The 40 Questions Most Frequently Asked
About The Catholic Church
By Non-Catholics
16. Assurance of Salvation?
Why is it that Catholics do not believe in "Assurance of Salvation" here and now?
Because we believe that man remains free to serve or offend God throughout his entire life, and that
we are saved only when our life is completed by death. We likewise believe that as long as there is
life, there is the possibility of offending God and losing our souls.
To have a positive here-and-now assurance of salvation is contrary to experience and Scripture. It
would presume that there is no possibility of future sin, either;
| (a) |
Because the assured CANNOT SIN. Scripture tells us, however, that even the JUST man shall
fall seven times seven. Proverbs 24:16
We are likewise told that if we imagine that we can remain sinless we are deceiving ourselves.
- "If we say we have NO SIN we deceive ourselves." I John 1:8
|
| (b) |
Or because sin will not be IMPUTED to us. |
| (c) |
Or because we WILL repent before it is too late. This would mean that the “acceptance of Jesus”
had taken away our free will, as would, indeed, happen in either of the above assumptions. |
Scripture proves that this is not the teaching of the Apostles. St. Paul, who certainly had "accepted
Jesus," was not thereby SURE of his salvation.
- "But I chastise my body and bring it into subjection, less perhaps after preaching to others, I myself
should be rejected." I Corinthians 9:27
- "Therefore let him who thinks he stands, take heed lest he fall." I Corinthians 10:12
Catholics do have MORAL certainty from the words of Scripture in many places, for example:
- "He that eateth this flesh shall live for ever." St. John 6:52
- "Is any man sick among you? Let him call in the priests of the church who will anoint him with oil in
the name of the Lord, etc." James 5:14
- "Whose sins you shall forgive they are forgiven them; whose sins you shall retain they are retained."
St. John 20:22, 23
This moral certainly is based upon the fact that we are doing all that we can, with the help of God, to
save our souls.
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