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know that I'm saved. I have a "know-so" salvation. Now, this spiritual confidence is not the same thing as self-confidence. Self-confidence tells me that I am able. That is intensely evil & dangerous. But a person with spiritual confidence is persuaded fully that God is able. So, when I say that I know that I know without a doubt that I have eternal life (or even that I know that God has called me to preach the gospel) my statement is NOT about me. My statement is about God. God has made some unequivocally clear promises concerning salvation, & the gift of His Spirit. All we are doing when we latch on to these words is admitting that God is God & that He is good. And be assured, God wants to develop spiritual confidence in all of His children.
John clearly wrote this letter to exalt Christ, but in so doing, he was also lifting the confidence of his believing readers to a very high plateau indeed. You should take note of the word "know" in 1st John (it occurs 27 times). We know who Jesus is. We know that we are His. We know that faith is the key to God's heart, & to our victory in Christ. We know that He has given us His Spirit. We know that the Father, His Son & His Spirit are one & the same; all three eternally divine & unified. We know that God's word is always true. We know that life in Christ is eternal. We know that without Christ, a man has no hope. We know that God hears & answers our humble prayers. We know that God is willing to forgive. We know that our new nature is sinless. We know that that world is doomed. And we know that due to all of these spiritual truths (which we know), we have some very real & serious responsibilities.
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