Pilgrim,

These are deep questions.

I will try to answer your question as follows:

When it comes to assurance of election, I would say that the Canons of Dordt is correct in the sense that it tells us not to seek assurance inside ourselves in terms of good feelings or extra-ordinary experiences that we might have or anything like that. If our assurance were to rest on ourselves, it would have been disasterous. The believer's assurance rather rests on the promises of God and on the Holy Spirit that "bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God" (Rom 8:16). Also, it tells us that we have to look for God's work in us according to what Scripture points out what God works in us is. First there is faith in Christ which cannot come from ourselves. In the same way, a godly sorrow for our sins is not something coming from our unregenerated nature.

It is God who elected us, it is He who regenerates and renews us through his Spirit, it is He who works faith in us and therefor our assurance should based in Him and nothing else.

I think with these two articles one should also read the entire 5th Head as well.

Johan