1 John 3:19-24 ESV  By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; 20 for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.

Dear Fellowship of the Burning Heart:

I am always saddened when I encounter a Christian who has little or no assurance of salvation. The doubts, fears, and anxieties experienced by these sincere people are often overwhelming and self-defeating. How blessed it is to know that you have eternal life. And the great truth is that you CAN know. One thing we need is reinforcement of the truth that can “reassure our heart.” Sound biblical teaching will combat the lies that we tell ourselves which cause confusion and doubt in our walk with Christ. I think that most of us (if not all) can identify with the experience that John mentions here: “whenever our heart condemns us.” It is during those times that we begin to question our relationship with God. What causes our heart to condemn us?

Let’s review what John has said about “how we know” that we truly have a relationship with God through Christ.

1. We respond by obeying (2:3)
2. We live by his example (2:6)
3. We live in love (2:10)
4. We do not love the world (2:15)
5. We remain in sound doctrine (2:24)
6. We live in righteousness (2:24)
7. The world rejects us (3:1)
8. We have a decisive break with sin (3:6, 9, 10)
9. We love our brothers and sisters in Christ (3:14)

When we fail in any of these areas, we can expect our heart to condemn us. We know what God expects, we know how we should live, and our conscience will not allow us to violate those standards without causing us to feel the disappointment and anguish of our failure. We think that failure is final, but God’s Word tells us that it is not (1:9). “Setting our hearts at rest in his presence” is the way the TNIV translation puts it. So, when we have hearts that condemn us, how do set our hearts at rest?

GOD IS GREATER THAN OUR HEARTS AND HE KNOWS ALL – Sometimes we fail in what we know to do and sometimes we feel that we have failed (we have failed in our eyes) when we may not have failed in God’s eyes. God is greater than our heart. He can help us, he can enable us, he can empower us to overcome.

God, the final Arbitrator, knows our hearts better than we ourselves. God is able to judge because he is all-knowing. His omniscience strengthens and encourages us, but it also challenges us, for we know that he knows everything and will require an accounting of service done on his behalf. – The New American Commentary: 1, 2, 3 John

If we but put our trust in God and his faithfulness and live in his power by his grace to do his will we will never be put to shame and we can live in confidence. If we fail and our heart condemns us, let’s fall to our knees in humble repentance and confess our sins, allowing his forgiveness to wash over us and give us confidence to continue the journey.