FALLING FROM GRACE
We have been requested to write an article on “falling from grace.” We suppose the one making the request wishes us to write something on the doctrine of the final preservation of the saints, or as to whether it is possible for a child of God to so fall away as to be finally lost. There is more in this subject than can be told in one article. We will try to comply with the request by saying a few things.
Heb. vi. 4, 5, 6 is a text used by many in trying to prove that a child of God may be finally lost and go to eternal torment. If the text does prove that, it proves too much for them; and a text that proves too much is as bad as a text that proves nothing. Those who advocate the doctrine of the possibility of final apostasy tell us that if a child of God does fall away he can be renewed and get back into a saved state by repentance. Now, let us read that text and see just what it says and what it does teach.
For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentence; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put Him to an open shame. —Heb. vi. 4 6.
The text says, “For it is impossible * * * if they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance.” Thus we see that if the text proves that one may thus fall away, it also proves that it is impossible to renew such a one again; and it thereby proves too much for them. But does the text teach that a child of God may be finally lost? No; but it teaches the very opposite. “If they shall fall away” it is impossible “to renew them again unto repentance.” Why? Because “they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put Him to an open shame.” That is, if they fall away, the Son of God would have to be crucified for them again; and He would thereby be put to an open shame. He died once for the purpose of saving them in glory, and if they fall away and fail to reach heaven, He would be put to an open shame and His work branded as a failure, and He would have to come back and die for them again. Will the blessed and holy Son of God be put to an open shame? Most emphatically, No. Then they shall not fall away; it is impossible, because He cannot be put to an open shame. Will He ever die again? He said, “I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore.”—Rev. i. 18. As He is alive forevermore He will never die again, and therefore they shall not fall away and be finally lost.
Again, the blessed Saviour said, “Because I live, ye shall live also.”—John xiv. 19. The reason why they shall live is that He lives. His living is the cause, and they live as the effect. In order that the effect cease, the cause must first cease; but this cause will never cease, because He is alive forevermore. It follows, therefore, that they shall live forevermore. They will live as long as Jesus lives. If Jesus never dies again, then they shall never die. Jesus said to Martha, “Whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?” This is the blessed and sure promise of the Lord of glory for His little ones. What a precious promise! How sweet that promise is to the poor pilgrim here.
The idea that a child of God may so apostatize or fall away as to be finally lost would necessarily involve the idea that such a one must cease to be a child of God and become a child of Satan, or that such a child of God goes to eternal torment, or to eternal perdition, which is absurd in the very extreme. No act of a child can possibly cause that child to cease to be a child of its parents and to become the child of another. If one is a child of God, that one has been born of God; born from above; born of the heavenly parentage. God’s children may be rebellious and disobedient, which they often are, but that does not sever the relationship.
If disobedience and rebellion on the part of the child could possibly sever the relationship existing between parent and child, they could not do so in the case of God’s children, because God has sworn that they shall endure (live) forever. Let us read Psalm Ixxxix. 26 to 36:
He shall cry unto me. Thou art my father, my God, and the rock of my salvation. Also I will make him my first born, higher than the kings of the earth. My mercy will I keep for him for evermore, and my covenant shall stand fast with him. His seed also will I make to endure forever, and his throne as the days of heaven. If his children forsake my law, and walk not in my judgments; if they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments; then will I visit their transgressions with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes. Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail. My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips. Once have I svi’orn by my holiness that I will not lie unto David. His seed shall endure forever, and his throne as the sun before me.
In this text David is impersonating or representing Christ, the holy Son of God. God says He has sworn by His holiness that He will not lie unto David, or unto His Son; that His seed shall endure (live) forever. If a child of God, then, forsakes God’s law, walks not in His judgments; if they break His statutes, and keep not His commandments—will they go to eternal torment on that account? They certainly will not, for God has sworn to His Son that they shall live forever, though they do thus rebel, and yet He will visit their transgressions with the rod and their iniquity with stripes. He has promised that He would chastise them for their disobedience; but He has sworn by His holiness that they shall endure, or live, forever.
“In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began.”—Titus i. 2. Here we are told that God cannot lie. As He cannot lie, certainly He could not swear a lie. As He could neither lie nor swear a lie; and as He has promised His Son that His children shall live forever, and then confirmed that promise with an oath, swearing by His holiness, then it is impossible that one of them ever be finally lost. They will certainly live with Him in eternal glory. If one of the Lord’s children should ever sink down to eternal night, or go to eternal perdition, it would necessarily follow that God made a promise to His Son which failed of fulfillment, and that He swore falsely. No one can possibly believe God swore truthfully and at the same time believe that a child of God goes to eternal torment. Both cannot be believed at the same time, for the two things are diametrically opposed to each other. If one believes that a child of God may go to an eternal torment, he certainly does not believe the Bible. He may think he does, but he does not; for the Bible tells us that God has sworn that they shall live forever.
Could a true and loving mother be satisfied and see her child suffering in torment here in this world? All know very well that she could not. A mother’s love for her child is too strong and too tender and great for her to be satisfied and at the same time see her child suffer tortures and torment here. But God’s love is greater and stronger than a mother’s love. It is far beyond and far greater than any earthly tie. God’s love is everlasting and as unchanging and enduring as Himself. God is love. Then how could the blessed Redeemer be satisfied and see one of His children, for whom He suffered, bled and died, suffering the tortures of an endless torment? Such a thought is but a thought that besmirches the very character of that holy and lovely and heavenly Being. “He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied.”— Isa. liii. 11. Isaiah was here prophesying of the work of the Son of God, and tells us that He shall “see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied.” As He could not be satisfied and see one of the objects of His eternal love suffering the torments of an endless hell, then they shall never sink down to that place of torment.
“The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”— Isa. liii. 6. The iniquity of all those people who were His was laid on the Son of God. As all their iniquity was laid on Him, and He put away their sins by the sacrifice of Himself, then sin or iniquity cannot cause one of them to go to eternal torment. The Father certainly will not demand payment of a debt of them which has been paid for them by His holy and spotless Son.
