Spring 2023

I once read a book entitled, “In Christianity, or in Christ?” Good question! Lots of folks today are religious but unregenerate. They may be in the church, but are not in Christ! Many are nominally “Christian”, are confident of going to heaven, yet are deceived. They have made the mistake of replacing Christ Himself with rites and ceremonies. They have a baseless assurance.

There are two aspects of this to consider:

Religious association

People find comfort in just entering a place of worship: a church, temple, synagogue, or mosque. There are some who get their “assurance” from religious performances. They feel so “peaceful” in a service. Perhaps it is the music, the choir, the responsive readings, the various actions of a priest, or even the architecture! This is the assurance of religious ritual, not the peace of God that passes understanding (Isaiah 29:1). There are many who profess to experience “closeness to God” in such things, but it is pure superstition. Consider Amos 5:21 and 6:1. Such people are religious but lost. Paul referred to a “form of godliness” without the “power.” We witness the phenomenon of bigger crowds in churches at Easter or Christmas.

There are some who never go near a church, yet they practice religious superstitions. They may make the sign of the cross before flying on a plane, or running out onto a ball-field to play a game—superstition! Many engage in pseudo-religious rites or rituals, while some regard sacraments as a means of protection against harm and danger—a kind of “good-luck charm”! Such folks may tell you they feel good as a result. They state that they “feel close to God”, receiving some kind of assurance and peace. But it is not the peace found only in God's salvation, through trusting in Christ the Savior alone!

Righteous activity

There are those who feel a certain assurance that they are right before God, but are, in reality, filled with self-righteous pride. They engage in religious exercises, but they feel no need of true repentance or of being “born again of the Spirit.” They are trusting in what they can do and not in what Christ has done. We see an example of this in Luke 18:9–14. Religious works will save no-one (Matthew 7:21–23).

All the self-righteous people are not church goers. Some think to gather up a store of good-will with God by works of benevolence and charity (Isaiah 64:6; Titus 3:5). Denying their innate sinfulness and depravity they feel they are good enough for God to accept them just as they are. As one put it: “These inflate their own imagined righteousness and belittle God's righteousness, in order to minimize the gap between, and cling to the notion that God is tolerant. If they should fall short at any point he is always at hand to forgive, they think. The security this attitude affords is a most serious deception.” Satisfaction with their own supposed goodness closes the minds of multitudes to God's gift of salvation. It gives false assurance, and keeps them in ignorance of their great need of Christ and of God's mercy (Romans 10:3).

God is not impressed by self-righteous activity. If you could gain the favor of God by your own works, why would Jesus have to come and die on the Cross? (See Galatians 2:21; Ephesians 2:8–9). If you belong to one of these categories—trusting in religious association or in righteous activity—forsake such notions today! If you are assured by these, your assurance is baseless. Your prayer must be:

No works of merit now I plead,

But Jesus take for all my need,

No righteousness in men is found,

Except upon redemption ground.