Plain-language reading guide
READING HELP
Read this chapter alongside the Confession chapter on the same subject. The Testimony states what the church teaches, applies that teaching, and identifies views it rejects. Read each statement with its Scripture proofs and the surrounding paragraphs.
To find explicit rejections in this chapter, go to point 4, point 5, point 7, point 10, point 11. Read each full point to see exactly which teaching is rejected.
This reading guide is separate from the official text below.
Read the official text, or choose a simpler explanation to explore together.
Westminster Confession
1. Although hypocrites and other unregenerate men may vainly deceive themselves with false hopes, and carnal presumptions of being in the favour of God, and estate of salvation; which hope of theirs shall perish: yet such as truly believe in the Lord Jesus, and love Him in sincerity, endeavouring to walk in all good conscience before Him, may, in this life, be certainly assured that they are in the state of grace, and may rejoice in the hope of the glory of God, which hope shall never make them ashamed.
Scripture proofs: Job 8:13-14; Mic. 3:11; Deut. 29:19; John 8:41; Matt. 7:22-23; 1 John 2:3; 1 John 3:14, 18-19, 21, 24; 1 John 5:13; Rom. 5:2, 5.
2. This certainty is not a bare conjectural and probable persuasion, grounded upon a fallible hope; but an infallible assurance of faith, founded upon the divine truth of the promises of salvation, the inward evidence of those graces unto which these promises are made, the testimony of the Spirit of adoption witnessing with our spirits that we are the children of God: which Spirit is the earnest of our inheritance, whereby we are sealed to the day of redemption.
Scripture proofs: Heb. 6:11, 19; Heb. 6:17-18; 2 Pet. 1:4-5, 10-11; 1 John 2:3; 1 John 3:14; 2 Cor. 1:12; Rom. 8:15-16; Eph. 1:13-14; Eph. 4:30; 2 Cor. 1:21-22.
3. This infallible assurance doth not so belong to the essence of faith, but that a true believer may wait long, and conflict with many difficulties before he be partaker of it: yet, being enabled by the Spirit to know the things which are freely given him of God, he may without extraordinary revelation, in the right use of ordinary means, attain thereunto. And therefore it is the duty of everyone to give all diligence to make his calling and election sure; that thereby his heart may be enlarged in peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, in love and thankfulness to God, and in strength and cheerfulness in the duties of obedience, the proper fruits of this assurance; so far is it from inclining men to looseness.
Scripture proofs: 1 John 5:13; Isa. 50:10; Mark 9:24; Ps. 88; Ps. 77:1-12; 1 Cor. 2:12; 1 John 4: 13; Heb. 6:11-12; Eph. 3:17-19; 2 Pet. 1:10; Rom. 5:1-2, 5; Rom. 14:17; Rom. 15:13; Eph. 1:3-4; Ps. 4:6-7; Ps. 119:32; 1 John 2:1-2; Rom. 6:1-2; Titus 2:11-12, 14; 2 Cor. 7:1; Rom. 8:1, 12; 1 John 3: 2-3; Ps. 130:4; 1 John 1:6-7.
4. True believers may have the assurance of their salvation divers ways shaken, diminished, and intermitted; as, by negligence in preserving of it, by falling into some special sin, which woundeth the conscience and grieveth the Spirit; by some sudden or vehement temptation, by God’s withdrawing the light of His countenance, and suffering even such as fear Him to walk in darkness and to have no light: yet are they never utterly destitute of that seed of God, and life of faith, that love of Christ and the brethren, that sincerity of heart, and conscience of duty, out of which, by the operation of the Spirit, this assurance may, in due time, be revived; and by the which, in the mean time, they are supported from utter despair.
Scripture proofs: Song of Sol. 5:2-3, 6; Ps. 51:8, 12, 14; Eph. 4:30-31; Ps. 77:1-10; Matt. 26:69- 72; Ps. 31:22; Ps. 88; Isa. 50:10; 1 John 3:9; Luke 22:32; Job 13:15; Ps. 73:15; Ps. 51:8, 12; Isa. 50:10; Mic. 7:7-9; Jer. 32:40; Isa. 54:7-10; Ps. 22:1; Ps. 88.
Words to know
- Assurance
- A grounded confidence that we belong to Christ and share his salvation.
- Conscience
- Our sense of right and wrong, which needs to be trained by God’s Word.
WCF 18.1 · Real assurance is possible
Someone can wrongly assume they are saved. But people who truly trust Christ, love him, and seek to obey him may genuinely know that they belong to God. They can rejoice in a sure hope of sharing his glory. Confidence should rest on real faith, not wishful thinking.
Job 8:13-14; Micah 3:11; Deuteronomy 29:19.
How is real assurance different from simply assuming everything is fine?
WCF 18.2 · What supports assurance?
Assurance rests on God’s true promises, evidence of his grace in our lives, and the Spirit’s witness that we are his children. The Spirit is God’s pledge of our future inheritance. Our confidence is more than a guess, because God himself is trustworthy.
Hebrews 6:11; Hebrews 6:17-18; 2 Peter 1:4-5.
Why are God’s promises a stronger foundation than changing feelings?
WCF 18.3 · Assurance can take time
A person can have genuine faith while still struggling to feel sure of salvation. Assurance may take time. God gives it through ordinary means, without requiring a special revelation. We should seek it through Scripture and faithful living. It produces peace, joy, gratitude, and willing obedience rather than carelessness.
