Finders Keepers, part 4

security_blanket_3Back again…

While we are still on the subject of Eternal Security let us turn to Romans chapter 8. This is probably the most telling chapter in the Bible when it comes to the subject of having security that your salvation is preserved.  Chapter 8 of Romans amplifies John 5:24 and Revelation 21:5.  It says in John 5:24, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.” Wow, see that!  The words “hath everlasting life”.  How long is “everlasting”? It is not 5 years, it is not 10, it is not even 100 but in fact it is forever. FOREVER!  Now look at Revelation 21:5, “And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.” He makes all things new, (all things) so alas, if you believe on Christ in faith you are a new creature.  You are no longer what you were.

Shall we go deeper with the new creature issue and look at the 7 new things a believer has? Yes.

First, a believer has a new position as you can see in Romans 8:1-8.  You have a new position in relation to the Son of God.  In your new position you are “in Christ”. Remember the Philippian jailor in Acts 16?  He felt the earth quake and then trembled and wanted to know what he must do to be saved.  The answer came in verse 31, “And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.”  “Believe and live!” When you believe you then become a Christian. A Christian is “someone in Christ.” You are in Christ. You also have a new position when it comes to the law. You are now to please the law but it does nothing to save you. The law cannot claim you, the law cannot condemn you and the law can not control you because you are now free from the law and grace abounds.  We are to please the law but we no longer are claimed by it.

Romans chapter 8 begins with condemnation. There is therefore, NOW, no condemnation.  Now is when it happens and not later because salvation is immediate. Romans chapter 8 then, like bookends, will end with no separation. The last verse says, “Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Nothing can separate you, ever, ever, ever. It is everlasting, and everlasting is forever. The Father cared and he sent His own son. He sent His only son.  He sent His only son to die for you and me when we were ungodly.

Second, as you will see in Romans 8: 9-13, you have a new guest. Your new guest is the Holy Spirit of God. You have two in-dwellings because you indwell the Savior and the Holy Spirit indwells you. The believer indwells Christ, we are in Him. We have a new guest in us which is the Holy Spirit. Both of these in-dwellings are promised in John 15:5, “I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” He that abides in me and I in him. This is a perfect indwelling to make us like Jesus. This is also a permanent indwelling “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever”, John 14:16. Abide with you forever. How long is forever? Isn’t that once and for all? Once saved, always saved. And now for what is probably the best evidence that can be introduced we have Ephesians 4:30, “And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.”  You are sealed, “UNTIL THE DAY OF REDEMPTION.” That is always and forever, it is until the end.

Third, you have a new adoption.  You as the believer are adopted by the Father. This is the theology of adoption.  The word “adoption” literally means “the placing of a son.”  This adoption follows your regeneration (from previous post) and provides you with the nature of a child of God.  You have been adopted by the Father, “Abba Father”.  The Father initiated the adoption by sending His son.  He did it!  We are heirs of God and joint heirs of Christ. Last, but certainly not least we see the trinity at work in this adoption.  Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  You have intimacy with the Father. Abba Father, Dearest Papa, Beloved Dad, affectionately.   You are illuminated by the Holy Spirit as the Spirit leads and assures you.  You have the inheritance through the Son. You have an inheritance to the Kingdom of God.

What we have described here is “The Preservation of the Saints”.  Praise The LORD! What the Law could not do for us Christ did for us on the cross.

Believe and live,

The Tubthumper

Come back for the next post as we continue with more of the new things we have in Christ and evidence of “Once saved, always saved”.  Click here to go to the next post.

Click here to jump to any past in the series:

Part 1    Part 2    Part 3    Part 5    Part 6

Finders Keepers, part 3

eternmanThe last two posts have been about salvation and whether or not one can lose it once they have it.  Maybe I should have done this first but lets look at the process.

The logical order of salvation is outlined in these verses of John 6:35-65.  Let us review them:

1. The Father draws the un-saved by ‘revealing Christ’ as an attractive and only answer to sin and its end. (6:37)

2. The sinner, (that is us) ‘beholds’ or contemplates this gracious offer from the father. (6:37)

3. The sinner, (us again) ‘determines or decides to trust’ the atoning work of Christ for His salvation. (6:40) Should Christ be rejected at this point it ends the saving process at least temporarily and hopefully not forever.

