“Am I truly saved?”
If you’ve wrestled with that question, you’re not alone. Many Christians struggle with assurance, wondering if their faith is real or if they’ve somehow missed the mark. Some days you feel close to God. Other days you wonder if you’re fooling yourself.
The good news is that our Reformed confessions address this struggle directly—not with vague platitudes, but with solid, biblical answers. The Belgic Confession, written in 1561 by Guido de Brès for churches under persecution, speaks pastorally to believers who need to know where they stand with God.
Is Assurance Part of Saving Faith?
Here’s something that might surprise you: the Belgic Confession does not teach that full assurance is of the essence of saving faith.
This matters enormously. It means you can have genuine, saving faith while still experiencing weakness, fear, and real doubt. Your salvation doesn’t depend on achieving perfect certainty about your standing before God. It depends on Christ and His finished work.
Article 22 of the Belgic Confession roots faith in God’s promises revealed in Scripture, not in our subjective feelings. True faith trusts what God has said in His Word—that Christ died for sinners and that whoever believes in Him will not perish (John 3:16). That trust can exist even when assurance feels shaky.
This should relieve tender consciences. If you’re struggling with doubt but still clinging to Christ, you’re not disqualified from salvation. The thief on the cross had no time to develop strong assurance, yet Christ promised him paradise (Luke 23:43). And Scripture says plainly, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).
Where Does True Assurance Come From?
So if assurance isn’t automatic, where does it come from?
The Belgic Confession is clear: assurance is grounded outside ourselves. Article 22 explains that we are justified by faith alone, receiving and resting on Christ and His righteousness. This means assurance rests on:
- Christ’s finished work on the cross (Hebrews 10:14)
- Justification by faith alone, apart from works (Romans 3:28)
- God’s promises in Scripture (2 Corinthians 1:20)
- Christ’s ongoing intercession for His people (Hebrews 7:25)
Notice what’s missing from that list: your feelings, your performance, your spiritual track record. Assurance doesn’t come from looking inward to gauge how well you’re doing. It comes from looking outward to what Christ has done.
This is why obsessive self-examination is so dangerous. When you make your obedience the foundation of your assurance, you’ve shifted the ground from Christ to yourself. That’s not humility—that’s unbelief dressed in religious clothes.
The Heidelberg Catechism captures this beautifully in its very first question: “What is your only comfort in life and death?” The answer points to belonging to Christ—”that I am not my own, but belong with body and soul, both in life and in death, to my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ” (Q&A 1).
How Does Assurance Grow?
If assurance is real and desirable but not equally possessed at all times, how does it increase?
The Belgic Confession gives us practical answers:
Through hearing and believing the Word. Assurance grows as we sit under faithful preaching and read Scripture for ourselves. God’s promises become more real as we meditate on them. “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:13). This isn’t mystical—it’s the ordinary means God uses to strengthen faith.
Through the sacraments. Articles 33 and 34 explain that Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are visible signs and seals of God’s promises. They don’t create faith, but they do strengthen it by pointing us back to Christ’s work. When you see the bread broken and the cup poured out, you’re reminded that Christ’s body was broken and His blood poured out for sinners—including you.
Through visible fruit. Article 24 clarifies that good works don’t cause our salvation, but they do serve as evidence of genuine faith. When you see the Spirit producing His fruit in your life—however imperfectly—you can take comfort that God is at work in you. As the Heidelberg puts it, we do good works “out of gratitude” (Q&A 86), not to earn salvation. This isn’t grounds for boasting, but for recognizing God’s grace.
Through looking to Christ. This is the key. Assurance doesn’t grow by endlessly analyzing yourself. It grows by fixing your eyes on Jesus and His promises. “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). When doubt whispers, “But what if you’re not really saved?” faith answers with Christ’s own words: “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out” (John 6:37).
Here’s what this looks like practically: When assurance feels weak, open your Bible. Read the promises of God. Remind yourself of the gospel. Attend worship. Take communion. Talk to mature believers. These aren’t religious hoops to jump through—they’re means God uses to strengthen weak faith.
