GOD’S PRESERVATION OF THE SAINTS
Part 22
Rom. 8:31-39
Morning Meditation 1/28/17
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.”
God does preserve His saints. It is taught everywhere in Scripture. Until a person sees this truth, he can find it nowhere. When once he sees it, he finds it everywhere. Satan does not want the believer to enjoy this truth. To deny it is to make salvation by works. Satan is the author of salvation by works. The Bible plainly states that salvation is all of works or all of grace. It cannot be a mixture of the two. Paul says in Romans 11:6, “And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.” The idea of works destroys the idea of grace and the idea of grace destroys the idea of works. Paul says it is either all of one or all of the other. Then he says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph. 2:8-9). The doctrine of the divine preservation of His saints is rooted in the doctrine of grace. If we understand that grace is the unmerited favor of God given to us freely in Christ Jesus we will have no problem believing what the Bible teaches about the eternal security of the believer. There are three truths set forth in verses 38 and 39. First we see,
A FIRM CONVICTION
Paul says, “For I am persuaded.” The words “I am persuaded” translate “peitho” and means, “to persuade, i.e. to induce one by words to believe; to trust, have confidence, be confident.” It is a perfect passive indicative verb. The perfect tense is completed action in the past, that completed action having present results. The passive voice means that Paul’s persuasion did not come from within himself. He was persuaded by words, i.e., the Word of God received in his case directly from the Lord. Let me state it another way. Paul’s present persuasion is the result of a past understanding given him through God’s revelation of His Word and he stands firmly assured because of this.
The definition says, “To be induced by words to believe.” The words here do not come from logic or human rationalism. The only thing that we have a right to form firm convictions on is the Word of God. Faith is our God given capacity to respond to His Word. Faith does not come up with ideas. Faith receives God’s Word and believes it whether it makes sense to the natural man or not. So first of all, Paul states a firm conviction. Next we see,
THE NAMED OPPOSITION
In the next few words, Paul names those things that might seem to be a threat to our security. The first word he uses is death. Death does not separate us from the love of God. Paul says in 2 Cor. 5:1, “For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” Notice the words “we know” and “we have.” The words “we know” translates “eido” and means “to perceive with the eyes or the senses.” It is a perfect active indicative verb. The perfect tense means that Paul came to know this in the past with the result that he has a positive knowledge of it in the present. The words “we have” is a present tense verb. It means at the time Paul was speaking believers have “a building of God, an house not make with hands, eternal in the heavens.” Death cannot separate us from the love of God. Death will separate us from the body and will free us to enter the “house not made with hands.” We can anticipate that in our present lives. It is sure. What if death came to us when we were out of the will of God? Paul says it cannot separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The next word Paul uses is “life.” How could life separate us from the love of God?. The Emperor Constantine believed that baptism was necessary to salvation. Therefore he waited until near death to be baptized. He knew that he could not live a perfect life and that living after baptism would be his doom. Life would be a threat to his salvation. So he concluded that in his dying moments he would be baptized and beat life as a threat. Paul says life cannot separate us from the love of God.
The next words is “angels.” There a two kinds of angels. There are the holy angels of God. They cannot be the ones Paul is talking about here. Those angels could never threaten to separate us from the love of God. The other angels are the fallen ones. They are called demons and can possess an individual. They oppose the work of God and promote sin in this world. Paul says they cannot separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus.
We could go through each one of these words one by one and the conclusion would be the same. He mentions height and depth and then adds, “nor any other creature,” just in case he missed something. The words, “shall be able” translate “dunamai” and used with the negative means, “not to be able, not to have power whether by virtue of one's own ability and resources, or of a state of mind, or through favourable circumstances, or by permission of law or custom.” It is a future tense verb which means that at no time in the future can any of the things mentioned be able to separate one from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. They are powerless to do so. Then we see,
THE PLACE OF SECURITY
He identifies the place by the words “Which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” We are in Christ and here is where the Love of God is. Isaiah prophesies of this place: “And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land” (Isa. 32:2). “In Christ” is the place of salvation. 2 Cor. 5:17 says, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” We are put into Christ at salvation by the baptism of the Holy Spirit. 1 Cor. 12:13 says, “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.” This takes place at salvation. We are put into Christ. This is the place of security. Col. 3:1-3 says, “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.” One cannot be more secure than to be “hid with Christ in God.”
My final statement in this series of meditations on Romans eight is that I would believe the doctrine of the Divine preservation of the saints no matter what denomination I belonged to because it is taught in Scripture. If believing what the Bible teaches gets you in trouble with a denomination, then so be it. Someone said to the old Methodist Evangelist Sam Jones, “Sam, you are rubbing the cat the wrong way.” Sam Jones replied, “Then turn the cat around!” Dr. Bob Jones Sr., who was an old fashioned Methodist, told me personally that he believed the eternal security of the believer. I’m sure it got him in trouble with his Methodist brethren. But Dr. Bob Jones believed the Bible and was willing to take his stand even if it put him at odds with the “brethren.” Listen, any time our faith in what the Bible says gets us into trouble with others, it is the others who need to change not us. I rejoicing in the assurance that security give to me. I do not believe it is a license to sin. That is a fear expressed by those who do it believe it. They say, “If I believed that, I would go out and sin and do all I wanted to.” I have been around many who did not believe eternal security. They were good people living under the threat of losing their salvation. I saw nothing in their lives that made me think that living under that threat caused them to live godly. NOWHERE IN THE BIBLE is the threat of losing salvation held out as a motive to live godly. The love of Christ and the glory of God is the motive for godliness. It is that from which nothing can separate us. Hallelujah!
May the Lord bless these words to our hearts.
In Christ
Bro. White