4. With repentance we the sinners ‘come to Christ’ to be saved.  We come for the purpose of salvation. (6:37)

5. We (the sinner) evidence our heart ‘of repentance’ by coming to Jesus. (6:35, 65)

6. We (the sinner) embrace Jesus Christ ‘by faith’ as our Savior. (6:35)

7. The disciple (us again, now saved) embraced by Jesus Christ, ‘never to be lost or cast out’. (6:37, 39)

8. The disciples (we disciples) enjoy a ‘growing intimacy’ with Jesus Christ during our lives. (6:54, 56)

9. We as believers and disciples shall be ‘raised by Christ in the last day’. (6:39, 40, 44, 54)

Here is Jesus talking about the true remnant being raised out of sin to life.  A raising up out of the earth to be where He is. The rapture!  When will that happen? It is coming sooner than you think. Like a thief in the night He will come and no man knows the hour.  If you haven’t been drawn to Christ and haven’t taken the steps to be in Glory with the savior the time is now. 

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life”, (John 3:16)

I saw a great statement the other day in a commentary on Romans by John Phillips, “The gospel message grips the mind, stabs the conscience, warms to heart, saves the soul and sanctifies the life. It can make drunken men sober, crooked men straight and profligate women pure. It is a message sufficient to transform the life of any who believe.  It is the power of God unto salvation “To every one that believeth.” It doesn’t get any simpler than that.

We need to turn back to the subject at hand of forever salvation or not.  Once we have salvation and I sincerely pray you have not gone this far without securing that between you and Christ, salvation is forever.  That is still my position on the matter.  Now, neither I nor anyone else can deny that there are several warning passages in the New Testament which seem to imply that there is a possibility of loss of salvation.  My satisfactory explanation of these verses is that they apply to false professors of Christianity and not the true believers. You should also be aware of the difference between your standing as a Christian and your state as a Christian. A saved person’s standing is perfect, immutable and guaranteed by the Word of God, the work of Christ and the witness of the Spirit.  Our state, as Christians is imperfect, changeable and in a big way, mostly dependent on us. When you are saved you are justified.  You have something the world can’t give to you nor can the world take it away.  You have peace with God.  You can read much about your standing with God and your state with God in Romans chapters 5, 6, 7 and 8.  I encourage you to go there and be blessed.

Let me pose two questions for you to think about:

1) If in the mind of God we are already glorified in Heaven, how then could we ever lose our salvation here on earth?

2) If you believe you could lose your salvation, how would you ever know when you lost it?

You can think those over while I continue.

Jesus Christ died and rose again. Christ’s death was our death; His burial was our burial; He died as me! So far as God is concerned, we are already on the resurrection side of the grave and it remains for us to realize this truth and appropriate it, and as to the point I am trying to drive home, victory is assured.

In conclusion for today we are sinners that need to be saved because of CONDEMNATION.  We are saved through Christ with JUSTIFICATION.  After we are saved we are set aside in SANCTIFICATION.  Now we, the saved sinner remain saved through PRESERVATION. “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit”, Romans 8:1. There is therefore now no condemnation and salvation is immediate.  There is no condemnation and there is no separation. The Bible teaches a whole and eternal salvation, once saved always saved.

Once saved there are seven new things that enable us as believing sinners to remain saved. I will review those seven things as we continue on this subject with more future posts.

The believer has a new position in Christ and experiences fellowship with a new guest because of the new relationship with Jesus. There is a theological description of the believer’s adoption by the Father that explains our eternal security.  You will have a good look into each of these points as we continue in the next post at getting to the bottom line of what is called “the believers confidence”.

ARISE, MY SOUL, ARISE by Charles Wesley

Arise, my soul, arise; shake off thy guilty fears;

The bleeding sacrifice in my behalf appears:

Before the throne my surety stands,

Before the throne my surety stands,

My name is written on His hands.

 

He ever lives above, for me to intercede;

His all redeeming love, His precious blood, to plead:

His blood atoned for all our race,

His blood atoned for all our race,

And sprinkles now the throne of grace.

 

Five bleeding wounds He bears; received on Calvary;

They pour effectual prayers; they strongly plead for me:

“Forgive him, O forgive,” they cry,

“Forgive him, O forgive,” they cry,

“Nor let that ransomed sinner die!”

 

The Father hears Him pray, His dear anointed One;

He cannot turn away, the presence of His Son;

His Spirit answers to the blood,

His Spirit answers to the blood,

And tells me I am born of God.

 

My God is reconciled; His pardoning voice I hear;

He owns me for His child; I can no longer fear:

With confidence I now draw nigh,

With confidence I now draw nigh,

And “Father, Abba, Father,” cry.

 

Believe and live!

“The Tubthumper”

Join me on the next post as we continue by looking at more evidence leading to “Once saved, always saved”. Click here to go to next post.

Click here to jump to other posts in this series:

Part 1    Part 2    Part 4    Part 5    Part 6