How many conditions of salvation are there? Is making restitution one of them? It is, according to this Pentecostal statement of faith:
CONDITIONS FOR SALVATION
Even though Christ made atonement for the sins of the world, reaping the benefits is on condition. That condition is that the individual must repent of their sins. [Matthew 3:2; Luke 13:2-3; Acts 3:19, 8:22, 17:30] However, before one can repent, he must become spiritually awakened to such a need. It is the work of the Word and the Spirit to visit the soul of man and cause him to become consciously aware that he is a sinner and only in his acknowledgement of the blood of Christ and repentance can he be saved from the sentence of eternal death. [John 6:55; Acts 4:12; 1Cor 1:21]
Conviction is another term for spiritual awakening. As the soul is awakened to how his sins have grieved and pierced the heart of God, his honest acknowledgement of his sinful condition will cause him to become godly sorrowful. [2Cor 7:10-11] Godly sorrow or contrition, which is regret for living sinful before God, causes one to be willing to repent. Repentance involves confessing and forsaking the life of sin; as one becomes sorry enough to quit sinful living and also to make restitution for past sins.
Restitution means: the act of making good any loss, injury or damage; restoration. God demonstrates his pleasure with our contrition by justifying us by the blood of Jesus. [Psalm 34:18; 51:17] (see here).
If I have any Pentecostal friends who have been taught this, I can only imagine that you became deeply confused after hearing this teaching. If you believed it, it must have caused you to lose your assurance. How can you know if you have been awakened enough or been convicted enough or have sorrowed enough or, to the point, have really paid back all that you owe in restitution…enough to be saved?
You can’t know. So if you base your assurance on doing that, you’re building a house on sand.
If you are a Pentecostal who has been taught this, and who lacks assurance, let me share this good news with you. Salvation is not what you can do. It is entirely about Jesus and what He promised. He does not give everlasting life to the one who does his best to settle his debts—He gives everlasting life to whoever believes in Him, no matter how much of a scoundrel you are.
Yes, paying restitution may be a part of your Christian journey, something that you do as you live for Christ. But it is not part of the condition of your salvation. Whoever said it was owes you an apology!
