Belief that provides salvation

And God has given us his Spirit as proof that we live in him and he in us. Furthermore, we have seen with our own eyes and now testify that the Father sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. All who declare that Jesus is the Son of God have God living in them, and they live in God. We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. 1 John 4:13-16

All of us have certain convictions. Those we hold most strongly have a large influence on how we live our lives. Some of these may be scientific in nature, like believing in the force of gravity or that the earth revolves around the sun. Others may be instinctive, like believing that prices always go up or Murphy’s Law that says “anything that can go wrong will go wrong.” Everyone operates with convictions about God or some kind of worldview, whether consciously or not. God may be thought to be distant or accessible, angry or forgiving, existent or nonexistent. Accrual of goods, advancement of mankind, or looking out for number one may drive our lives. Even within Christianity, certain convictions may vary. From our text, John affirms one conviction that is required of all who bear the name of Christ: “Jesus is the Son of God” (1 John 4:15). John begins with the announcement that the presence of God’s Spirit is “proof that we live in him and he in us” (1 John 4:13). Central to the role in the church of the apostles is that they “have seen” and do “testify” of Christ. This is why when John speaks of Christ as “the Word of life,” he guarantees of its truthfulness for he was an eyewitness to Christ. But he furthered described that Jesus is the Son of God who was sent to be the Savior. Jesus came to save those who trusted Him from the bondage to sin, as John specifies in this epistle (see 1 John 2:2; 3:10).Savior describes the results of Jesus’ actions on our behalf. He provided the atoning sacrifice to obtain our release from the bondage of sin. Therefore when one confesses Jesus to be the Savior, such confession demands that one acknowledge who Jesus is. Jesus did not become the Son of God at some point in time. In His essence, He is and always has been a person of the Godhead, “the Son of God.” According to John, acknowledging this about Jesus shows that a person participates in the mutual abiding with God. His confession demonstrates that “God lives in him and he in God” (1 John 4:15). Whenever you begin to question your assurance of eternal life with God, read these verses over again. There is no place for arrogance since we are so dependent upon God, who provided our salvation with a price so we could be freed. But because He did, there is merit for assurance.

Blessings