What blessed assurances are to be found in the precious old Book for the Lord’s dear children who are’ strangers and pilgrims here. There are troubles and trials and conflicts for them here in this low ground of of sin and sorrow; but everlasting joy is in store for them when the troubles and distresses of this life are all over. These blessed assurances comfort and strengthen and encourage us here amidst all our trials and afflictions.
Isaiah liv. 9, 10. For this is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee. For the mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.
In this language we have two covenants brought to our attention. The first one is the covenant God made with Noah and all flesh that He would never again destroy the earth by water, and the other is the covenant of His peace; and one is as the other. The covenant of His peace is as the covenant with Noah; for this is as that.
If it is possible for a child of God to so apostatize as to be finally lost, then his final salvation in heaven would depend upon his faithfulness and right living here in the world. If his final salvation in heaven depends upon that, then the covenant of God’s peace mentioned in this text would be a conditional covenant, and would depend upon their good deeds or faithfulness for its fulfillment. If the covenant of His peace is thus conditional, then His covenant with Noah that He would never again destroy the earth by water was conditional; for the covenant of His peace is as that covenant with Noah. Was the covenant with Noah a conditional one? Let us read it and see.
And God spake unto Noah, and to his sons with him, saying. And I, behold, I establish my covenant with you, and with your seed after you; and with every living creature that is with you, of the fowl, of the cattle, and of every beast of the earth with you; from all that go out of the ark, to every beast of the earth. And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. And God said. This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud: and I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant, which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth.—Genesis ix. 8-17.
This is the covenant which God made with Noah and all flesh that the earth should never again be destroyed by water—that there should never be another flood. Does that covenant depend upon the obedience or faithfulness of any human being on earth for its fulfillment? Most assuredly not. If it had depended upon the righteousness or obedience of mankind for its fulfillment, we know there would have been another flood long before this time. But upon what, then, does it depend for its fulfillment? It depends alone upon the faithfulness of God and His power to fulfill every promise He has made.
The Lord put the bow in the cloud as a token of that covenant. Did He place it there so the people could see it and remember the covenant? No; but He said, “I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth.” As long and as often as we see the bow in the cloud we know that God remembers that covenant, and that there will not be another flood. There will never be another flood, whether we remember the covenant or not. The fulfillment of that covenant does not depend upon us remembering it. God remembers the covenant which He made, and the apostle says that “God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord.” —1 Cor. i. 9. Since God is faithful, He will fulfill the promise He made in the covenant with Noah and all flesh, and there will never be another flood.
Now, the covenant of His peace is like that, for He says, “This is as the waters of Noah unto me: for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth; so have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee nor rebuke thee.” The Lord swore to the one just as He did to the other. The one is like the other. And this refers to the covenant of His peace, and He says “neither shall it be removed.” This covenant depends, then, upon the faithfulness and power of God for its fulfillment, and does not depend upon the faithfulness and righteousness of men and women for that.
As the covenant of His peace is like the covenant with Noah, and the covenant with Noah was an unconditional one, then the covenant of His peace is also unconditional. As it is unconditional, and does not depend upon the obedience of the creature for fulfillment, then not one embraced in that covenant will ever sink down to eternal night. God has sworn in that covenant that “I will not be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee.” In that covenant He has also sworn that “my kindness shall not depart from thee.”
What glorious and blessed assurance to the poor trembling pilgrim that eternal peace and unsullied bliss and glory is his to enjoy beyond the sorrows and dark scenes of this life. May these blessed truths comfort your hearts in all your sad trials and distresses.
In verses 7 and 8 of this same chapter we have this language: “For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee. In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith, the Lord thy Redeemer.” Following this language is: the language used in the beginning of our article last week, “For this is as the waters of Noah unto me,” etc. Taking all these verses together it is very clear that the language in verses 7 and 8 and the sweet and sure promises contained therein are to the same persons embraced in verses 9 and 10, the same persons embraced in the covenant of His peace. Those persons are the Lord’s little children, who are on their pilgrimage here below.
“For a small moment have I forsaken thee.” When the poor little child of God here in this world of trouble feels and realizes that he is forsaken of the Lord, all is dark and gloomy then. They forsake the Lord’s way sometimes, turn from His sweet service, forget His mercies and kindnesses; then “for a small moment” the Lord forsakes them; “in a little wrath” He hides His face from them for a moment. But it seems like a long time. When the Lord’s face is hid, turned from the little child of grace, all is dark and gloomy then. It is a night season with him, and it is not a night of rest, either. There is no peace or rest enjoyed; but he is restless and disturbed, and it seems to him that day will never dawn again. He then begins to inquire, in deep sorrow and trouble, as David did, “Will the Lord cast off forever? and will He be favourable no more? Is His mercy clean gone forever? doth His promise fail forevermore? Hath God forgotten to be gracious? Hath He in anger shut up His tender mercies?’ ‘—Psalm Ixxvii. 7, 8, 9.
In such dark seasons as this, which the Lord’s dear children pass through in their journey here below, it seems to them that they are cast off forever; it seems that they can no more enjoy the Lord’s divine favor; it appears to them that His mercy is clean gone forever. They feel then that the Lord’s gracious and sure and glorious promise does not embrace them. They feel that theirs is an “outside case;” that they are not embraced in the promise of God; that so far as they are concerned the whole matter is a failure. They feel that God will be gracious to them no more; that in His anger with them on account of their great sinfulness He has shut up His tender mercies. What despair! What distress is theirs during these dark hours! How dark is the night, and how long the night seems to be! But the night finally passes and the glorious day dawns again. “The darkest hour is just before day.” That darkest hour finally passes, and the glorious and heavenly sunshine of the Lord’s blessed manifest presence appears again in all the heavenly glory and sweetness of His sure promise, “but with great mercies will I gather thee;” “but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the Lord thy Redeemer.” What joy then fills the soul! What peace! What content! What reconciliation! What trust in our Redeemer! Though the way is so rough and rugged here in this sinful world, yet here is God’s promise, and that promise confirmed by an oath, in which oath He has sworn by Himself. To argue that this promise will not be fulfilled is to argue that the Lord of glory has not only told a lie but that He has perjured Himself by swearing falsely. If one of His little ones sinks down to eternal night, then God has sworn a lie. Would you rather believe that God swore a lie than to believe in the final preservation of the saints?
