28 Now, little children, abide in Him, so that when He appears, we may have confidence and not shrink away from Him in shame at His coming. 29 If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone also who practices righteousness is born of Him. (1 John 2:28-29)
If the Lord were to return at this moment, would he find you at home, or would you be caught mentally, physically, or even spiritually absent? Truth is, he will come to you wherever you are regardless. You can’t and won’t be able to hide. Certainly, you don’t want to “shrink away in shame at His coming.”
“For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.” (Mark 8:38)
This possibility, to be absent without leave (or AWOL), should strike fear in us. If it doesn’t, there is a deep problem that must be resolved. It’s like the sudden onset of the proverbial “check engine” light. Choosing to abide elsewhere is a dangerous thing. I recently heard of two people thought to be believers who by their actions and lifestyle, would indeed be shamed at his coming. From my folding lawn chair, which is certainly not from the throne of Almighty God, I’d have to give them a “thumbs down” gesture if asked the question if they were “saved or not.”
Despite our propensity to sin, if our hearts are right, meaning there is a real intention influenced by His spirit to stay close to God, there only needs to be a quick switch to the “if anyone sins we have an advocate with the Father” mode described in 1 John 2:1.
One of the best ways to have assurance of salvation is to practice righteousness. If this is your proclivity, your default mode, and it is “increasing,” (2 Peter 1:8) you’ll not be caught dead to rights. You’ll not ignore the gentle nudging of the Spirit to do or not do something, but you’ll act on His cue. This is what the Lord desires (and requires) of us. As a musician plays a part effortlessly that has been rehearsed numerous times, so righteous living will be. We’ll have our “senses trained to discern good and evil. (Hebrews 5:14)
Assurance comes from witnessing, in an “out-of-body” way, something you’ve said or done that was not of your own making, but of God’s.
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