What God begins, He completes. Paul mentioned so in Philippians 1:6: “I’m positive of this, that he who started a very good work in you’ll convey it to completion on the day of Jesus Christ.” We ought to not search for consolation in ourselves and our capacity to stay devoted. Relatively, we will look to the preserving energy of God, who causes us to persevere.
That is the doctrine of the perseverance (or preservation) of the saints. It’s a declare about God’s faithfulness to His goal and the implications of His faithfulness for His kids.
Louis Berkhof has helpfully outlined perseverance as this: “that steady operation of the Holy Spirit within the believer, by which the work of divine grace that’s begun within the coronary heart, is sustained and dropped at completion.” When God calls somebody and places His Spirit in them, He doesn’t change His thoughts. He’s in a position and decided to see His kids safely introduced residence. What God begins, He completes.
It’s necessary for believers to think about how this doctrine is grounded within the guarantees of God and what it means for our sense of assurance as we stroll with Him every day.
Guarded Via Religion
In line with his nice mercy, he has precipitated us to be born once more to a dwelling hope by way of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the lifeless, to an inheritance that’s imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, stored in heaven for you, who by God’s energy are being guarded by way of religion for a salvation able to be revealed within the final time. (1 Peter 1:3–5)
After we are saved, we’re delivered from the realm of hopelessness, and we’re introduced into the realm marked by “a dwelling hope.” We’re assured “an inheritance” because the sons of the King. It’s an inheritance untouched by loss of life, unstained by evil, unimpaired by time, and marked with our names—“stored in heaven for you.”
You is likely to be pondering, “Properly, positive, it’s there for me. However how can I be certain I’ll get there?” If you’re one who “by God’s energy are being guarded by way of religion,” there isn’t any query of you getting there. What God begins He completes. The forces of heaven are arrayed for us towards all of the onslaughts of the world, the flesh, and the satan.
In fact, that is “by way of religion.” It’s not a query of “as soon as saved, all the time saved,” no matter how we go on—as if placing a hand up on the appropriate event will place us in order that no proof of faithlessness can ever contradict our declare to salvation.
There is no such thing as a preservation with out real religion, and solely those that have religion persevere. The perseverance of the saints is all the time a perseverance “by way of religion” and by no means aside from it. We give proof that we possess salvation by the continuance of our religion.
Protected from Condemnation
Who shall convey any cost towards God’s elect? It’s God who justifies. Who’s to sentence? … Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or misery, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? … No, in all this stuff we’re greater than conquerors by way of him who liked us. (Rom. 8:33–34, 35, 37)
The love of Christ is for us. It’s the love of the shepherd for the wandering sheep (Luke 15:4–7), the love of the daddy for the wandering son (Luke 15:11–24), the love that likes to the uttermost (John 13:1). What can separate us from this sort of love? What energy within the universe may contradict it?
There is no such thing as a preservation with out religion, and solely those that have religion persevere.
Our sinful situation can not. As Paul wrote, “God exhibits his love for us in that whereas we had been nonetheless sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8). God justified us regardless of our sinfulness. We’re justified on the power of Christ’s holy life, righteous sacrifice, triumphant resurrection, and persevering with intercession.
On what foundation will we stay in God’s good graces? On the very same foundation. We can not do something so as to add to the work of Christ or put ourselves in a greater place earlier than God. From the start all the way in which to the tip, all of our acceptance relies on Christ, and we persevere by way of our religion in Him.
To the beleaguered Christian, buffeted by the challenges of life, conscious of their very own sinful bumblings, Paul says, “There may be … now no condemnation for individuals who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1). God knew the worst about us when He saved us. He accepted us for Jesus’ sake. The decision that He handed was ultimate. Due to this fact, no person can produce contemporary proof of our depravity to make Him change His thoughts. What God started He’ll full.
Heeding Warnings, Trusting Guarantees
Let anybody who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall. (1 Cor. 10:12)
There actually are individuals who appear to imagine and but fall away. There actually are people who find themselves self-deceived. The Bible warns us about apostacy as a result of it’s a actual hazard.
So we shouldn’t take our perseverance without any consideration. As a substitute, we must always “take heed,” testing ourselves to see whether or not we’re of the religion (2 Cor. 13:5), diligently confirming our calling and election (2 Peter 1:10). As we accomplish that, we are going to develop in assurance by trying in three locations.
We give proof that we possess salvation by the continuance of our religion.
First, we glance to the Son: “Allow us to run with endurance the race that’s set earlier than us, trying to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our religion” (Heb. 12:1–2). After we have a look at ourselves, we are going to solely discover causes for discouragement. After we repair our ideas on Jesus, although, God permits us to persevere. After we look to Him, we are going to see “the founder and perfecter of our religion” who “endured the cross” for our sakes (Heb 12:2). “He,” we will say, “is my supply of confidence.”
Second, we glance to the Scriptures: “Because the Holy Spirit says, ‘At the moment, when you hear his voice, don’t harden your hearts’” (Heb. 3:7–8). If the Phrase of God involves us at this time, we should let it warn us and woo us, information us, educate us, and encourage us. We should come to the Guide not with laborious hearts however with religion (Heb 3:12, 19). “This,” we will say, “is what the Holy Spirit is saying to the church at this time.”
Lastly, we glance to God’s folks: “Exhort each other day-after-day, so long as it’s referred to as ‘at this time,’ that none of chances are you’ll be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin” (Heb. 3:13). It’s potential to be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness somewhat than to cling to Christ by religion. So we have to be a worshipping, praying, instructing, evangelizing firm of God’s folks, dwelling in communion and inspiring each other to hold on.
What assurance can we’ve got that we’ll maintain firmly to the tip? What God begins, He completes! That’s our confidence, and it’s why we glance to Him for our assurance. We could also be simply distracted, disheartened, and dispirited, however we put our religion in a single who’s stronger than we’re. As J. I. Packer wrote, “Your religion is not going to fail whereas God sustains it; you aren’t robust sufficient to fall away whereas God is resolved to carry you.”
This text was tailored from the sermons “Perseverance of the Saints?” and “The Preserving Energy of God” by Alistair Begg.
