Iron sharpens iron, right? I agree with King Solomon (Proverbs 27:17), even if it means a very late night and a very messy next morning. My husband often gets phone calls from friends who simply want to talk about God, His goodness and His indescribable grace. This happened recently – the call came in around 10:30pm from a friend in Alaska. It’s a 4 hour time difference with the east coast, and my husband thought he would be quick – let his friend know he’d call him the next day for a longer chat.
2 hours later…
It was a fun conversation even though I wasn’t part of it! I listened as my husband recalled, with his friend, past Bible study lessons, revelations had, and points made. Scriptures came to mind – renewed, excited fingers were out, and I was reminded of the depths of God’s grace that we haven’t even explored. It was a fun night even though it was about 1am before our heads hit the pillows.
6 hours later…
I try to get out of bed before our 6-month-old forces me out of bed. I prefer to have a full cup of coffee before I start changing diapers, making bottles, and having to utter more than just grunts of acknowledgments. I’m also a bit odd in my coffee preferences. There are days that I reach for a K-cup and other days that I want my French press. It all depends on the strength of the brew required. This was a French press morning… I needed it strong.
There I was, patiently waiting for my coffee to be ready; waiting for the grounds to do their soaking, so I went ahead and poured my creamer into one of my favorite mugs. It’s hand-made, not mass-produced, and the handle is oh-so-comfortable in my hand. It’s the kind of mug with the initials on the bottom of who formed it, colored it, glazed it, etc. I know this because while I was waiting, I decided to turn it upside-down to inspect the initials – completely forgetting that I had just poured my creamer into it.
I was surprised and shocked as I was suddenly splashed with cold creamer. Then I realized what I had done. I found myself holding a dripping mug and now had creamer between my toes. No words came to mind – not even the bad ones. My mind was… blank (obviously, that’s how I came to be standing in a puddle of sticky creamer). Apparently, late nights and early mornings are not compatible with yours truly.
Over the next few days, my husband and I kept going back to the recent phone call that had my next morning doused in sticky drips. Part of the conversation had been about being assured of our salvation, the depths of grace that haven’t even been touched, and the fact that sin is a big fat zero. Basically, they’re all connected, intertwined with each other, and the resultant picture on the tapestry is more beautiful than we can imagine.
You can have assurance of salvation when you believe that salvation is not your doing, but God’s act of redemption in Jesus Christ, conceived before the foundation of the world, carried out by God through the mysteries of His providence in real-time. ~Dr. Michael A. Milton
We can learn from Romans 8 that His Spirit testifies with our spirit that we’re children of God and nothing in the world can separate us from His love. We learn in Ephesians 4 that we’ve been sealed by the Holy Spirit for the day of redemption. In John 10 we’re assured that no one can snatch us out of God’s hand. Hebrews 7 assures us that we have been saved completely! And what about Romans 10?
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:9-13 NIV
Never be put to shame… every single promise in scripture regarding salvation is truth. If it is not truth, then God is a liar and nothing could hold together.
We (myself, my husband, other family members) have been told that we take grace too far. We’ve been told that there has to be a balance between grace and law. Balance is good – I like balance. But balance in grace and law is the same as trying to mix oil and water – they do not mix. It is either that we are saved by grace through faith in His finished work on the cross, or we are saved by our own good deeds, best efforts, and closest attempts at perfection – and we will always miss the mark of perfection. It is either grace or works, water or oil, but can never be both mixed together for assurance of salvation.
Perhaps this is why so many Christians feel that they have no assurance of their salvation. They have been told or are under the belief that they have to perform in order to be accepted. If it is based on my performance, then I have no assurance. If it is based on His performance, then I have assurance that will last for all eternity. Some churches hold a thimble that’s full of water and say that it represents God’s grace. I hold a 5 gallon bucket full of water that represents His grace that I’m in the process of understanding while getting excited about the entire ocean of water that hasn’t even been dipped into yet.
For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. Psalm 103:11-12 NIV
Did you know that the east and west never meet? I may come across as bright, slightly intelligent, and *mostly* sane (then again, I’m sure you recall the beginning of this post in regard to the coffee cream catastrophe), but for a long time, this verse was just another verse that I read without any real impact. So Jesus removed our sins… at least until we sin again… Then what? Does Jesus die again on the cross to pay for any future transgression? No!
First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them”—though they were offered in accordance with the law. Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy. Hebrews 10:8-14 NIV
One time. For all. For all time. If Jesus’ sacrifice wasn’t enough, we wouldn’t have any assurance of salvation, but His sacrifice made sin a non-issue. Sin, all of the things we do wrong and all of the good things we do out of a sense of debt instead of faith (Romans 14:23), is not an issue. God’s initials are inscribed on you, just like my favorite mug has the initials of its maker. And if you’ve placed your faith in Jesus as the atoning sacrifice for your sins, your salvation has been sealed by the Holy Spirit.
Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.” And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary. Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. Hebrews 10:17-23 NIV