1 Peter chapter 1
I struggled with the doctrine of eternal security for years.
I personally think that God allowed me to have that struggle for my own good.
It wasn’t until I had lived a bit of a hard life, and survived my own madness,
that I finally reached that “certain place” where I knew having everything was
nothing if I didn’t have God. And it was then, after being raised in a
Christian home, and having been “saved” and baptized before I was even a
teenager, and depended on knowing my Bible to keep me in line, for reasons I
can’t explain and really don’t know myself, I turned aside and lived in
rebellion. Then, at 30 something years old, I had that epiphany, that
realization that I was lost. That is when I finally gave myself completely to
God. I fell at His feet and asked for mercy. And mercy He gave me. It wasn’t
until after all these things that the Holy Spirit led me through the Scriptures
and showed me these verses.
Here is our promise of the security of our salvation. We see
in verse 3 that we are saved by "His great mercy". We have been
"born again". The resurrection of Christ is the proof to us that we
too will be raised from death. We are "protected by the power of God"
(verse 5). Why are we protected? Why are we born again? Because of our
"faith for a salvation". So the outcome of our faith is the salvation
of our souls (verse 9). And what will this cause us to do? It will cause us to
be "obedient" (verse 14) and "holy" (verse 15) during
"the time of your stay on earth" (verse 17). Because we were redeemed
not by "imperishable things" but by the "precious" blood of
Christ (verses 18 and 19). And so we remain obedient, and "fervently love
one another from the heart" (verse 22) Because this was brought to us by
God's grace and mercy through the "imperishable, living and enduring word
of God" (verse 23). This is the Holy Spirit at work within us. Amen.
The doctrine of eternal security does not become a “license
to sin” if you truly have faith in the risen Lord and God the Heavenly Father. It
becomes one more reason to praise God and to live in total abandon for Him. It
truly does become a “joy inexpressible”.
May you be blessed and may God’s peace dwell upon you.
EV. W. Shannon Caplinger
