100:00:00,880 –> 00:00:10,360The heart of assurance is this assurance is really the comfort and the peace and the joy200:00:10,360 –> 00:00:17,799of knowing that Jesus Christ is yours and that you are his forever.300:00:17,799 –> 00:00:21,540Welcome to Open the Bible with Pastor Colin Smith. I’m David Pick,400:00:21,540 –> 00:00:24,920glad you could join us today and Colin, I’m glad we’re talking about500:00:24,920 –> 00:00:29,920assurance today because that is in fact the most frequently asked question600:00:29,959 –> 00:00:33,200that people have when they contact Open the Bible.700:00:33,200 –> 00:00:36,799Yeah, that’s fascinating and it’s not surprising I think because there are many800:00:36,799 –> 00:00:42,320folk who come to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. That is, they’re confident that900:00:42,320 –> 00:00:47,919Jesus has the ability to save his own people. But the question is am I one of them?1000:00:47,919 –> 00:00:53,119You know Jesus is the good shepherd that I can believe, am I one of his sheep?1100:00:53,119 –> 00:00:56,959And that’s the difference between faith and assurance, you see faith says1200:00:57,439 –> 00:01:02,720Jesus is the good shepherd. Assurance says yes and I am one of his sheep.1300:01:02,720 –> 00:01:07,120Well it’s a marvelous thing if you have not only faith but assurance because there’s1400:01:07,120 –> 00:01:12,320a great peace. There’s great joy. We’re not saved by assurance but our joy sure1500:01:12,320 –> 00:01:18,480increases with our assurance. So we’re going to look today at how your assurance can increase,1600:01:18,480 –> 00:01:25,040how you can grow in confidence. And Hebrews actually lays out some very practical ways1700:01:25,040 –> 00:01:31,519in which a Christian who is plagued with doubt may be able to grow in the confidence that you1800:01:31,519 –> 00:01:35,120really belong to the Lord Jesus Christ and that you’re actually his.1900:01:35,120 –> 00:01:41,919So join us today if you can in Hebrews chapter 6 as we begin the message Doubting. Here is Colin.2000:01:41,919 –> 00:01:50,720Remember that Hebrews is addressed to three distinct audiences. We met first the character2100:01:50,800 –> 00:01:58,160that I’m describing as drifting, has not really grasped the basic principles of the Word of God2200:01:58,160 –> 00:02:05,120and needs to know why he needs Jesus. Then last night we looked at the second character addressed2300:02:05,120 –> 00:02:12,000in Hebrews and chapter 6 defiant who resists Jesus and that awful phrase that is used that2400:02:12,000 –> 00:02:20,960he crucifies the Son of God again and Hebrews says that it is impossible, impossible to restore her2500:02:20,960 –> 00:02:26,240to repentance. And we saw last night that the point that is being made here in these difficult2600:02:26,240 –> 00:02:33,039verses in Hebrews in chapter 6 is actually a very simple one. It is, let me put it this way,2700:02:33,039 –> 00:02:41,039it is impossible to go east while you are still running west. If you want to go east you need to2800:02:41,039 –> 00:02:46,479stop running west and then it will be possible for you to go east but as long as you’re running west2900:02:46,479 –> 00:02:52,320it’s not possible to go east. And in the same way it is impossible to be restored while a person is3000:02:52,320 –> 00:02:56,639running away from Jesus Christ, it just can’t happen because Jesus Christ is the only One3100:02:56,639 –> 00:03:04,080who can restore you. So by definition restoration becomes possible when a person stops running away3200:03:04,080 –> 00:03:10,320from Jesus. Restoration, forgiveness, peace and joy are available to all but they are available3300:03:10,320 –> 00:03:18,320to all in Jesus Christ and cannot be found without Him. So none of us has the ability to restore3400:03:18,320 –> 00:03:26,160ourselves, only Christ can restore. So stop defying Him, there is always grace in and through our Lord3500:03:26,160 –> 00:03:32,559Jesus Christ for all who will come to Him no matter how defiant a person has been or for how long3600:03:33,119 –> 00:03:40,639but grace is found in Jesus and in Jesus alone. Now tonight we turn the corner from these first3700:03:40,639 –> 00:03:48,160two characters, drifting really needs to be challenged, defiant really needs to be warned3800:03:48,720 –> 00:03:55,119and tonight we’re going to meet a third character doubting who really really needs to be encouraged,3900:03:55,119 –> 00:04:00,800that’s where we’re going tonight. Now I think