The Proof of Life

Spencer R. Fusselman D.Min

In his second letter to the church at Corinth, the Apostle Paul issues a staggering, inescapable command: "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves" (2 Corinthians 13:5). It is a terrifying mandate. When the average, sincere Christian actually stops to run this diagnostic test on their own soul, a familiar, cold panic often sets in.

We look at our daily failures. We examine our recurring weaknesses, our persistent battles with the flesh, and the frustrating reality of Romans 7—that the good we desperately want to do, we fail to execute; and the evil we hate, we end up committing. When we test our lives against the holy standard of God, we inevitably fall short.

This panic is only magnified when we read Hebrews 10:26-39. This passage drops like a theological anvil, issuing one of the most severe warnings in all of Scripture. It describes a person who sins "willfully," who tramples the Son of God underfoot, and who treats the holy blood of the New Covenant as a cheap, common commodity. The text promises that for such a person, no sacrifice remains—only a fearful expectation of fiery judgment.
When we lay Paul’s command to "test ourselves" right next to the terrifying warning of Hebrews 10, the anxiety reaches a boiling point. We look at our stumbles and wonder, "Is this talking about me? Have I failed the test? Have I crossed the line into apostasy?"

But in his breakdown of this text, Pastor Steve illuminated a profound, deeply comforting truth: When you test yourself, the presence of an agonizing internal struggle is not the evidence of your failure. The struggle within you is actually the greatest proof that you are securely in the faith.

To pass the test of 2 Corinthians 13:5, we must first properly define what apostasy actually is. Apostasy is not stumbling in a moment of weakness. It is not failing a moral test, feeling the crushing weight of conviction, and weeping in repentance. Apostasy is the deliberate, wide-eyed, habitual rejection of Jesus Christ by someone who was never truly regenerated.
The apostate is the counterfeit believer. They sat in the church, heard the Gospel, tasted the community, and then deliberately walked away, declaring with their lifestyle that Christ's blood is worthless. Here is the key distinction: An apostate does not struggle with their sin. They excuse it, they embrace it, and they eventually celebrate it. They float effortlessly downstream with the dead, decaying current of the culture.

If you are experiencing an exhausting, relentless internal war against your own flesh, it is because you are actively swimming upstream. Dead bodies do not fight back against the current. The very fact that you are burdened by your sin, that your conscience is screaming with conviction, and that you hate the fleshly desires within you, is undeniable, objective proof that the Holy Spirit has taken up permanent residence inside your chest. The presence of the war is the proof of spiritual life.

So, when we examine ourselves and find this internal war, how do we endure it? We do not avoid apostasy by white-knuckling our faith or keeping a legalistic scorecard of our good deeds. That is a fast track to spiritual exhaustion and pharisaical pride. We endure because we are preserved entirely by the monergistic grace of God—meaning God alone is the author, the sustainer, and the finisher of our salvation.

As Jesus promised in John 10:28, He gives us eternal life, and no one—not the world, not the devil, and not even your own stumbling flesh—can snatch you out of the Father's hand. Our standing before God is not based on the perfection of our daily performance, but exclusively on the perfection of Christ's finished work on the cross.

The author of Hebrews reminds these battered, persecuted believers to recall their former days. When they were newly illuminated by the Gospel, they endured intense struggles. They were made a public spectacle. They even joyfully accepted the plundering of their earthly goods. Why? Because they had tested the world and found it wanting, knowing they possessed a better, eternal, unshakeable reward in heaven.

We survive the pressure to drift by lifting our eyes off our own bruised performance and fixing them entirely on the blood of our Great High Priest. We embrace the inward struggle as the definitive heartbeat of the Spirit's life within us, and we refuse to trade the eternal weight of glory for the cheap, passing comforts of a dying world.

Thank God for the Struggle: The next time you feel exhausted by your battle against the flesh, stop and thank God for it. Recognize that your spiritual fatigue is proof that the Holy Spirit is actively fighting inside you.

Stop Equating Weakness with Apostasy: Repent of the lie that your daily stumbles mean you have lost your salvation. True faith is not the absence of failure; it is the presence of continuous repentance.

Revere the Blood of the Covenant: Guard against treating God's grace as a "common thing." Take time this week to reflect deeply on the severe cost of your salvation, asking God to restore a holy reverence for the cross.

Embrace Guilty by Association: The early Christians proved their faith by standing with persecuted believers. In a culture that increasingly mocks biblical truth, deliberately choose to stand publicly with Christ and His church, regardless of the social cost.

Audit Your True Treasure: If you lost your job or reputation tomorrow because of your biblical convictions, would you lose your joy? Actively shift your ultimate hope away from your earthly bank account and onto your secure, eternal inheritance.