If you sometimes pass through these dark and gloomy nights, it is but a sure evidence of the fact that you are a child of grace—a child of God; you have the spiritual life. If you did not have that life, you could never feel and realize the darkness; neither could you feel or realize and enjoy the sweetness of the manifestation of the Lord’s heavenly presence.
In verse 17 of this chapter (Isa. liv.) we have this language: “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.” What a glorious promise and assurance for the Lord’s poor little children here, where they are surrounded by so many temptations, and where the enemies are so thick and so numerous, and where Satan is continually near, and all his emissaries, with their fiery darts hurling at them. “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper.” The eternal God Himself will take care of the situation; and He will take care of you. “This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord.” This is their heritage, and all the demons of the under world cannot prevent them receiving that inheritance. The Lord Himself is pledged to see that they receive it.
“Their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.” They have no righteousness of their own, and they realize that fact. They mourn and grieve on account of their unrighteousness, but when they are enabled to realize and to have the assurance that their righteousness is of the Lord, it gives them joy and comfort. “The Lord” is “our righteousness.” The Lord Jesus is made unto them “righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.”—! Cor. i. 30. His righteousness is sufficient. Being clothed with His righteousness they shall be landed safely on the sunny shores of sweet deliverance, and shall dwell forever in the presence of God in glory. Blessed assurance. Hold up your bowed down heads; your sorrows will all end some day, and eternal peace is yours in a better world than this.
John x. 27, 28, 29, My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.
In this text there are some people whom the Saviour designates as His sheep. In verse 26 He said to some of the Jews, “But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.” Some of the people were His sheep and some were not. Those the Saviour designates as His sheep hear His voice. In John v. 25 the Saviour said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you. The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and they that hear shall live.” Those who hear His voice and live are those He calls His sheep. They were His because the Father gave them to Him. “My Father, which gave them me.” The Father gave them to His Son for a possession; and the Saviour, by the power of His Holy Spirit, speaks to them and makes them alive from a state of death in sin. They are thus made alive in Christ. “I give unto them eternal life.”
How can anything die that has eternal life? If one dies a physical or corporeal death, does not the natural life of that person cease, or come to an end? If the natural life was an eternal life, could one die naturally? Would, or could, the natural life ever end, if it was an eternal life? It is absurd to say that it could. But this life which Jesus here says He gives to His people is eternal life. That life is a never ending life. As the life is never ending, their final salvation in heaven is sure. There can be no such thing as one perishing in eternal torment to whom this life has been given.
Not only is this true, but the blessed Saviour most emphatically says “they shall never perish.” Never means not ever; not at any time; at no time, whether past, present, or future. As “they shall never perish,” when will one of them ever perish? The Saviour says not ever. As “they shall never perish,” at what time may one of them perish? The Saviour says not at any time. As “they shall never perish,” we repeat the question, at what time may one of them perish? The Saviour says at no time, whether past, present, or future. If at no time, whether past, present, or future, one of them shall ever perish, then it is certain that not one of the Lord’s children will ever fail to finally enter heaven and eternal glory.
We remember one time in public discussion with a gentleman that he said, “If the doctrine you preach— the final preservation of the saints—be true, the devil is the biggest fool ever heard tell of. If he could not get one of the Lord’s children, after trying all these years to get one, he would have found out that he could not get one, and would quit trying, if he were not the biggest fool ever heard tell of.” We replied by saying that we always liked to agree with a man when we can, and that we would agree with the gentleman that the devil is the biggest fool ever heard tell of, as is proven by the fact that he cannot get one of the Lord’s children, and yet he keeps on trying; but, lo, it seems that the devil is not the only fool in the world, for here is another fellow who has not found this out, either. But we (Old Baptists) have found out better. We have learned that the Saviour told the truth when He said, “They shall never perish.” Right here we wish to give three Scriptural propositions.
First. Jesus prays for His people according to the Father’s will.
Second. The Father’s will is that He should lose nothing.
Third. The Father always hears Him.
The first, above, is the first premise in the proposition. Let us prove that first premise. Rom. viii. 27: “And He that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because He maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.” The saints are the children of God, and the Saviour prays for them according to the Father’s will.
The second premise is that the Father’s will is that the Son should lose nothing. Let us prove that. John vi. 38, 39: “For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of Him that sent me. And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which He hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.” Those the Father gave to the Son are His people. His children; and the Father’s will is that not one of them be lost, but that they be raised up again at the last day.
The next proposition is that the Father always hears [pg 252] the prayer of His Son. He always hears the Saviour’s prayer. Now let us prove that. John xi. 41, 42: “And they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up His eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me. And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.” The word hearest (or hear) in this text must be in the sense of “to give audience or attention to; to listen to; to heed; to accede to the demand or wishes of; to listen to and answer favorably.” This clearly shows that the Father always favorably answers the prayer of His Son.
There is not a man in all this wide world who can make it appear that one of the Lord’s little children will ever sink down in eternal torment and let these three Scriptural propositions remain true. Here they are again: Jesus prays for His people according to the Father’s will. The Father’s will is that the Son should lose nothing the Father gave Him. The Father always hears the Son. It follows, therefore, inevitably and certainly, that every child of grace will ultimately be saved in glory. Blessed assurance!
Jesus, our loving Saviour, prays for His little ones. Dear child, you often ask those you believe to be God’s children to pray for you. They may not know when you need their prayers. But your loving Saviour knows when you are in trouble, in sorrow, in distress, in soul afflictions, when the tempter is near and trying you; and as He prays for you, and knows when you need His prayers. He certainly prays for you when you are in such troubles; and the Father always answers Him favorably—always grants His request.