that some of you are going to identify with this4000:04:01,279 –> 00:04:07,919character doubting. Doubting, let me introduce him, grew up also in church and professed faith4100:04:07,919 –> 00:04:17,040early in life. He loves Jesus Christ and has a great desire to serve him but he feels that he4200:04:17,040 –> 00:04:23,760falls a long way short, if that’s what you feel then you’re immediately connected to this character.4300:04:23,760 –> 00:04:29,920His friends, doubting’s friends all seem to him to be more gifted than he is, more disciplined than4400:04:30,239 –> 00:04:36,959he is and more godly than he is as well. And when doubting looks at his own life he wonders why he4500:04:36,959 –> 00:04:43,679has not made greater progress. His prayers seem terribly feeble, his grasp of scripture seems4600:04:43,679 –> 00:04:48,799to be quite limited. He wishes that he could be more effective in evangelism but he’s actually4700:04:48,799 –> 00:04:55,119quite shy. He doesn’t find it easy to speak to others about the gospel. He wishes he had greater4800:04:55,600 –> 00:05:02,239but he lives with an awful lot of anxiety and sometimes he therefore wonders is he really4900:05:02,799 –> 00:05:09,679a Christian. And his own sense of insecurity is made worse by the fact that he does know some5000:05:09,679 –> 00:05:14,640people who once professed faith and then have drifted away or even denied the faith or become5100:05:14,640 –> 00:05:22,559defiant. And so sometimes he scratches his head and says well am I drifting or am i defiant?5200:05:23,519 –> 00:05:30,000Now I want you to see straight away this evening that doubting and drifting are very different5300:05:30,000 –> 00:05:36,880indeed. Drifting remember thinks of himself as a good person, he hasn’t really grasped why he5400:05:36,880 –> 00:05:44,799needs Jesus. Doubting on the other hand knows that he is a sinner and in fact that painful5500:05:44,799 –> 00:05:51,679reality presses in on doubting’s mind and conscience just about every day. Another difference5600:05:51,839 –> 00:06:00,399is that while drifting questions God what doubting really does is to question himself.5700:06:01,359 –> 00:06:07,359Doubting knows and believes that Jesus is the saviour, he believes that he would be5800:06:07,359 –> 00:06:12,000saved if he really belonged to him but that’s the question for doubting. Am I really his?5900:06:13,040 –> 00:06:18,399Is my faith genuine? These are the questions to which doubting cannot6000:06:18,399 –> 00:06:24,880find a settled answer, and I want you to see as well because this is important that doubting and6100:06:24,880 –> 00:06:31,920defiant are in a very different position as well. Defiant remember wants nothing to do with God.6200:06:32,480 –> 00:06:36,799He is as it were holding up the straight arm towards Jesus Christ, the straight arm of6300:06:36,799 –> 00:06:44,959resistance but doubting is not there. Doubting wishes to be closer to the Lord,6400:06:45,760 –> 00:06:54,000wants to be a better Christian and fears that he may just be a disappointment in the eyes of God.6500:06:59,679 –> 00:07:03,839Doubting knows that he is a sinner so that’s very different from drifting,6600:07:04,959 –> 00:07:10,720wants to be closer to God which is exactly the opposite of defiant who wants to go the other way6700:07:11,359 –> 00:07:19,119but doubting fears that he may not be a true Christian. Am I the real deal?6800:07:20,160 –> 00:07:24,880Now with that profile I want to encourage from the bible from Hebrews in chapter six tonight the6900:07:24,880 –> 00:07:32,079person who doubts. The person who battles with fear. The person who sometimes looks at7000:07:32,079 –> 00:07:39,040others who seem to be making more progress and says well am I really a genuine Christian at7100:07:39,119 –> 00:07:48,239all. This session is especially for you. Now doubting has faith but does not have7200:07:48,239 –> 00:07:56,320assurance. That’s at the heart of understanding this character who is addressed in Hebrews chapter7300:07:56,320 –> 00:08:04,000six. And the heart of assurance is this, assurance is really the comfort and the peace and the joy7400:08:04,720 –> 00:08:12,640of knowing that Jesus Christ is yours and that you are his forever. And notice that7500:08:12,640 –> 00:08:17,920Hebrews speaks of this in chapter six, in verse 11. We desire each one of you7600:08:18,559 –> 00:08:26,320to show the same earnestness to have what? The full assurance of hope until the end,7700:08:26,320 –> 00:08:32,960we want you, the