Baptists believe that once you're saved, you're always saved.
Once you trust Christ by faith, you will always trust Christ by faith,
because the Holy Spirit comes to live inside you, and you could never lose your salvation.
This is one of the most important doctrines that we can believe in,
because it is one of the linchpins of salvation by grace, plus nothing, minus nothing.
All other religions teach a religion of do, do, do,
and then maybe God will accept you.
But the Bible teaches that in spite of all you have done,
God will accept you if you come to Jesus Christ by faith,
and trust no one, and trust nothing other than Jesus for salvation.
Because salvation is a work of God's grace,
which He purchased on the cross through the blood of His Son, Jesus Christ.
Romans chapter 8, in this specific passage,
has been often referred to as the golden chain of redemption.
And that golden chain that God has interlocked one with another cannot be broken.
The title of my sermon this morning is
Seven Reasons Why You Cannot Lose Your Salvation.
Reason number one, I'd like you to see it right there in verse number 28.
It says,
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.
The first reason I'd like you to see is the purpose of God.
God has a purpose.
And that purpose that God has is to save His people that He knew before.
I want you to see that right there in the passage.
It says,
We know that all things work together for good to them that love God,
to them who are the called according to His purpose.
You know, the Bible does not teach that only good things are happening
to all people everywhere and in all times and in all places.
But it does teach that all things that are happening
are working together for good to those who love Jesus Christ.
And that's God's purpose.
That God has a people that He has known before.
And that particular people that He has known before,
He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross in their place.
You notice it in verse 29, it says,
For whom He did foreknow,
Now are all people in all places and in all times foreknown?
No.
You say, how do I know if I'm one of these elect?
How do I know if I'm one of these that are foreknown by God?
The answer is real simple.
Do you love God?
Because it says that all things work together for good to them that love God.
God's calling and God's election of a particular people is not a mystery.
It's not that we can't know who those people are, we can.
And we can know who those people are because those people love God and trust Christ.
You'll notice it right there in verse 28, it says,
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 did also predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son,
that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.
You know, it's not a surprise to God when people get saved.
You know, God knows all things even before they happen.
And God knows who His people are even before they trust Jesus Christ.
He knew that before He even founded the world.
He knew that the fall would happen, not through His cause, but through Adam's free choice.
And He knew that through that free choice that Adam made, sin would come into the world.
And that all would be plunged into sin and that they would need a Savior.
But God also knew that not all people would trust that Savior.
But one thing that is very precious to me is that God knows who His people will be.
He knows who the people that will trust Christ are.
This is the resounding testimony of the New Testament,
that God foreknows a people who will be saved.
That when people get saved, God's not like,
Man, I didn't see that one coming.
God knows who people are that are going to trust Him.
It's the resounding testimony of the New Testament that God knows all things.
And He knows who the elect are.
He knows who His people are.
And He is working all things together for good for those people.
If you keep a finger here and you look at 1 Peter 1,
here's what you will read in verse number 2.
Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,
through sanctification of the Spirit,
unto obedience and sprinkling in the blood of Jesus Christ,
grace unto you and peace be multiplied.
Here's what you can learn from this passage,
is that there is a group of people that are called the elect.
It means the chosen.
And those people are foreknown by God.
He knows who they are.
Even before they trust Christ, He knows who they are.
Because our God knows all things,
there is nothing that happens that God stands back
and scratches His head and is dumbfounded
and is like, wow, how did that happen?
Because God is an omniscient God and He knows who His people are.
If you go back with me to Romans chapter number 8,
I'd like to read to you while you're turning there from Ephesians chapter 1.
It says, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings and heavenly places in Christ,
according as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.
God knows who His chosen people are.
And He foreknows those people even before the world was founded.
And since He knows who His people are,
here's what I would like to say to you this morning.
If you're one of God's people,
He knew that you would be saved.
He knew you by name.
He sent His Son Jesus Christ for you to die in your place.
And since God knew who you were and knew that you were one of His
before you even knew that truth,
why would you ever think that you could lose your salvation?
Because God knew that you would be saved even before you did.
God knew that you needed a Savior even before you did.
And God provided that Savior for you even before you knew that you needed one.