Gal. v. 1, Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.
If the text here quoted teaches that a child of God may perish in eternal torment, then it contradicts the language of the Saviour used in our article last week, recorded in John x. 28, “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish.” Does the inspired apostle contradict the plain statement of the Son of God? Did the Lord Himself make this plain, positive and unequivocal statement, and then inspire His apostle to write something which contradicts that statement which He had Himself made? Unless the Lord has done this, then the language in Gal. v. 4 cannot possibly teach that a child of God can be finally lost, or that a child of God may finally land in eternal torment. For one to prove that Paul meant to teach such a thing in this text, he must first prove that the Son of God told a falsehood in the statement above quoted, or that He was mistaken in what He said. Does Paul contradict the teaching, or the plain statement, of the Saviour? Certainly not. Then he does not teach that a child of God may perish in torment, or be finally lost in eternal perdition.
Then what is the teaching of the apostle in this text? In the preceding chapter he is treating of the difference between the law service and gospel service. He calls attention to the bondwoman and the freewoman. He says (Gal. iv. 21-26):
Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law? For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman. But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise. Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar. For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.
This shows very clearly that the apostle had been treating in chapter four of the two covenants, and that Agar represented the law covenant, and he plainly says that the child of Agar was born after the flesh; and that covenant was a covenant of works. Isaac was the son of the freewoman, who represented the new covenant, or the covenant of grace, and he was a child of promise. “Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.”—Verse 28. This clearly teaches that the children of Jerusalem, the new covenant, the children of God, are children of promise.
The old covenant, or law service, with all its rites and ceremonies, has been done away. The law service served its purpose; but when Christ came it was all fulfilled in Him, and was then done away. “Nevertheless what saith the Scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.”—Verse 30.
Some Judaizing teacher had been among the Galatian brethren and had taught them that they must be circumcised and keep the law in order to be saved—that they could not reach heaven without this. That was a false doctrine which they had imbibed from some false teacher. By embracing that doctrine they had departed from the doctrine of grace. The doctrine of grace, as taught by the Lord and His inspired apostles, is that sinners are saved in heaven, prepared for the service of God here, and prepared and qualified to live with God in heaven, alone by His grace, without works of any kind. “Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began.”—2 Tim. i. 9. The Galatians had departed from that doctrine of grace; and in that way they had fallen from grace. They had not fallen from eternal life. They had not ceased to be the children of God. The apostle declares them to be the children of promise in iv. 28, and being the children of promise they were children of God, and God’s children “shall never perish,” though they depart from the doctrine of grace.
There are many children of God who are taught a false doctrine and made to believe the same here in this world; but believing a false doctrine does not cause one to cease to be a child of God. Suppose Mr. Smith is the father of a boy we will call John, and suppose John has been taught that Mr. Jones is his father, and John believes that. Does that make John become a son of Mr. Jones? Does it cause John to cease to be the son of Mr. Smith? Any sensible person knows that it does not. Neither does it cause one to cease to be a child of God and become a child of Satan because he has been led to believe something that is not true. Those Galatian brethren had been led to believe that they were justified by the works of the law, and in turning from the doctrine of grace and believing in the doctrine of works in order to eternal life, they fell from grace.
The old law worship and service had been done away, and these Galatian brethren had been taught the truth of gospel worship and service, and for a time had rejoiced in the same. In verse 1 the apostle admonishes them to stand fast in the glorious liberty of gospel worship and service, and to be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage—the bondage of law worship and service. To be entangled in law worship and service is to discard the work of the blessed Son of God. If we have to observe the rites and ceremonies of law service in order to be saved in heaven, then the death of Christ accomplished nothing—it was wholly unnecessary. We could be saved in heaven by observing the law just as well without the death of Christ as with it. That doctrine utterly denies the work of Christ. It utterly denies the doctrine of grace.
God’s children may, and sometimes do, deny the Lord and His doctrine, and thus, after having believed the truth, fall from grace and from their steadfastness. When they do that the Lord denies them the blessings He has promised His faithful and obedient children. Though He does this, “If we believe not, yet He abideth faithful: He cannot deny Himself.”—2 Tim. ii. 13. For a child of God to perish in eternal torment the Saviour would have to deny Himself; He would be compelled to deny the efficacy of His work; and this He cannot do. Therefore, a child of God cannot perish in eternal torment. This truth will stand through all ages. What we desire and need is the evidence, the assurance, that we are a child of God. Sometimes the evidences that are laid down in God’s word (or some of them) are a sweet comfort and consolation to us; and we are glad of the assurance that though we should be deceived by some false teacher and led by him to believe a false doctrine, yet the Lord will not—cannot—deny Himself; and though we should lose the comfort here that may be enjoyed in believing the truth, yet we shall not lose the joys of the heavenly world and the glory of that heavenly home. This is a consolation and comfort to us.
The doctrine of God our Saviour is comforting and consoling to the Lord’s children here. Truth makes them free. Truth consoles them in trials and temptations. There is no comfort or consolation to them in the thought that they are liable to fall away and sink down in eternal ruin and despair at last. Therefore, that doctrine is not the doctrine of God. It is not the truth.
The old servant of God was commanded thus: “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.”—Isa. xl. 1, 2. To tell the Lord’s little children, who feel and realize their poverty and their utter dependence upon the Lord for His mercy and grace every day and every hour, that they may so fall away as to be eternally lost at last is no comfort to them. Therefore, one who speaks that way does not speak as the Lord commanded.
Jude 1, Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called.
In this text we find that Jude, the inspired writer, was addressing his short letter to “them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called.” It was the work of God the Father to sanctify them. To sanctify means to make free from sin; to cleanse from moral corruption and pollution; to purify; to make sacred or holy; to set apart to a holy or religious use, etc. It was the work of the Father to set them apart to a holy or religious use. The Father had chosen them, and set them, apart to salvation, or to be saved. Sanctification is “the act or process of God’s grace by which the affections of men are purified, or alienated from sin and the world, and exalted to a supreme love to God,” etc.—Webster. It was the act or process of God’s grace by which they were sanctified. God did that work by His grace. The Father had chosen them to salvation, and set them apart to that end; and by His own act in giving them the divine life. He had planted in their hearts a love for Him. Thus they had been sanctified, set apart, exalted to that high state or condition, in which they were brought to hate sin and to love God and holiness.
