A TESTIMONY OF SALVATION 

            "Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy" (Psalm 107:2). All who have been redeemed through the blood of our precious Lord should gladly announce to others that they have been saved. All who are saved should also be ready to give a testimony of how they were saved. Through the years, many have assured me they were saved when I asked about their spiritual condition. Then, I would ask them to tell me about their experience. Many have failed to have a testimony of saving grace. Some made professions when they were very young and have no real memory of it. Others have trusted in the good lives they have lived, or how their parents may have raised them. However, I believe the Scriptures clearly teach there are some things that accompany an experience of real salvation. My heart breaks for those who only have assumed they are saved, but they are not!

            No one will ever be saved until they have been convicted by the Holy Spirit that they are lost. The Spirit uses the Scriptures to bring about one's awareness of needing to be saved. Then, He uses the same Scriptures to present that the way of salvation is only found by one repenting of his sins and placing his trust in Jesus Christ for forgiveness. Repentance and believing are not two separate events where one follows the other, but they are two things that happen at the same time as a sinner places his trust in Jesus Christ with a desire to live for Him and allow Him to be the Lord of his life. The result of doing this will allow the same Spirit to bring peace and comfort to the soul that He once burdened with the guilt of his sin. Many have committed different sins and lived more sinful lives than others, but all must be saved with the same salvation. The same promise is made to every sinner, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation -- For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Romans 10:9, 10, 13). All who are saved and reading these thoughts will recognize in them their own experience of when they were saved. Did you ever consider that the same salvation you received is no different than what King David received many years ago. He gave his testimony in many places, but I want to share two special accounts of where he testified of his salvation through his writing.

            Psalm 40:1 "I waited patiently for the LORD; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.  2 He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. 3 And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD." He described his lost conviction as being in a horrible pit. His salvation was compared to being taken from the miry clay and placed on a rock. He knew the Lord was the Rock of his salvation! "O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation" (Psalm 90:1). His testimony of peace was the song that was put in his heart that would cause many others to turn to the Lord when hearing his testimony.

            Psalm 116:3 "The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow. 4 Then called I upon the name of the LORD; O LORD, I beseech thee, deliver my soul. 5 Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; yea, our God is merciful. 6 The LORD preserveth the simple: I was brought low, and he helped me. 7 Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the LORD hath dealt bountifully with thee."  Verse 3 gives a powerful description of the heavy conviction he felt in his lost condition! He placed his trust in the Lord by calling on His name seeking to be delivered from his sinful condition in verse 4. Verse 5 gives his testimony of receiving both mercy and grace from the Lord. In verse 7, he acknowledged the peace he received by stating his soul could now return unto rest. What a powerful testimony he had! It literally changed his life as he wrote later in this Psalm in verses 12 - 14, "What shall I render unto the LORD for all his benefits toward me? I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD. I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the presence of all his people."  

            Do you have a testimony of salvation? If so, I hope and pray that reading these thoughts has brought back (and even strengthened) your peace. Some who were saved but had lost assurance of their salvation have come to me for counsel. When they shared their testimony, that peace returned. If you do not have a testimony of really being saved, I pray these thoughts will bring conviction from the Spirit to lead you to Jesus Christ where you will have a testimony of salvation to share with others!