And since God did all of that knowing what you needed and making provision for it,
why would you believe that you could lose your salvation?
Salvation is not up to you. It's up to God.
You notice that God has a purpose, and you'll notice what His purpose is right there.
His purpose is to save the people who He knew before.
Notice it there in verse 28.
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.
You notice what God's purpose is.
God's purpose is to conform those who He foreknew to the image of Christ.
His purpose is to conform them to the image of Christ
that Jesus Christ would be the firstborn among many brethren.
Here's the second reason why you cannot lose your salvation.
You'll notice it right there in verses 28 and 29 again.
It is because of God's predestination.
Now I know that people do not like the word predestination.
And I know that it makes people uncomfortable.
And I just want to be clear this morning for those who will lie about me
and say that I'm teaching things that I'm not.
I'm not what people call a Calvinist.
But I do believe the Bible.
And the truth is the word predestination appears in the Bible.
You can't just say, I don't believe in it.
You can't just say, I reject predestination.
So if that's you, I guess take out your marker
and cross that part of the Bible out.
But for me, I'm a Bible-believing Baptist preacher.
I got to do something with this verse right here.
It says, For whom He did foreknow, them He did also predestinate.
Now you may not like that.
That might make you uncomfortable.
But I want you to remember, notice it says that God knew His people before.
And since He knew His people before,
He predestined the people that He knew before
to be conformed to the image of His Son.
So God knows who will and who will not be saved.
And those who He chooses for His purpose,
He predestines to be conformed to the image of His Son.
You'll notice it right there in verse 28 and 29.
It says, And we know that all things work together for good
to them that love God,
to them who are 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.
Now the Calvinists take this verse and they go way off into the weeds with it.
And they say that everything is happening and you have control of nothing
and we don't make any free choices.
That's false.
But then you've got a whole other group of people that say,
Hey, everything happens by random, everything happens by chance,
and it's all about the free will of man.
Both of those positions are wrong.
The truth is that God knows the beginning from the end.
God knows the sheep from the goats.
God knows the believers from the unbelievers.
And He predestined those who He knew before
to be conformed to the image of His Son.
That's what this verse says.
You'll notice it right there in verse 29.
It says, For whom He did foreknow,
them He did also predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son,
that He, meaning Jesus, might be the firstborn among many brethren.
I want you to notice that what we are predestined to is two things.
One, we're predestined to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ.
There's no if, ands, or buts about it.
If you are one of God's people who He knew before,
your destiny is to be conformed to the image of Christ.
Why is that your destiny?
Because God ordained it.
Now, if that's your destiny, to be conformed to the image of Christ,
and to be adopted into God's family, as it says there,
that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.
So if your destiny is to be conformed to the image of Christ,
and adopted into God's family,
and be a joint heir and one of Christ's brethren,
here's my question.
How could you lose your salvation?
If God knew you before, and since He knew you before,
He predestined you to be conformed to the image of Christ,
and since you're conformed to the image of Christ,
you're adopted into God's family,
here's a serious question that needs to be answered
by those who believe you could lose your salvation.
If God predestined it, how can man stop it?
If God predestined that all those who He knew before
would be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ,
how could you stop that?
And I know the answer when you say,
hey, man can't lose his salvation.
People often say, well, I knew someone that lost their salvation.
No, you knew someone who was a good pretender.
You knew someone that was good at fooling other people with their mouth,
but they weren't fooling God.
They went out from us because they were not of us.
If they had been of us, they would have no doubt continued with us,
is what the Bible says.
Because those whom He did foreknow,
them He did also predestinate
to be conformed to the image of His Son,
that He, meaning Jesus,
might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Now does God do this at random
and God just send people to hell?
No.
He saves those who He knew before.
And those who He did not know before,
they make their own choice
and they pave their own road to hell.
This is the resounding testimony of the New Testament.
The word predestination is used again in the book of Ephesians 1.
It says,
According as He has chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
having predestinated us to the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself,
according to the good pleasure of His will,
to the praise and glory of His grace,
wherein He has made us accepted in the Beloved.
Later in that chapter it says,
In whom also we have obtained an inheritance,
being predestinated according to the purpose of Him,
who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will,
that we should be to the praise of His glory,
who first trusted in Christ.