These people were not only thus sanctified, but they were “preserved in Jesus Christ.” To preserve is “to keep or save from injury or destruction; to guard or defend from evil; to protect; save; to save from decay by the use of some preservative substance, as sugar, salt, etc.;—to prepare so as to prevent decomposition or fermentation, as by seasoning, canning, etc.”—Webster. As these people were preserved in Jesus Christ, they are kept from injury. If they are kept from injury, how could they sink down to eternal night? If one should sink down to eternal night, would he be kept from injury? Would it be an injury for one to sink down to eternal ruin? If it would be an injury for one to sink down to eternal ruin, and if they are kept from injury, then they are kept from sinking down to eternal ruin.
They (the Lord’s children) are kept from destruction, as to preserve is to keep from destruction. As they are kept from destruction, then they are kept from sinking down to eternal ruin. The inspired writer says they are preserved in Jesus Christ. Did he tell the truth? If he did tell the truth, then how can one of God’s children ever be lost in eternal torment, or everlasting destruction, seeing he says they are preserved, and being preserved is being kept from destruction ? No man on earth can ever show that one of God’s little children will sink down in eternal ruin without first proving that the inspired writer did not here tell the truth. We are inclined to think this would be hard to do.
They are not kept from destruction by their own power, nor by the power of the preacher, nor by the power of the church, nor by the power of any set of men, nor by the power of any institution on earth. They are kept by the power of God. See 1 Peter i. 5. God has the power to keep them, and does keep them from destruction. He keeps them through all the trials and conflicts of this life unto salvation. He keeps them “ready to be revealed in the last time.” Since they are kept by the power of God unto salvation, and He has the power to keep them, then not one of them will sink down in eternal ruin. As God has the power to keep them, and He does keep them ready to be revealed in the last time, then they will all finally be saved in heaven.
As to preserve is to save from destruction, and the Lord’s children are preserved, then they are all saved from destruction. Not one of them, then, will ever be destroyed in an eternal hell. They will never sink down in everlasting destruction. They are saved from that by the Lord Himself, the inspired writer having told the truth.
To preserve is to guard or defend from evil. The Lord Himself guards them and defends them from evil. Satan may tempt and torment them; but the Lord guards them; He defends them. If one of them is ever lost, it must be because the Lord is not able to defend them against Satan, the great enemy of their souls. But the Lord is able to defend them. As He is able to defend them, and does defend them, because He preserves them, then they are securely and effectually protected, defended, from the vicious attacks of their greatest enemy. Being thus defended it is impossible that one of them sink down in everlasting ruin.
To preserve is to save from decay. As they are preserved by the Lord, then the Lord saves them from decay. Since they are saved from decay by the Lord of glory, then not one of them can ever perish in eternal torment. All the rottenness and decay that might be or can be caused by sin will be removed from them. They shall be finally made whole, without spot or wrinkle. They are saved by the Lord, and kept from the awful results and consequences of sin. They are preserved; they are kept from decay. They will all finally live with God and Christ in eternal glory.
To be preserved is to be kept from decay by the use of some preservative substance. They are kept from decay by the use of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit has taken up His abode in their hearts. The Holy Spirit is a sure preserving substance, and by Him they are kept from ruin and decay. The love of God is shed abroad in their hearts by the Holy Ghost. The love of God is a sure preserving substance. By it they are kept from decay unto eternal glory.
Sometimes the sisters say, “I lost my preserves;” or, “my preserves spoiled” That is a mistake. Perhaps they lost their fruit; perhaps their fruit spoiled. Why did the fruit spoil? Because they did not have it preserved. They had tried to preserve the fruit; they thought they had the fruit preserved, but they were mistaken. The Lord is never mistaken. He never has thought He had one preserved and was mistaken about it. If He has thought He had one preserved, it was sure that way, for “as I have thought, so shall it come to pass.” He is never mistaken; He never makes a mistake. If the good sister had preserved the fruit it would not have spoiled. The Lord has preserved, and does preserve, His people; hence they do not spoil. They will not sink down in eternal ruin. To preserve is to prepare so as to prevent decomposition. The Lord’s people are preserved in Jesus Christ. They are so prepared by the Lord for final salvation as that they are prevented from decomposition. As they are so prepared as to prevent decomposition, then they will never be decomposed—they will never decompose. As they will never decompose—having been so prepared as to prevent decomposition —they will never be finally lost. Not one of them can ever sink down into eternal night. They cannot so fall away as to be finally lost. In order that one of God’s children so fall away as to be finally lost, he would have to decompose; he would have to decay. But they are preserved—kept from decomposition or decay. Therefore, they are kept from finally falling away and being lost. They are not only preserved, but they are ‘ ‘preserved in Jesus Christ.” The sister may have her fruit preserved; but she may have it in a vessel that may be broken. If the vessel should be broken, then her pre- served fruit is lost. But Jesus Christ will never be broken or destroyed, and God’s children are preserved in Him. Since they are preserved in Him, then not one of them can be lost—unless they are cast out of Him. But Jesus has said that ‘ ‘him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.” That is, he shall not, in any case, under no circumstance, be cast out. They are in the hands of Jesus and in the hands of the Father. No one is able to pluck them out of the hand of Jesus, and no one is able to pluck them out of the hand of the Father. See John x. 28, 29. Since they are preserved in Jesus Christ, and shall, under no consideration, be cast out, and no one is able to pluck them out, then they cannot possibly be finally lost.
