The Threefold Timeframe of Salvation and Real Assurance
> The New Testament speaks in seemingly conflicting ways about salvation:
- “You have been saved” (Ephesians 2:8).
- “You are being saved” (1 Corinthians 1:18).
- “You will be saved” (Romans 5:9–10; 10:9).
So are Christians already saved, or not yet? And if salvation has a future aspect, can we be sure we’ll make it?
This post will:
- Explain the nature of the paradox
- Unpack the threefold temporal aspect of salvation (past, present, future)
- Show how this supports real assurance and perseverance (Philippians 1:6)
- Warn about false assurance (not all who profess truly possess)
- Apply why this tension matters today
✨ Discover FAQs of Faith Mobile App! ✨Looking for a convenient way to access all your favorite faith-based content? Introducing the FAQs of Faith mobile app, your go-to resource that combines insightful and inspiring content from Faith Answers Press LLC into one easy-to-use platform. Whether you’re seeking answers to faith questions, daily inspiration, or spiritual growth resources, our app has it all. 📲 Download now and start your journey! Click on FAQs of Faith
1. The Nature of the Paradox
Scripture uses all three tenses for salvation:
- Past:
- “By grace you have been saved through faith.” (Ephesians 2:8)
- “He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness…” (Titus 3:5)
- Present:
- “To us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:18)
- “…work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” (Philippians 2:12)
- Future:
- “The one who endures to the end will be saved.” (Matthew 24:13)
- “We shall be saved by him from the wrath of God.” (Romans 5:9)
So we face the paradox:
- If we have been saved already, why does the Bible say we are being and will be saved?
- If salvation is secure, why call us to persevere, endure, “hold fast,” and “work out” our salvation?
The mainstream Reformed answer: salvation is one work of God, but it unfolds in three time dimensions—already and not yet—and rightly understood, this strengthens assurance instead of undermining it.
2. The Threefold Temporal Aspect of Salvation
Reformed theology has often summarized salvation this way:
- Past: We have been saved from sin’s penalty (justification).
- Present: We are being saved from sin’s power (sanctification).
- Future: We will be saved from sin’s presence (glorification).
A. Past: “You Have Been Saved” (Justification)
At conversion, something decisive happens:
- We are declared righteous in Christ (justification).
- We are reconciled to God.
- We are adopted as His children.
Key texts:
- “Since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1)
- “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1)
- “By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.” (Ephesians 2:8–9)
This is once-for-all and irreversible:
- We do not move in and out of justification.
- God’s verdict—“righteous in Christ”—stands.
John Calvin:
“Justification is the main hinge on which religion turns… For unless you first grasp what your relationship to God is, and the nature of His judgment concerning you, you have neither a foundation on which to establish your salvation nor one on which to build piety toward God.”
—Institutes 3.11.1 (paraphrased)
B. Present: “You Are Being Saved” (Sanctification)
After justification, God continues His saving work:
- We are being progressively freed from sin’s power.
- We increasingly die to sin and live to righteousness.
Key texts:
- “…to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:18)
- “For this is the will of God, your sanctification.” (1 Thessalonians 4:3)
- “We all… are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another.” (2 Corinthians 3:18)
This is:
- Ongoing and imperfect in this life.
- Marked by real growth, struggle, repentance, renewal.
Martin Luther famously described the believer as:
“Simul iustus et peccator” — at the same time righteous (in Christ) and a sinner (in ourselves).
We are already justified, yet still being sanctified.
C. Future: “You Will Be Saved” (Glorification)
Scripture also speaks of salvation as something still ahead:
- Rescue from the final wrath of God.
- Full and final conformity to Christ.
- Freedom from all sin, suffering, and death.
Key texts:
- “How much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.” (Romans 5:9)
- “Salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.” (Romans 13:11)
- “…who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1 Peter 1:5)
This is the not yet of salvation:
- The verdict is already given (justification),
- The work is underway (sanctification),
- The consummation is still coming (glorification).
3. Perseverance and Assurance: Philippians 1:6
The tension sharpened:
- Believers are told they must persevere:
- “The one who endures to the end will be saved.” (Matthew 24:13)
- “We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end.” (Hebrews 3:14)
- Yet we are given strong assurance that true believers will persevere.
Philippians 1:6 captures this beautifully:
“He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”
Notice:
- God began the work (past).
- God continues the work (present).
- God will complete the work (future).
This is the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints (better: the preservation of the saints):
- Those whom God has truly regenerated and justified will be kept by His power until the end.
- Their perseverance is certain, because God’s preserving grace is certain.
John Calvin:
“The perseverance of the godly rests upon the foundation of God’s election…
When God has once adopted us as His children, He does not cease to cherish us.”
—Institutes 3.24 (paraphrased)
R.C. Sproul put it succinctly:
“The reason we persevere is not because of our grip on Christ, but because of His grip on us.”
