Baptism and the Assurance of Salvation

How do you know that you are saved? The ques­tion comes up in many ways and in many settings. As you study theology, you wonder if you are really among God's elect. When suffering comes, you won­der if God is really your loving Father. When prayer is a struggle and Bible reading a chore, you wonder whether your faith is genuine. And when you hear God's law, when you think about your sin, when you fall time and again into the same sin, you wonder: "Does God love me? Are my sins forgiven? How can I know for sure?"