GOD’S PRESERVATION OF THE SAINTS
Part 18
Rom. 8:31-39
Morning Meditation 1/24/17
Verse 31-39 says, “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 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.”
We come now to one of the most amazing parts of this passage. It is the question: can a child of God ever be separated from the Love of Christ? This is a question that has divided Christians through the centuries. I want to make it clear that it is how the Bible answers this question and not a denominational view that should make us the difference. We will examine this passage to see what it says, to either give us the proper answer to the question, or to assure us that what we already believe is correct.
Paul asks, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?” The “Who” addresses the idea that someone would try. And they will. There are false teachers who revel in perverting the gospel and drawing away disciples from the truth. Paul warned of this in Acts 20:29-31: “For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.”
Who would do such a thing? Why would anyone spend their time and energy in an attempt to pervert the thinking of God’s people? The answer is found in 2 Corinthians 11:13-15: “For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.” Satan hates God and the only way he can attack God is to attack His people. So he does it both directly as in the case of demon possession, and through calling men to imitate true God-called men. The argument is that if Satan can transform himself into an angel of light, it is not great feat that “his ministers” (which means he has them), be transformed into what appears to be ministers of righteousness. Let me say this before we move further into this verse. False apostles have the power and ability to look a lot better to the natural man that a true preacher of the gospel. They will use more reasoning from the natural standpoint than a true servant of God. They will use the methods of the world to accomplish their ends. An unsaved man is not going to understand Spiritual truth until he is saved (1 Cor. 2:14). Therefore the true preacher of the gospel does not use the same approach to winning the unsaved or edifying the saints.. We depend on God to draw men. The false apostle’s methods are taken from the world and make sense to the unsaved person who has spent his life learning the same logic that is being used in religion by them. They have an uncanny ability to get people to follow them and support their ministry when what they are telling the people is so obviously in violation to the teachings of the Bible. Satan and his ministers answer the “who” of this verse.
The words “shall separate” translate “chorizo” and means, “to separate, divide, part, put asunder, to separate one's self from.” It is a word that is used of “divorce where a husband or wife departs by divorce.” This word is used when Jesus said in Matthew 19:6: “ . . . What therefore God hath joined together, let not man PUT ASUNDER” (Caps mine for emphasis). This is a future active indicative verb. This means that this is referring to any person at any time in the future.
The word “us” translates “hemas” and is not just tacked on to the ending of a verb. Paul includes himself and the “us” speaks of “us believers who have experienced the love of Christ in salvation.” The word “from” translates “apo” and is the preposition that speaks of “separation from the ultimate source.” The words “the love of Christ” is that ultimate source of which Paul is speaking. Who can divorce us or “cut us asunder” from the love of Christ? Who can cut us off from the Source?
This is not speaking of our love for Christ. Our love for Christ can cool. The Ephesian Christians are said to have “left” (not lost) their first love. That is possible. This is not apostasy. It is simply being distracted from the Lordship of Christ and therefore cooling in the manifestation of our love for Him. This is speaking for His love for us not our love for Him.
John Gill has a good comment here. “By ‘the love of Christ’ is not meant the saints’ love to Christ, but his love to them; he is indeed the object of their love, and so strong is their love to him, that it can never be destroyed; for though there may be an abatement in the fervor of it, it can never be lost; yet this is never called the love of Christ: besides, the apostle is speaking not of their love to Christ, but of the love of God and Christ to them, throughout the context; and his design is, to strengthen the faith of God's people, and comfort their souls, under their various afflictions: now nothing more effectually serves such purposes, than the love of Christ; and the things here instanced in are such, as are apt to inject doubts and fears, about interest in the love of Christ, and of the love of God in Christ, as it is interpreted in some following verses: moreover, the separation here interrogated is not of Christ from us, but of us from him; whereas was it our love to Christ, which is here meant, it should rather have been put, who shall separate him from us, and not us from the love of Christ? That Christ does love the elect of God, who are the persons here spoken of, is evident from his undertaking for them, espousing their persons, assuming their nature, dying in their room and stead, paying off their debts, and redeeming their persons, by going to prepare a place for them, by interceding for them, by supplying them with all grace, and using them in the most free and familiar manner; which love of his is wonderful, matchless, and inconceivable, special and peculiar, free and undeserved, exceeding affectionate, unchangeable, durable, and for ever. This is the bond of union to Christ; and the union which is made by it is exceeding near and close; it is real; perfect, and indissoluble, nothing can separate from it.”
What a marvelous question and answer. Absolutely nothing can separate us from the love of Christ according to Paul. Do we believe him? Do we agree with him? There are so many dear saints of God that do not have this assurance because they either have not been discipled in the Word of God or have been under a ministry that denies this doctrine denominationally. One can use human rationalism to reject this doctrine but it could not be more clearly taught than it is in this passage. Let God be true and every man a liar (Rom. 3:4).
Paul will in the questions to follow deal with every conceivable scenario that a man could use as an argument to teach that one could be separated from the Love of Christ. He does not just deny that it is possible to be separated from the Love of Christ, he answers every possible thing that one could bring up. I will begin to look at those things in the next meditation.
May God bless these words to our hearts.
In Christ
Bro. White