How safe and secure the Lord’s dear children are! The storms of persecution may rage; sorrow may sweep down over the soul like billows; temptations may assail them on every hand; poverty and distress may be their portion here in this world of sadness and sin; all the powers of darkness and the demons of the under world may be arrayed against them; but they are still safe and secure, for they are “preserved in Jesus Christ.” He is the anointed Saviour. He was anointed to save them, and He saves them. The angel of His presence saves them. Lift up your heads; take comfort in the sweet assurance that your troubles and sorrows will soon end, and eternal joys will soon be yours.
Heb. vi. 13-20, For when God made promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no greater. He sware by Himself, saying. Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife. Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath: that by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; whither the [pg 269] forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest forever after the order of Melchisedec.
In this promise to Abraham, which Paul here referred to, God said, “And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.”—Gen. xxii. 18. And “in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” This is a promise which the Lord confirmed by an oath. As He could swear by no greater, He sware by Himself that He would fulfill the promise. This promise embraces and includes every heir of promise. “If ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”—Gal. iii. 29. If you are a child of God, “If ye be Christ’s,” then you are one of the promised children, embraced in the promise God made to Abraham.
Men always swear by the greater. A man placed on the witness stand is requested to hold up his hand and the person authorized to administer the oath will say, “Do you solemly swear or affirm that you will tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, in this case, so help you God?” He does not say, “So help you, yourself.” But “So help you God.” Thus the man swears by the greater. If a person in whom you have confidence—you do not believe he would tell a lie, much less swear a lie—is put on the witness stand, and he testifies under oath that a certain thing is a certain way, you would believe it was that way. That would settle the matter with you. That would be an end of all strife with you. You would be confident the matter was just as the witness stated. That witness might be one who would not lie, but no man is a witness that cannot lie. In this case brought to our attention in our text the one making the promise and who confirmed it by an oath is one who cannot lie—much less swear a lie.
Men can, and do, swear by one greater than themselves. But God could not swear by one greater than Himself. Here are two things God cannot do—He cannot lie, and He cannot swear by one greater than Himself. These are the two immutable things. These two things have stood through all the past ages, and will stand to all eternity. They are always the same. As God could not swear by one greater than Himself, because He is the greatest of all beings, then He swears by Himself. What for? That the heirs of promise. His children, might have strong consolation. That they may have double assurance of the certainty of the eternal joys and happiness of every little child of God.
There could not possibly be any consolation in the thought that one of the Lord’s children may fall away so as to be finally lost—that one of them might sink down into eternal night, or everlasting perdition. Such a thought would be anything else but consoling. Suppose you could have the certain and sure knowledge that you are a child of God today, but also be assured that you may at last sink down in eternal ruin and despair, could that possibly be any consolation to you? Would it not rather be a terror and a matter of distress and dread to you? But it is not the truth. God has sworn by Himself that He will remember every heir of promise. He has given His oath that you may have strong consolation.
Christ is formed in His children the hope of glory. The anointed Saviour is the only hope of heaven and immortal glory for His little children. The hope of the Christian, the child of God, “entereth into that within the veil; whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus.” Jesus is their hope, and that hope is entered [pg 271] within the yeil. This hope is an anchor of the soul. This anchor is entered upward, “into that within the veil.” This anchor is both sure and steadfast.
The vessels that sail over the seas, on the mighty deep, all have anchors. Those anchors enter downward; but this one is entered upward. In time of storm those anchors are cast and go down deep into the sea. As long as the anchor remains steadfast, or sure, the vessel is secure and all the passengers on board the vessel are safe. If the anchor is sure and steadfast it will not give way. Sometimes those anchors give way. When they do give way, it only proves that they were not sure and steadfast. But this anchor is both sure and steadfast.
The word sure means “admitting of no doubt, condition, qualification, or the like; indubitable; positive;— said of things; as, sure evidence; a sure success. Entirely trustworthy or dependable; certain not to fail or disappoint expectation.”—Webster. This blessed hope is entirely trustworthy; it is dependable. What are you hoping for, dear child of God? Are you not hoping for a better home, a better place, beyond this life, beyond death, beyond the grave? Yes; the hope of the poor little child of God reaches out beyond death and beyond the grave. He is looking beyond these to a better home, a better country—hoping for that. Blessed hope! This hope is entirely trustworthy; it is entirely dependable. It is certain not to fail or disappoint of expectation. There is no doubt about that. If a thing is sure it admits of no doubt; and the apostle says this hope is an anchor that is sure. The safety of the little vessel that is now sailing on the boisterous and stormy sea of life admits of no doubt.
It is true that the Lord’s dear children have sorrows, trials, troubles, distresses, disappointments, bereavements, sore temptations, and dire conflicts all along the rough and rugged journey. The sea of their lifetime and their journey here below is rough and toilsome. Sorrows sometimes sweep down over the soul like billows. The winds of adversity blow hard and fast; the lightnings of persecution flash vividly; the thunders peal loudly, and sometimes in quick succession. Sometimes the waves of trouble roll so high, and the clouds of sorrows and distresses are so dark and threatening, that the poor little trembling child almost gives up in utter despair. How poor and helpless he sometimes feels! But the anchor is sure and steadfast. The little vessel sailing on this boisterous sea is safe and secure. The anchor is certain not to fail, and as the anchor is certain not to fail, then the little child of God cannot be lost. Blessed hope! Blessed anchor! Blessed assurance! What a strong consolation amidst all the storms and trials of this life!
The lightnings of persecution may flash; the waves of trouble and distress may roll high, the clouds may be black, with all their threatenings; Satan, with all his emissaries, may gather together to battle against one of the Lord’s dear little ones, but the eternal God has given them an anchor that remains sure and steadfast. He has pledged under an oath, having sworn by Himself, to engage all His omnipotent powers for their eternal security and safety. They are kept by His power unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time.
Rom. viii. 28-34, And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He did foreknow. He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He did predestinate, them He also called: and whom He called, them He also justified: and whom He justified, them He also glorified. 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 anything 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.