1 John 5:13; Isaiah 50:10; Mark 9:24.
Can a Christian belong to Christ while struggling with doubts?
WCF 18.4 · Hope when confidence is shaken
Sin, neglect, temptation, or a dark season can weaken a believer’s assurance. Yet God does not remove every trace of faith, love, and sincere desire to obey. Through the Spirit these can support the believer and, in time, restore confidence. A loss of assurance is not necessarily a loss of salvation.
Song of Solomon 5:2-3; Psalm 51:8; Ephesians 4:30-31.
Where can a doubting believer seek help and renewed hope?
1. A man may believe himself to be saved when he is not. A man can also fear that he is not saved, when in actual fact he is. Isa. 50:10; Luke 18:11-14.
2. The Holy Spirit gives assurance of salvation by leading believers to rest confidently on God’s promises, producing in their lives the love for Christ and others which is the fruit of the new birth and enabling them to call upon God as their loving Father in heaven. 2 Tim. 1:12; John 14:21; 1 John 3:14; Rom. 8:14-16; 1 John 2:5; 1 John 5:13; John 10:27-28.
3. Spiritual experiences or circumstances, however worthy, such as birth of Christian parents, church membership, participation in the sacraments, the hearing of the Word, good works, response to an altar call, speaking in tongues, and other real or imagined evidences of grace, do not of themselves constitute a basis for assurance of salvation. Rom. 9:7; Rom. 2:28-29; 1 Cor. 10:1-12; Heb. 4:2; Acts 8:9-24; 1 Cor. 11:27-29; Heb. 10:38-39; Titus 3:5.
4. We reject the view that, without saving faith, participation in the sacraments or the use of any other means of grace is a proper basis of assurance.
5. We reject the teaching that assurance must be chiefly based upon one’s memory of a particular conversion experience.
6. It is the task of the Church to declare the Word of God so that the believer, being enabled by the Holy Spirit, can discern his own true inward condition, and thus know that he is saved; but it is not the proper function of the minister or any other person to tell people whether they are saved. Rom. 8:16.
7. We reject the view that preaching the Gospel consists merely in urging people to assent to its truth.
8. While the Scriptures require self-examination, a believer must remember that his heart can be deceived, and that he is always subject to the temptation to trust in works rather than in Christ. A person should not lightly assume he is saved. 1 Cor. 11:28, 32; Prov. 28:26; 1 John 3:19-24; Gal. 6:3; Rev. 3:17-18.
9. A believer’s lack of assurance may evidence sinful neglect. Fear respecting the state of a man’s own heart is not necessarily the sin of unbelief, for unbelief consists in rejecting the Gospel, not in questioning the presence of grace in the heart. 2 Cor. 13:5.
10. We reject the teaching that a full assurance of salvation is so inseparably connected with saving faith that a believer cannot be saved without it.
11. We reject the teaching that assurance of salvation leads to complacency, or is unimportant to the life and walk of faith, to prayer, and to good works.
Words to know
- Assurance
- A grounded confidence that we belong to Christ and share his salvation.
- Conscience
- Our sense of right and wrong, which needs to be trained by God’s Word.
- Rejects
- Says that a teaching is wrong and must not be accepted.
- Sacraments
- Baptism and the Lord’s Supper: signs and seals Christ gave his church to point to his covenant promises.
- Gospel
- The good news of salvation through Jesus Christ.
Testimony 18.1
Our feelings about salvation can be mistaken: an unsaved person may feel secure, and a saved person may be afraid.
Read original point 1 and its Scripture proofs →Testimony 18.2
The Spirit gives assurance through God’s promises, love for Christ and others, and confidence in approaching God as Father.
Read original point 2 and its Scripture proofs →Testimony 18.3
A Christian family, church membership, sacraments, good deeds, or a dramatic spiritual experience cannot by themselves prove someone is saved.
Read original point 3 and its Scripture proofs →Testimony 18.4
The Testimony rejects treating participation in sacraments or other church practices as assurance of salvation without genuine faith.
Read original point 4 and its Scripture proofs →Testimony 18.5
The Testimony rejects making the memory of one conversion experience the main basis for confidence that we are saved.
Read original point 5 and its Scripture proofs →Testimony 18.6
The church teaches the Bible to help people examine their faith with the Spirit’s help. A pastor cannot simply decide for someone whether that person is saved.
Read original point 6 and its Scripture proofs →Testimony 18.7
The Testimony rejects reducing gospel preaching to getting people to agree that its message is true.
Read original point 7 and its Scripture proofs →Testimony 18.8
We should examine ourselves carefully while remembering that our hearts can deceive us. Our confidence must rest in Christ rather than our achievements.
Read original point 8 and its Scripture proofs →Testimony 18.9
Sometimes doubts grow when we neglect God’s Word or disobey him. But being worried about your own faith does not automatically mean you have rejected the gospel. Bring your doubts to Christ and seek help.
Read original point 9 and its Scripture proofs →Testimony 18.10
The Testimony rejects the claim that a person must have complete assurance in order to be truly saved.
Read original point 10 and its Scripture proofs →Testimony 18.11
The Testimony rejects treating assurance as unimportant or as an excuse for complacency. It matters for faithful living, prayer, and good works.
Read original point 11 and its Scripture proofs →Source: The Constitution of the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, updated 2026, A-53, A-54, A-55.