Dangerous Errors About Assurance
As you pursue assurance, watch out for these serious mistakes:
Don’t Wait for a Mystical Experience
Some churches teach—whether explicitly or through their culture—that true conversion requires a dramatic, datable experience. They emphasize “the conviction of sin” or “the moment of conversion” so much that people start trusting in their experience rather than in Christ Himself.
This is backwards. Faith doesn’t look at faith. Faith looks at Christ.
If you’re waiting for some overwhelming feeling or mystical conviction before you can believe God’s promises, you’re looking in the wrong place. The object of faith is Christ and His work, not the experience of faith itself. God commands you to believe His promises now, not to wait until you feel a certain way.
Don’t make your conversion experience your savior. Christ is your Savior.
Don’t Celebrate Chronic Doubt
Perhaps you’ve heard testimonies of believers who lived their entire lives in doubt, never knowing if they were truly saved. These stories are sometimes shared as examples of humility or spiritual depth.
But Scripture never celebrates lifelong doubt. Yes, weak faith is real faith. Yes, many believers struggle with assurance. But the goal is not to stay there. The goal is to grow in assurance by looking to Christ.
When we normalize chronic doubt—when we treat it as a mark of spiritual maturity—we’re actually encouraging people to live in disobedience. God has given us His promises. He commands us to believe them. Living in perpetual doubt isn’t humility; it’s calling God a liar.
The Canons of Dordt (Head 5, Articles 9-10) are clear: believers can and should attain assurance of their salvation. Not perfectly, not all at once, but genuinely. To live your whole life refusing to believe God’s promises is not something to admire—it’s something to repent of.
Don’t Confuse Introspection with Faith
Some churches foster a culture of endless self-examination. Every thought, every motive, every action is scrutinized for signs of grace or evidence of reprobation. People become spiritual hypochondriacs, constantly taking their own pulse to see if they’re still alive spiritually.
But faith is not primarily introspective. Faith is trust in Christ and His promises. Yes, self-examination has its place (2 Corinthians 13:5), but that examination should drive us to Christ, not trap us in ourselves.
If your self-examination only ever produces more doubt, you’re doing it wrong. Biblical self-examination says, “I see my sin—therefore I need Christ.” It doesn’t say, “I see my sin—therefore I’m probably not elect.”
Don’t Use Obedience as Your Foundation
Your good works are real and important, but they’re not the foundation of your salvation. Article 24 is explicit: we’re justified by faith alone, not by anything in us or done by us.
This means your obedience is evidence of grace, not the basis for it. When you do good works, thank God that He’s working in you. But don’t build your assurance on them. Build your assurance on Christ’s finished work.
The Heidelberg Catechism teaches that we do good works “that we may be assured of our faith by its fruits” (Q&A 86)—that’s evidence, not foundation. If you’re using your obedience as the ground of your confidence, you’ve left the gospel behind.
Rest in Christ, Not Your Certainty
The Belgic Confession doesn’t offer us a formula for manufacturing assurance. It offers us Christ.
Your salvation rests on His obedience, not yours. On His death, not your spiritual experience. On His promises, not your feelings. This is liberating because it means your standing before God doesn’t fluctuate with your moods or circumstances.
Jesus Himself said, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:27-28).
If you’ve been taught to wait for some overwhelming conviction before you can believe, stop waiting. Believe now. God’s promises are true whether you feel them or not.
If you’ve been told that chronic doubt is a mark of humility, recognize that lie for what it is. God wants you to believe His Word and rest in Christ.
If you’ve been examining yourself endlessly and finding only reasons to doubt, look away from yourself. Look to Christ. He is enough.
Can assurance grow? Yes. Should you pursue it? Absolutely. But pursue it by looking to Christ, not by obsessing over yourself or waiting for mystical experiences.
If you’re struggling with assurance today, don’t despair. Weak faith is still faith. Doubting saints are still saints. And Christ’s promise still stands: “Whoever comes to me I will never cast out.”
That’s where your confidence belongs—not in the strength of your faith, not in the drama of your conversion, not in the quality of your obedience, but in the faithfulness of your Savior.