I want you to see that the first reason why you can't lose your salvation
is because God has a purpose
and that purpose is to save those who He knew before.
And since that's God's purpose,
His decree, His predestination, His predetermination,
is that those who He knew before will be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ.
And if God says that they're going to be conformed to the image of Christ,
they're going to be conformed to the image of Christ.
When God says this door is shut, it's shut and no man can open it.
When God says that this door is open, it's open and no man can shut it.
And when God says these people who I knew before
are going to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ,
those people are going to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ.
There's no ifs, ands, or buts about it.
Here's the third reason why you cannot lose your salvation.
I want you to see it right there in the text.
The reason is the providence of God.
You'll notice it there in verses 30 and 31.
It says, 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.
You'll notice that God's providence is God executing His decree in time and space.
Webster's 1828 dictionary defines providence in this way.
The care and superintendence which God exercises over His creatures.
God's providence is God's active bringing about of His decree in time and place.
You'll notice the aspects of it right there.
It says, Moreover, whom He did predestinate,
them He also called.
You know, when God predestines the people which He knew before
to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ,
He calls those people and He does it in space and time.
If you're a believer in Jesus Christ, here's the truth.
You are not always a believer in Jesus Christ.
You were born a child of wrath.
You were born on your way to hell.
You were born in sin.
You were born blind.
You were born without hope in the world.
But then one day somebody came to you and said,
You're lost. You're a sinner and you can't save yourself.
And that person said,
Even though you're lost and even though you're a sinner and you can't save yourself,
there's one who can save you.
And His name is Jesus Christ and He died on the cross for you.
And He shed His blood for you.
And as He hung there and as He died, He paid the penalty that you could never pay.
And He was buried for three days and three nights,
but He rose again from the grave conquering death.
And Jesus says that He has the keys of hell and of death.
And He says, Whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
And in that moment, God called you unto Himself for salvation.
And since you were foreknown and predestined,
and when you were called, you came.
Now maybe the first time you heard that message, you didn't come.
Maybe the second time you heard that message, you didn't come.
But God continued to call you and continued to call you.
And one day the light bulb came on and you realized Jesus died for me, even for me.
That blood that He shed on the cross was for my sins.
That payment that He made was to cancel my debt.
And I'm taking hold of Jesus by faith.
You see that since God foreknew you, predestined you in time and space,
in the right time, with the right voice, in the right way, with the right words.
He said, Come to me.
And you heard the voice of the shepherd calling, and you came.
You notice it right there in the text.
It says, Moreover, whom He did predestinate, them He also called.
You know the truth is the difference between the people that are foreknown
and the people that are not foreknown.
Is that the people that are foreknown, they hear the voice of the shepherd
and they come when they're called.
Both groups are called.
But as the Bible said, Jesus Himself said, Many are called, few are chosen.
Because the difference between the group that is foreknown and the group that is not foreknown,
the difference between the group that is predestined and the group that is not predestined,
is this, when God calls them, they refuse.
It's not because God would not save them.
It's not because God could not save them.
It's that when God extended His hand, and He knew when He extended His hand,
they would refuse it.
And they don't come.
But the group that is foreknown by God, which I hope is you this morning in this room,
when God called and God said, You're lost, but I can save you.
You have no hope, but I can give you some hope.
You need a Savior, and My Son is that Savior.
When He called, you came.
Jesus said in the Gospel of John, chapter number 6,
I am the bread of life, he that cometh to Me shall never hunger,
and he that believeth on Me shall never thirst.
But I said unto you, that ye also have seen Me, and believe not.
All that the Father give Me shall come to Me.
And him that cometh, I will in no wise cast out.
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.
That all which he hath given Me, I should lose nothing,
but raise it up again the last day.
And this is the will of him that sent Me,
that everyone which seeth the Son of Man, and believeth in Him,
may have everlasting life.
And I will raise him up on the last day.
Here's what Jesus said.
He said that there are people that have seen, but they don't believe.
But that there is a group that was given to Jesus by the Father,
because the Father knew them before.
And when those people see Jesus, they come.
And when they come, Jesus gives them eternal life.
And Jesus promises that He will raise them up at the last day.
