I dedicated my sermon on Sunday to a dear lady in our church (Jan) who is dying of cancer. I spoke on Romans 8:26-30 and especially on the security of the believer. The Apostle Paul gives us a snapshot of salvation from God’s perspective. There is nothing about faith or human response in these verses.
For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
These 5 components (foreknew, predestined, called, justified, glorified) form a chain and every believer is smack dab in the middle…secure…forever…in God’s hands.
It was a powerful message Kary, very good visual. I couldn’t believe it when it was over, wanted you to continue. Looking forward to the message in May where you dive a little deeper. It’s one of those questions that I get asked by new believers, if not right away, eventually when they come to the Romans 8 passage.
I do agree that the passage is from God’s perspective. He has infallible certainty of who will spend eternity with him. We do not have that infallible certainty so we know that we are his chosen ones if we persevere in the faith.
Paul tells us
1Cor.15
[1] Now I would remind you, brethren, in what terms I preached to you the gospel, which you received, in which you stand,
[2] by which you are saved, if you hold it fast — unless you believed in vain.
We must hold fast to our confession of faith and walk in his grace daily. Yes, he will save us but he will not prevent us from turning away from him if that is out choice. If it were not possible for us to fall away then Gal 5 does not make sense. “You have fallen from grace, you have been severed from Christ”. One cannot fall from a tree he has never been in. One cannot be severed from what they were never attached. I have had people tell me that this passage is about losing reward but I can’t see how a fall from grace can be spoken of as just lost of reward. Sorry Kary, but if you are preaching Once Saved Always Saved, I have to disagree. It sounds good but is not biblically sound theology. Yes, our security is in Christ but we must abide in him.
God bless
BTW, I did not hear the sermon so forgive me if I have spoken incorrectly about the content of it.
Thanks Gerald and Bill for the comments. I’m still banking on his faithfulness…not mine. Although I am confident that I need to abide.
I do agree that God is faithful.
If grace were irresistable I would agree with Once Saved Always Saved. It is clear from scripture that it is not. Judas for instance was in the prescence of grace for 3 years. Yet fell. Surely God’s grace was sufficient to save him. He did not embrace the cross however. We are told:
Acts.7
1. [51] “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.
All recieve God’s grace for it would make the statement “God desires that all men be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth” a rather hollow statement if he did not provide the grace to fullfill that desire.
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