4. False Assurance: Professing vs. Possessing
The New Testament is also clear:
Not everyone who professes faith in Christ truly possesses saving faith.
A. The Parable of the Soils (Matthew 13:1–23; Mark 4; Luke 8)
Jesus describes four soils:
- Path – The word is snatched away; no root, no response.
- Rocky ground – Receives the word with joy but has no depth; falls away under tribulation or persecution.
- Thorns – The word is choked by cares, riches, and pleasures; it proves unfruitful.
- Good soil – Hears, understands, and bears fruit.
Key lessons:
- Some appear to respond gladly, yet fall away when tested.
- Some profess faith, but worldly cares and desires choke it.
- Only the fruit‑bearing faith of the good soil is genuine and lasting.
So:
- There is such a thing as temporary faith—enthusiastic, emotional, but not rooted.
- There is such a thing as choked faith—crowded out by idols.
These people may feel assured for a time, but their later falling away shows they never truly belonged.
John says this starkly:
“They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us.”
(1 John 2:19)
Continuation is not what creates our belonging; it reveals it.
B. Jesus’ Warning: “I Never Knew You”
Jesus issues one of the most sobering warnings in Scripture:
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven,
but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name…?’
And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me…’”
(Matthew 7:21–23)
Important:
- He does not say, “I knew you once, but not now.”
- He says, “I never knew you”—their fall simply reveals what was always true.
Reformed theology concludes:
- False assurance is real and dangerous.
- It belongs to those who rest in a profession without the possession of a new heart and a life of growing obedience.
Jonathan Edwards:
“The surest proof of sincerity is perseverance in obedience.”
—paraphrased from Religious Affections
5. Holding the Paradox Together: How Assurance Really Works
How do we put this all together?
A. Objective Ground, Subjective Evidence
Reformed thought keeps two things distinct but inseparable:
- Objective ground of assurance
- Christ’s person and work,
- God’s promise,
- Justification by faith alone.
- Subjective evidence of assurance
- The Spirit’s work in our hearts,
- A growing pattern of repentance, obedience, and love,
- Perseverance over time.
We are not assured because:
- We are strong,
- Our track record is perfect,
- Our feelings are always high.
We are assured because:
- God has justified us in Christ (Romans 5:1),
- The Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God (Romans 8:16),
- Over time, our faith bears fruit (Galatians 5:22–23; James 2:14–26).
The Westminster Confession of Faith (XVIII.1) says believers may “infallibly be assured” of their salvation—yet:
“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…”
—WCF 18.2 (paraphrased)
B. Perseverance as Proof, Not Price
Perseverance:
- Is not the price we pay to keep salvation.
- Is the proof that God’s saving work is real.
Those whom God truly saves:
- He justifies,
- He sanctifies,
- He keeps,
- He glorifies (Romans 8:29–30).
Charles Spurgeon:
“If any man whom God has chosen shall perish, then God is mistaken.
If He has purposed their salvation and they are not saved, then His purpose has failed…
But such a thing can never be.”
—paraphrased from sermons on perseverance
6. Why This Paradox Matters Today
A. It Guards Us from Presumption and Despair
- Against presumption:
- We cannot rest in a past decision with no present fruit.
- “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith.” (2 Corinthians 13:5)
- Against despair:
- Weak, struggling believers can look away from themselves and rest in Christ’s finished work and God’s promise to complete what He began (Philippians 1:6).
B. It Shapes How We View Growth and Struggle
Understanding salvation as:
- Already justified,
- Now being sanctified,
- Not yet glorified,
helps us:
- Expect real growth, but not perfection.
- Take sin seriously without being crushed by it.
- Fight sin from a position of acceptance, not for acceptance.
C. It Informs Our Ministry and Discipleship
- We call people to Christ for justification.
- We teach and exhort them toward holiness as evidence of real faith.
- We warn against empty profession.
- We comfort the weak with God’s preserving grace.
John Piper:
“God’s saving work in your life is past, present, and future.
He saved you, He is saving you, and He will save you.
And all of it is guaranteed by His faithfulness, not your perfection.”
—paraphrased from sermons on perseverance
7. Living Between the Already and the Not Yet
The fourth paradox—already saved vs. not yet saved—is not a contradiction but a rich biblical tension:
- Past: In Christ, we have been saved—no condemnation, fully accepted.
- Present: We are being saved—God is changing us, often slowly, always surely.
- Future: We will be saved—God Himself will finish what He started.
Those who only profess may fall away under testing, as Jesus taught in the parable of the soils. Those who truly possess Christ will persevere, not because they are strong, but because:
“He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”
(Philippians 1:6)
Visit our companion site
Discover the Truth About Jesus Christ
Are you new to the Christian faith or seeking answers about Jesus? Visit JesusIsLordBlog.com for insightful articles, compelling reasons to believe, and a deeper understanding of what it means to follow Jesus as Lord and Savior. Start your journey today!