This is the calling of God.
You see it right there in verse 29.
Moreover, whom He did predestinate, them He also called.
This is like when God calls you and you respond.
This is like when you receive the eyes to finally see
that you're lost and Christ is your only hope.
This is when you finally get the ears to hear,
Oh, Jesus died for me.
It's not just that Jesus died, but that was for me.
And then you respond by faith.
You notice that not only does He foreknow,
not only does He predestinate, not only does He call,
but you notice there that He justifies all those who He calls.
It says, and them He called, He also justified.
This is why people call this the golden chain of redemption.
Because the chain goes like this, link one foreknown,
link two predestined, link three called, link four justified.
And when a person is called and they come to Jesus Christ,
He justifies them.
Now justify is one of those words that we use
and people don't really know what it means.
Let me put it on the bottom shelf for simple people like me.
I'm probably the most simple person in the room.
Here's how my pastor used to describe justification.
He said, justified is when God looks at you just as if I'd never sinned.
Justified is when God looks at you and says, innocent.
Justified is when God looks at you and says, righteous.
Justified is God's righteous declaration that you are innocent
and you have been imputed with the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
It is when God looks at you just as if I'd never sinned.
And then as He takes a second look, He sees you just as if I'd always obeyed.
Now have you sinned? Yes.
Have you always obeyed? No.
But when the blood of Jesus Christ is over you,
when God looks at you, He sees the righteousness of Jesus.
He sees one who can stand in His presence fully righteous,
not because of who you are or what you have done,
but because of what Jesus did in your place.
Notice right there it says, moreover, them He called,
He also justified.
The word justified is when God forgives you of all of your sins
and imputes you with the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
And since God foreknew you, predestined you,
called you, and justified you, you can't lose your salvation.
You can't.
Romans 4, verse 5 says this,
To him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly,
his faith is counted for righteousness.
Even as David also describes the blessedness of the man
unto whom the Lord impudeth righteousness without works,
saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven
and whose sins are covered.
Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.
And when God calls you and you come, you receive full forgiveness.
Not partial forgiveness, not somewhat forgiveness,
full forgiveness for every sin that you've ever done.
Not just for every sin that you've ever done,
but for every sin that you ever will do.
Jesus Christ died for all of your sins, past, present, and future.
Notice not only are they justified,
but then their final destination is glorification.
This is the next link in the golden chain.
You see it right there.
It says this,
For whom he did foreknow, he did also 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 them he also glorified.
Now glorification is when your body is changed
to be like Jesus Christ's perfect body.
When Christ comes on the clouds, the dead in Christ are risen.
And those who are alive and remain will be caught up in the air with Jesus Christ.
And in that moment, in the twinkling of an eye,
our bodies will be changed and perfected and will be rid of sin.
The book of Philippians describes glorification in this way
in verses 20 and 21 of chapter 3.
For our conversation is in heaven,
from whence also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
who shall change our vile body,
that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body,
according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.
Christ will change our bodies someday.
The pain that you feel will be gone.
The glasses that you wear, you won't need them anymore.
The hair that has fallen out of your head, it will come back.
I'm especially looking forward to that one as I continue to lose more hair.
I'm sensitive about that.
Alright.
When God comes, our bodies will be changed.
No more pain. No more cancer.
No more corruption.
No more hurt. No more sorrow.
No more decay.
Because our bodies will be changed to be like Jesus Christ.
And you notice that when God foreknows, when God predestines,
when God calls, when God justifies,
he leads the people that he justifies all the way to glorification.
It doesn't say that they could get off the train and that they lose their salvation.
It says them that he justified, he glorified.
So if you're not glorified in the end, you were never justified in the first place.
If you're lost somewhere along the way, you were never found in the first place.
You say, but I know people that went to church.
Look, you knew a Judas Iscariot, who was a devil from the beginning,
who never believed, but fooled everybody else around him.
Maybe that's you this morning who's been pretending all these years.
Here's what I would say to you.
Come to Jesus Christ in these moments, so that you could be saved forever.
Here's the fourth reason why a Christian can never lose their salvation.
Not only because of the purpose of God, not only because of the predestination of God,
not only because of the providence of God, but because of the propitiation of Jesus Christ.