writer to the Hebrews says, to have this full assurance of hope7800:08:33,520 –> 00:08:38,640until the end, we want you to have it. Now, here are four observations from7900:08:38,640 –> 00:08:43,919that simple statement. The first is that assurance is possible. God wants you to8000:08:43,919 –> 00:08:50,159have the full assurance of hope. God wants you to have a joyful confidence and8100:08:50,159 –> 00:08:58,159expectation of all that is yours in Jesus Christ. Second, assurance is possible now.8200:08:59,119 –> 00:09:05,440See, some Christians have figured that since perseverance is the evidence that faith is8300:09:05,440 –> 00:09:10,159genuine, that one would therefore have to wait until the end of one’s life to find out if one8400:09:10,159 –> 00:09:16,159really is a true Christian or not. But notice that that is not what is said here. Hebrews8500:09:16,159 –> 00:09:22,080speaks of assurance, not an assurance that you enjoy at the end but an assurance that8600:09:22,080 –> 00:09:28,000you enjoy until the end. In other words, a confidence that Christ is yours and you are8700:09:28,000 –> 00:09:33,440his that you can enjoy throughout your Christian life. That’s what we want you to have is what the8800:09:33,440 –> 00:09:42,320writer to Hebrews is saying. Third observation, Christians have different degrees of assurance.8900:09:43,280 –> 00:09:49,200Notice that he says we desire. So something that’s not yet the case but this is what we want,9000:09:49,200 –> 00:09:55,440that each one of you will have this. Very clearly that indicates that at least at that point some9100:09:55,440 –> 00:10:00,239of the Hebrew believers did not yet have it or that they had it in different degrees.9200:10:01,359 –> 00:10:08,960So some Christians will enjoy, do enjoy greater assurance than others and therefore by definition9300:10:08,960 –> 00:10:13,840this is an area in which each and every one of us in chapel here tonight can grow.9400:10:15,359 –> 00:10:23,679Fourthly, good news, believers who lack assurance still belong to Jesus Christ.9500:10:24,559 –> 00:10:29,599Now this is where the turn in Hebrews is really really important. What is the writer9600:10:29,599 –> 00:10:38,400done? He’s challenged the drifter. He’s warned the defiant but now the writer to the Hebrews9700:10:38,479 –> 00:10:43,599turns to those who lack assurance. And there’s a very different tone. It’s not challenge,9800:10:43,599 –> 00:10:50,159it’s not warning. It’s encouragement. Look at verse 9. Though we speak in this way…9900:10:50,159 –> 00:10:54,640that’s the way that we’ve been speaking over these last two sessions in the verses we’ve covered.10000:10:55,440 –> 00:11:03,599Yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better things. That’s better things than10100:11:03,599 –> 00:11:09,359drifting, and better things than defiant, things that belong to salvation. In other words,10200:11:09,359 –> 00:11:16,479drifting and defiant, we’re in great spiritual danger, but doubting is safe,10300:11:17,599 –> 00:11:25,039despite his or her many fears. In the case of doubting, the writer to the Hebrews is saying,10400:11:25,039 –> 00:11:32,159we’re sure of better things, things that belong to salvation.10500:11:32,159 –> 00:11:36,880Now, what this is making very clear to us is that it is possible then10600:11:38,239 –> 00:11:48,159to have faith without assurance, and if you are doubting, it will really help you10700:11:48,719 –> 00:11:53,679to understand and grasp this important distinction. Let me put it to you like this,10800:11:54,559 –> 00:12:04,080faith is knowing that Jesus saves, assurance is knowing that Jesus has saved you,10900:12:04,640 –> 00:12:15,440that’s the distinction, faith says Jesus is the good shepherd, assurance says I am one of his11000:12:16,000 –> 00:12:22,400sheep, now obviously these are closely related, but it should be clear to all of us that they11100:12:22,960 –> 00:12:32,479are not the same thing, doubting can say I believe that Christ is the good shepherd and if I really11200:12:32,479 –> 00:12:39,359belonged to him I know that I would thereby be safe forever, but the problem that doubting faces11300:12:39,359 –> 00:12:44,880is a doubt and a questioning in regards to him or herself, am I really one of Christ’s11400:12:44,880 –> 00:12:50,960sheep? He or she believes that Christ is the savior but doubts him or herself,11500:12:52,400 –> 00:12:59,520so if you are doubting is there good news and if so what is it? We’ll find out when we return