“Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? — unless indeed you fail to meet the test!” 2 Corinthians 13:2 ESV
The following ten questions are for all who read and study the Bible and sit under the preaching of the Word of God in the church. The questions are based on one of our denomination’s constitutional standards, Westminster Larger Catechism Question and Answer #155. These questions will help you to discern a most crucial matter: whether or not the Spirit of God is indeed making the Word an effectual means of salvation to you. It is very dangerous and extremely naive to assume this to be the case in anyone that claims to be a Christian. “Let us test and examine our ways, and return to the LORD!” (Lam 3:40).
1. Am I growing in my knowledge and understanding of the Bible? Is what God directs me to believe and do becoming increasingly clear to me?
2. Am I increasingly convinced that the Bible is God’s infallible truth? For instance, that Jesus is truly the Son of God and the Son of Man, who lived, died, and was raised for our justification? In confidence that God loves sinners in Christ?
3. Am I humbled by God’s Word? Am I less proud, less self-reliant, and more dependent on God for all things today than in times past? Do I rely on any personal righteousness of my own — even with the Spirit’s help — and not on the Lord Jesus Christ alone as my righteousness?
4. Am I more and more convinced of my sinfulness and of my great need for a Savior and Mediator in the Lord Jesus Christ? Do I enjoy an increasingly closer walk with God?
5. Am I being conformed to the image of Christ in all things?5 In patience, kindness, forgiving and forbearing with others, enduring hardship and difficulties for his sake, in joy, in peace, and in love?
6. Do I increasingly submit to God’s commandments in all things? Do I desire to accept whatever happens to me in this life as God’s wise and Fatherly providence without grumbling or complaining?
7. Have I been able, by God’s grace, to bear up under temptation? Am I increasingly able to resist the Tempter and submit to God?
8. Am I more and more free from the corruption of the flesh? Am I, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, putting to death the deeds of the flesh? Are my thoughts, words, and actions increasingly Christ-like?
9. Am I growing in the grace of God? By God’s grace, do I diligently seek and religiously use the means of grace provided for me, as in prayer, family worship, the reading and preaching of God’s Word, the Lord’s Supper, and in the public worship of God?
10. Am I firmly grounded and planted in the faith of Jesus Christ, or do I waiver, being unstable and double-minded? Do I sincerely resolve to pursue holiness through faith in Christ to the end? Do I take comfort and rest in the hope of eternal life in Christ? Do I know, and am I able to recall and apply the Gospel promises to my own soul and the souls of persons under my care?
Pastor Lou Veiga
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