Well, good morning everyone! As I write this, it is morning as I pen my thoughts for this week. You will notice I have come up with an overall title for my email blog; if you would like to call it that. From Behind the Pen will be the title of my weekly ramblings. It started out to be a weekly newsletter, but truth is Pastor Chris covers all the news surrounding FBC ministry. I suppose what I am trying to accomplish is to be an encouragement to you all in a time when things are rather difficult for us all. If you are healthy, and by God’s grace have not come down with the Covid-19 virus, then you have much to be thankful for! But at the same time, we need to continue to pray for our country and all those who are on the front-line who are battling to save lives. May this national trial draw people to Jesus Christ and bring Christians back to a place where their eyes are totally fixed on Him who saves.
That brings me to my thought of the week. How secure do you feel at this hour? Let me put it another way. Do you have the assurance that you live in a secure environment? If I am not mistaken, we all want to be assured that we live in a safe and secure world, at least in our corner of the world. I don’t know about you, but I want to know that my car is going to start when I get in it to travel somewhere. I want to believe that my front and back doors will keep the bad guy out. I want to know that my money is still in the bank (even though it is worth less), and that I am as healthy as I think I am. I think we can all agree we want the assurance that we have security in this insecure world.
But the same could be said of our salvation in Jesus Christ. Are you secure in your belief that God has saved you through the blood of Jesus Christ; that your sins are forgiven once and for all, past, present, and future? Yesterday we celebrated the resurrection of our Savior. And although our celebration was at a distance, it’s still real, true, and very personal. Jesus died for you and me, shedding His blood as an atonement for our sins. Those of us who have accepted that provision for our sin through the shedding of His blood do so by faith, and are assured we are saved. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” That should be the last word on the subject, but there are many who claim to be Christians who do not have the assurance that they are, “once saved always saved.”
As I meditate on the Word of God, I find the Apostles Paul’s words to his son in the faith, Timothy, very assuring and comforting during our days of this trial. Paul writes to Timothy while locked up in the Mamertine Prison in Rome for the second time. This would be Paul’s last imprisonment, as he would be awaiting his execution. As you read the second letter to Timothy, you will find it to be a very personal letter to one beloved son in the faith, but a very public letter for the Church today.
I would like our meditation on God’s Word to zero in on Second Timothy 1:12. Here the apostle writes, “For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.”
In the midst of his greatest trial and sacrifice Paul was extremely confident that the same God who began the work of salvation in his life, would complete it the day of his execution. What is the evidence of Paul’s confidence that this is true also of us? Glad you ask. 😊
Here is what I have gleaned from these verses:
The Apostle Paul Placed All His Trust and Confidence in God’s Ability to Finish the Work He Had Started.
I would not trust your salvation into my care. Why? Well, first of all I don’t always finish all the projects I start, so it stands to reason I would NOT be able to keep your salvation to the very end. Second, the truth is I am not good at holding on to stuff. Matter of fact, I wouldn’t trust me to hang on to a plate of your favorite cookies. Just for argument’s sake, say you gave me a plate of cookies and told me to safeguard them until next Monday. What do you think would happen to your cookies? I’ll tell you what would happen, there wouldn’t be one cookie left on the plate by then. I have no shame when it comes to cookies, and the fact is, I wouldn’t even hide the crumbs. Why, because I am a weak person. O don’t get me wrong, I am strong in some areas. Give me a plate of broccoli and I am sure it will be safe with me for the entire week. Having said all that, it stands to reason you shouldn’t trust me with your eternal security, your assurance of salvation in Christ. I know, silly comparison, but I am sure you get my point.
The apostle knew exactly who he could trust with his salvation because he knew God’s ability. Paul said, “I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able…” The same God that took care of Paul throughout his earthly ministry, the same God who gave him great joy to serve in the midst of trials, and the same God who impressed on his heart that nothing would ever separate him from the love of Christ is the same God who would see him through to his final salvation.
“That Day” is coming for all of us, and I know for myself I cannot trust me to hang onto my salvation and keep it secure in my own ability. I fail my God way too often to think I have any confidence in the flesh to hang on to something so precious as my salvation. But like the Apostle Paul, I know who can, and I am convinced that God alone holds the power to keep it until that day! How about you, are you secure in your salvation? Let me know what you think.
This is Pastor Pat wishing you joy in Jesus FROM BEHIND THE PEN!