to11600:12:59,520 –> 00:13:04,640the message very shortly, so I hope you’ll stay with us, the message is called doubting and it’s11700:13:04,640 –> 00:13:10,320part of our series faith that lasts and if you ever miss one of the messages in the series11800:13:10,320 –> 00:13:15,599it’s very easy to catch up or go back and listen again by coming online to our website11900:13:15,599 –> 00:13:23,359openthebible.org.uk. What if you could go on a hike with pastor Colin through the bible story,12000:13:23,359 –> 00:13:30,880see how it all fits together and how it all points to Jesus, well now you can with the new podcast12100:13:30,880 –> 00:13:36,559Hike through the bible, yeah and this is for everyone who wants to understand the bible better12200:13:36,719 –> 00:13:42,719for everyone who wants to love Jesus more. In each episode I’ll read a chapter from my book12300:13:42,719 –> 00:13:47,919hike through the bible and then I’ll discuss it with some friends a new episode releases12400:13:47,919 –> 00:13:54,479every week and so you can take this hike at a gentle pace in a year you’ll have covered the12500:13:54,479 –> 00:14:00,320entire bible story. I really hope that you’ll join me on this journey and it’s not too late12600:14:00,320 –> 00:14:05,679to get started now well you can subscribe to hike through the bible podcast wherever you12700:14:05,679 –> 00:14:13,119get your podcasts and you can find out more information on our website open the bible.org.uk12800:14:13,679 –> 00:14:16,080back to the message now here again is Colin12900:14:16,880 –> 00:14:24,159the good news is that people who look to Jesus Christ with faith but lack assurance will13000:14:24,159 –> 00:14:32,320be saved. Doubting may be surprised to find himself in heaven but he will be there13100:14:33,280 –> 00:14:38,320he will be there alongside brothers and sisters who enjoyed a much greater degree of assurance13200:14:38,320 –> 00:14:45,200throughout their lives. Let me try and illustrate the point this way. A friend of mine by the name13300:14:45,200 –> 00:14:52,000of Charles Price tells the story about the first time he ever flew on an airplane13400:14:52,960 –> 00:14:58,880and as he boarded the plane he found himself seated in the middle seat of three13500:14:59,840 –> 00:15:08,880and next to the window sat an old lady who looked really nervous. And on the aisle side13600:15:09,440 –> 00:15:17,119there was a businessperson who looked like he had taken a thousand flights before.13700:15:18,000 –> 00:15:25,200So the story rolls on. As the plane took off, businessman takes out his newspaper.13800:15:26,000 –> 00:15:32,719Charles in his first flight just holds on a little tentatively to the armrest. The lady13900:15:32,719 –> 00:15:39,200reaches for the bars bag. Lunch is served. The businessman eats the whole lot. Charles14000:15:39,200 –> 00:15:44,559eats half of his. The old lady leaves her entirely untouched. Now I know this is14100:15:44,559 –> 00:15:51,760sounding like the Goldilocks story, but here’s the point. All three of the passengers arrived14200:15:51,760 –> 00:16:00,080in the same place at the same time. They were all equally safe, but they had very different14300:16:00,080 –> 00:16:07,760experiences on the journey. That’s the distinction. Now this simple little story illustrates,14400:16:07,760 –> 00:16:11,700I think, the difference between faith and assurance. Faith is like getting into the14500:16:11,700 –> 00:16:19,679plane. Faith is what gets you in Christ. Assurance is enjoying the journey. Faith joins you to14600:16:19,679 –> 00:16:25,859Jesus, and in Christ you will arrive safely in Heaven no matter how tentative and nervous14700:16:25,859 –> 00:16:35,039you are along the way. Your salvation does not rest on the degree of peace and joy that14800:16:35,039 –> 00:16:42,380you experience during your Christian life. You are justified by faith, not by assurance.14900:16:42,380 –> 00:16:47,059But the degree of assurance that you have will make a very big difference indeed to15000:16:47,419 –> 00:16:50,419experience of the Christian life. And so the writer to Hebrews says,15100:16:50,419 –> 00:16:54,840what we really desire is that you should have the full assurance of hope.15200:16:54,840 –> 00:16:58,700Because that’s going to be a great blessing, it’s going to a great joy to you throughout15300:16:58,700 –> 00:17:04,780your Christian life. So two questions that I want to address today.15400:17:04,780 –> 00:17:09,900The first with some simple observations and the second