In this text the apostle declares that “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.” This text has often been quoted to prove that all things in existence, and all things that ever transpire, work together for good to them that love God, etc. It is very evident that the apostle means no such thing by this expression, for the simple reason that he tells us in Gal. v. 17 of two things that do not work together. In that place he tells us “For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.” Here are two things that work against each other. They work in opposition to each other. They are contrary to each other. Therefore, they are not working together, but contrary to each other. This is a condition that exists in the life of every child of grace, so that they cannot do the things they would. What would they do? They would hve free from sin and above and without sin. This is the great longing and desire of every child of grace; but they cannot do that, for the simple reason that they still possess the same old sinful nature which they always had. They still have the same fleshly nature to contend with, and on account of still having the same old sinful and fleshly nature, which is contrary to the Spirit, they cannot do the things that they would. They will have this warfare as long as they live in this world. And this warfare within is an unmistakable proof and evidence of the fact that they are in possession of the Spirit, and proves that they are the children of God.
It is also true that God and Satan are not working together. Is it true that God and the devil have formed a partnership business and are working together for the accomplishment of one certain end? Is the devil working together with God, and in harmony with Him, for the accomplishment of the eternal happinesss and glory of the Lord’s children? They must be thus working together, if the expression “all things work together” means all things in existence work together. Nobody but Absoluters believe that expression means that; and, if their doctrine be true, they may ascribe as much glory and honor for their salvation to the devil as to the Father or to Jesus Christ; for, according to their doctrine, the Father, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit and the devil are all working together for their salvation and eternal deliverance—for their eternal deliverance from what? According to their doctrine they are all working together for their final deliverance from the predestination of God; for they say that God predestinated all their sins. Every child of grace knows, when he rightly considers, that this doctrine is not the truth.
If the term “all things” always means everything in existence, when it is used in the Bible, then there is nothing under the sun which does not belong to every child of God in the universe, for the apostle says in 1 Cor. iii. 21-23, “Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are your’s; whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are your’s; and ye are Christ’s; and Christ is God’s.” If one of the Lord’s children should see a stray horse going around he might take the horse up and lay claim to him under the plea that “all things are yours,” according to the Absoluters. But we did not begin to write this article to refute the doctrine of the Absoluters. We have digressed, though what we have said is true.
The “all things” the apostle had under consideration are described and mentioned in the text. In verse 31 he says, “What shall we then say to these things?” What things? These “all things” which are working together for their good. What all things are working together for their good, then? God the Father is for them in foreknowledge and predestination; God the Son is for them in atonement and justification; God the Holy Spirit is for them in calling them out of nature’s night and darkness into the glorious light and liberty of the children of God. The final end and design to be accomplished by the work of these three divine persons in the Trinity is the glorification of every heir of promise.
God the Father knew them in some special sense in which He did not know others. “And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”—Matt. vii. 23. Is there no sense at all in which He knew them? Certainly, He knew them as wicked men, sinful beings; but He did not know them as He knew others. There is a special sense in which He knew others that He did not know these. So, there is a special sense in which He knew this people— the heirs of promise. They were known as His covenant people before the world was; for the covenant was an everlasting covenant. See Heb. xiii. 20, 21. The Father not only knew them in the covenant, but He predestinated that they should be conformed to the image of His Son. This is the eternal purpose of the Father. He has purposed it, and He will also bring it to pass. Thus it is clear that God the Father is for them in foreknowledge and predestination.
Then God the Holy Spirit is for them in calling. The Spirit calls all that the Father knew in the covenant and predestinated should be conformed to the image of His Son. This is the direct and immediate work of the Spirit, and it is accomplished without any human agency or works of men. Thus, the Father and the Spirit are working together for the final salvation and deliverance of every child of grace. The Spirit not only calls them out of nature’s night and darkness, but also preserves and keeps them.
God the Son is for them in making atonement, or in justification. The Son works with the Father and the Spirit. They are working together—not at variance. The Son died for all that the Father predestinated should be conformed to His image—all that the Father gave Him for an inheritance. Thus, the three are working together, and all that these three do works together for one end, which is the glorification in heaven of all those who are called according to God’s purpose. They are called by the Holy Spirit according to the purpose of the Father. They will finally be glorified in heaven, for the apostle emphatically says, “and whom He justified, them He also glorified.” God’s children are all justified. They are “justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”—Rom. iii. 24.
“What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” This is a stronger way of saying that no one can successfully be against them. If no one can be against them, successfully, then they must all necessarily be finally glorified with Jesus in the heavenly world. Since God is for them, then all the powers of darkness combined cannot drag one of them down to eternal night.
If the Father spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for them, will He not also freely give them all [pg 279] things necessary to their final happiness and glorification in heaven? Surely, since the Father gave His dar- ling Son, the darling Son of His bosom, to sufi’er and die for them, He will give all things else necessary to land them safely on the shores of eternal bliss and glory. He is going to see to it that not one of them is lost.
“Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect?” His elect are those the Father knew in the covenant and predestinated should be conformed to the image of His Son. Since all their sins are charged to the Son, who shall lay anything to their charge? “The Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”—Isa. liii. 6. Since the Lord has laid all their iniquity on His Son, now who shall lay anything to their charge? Since nothing can be laid to their charge, how can one of them sink down to eternal night? If one of them should be cast down in everlasting darkness and ruin, they would go there without sin or iniquity, and without anything being laid to their charge. God has justified them. Though they were, in nature, ungodly, yet God justifieth the ungodly.—Rom. iv. 5. Since they are justified by the Lord Himself, then no one can condemn. The law has been satisfied in the person of Christ for them, and therefore the law cannot condemn one of them. And Jesus is making intercession for them; He is praying for them; and the Father always hears and answers the prayer of His beloved Son. They will all finally be with Him in glory, for Jesus has prayed, “Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.”—John xvii. 24. They will all finally be there. We are hoping for that final deliverance.