Now propitiation is a Bible word that people never explain.
And I want to put this word on the bottom shelf for simple people just like me as well.
The word propitiation means a sacrifice that satisfies God's wrath.
The word propitiation means a sacrifice that placates or satisfies the wrath of God.
And you'll notice that right there in the text in verse 31, it says,
What shall we say then of these things?
If God be for us, who could 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?
Here's what this is saying, that if God is for us, since God foreknew us,
since God predestined us, since God called us, since God justified us,
since God is going to glorify us, if God is for us, who could be against us?
And here's the evidence, God gave his own son for us.
And when Jesus Christ hung on the cross, every sin that you've ever done,
every sin that I've ever done, Jesus Christ made a sacrifice
that could satisfy the wrath of God that was upon your sin.
John chapter 3, Jesus said this in verse 36,
He that believeth on the Son has everlasting life.
He that believeth not the Son shall not see life,
but the wrath of God abideth on him.
And before you come to faith in Jesus Christ, make no bones about it.
Don't confuse yourself, don't deceive yourself.
The wrath of God was upon you.
You were headed to hell, you were lost without hope in the world
before you trusted Christ, but the moment you trusted Christ,
the sacrifice that he made was applied to your account.
The moment you trusted Christ, the blood that he shed on Calvary's cross
washed you completely.
So you can't lose your salvation because of the propitiation of Jesus Christ.
For those who believe you could lose your salvation,
what you're saying is the cross wasn't enough.
For those who believe you could lose your salvation,
what you're saying is the blood of Jesus cannot cleanse.
What you're saying is that the stain of sin that was upon our hearts
cannot actually be removed by Jesus because he only made a partial payment.
You see right there that that's not true because it says,
what shall we say then to these things?
If God be for us, who could be against us?
He that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all,
how shall he not also freely give us all things?
Romans chapter 3, you don't need to turn there, but in verse 25 it says this,
whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood.
Romans 3, 25.
Jesus Christ is the sacrifice that could satisfy all of God's wrath
that was on you because of your sin.
And since Jesus Christ's sacrifice did just that,
satisfied the wrath of God that was towards you,
how could you lose your salvation?
Here's the fifth reason why you can't lose your salvation,
the pronouncement of God.
The pronouncement of God.
Now this goes hand in hand with justification that we spoke of earlier,
but Paul revisits it right here in verse 32, or verse 33 I mean.
Notice what it says there.
Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect?
It is God that justifieth.
The word justification is when God looks at you as righteous
and declares you as righteous and declares you as innocent.
And since you have been declared innocent by the highest judge in the universe,
how could you ever be found guilty?
The highest judge of all judges.
There is no judge above him.
The Supreme Court of the United States of America ultimately answers to him
and will give account to him someday, has said you're forgiven if you've trusted Christ.
No one can change that.
The pronouncement of God is that all that trust Christ are not guilty and are righteous.
And you see it right there in the text.
It says who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect.
It is God that justifieth.
It is God that says they're not guilty.
It is God that says they are now righteous.
Who can say anything contrary?
And so I say this morning, if you've trusted Jesus Christ by faith,
who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect?
It is God that justifieth.
Here's the sixth reason why you cannot lose your salvation.
This is such a beautiful reason right here that Christians do not often think of.
It is the prayer of Jesus Christ.
You know, Jesus Christ right now is praying for you and for me.
That's exactly what this passage is teaching.
Jesus Christ's primary ministry right now is to make intercession for you and for me.
He's seated at the right hand of the Father, making intercession for you and making intercession for me.
You'll notice it right there in the text in verse 34.
It says, 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.
To you weary and broken sinner who is striving to follow Christ better,
but often finds yourself coming up short,
and falls under conviction of sin and a realization that you just aren't measuring up.
Here's the hope for you.
Jesus Christ is right now at the right hand of God the Father, making intercession on your behalf.
You know, a Christian is not a person that's perfect.
It's a sinner who's been saved by grace.
A Christian is not a person who never sins again.
It is a person who has an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
A Christian is not a person who never sins.
It is a person that when they sin, they even now have the Son of God praying for them right next to God the Father.