directly out of these verses from15500:17:09,900 –> 00:17:13,500Hebrews. First question, why do some people struggle15600:17:13,619 –> 00:17:20,020with doubt and fear more than others? Second question, if you are doubting, how15700:17:20,020 –> 00:17:27,020can you grow in assurance? Now first then, why is it that some people15800:17:27,400 –> 00:17:31,900struggle with doubt and with various fears in the Christian life, more than others?15900:17:31,900 –> 00:17:38,180Why is it that the degree of assurance that people experience, that Christian experience,16000:17:38,180 –> 00:17:42,099varies significantly. And there are a number of factors, and I think16100:17:42,119 –> 00:17:47,079you may find it helpful just to give them some consideration.16200:17:47,079 –> 00:17:52,939The first is that your temperament will in some degree likely affect your experience16300:17:52,939 –> 00:17:59,020of assurance. Some people find it very hard to be sure about16400:17:59,020 –> 00:18:06,020anything. And if that is your nature, then it should not surprise you that you find it16500:18:07,099 –> 00:18:12,079difficult to be sure in regards to your salvation, and that you have many questions about your16600:18:12,160 –> 00:18:18,640self and that find yourself doubting. When I have an opportunity to speak to a believer16700:18:18,640 –> 00:18:25,640who doubts, I sometimes just ask them about major decisions they have made. So for example,16800:18:26,760 –> 00:18:33,260if they’re married, I’ll ask them how sure were they about making that decision. And16900:18:33,260 –> 00:18:37,359often what I find is that the person will say, you know, I actually struggled to get17000:18:37,439 –> 00:18:42,959to a settled decision over that for quite a long time indeed. How sure were you about17100:18:42,959 –> 00:18:49,959coming to Taylor? How long did it take you to get to a settled decision in that regard?17200:18:52,000 –> 00:18:56,000How sure are you right now about the career that you should pursue? I mean you’re here17300:18:56,000 –> 00:19:02,540to prepare for something. A key part of these years is discovering what it is that you are17400:19:02,540 –> 00:19:09,540preparing for? Now if doubting shows up in other areas of your life, please then don’t17500:19:10,439 –> 00:19:17,439be too surprised if it shows up in relation to your walk with God. Remind yourself very17600:19:17,660 –> 00:19:24,660simply that this is an area of vulnerability for you and then thank God that your salvation17700:19:25,400 –> 00:19:32,400rests on the strength of your Saviour and not on the strength of your assurance. And17800:19:38,420 –> 00:19:45,420then, secondly, how you came to faith may affect your experience in regards to assurance.17900:19:47,020 –> 00:19:54,020Some people, some among us here tonight will have a very clear, modern understanding of18000:19:55,160 –> 00:20:02,160that. It comes to a marked and decisive conversion. You know where you were, when it was that18100:20:02,500 –> 00:20:08,099you came to faith in Jesus, and there was a marked difference between the person you18200:20:08,099 –> 00:20:15,239were before and the person you have become since your coming to faith in the Lord Jesus18300:20:15,239 –> 00:20:22,239Christ. But for others of us-and this would be true also in the experience of many-your18400:20:22,239 –> 00:20:32,619story is much more gradual. God formed faith in you over a period of time and you can’t18500:20:33,300 –> 00:20:40,300pinpoint a decisive moment and sometimes that bothers you. It makes you wonder, am I the18600:20:40,479 –> 00:20:47,479real deal or is there actually something missing for me? If that’s your position, then it’s18700:20:48,459 –> 00:20:55,459very important for you to remember that your simple and very gradual conversion is a miracle18800:20:58,219 –> 00:21:05,219of grace. By nature you were dead towards God. That’s Ephesians 2 and verse 1. And if18900:21:09,859 –> 00:21:16,500God had not raised you to spiritual life, you would never have believed in him at all.19000:21:16,500 –> 00:21:23,500By nature your heart was rebellious and if Christ had not made you gradually his own,19100:21:24,520 –> 00:21:29,540if he had not done this work of grace in your life that he’s done, who knows where you19200:21:29,540 –> 00:21:36,540would have been by now and what you would have done by now. Saul of Tarsus had a dramatic19300:21:38,140 –> 00:21:45,140conversion on the Damascus road. Of Lydia in the New Testament we simply read, the Lord19400:21:46,900 –> 00:21:53,900opened her heart. These two experiences were radically different but the miracle was exactly19500:21:57,579 –> 00:22:04,579the same. So thank God for what he has done in your life and resist the temptation to19600:22:05,859 –> 00:22:12,400compare your story with the more dramatic experiences that others of your brothers and19700:22:13,119 –> 00:22:20,119sisters may have had. We’ve got to pause the message now but we’ll return in our next broadcast.19800:22:20,500 –> 00:22:24,079You’ve been listening to Open the Bible, with Pastor Colin Smith, and a message called19900:22:24,079 –> 00:22:30,800Doubting, about how we can have assurance of our salvation and how we can know fulfillment20000:22:30,800 –> 00:22:37,160in our lives with Jesus Christ. Next time, we’ll hear how we can pursue that life, so20100:22:37,160 –> 00:22:42,000hope you’ll join us for that. Don’t forget if you ever miss one of our programmes you20200:22:42,000 –> 00:22:48,599can easily catch up to by coming online to our website, openthebible.org.uk. There you’ll20300:22:48,599 –> 00:22:51,719find all the programmes which have already been broadcast.20400:22:51,719 –> 00:22:57,199Open the Bible is able to stay on this station and the internet and available as a podcast20500:22:57,199 –> 00:23:01,359because of the generous financial support of our listeners – that’s people like20600:23:01,359 –> 00:23:06,199you – and if you already give to support the work thank you so much.20700:23:06,199 –> 00:23:09,959If supporting Open the Bible is something you’d like to start doing,20800:23:10,040 –> 00:23:12,800this month we’re delighted to offer a free gift.20900:23:13,359 –> 00:23:17,920When you set up a new direct debit to the work of Open the Bible in the amount of21000:23:17,920 –> 00:23:24,180£5 per month or more, or a one-off gift of £50 or more, we’d love to say thank you21100:23:24,180 –> 00:23:29,719by sending you a free copy of Pastor Colin’s new book, Hike Through the Bible.21200:23:30,000 –> 00:23:33,000Colin, where did the idea for this book come from?21300:23:33,439 –> 00:23:39,040Well, we have Fly Through the Bible for those who are looking for a place to begin,21400:23:39,280 –> 00:23:42,680then Drive Through the Bible obviously takes people a bit further.21500:23:42,920 –> 00:23:48,160But for everyone that wants to get serious about the Bible story, Hike Through the21600:23:48,160 –> 00:23:49,359Bible is for you.21700:23:49,359 –> 00:23:54,520I mean, this is where you get your boots on the ground and really get to grips with what21800:23:54,520 –> 00:23:56,239the Bible is all about.21900:23:56,239 –> 00:24:01,400And you’ll discover that the whole Bible is one story, that the whole of it points to22000:24:01,400 –> 00:24:03,719our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.22100:24:04,040 –> 00:24:08,239And I wrote this for people who want to have a better grasp of the Bible.22200:24:08,599 –> 00:24:12,680I wrote it for people who want to have a deeper love for the Lord Jesus Christ.22300:24:13,079 –> 00:24:17,040And just by way of encouragement, if you think that hiking sounds like hard work,22400:24:17,040 –> 00:24:19,800while you can hike at a gentle pace…22500:24:19,800 –> 00:24:24,959This is 50 chapters, and that’s designed so that you could do one a week,22600:24:24,979 –> 00:24:29,640a nice gentle hike through the Bible, so that at the end of the year, you really have22700:24:29,839 –> 00:24:34,500grasped the Bible as a whole, and you’ve got a clearer grip on what it is that God’s22800:24:34,520 –> 00:24:36,099saying into your life.22900:24:36,420 –> 00:24:41,319Well, we’d love to send you Colin’s new book when you set up a new direct debit of23000:24:41,319 –> 00:24:45,640£5 pounds per month or more, or a one off gift of £50 pounds23100:24:45,640 –> 00:24:47,040or more this month.23200:24:47,380 –> 00:24:50,520Full terms and conditions online at our website, openthebible.org.uk,23300:24:53,079 –> 00:24:54,839and you can give online.23400:24:55,300 –> 00:24:59,439Don’t forget to leave your name and address so we can send you your gift.23500:25:00,219 –> 00:25:04,939For Open the Bible and Pastor Colin Smith, I’m David Pig, and I look forward23600:25:04,939 –> 00:25:06,699to being with you again next time.23700:25:14,579 –> 00:25:18,979You struggle with doubts about whether you are really a Christian.23800:25:19,479 –> 00:25:22,140How can you grow in faith and assurance?23900:25:22,520 –> 00:25:24,859Find out next time on Open the Bible.