Know What You Believe with Michael Horton Penance, Purgatory, and the Assurance of Salvation
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Mar 13, 2026 
Gavin Ortlund, pastor and theologian who highlights patristic and historical perspectives, joins the discussion. They examine penance, confession, and indulgences in church history. The conversation contrasts purgatory’s development with biblical hopes of immediate welcome into heaven. They also tackle assurance of salvation and how worship and sacraments shape confidence in God’s promises.
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How Penance Became A Priestly Sacrament
- Roman Catholic penance evolved from public church discipline into a private sacramental system that mediates forgiveness through a priest.
- Michael Horton traces the shift to 12th-century tariff penance and Peter Damian calling it a sacrament, making absolution conditional on priestly signs of repentance.
Reformers Made Confession A Means Of Grace
- Reformation traditions retained confession but reframed sacraments as means of grace rather than judicial calculations.
- Horton and Gavin note Reformers moved private confession into public liturgy to assure believers of forgiveness through the preached Word and sacraments.
Temporal Penalties Drive Penance And Indulgences
- Roman Catholic theology distinguishes eternal versus temporal penalties of sin, producing practices like penance and indulgences to address the latter.
- Jordan Cooper explains temporal penalties create debts payable in life or purgatory, shaping everyday Catholic piety around partial versus plenary remissions.