You notice it right there in the text.
Notice what it says.
It says, 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.
Every time that you stumble, when you go to Jesus Christ,
you will find an advocate who will mediate between you and God,
who has been praying for you, who has been continuing to make intercession for you.
It is Christ that is even now praying for all of his people.
Do you think God's going to answer that prayer?
Do you think God's going to say no to his Son?
Do you think God is going to say,
This is the last time I'm going to let you intercede on behalf of this person.
I doubt it because it is Christ that died, yea rather that is risen again,
who even now lives to make intercession for us.
Here's the seventh reason why you cannot lose your salvation.
Because of the power of Jesus Christ.
The power of Jesus Christ.
You'll notice it in verses 35 through 39.
It says,
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?
That's a rhetorical question.
The answer is no one.
The answer is no one can separate us from the love of Christ.
The answer is nothing can separate us from the love of Christ.
The answer is that Jesus loved us enough to die for us.
He will freely give us all things with him.
What can separate us from that?
Nothing.
And since Christ has the power to continue to pursue us and preserve us,
we can't lose our salvation.
You'll notice it right there in verses 35.
It says,
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.
You know, this verse is not promising a happy life of roses and sunshine and puppies as a Christian.
This verse is saying that even when you fall into famine,
even when you fall into tribulation,
even when you fall into distress,
even when you fall into despair,
even when you fall into people trying to seek for your life,
Christ is still holding on to you.
It's not saying that life will be perfect the moment you trust Christ.
It's saying even in the hardships and tribulations,
Christ will still hold on to you.
Who has more power than Jesus Christ?
The answer, no one.
Jesus said,
All power in heaven and earth has been given unto me.
What could separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus?
Shall famine?
No.
Shall nakedness?
No.
Shall peril?
No.
Shall a sword?
And 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.
And as we close today, I want you to see verses 38 and 39 and rest on this.
Rest on this for the power of Jesus Christ to preserve your salvation.
Here's what it is.
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.
Here's my question this morning.
Have you trusted Jesus Christ by faith?
If you have, here's what I want to ask you to do.
Get a full persuasion that nothing can separate you from the love of God that is in Jesus.
There's seven reasons directly from this text why you can't lose your salvation.
Here's my question.
Are you persuaded of it?
Because the truth is, whether you feel like you're saved or not, you're still saved.
But it's a lot better going through life and tribulation and hardship knowing,
no matter what, Christ won't let go of me.
It's a lot better having that full persuasion that Christ will never let go of me.
No matter what happens, no matter what's ahead, Christ is still hanging on.
Life is a lot more tenable when you know that Jesus Christ will never let you go.
For all these people that believe you can lose your salvation, your life must be miserable.
Never wondering if you can measure up or if you've done enough or if you're good enough.
My salvation is in Jesus Christ and it was by grace through faith and I haven't done enough.
And I don't measure up, but I'm fully persuaded that nothing can separate me from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus.
Seven reasons why a Christian can't lose their salvation.
If you missed it, here they are.
Because of the purpose of God.
Because of the predestination of God.
Because of the providence of God.
Because of the propitiation of Jesus Christ.
Because of the pronouncement of God.
Because of the prayer of Jesus Christ.
And finally, because of the power of Jesus Christ.
I hope that you're fully persuaded that nothing can separate you from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus.
Because the truth is this.
Our salvation is eternally secure in the sinless Son of God who lived for us, who died for us, who descended to hell for us,
who was in the grave for three days for us, but rose again with the keys of hell and of death.
My persuasion is that Christ can save all who will come to him by faith.
And that he will raise all who come to him by faith up at the last day.
Jesus Christ is a perfect savior.
He doesn't get half way and then lose his people.
I hope that's your persuasion too.
Let's pray.
Father, I thank you that your son Jesus lived for us and died for us.
Father, I thank you that your son Jesus is even now hanging on to us.
God, I thank you that we can be eternally secure in your son Jesus Christ.
God, I'm thankful that you loved us enough to send Jesus to die for us, even when we didn't love you.
God, thank you so much for a salvation that is perfected in Christ, secure in Christ, and not up to us.
Lord, we thank you so much for that.
In your son's name I pray. Amen.