A short time ago a fellow in Texas asked for some sample copies of THE PRIMITIVE BAPTIST. A copy of a few issues were sent to him containing our articles on this question. It seems that the article “riled” him a little, and he wrote quite a lengthy letter, in which he displayed some temper. He said that we do not have sense enough to pound sawdust into a rat hole. Perhaps not. But gentlemen do not write that way very much. Anyhow, we would rather be a fool for Christ’s sake, and believe what the Lord said, than to be a wise man and be a Campbellite. We do not know what this fellow is, but he writes like a Campbellite. If he is not one, then we would apologize to the Campbellites. Judging from the letter the poor fellow needs regeneration. This is all the attention we shall give him, and we say this only to let him know that we received his blatant effusion. We are not writing these articles for the purpose of debating, but for the comfort and consolation of the Lord’s little children, to give them assurance from God’s blessed word of their security, and of the certainty of their final deliverance from sin and all its dire effects and of their final happiness and glorification with the God of their salvation in the heavenly world.
This week we will begin our article by reading Rom. viii. 35-39:
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.
Could language be any stronger than this? If none of these things, nor anything else, shall be able to separate one of God’s little ones from His love, then how can one of them be separated from that love?
A mother who loves her child would not allow her child to suffer untold tortures and agonies if she could possibly prevent it. The loving mother would “unhesitatingly go into the flames and snatch her child from the flames. “Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.”—Isa. xlix. 15,16. If the mother would unhesitatingly go through fire to snatch her child from the flames, would not the Lord Himself go into the very flames of hell to take one of His children away from that place, if one should get there, seeing that He loves His children with a greater and stronger love than the love of a tender mother?
Could a loving mother be satisfied while seeing her child—the child she bare—suffering agonies and torment? Every loving mother knows that she could not be satisfied while beholding such a sight. “He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied.”— Isa. liii. 11. If the mother could not be satisfied to see her child suffering torments, how much more the Lord of glory would not be satisfied to see one of His children, for whom He suffered, bled and died, suffering in eternal torment; for His love is greater than a mother’s love. Let us state the matter this way:
1. “He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied.”
2. But He could not be satisfied and see one of the objects of His love for whom He died suffering the torments of hell. 3.
Therefore, not one of the objects of His love, not one for whom He suffered, not one of His children, can ever possibly sink down in eternal torment—not one of them can ever go to an eternal hell.
Suppose we should admit that none of the things enumerated in the text can separate one of the Lord’s children from His love, but make the statement, or claim, that they can go away from Him and from His love, and thus sink down into eternal night. If one of them should thus go away from the Lord, would it not be because of the influence of Satan that they thus go away? And if Satan can thus influence one of God’s children to go away from Him, could he not influence others to do the same, if he wanted to? God loves them, and does not want them to thus go away; but Satan influences one to do so, in spite of the Lord. Then, why could he not influence all the others to thus go away from the Lord, if he wanted to do so? It certainly follows that if Satan could thus influence one of the Lord’s children to so depart from the Lord as to be eternally lost, he could so influence every one of them thus to do, if he wanted to. Then, if there should be one that he does not influence to thus depart from the Lord, would it not necessarily be because Satan did not want him? How many, then, would ever be saved in heaven? Would it be any more than just those the devil did not want and would not have? Certainly not. None would ever be saved in heaven, according to that position, only those the devil would not have. We are glad we do not believe such a doctrine, and we are glad the Bible does not teach such.
“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?” This question is asked in such a form as to admit of only one answer, and that is. No one—none. A proposition stated in the form of such a question is the very strongest way of stating the proposition. Hence, the inspired apostle has said, in the very strongest way of saying it, that none—no one—not one—is able to separate one of the Lord’s little children, one of those who have been called out of nature’s night and darkness by the Holy Spirit, one who has been born from above, one who has been brought into divine relationship with the Lord— no one is able to separate one of them from the love of Christ; no one is able to separate one of them from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
In our text the apostle mentions tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril, and sword. Can Satan do more than to bring these things upon the Lord’s dear children? Think of the tribulations of the servant Job; the Hebrew children cast into the fiery furnace; Daniel cast into the den of lions; Joseph tempted by the wife of the king and then cast into prison; think of the saints who passed through the trials mentioned by this great apostle in Heb. xi. 32-38. Let us read it:
And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accept- ing deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: and others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: they were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; (of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.
“In all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.” We remember the day the World War closed. The news was flashed over every country in the world on that day that the armistice was signed, and the firing ceased, and the war ended. There were more glad hearts that day, doubtless, than on any day since the world was made, and perhaps more than will ever be again. Our country and her allies were conquerors. But ‘ ‘in all these things we are MORE THAN CONQUERORS through Him that loved us.” Can you imagine how they can be more than conquerors if one of them may sink down into eternal night?
Dear child, some—yea, even many—of these trials may be yours to endure and to pass through while you are here in this world of sin, trouble, sorrow, distress, sickness, pain and death—but you are at last more than conquerors through Jesus your blessed and adorable Saviour.
“For I am persuaded.” The inspired apostle was fully persuaded of this one fact which he here states. He was confident of this. He was sure of this—and sure of it by divine inspiration. Sure of what? “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.” Dear child, whether you live or die, you shall not be separated from the Lord’s glorious presence in eternity. You can’t ascend so high, or descend so low, as to be separated from Him. If it were possible for you to sink below the depths of the bottomless pits of hell, you cannot sink so low as to be separated from Him. Wherever you may be, the Lord is there; and “in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. “—Psalm xvi. 11. Where the Lord is that is heaven for the Lord’s little children.
If you love the Lord, it is because God loved you first. “We love Him, because He first loved us.”—1 John iv. 19. “Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.”— Jere. xxxi. 3. Since God’s love is everlasting, and He loved you first, then He always has loved you and always will love you; and nothing is able to separate you from Him and from His love. Just as sure as you love the Lord, just as sure, also, as God lives and reigns in glory, just that sure will you, some sweet day, live with Him in the heavenly world—in eternal glory. May that be your happy lot, and may these precious truths comfort your hearts in all your sad distresses here, is our humble prayer. We feel like we could shed tears of joy with you in the sweet assurance of these blessed truths. We do not know that we shall share the glories of heaven with you, but it is our blessed and sweet hope that we shall. Please remember us in your prayers.
THE END