Help for the Journey

Psalm 121 Can a person lose his salvation? I grew up in a tradition that taught me that my will has the last word. God extends his grace to me in the gospel, but I decide whether or not I believe it. That sounded reasonable to me. God offers salvation, and I have the power to accept or reject his offer. But if salvation is ultimately mine to accept or reject, it would seem that it is also mine to hold on to or let go of. If I can reach out and take salvation when it is offered, perhaps I can also drop it later. This means my assurance depends upon my ability to hold on. That is a frightening prospect. There are all kinds of temptations, threats, and pitfalls along the Christian road. You may be excited about your relationship with God today, but can you trust yourself to be equally excited five years from now? What about ten years from now? What happens when suffering comes or following Jesus costs more than you expected? There is a long road ahead. But the fear of losing our salvation is not the main reason to question this perspective. The more important reason is Scripture itself. Paul writes in Ephesians 2:1-5 1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked… But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ Paul does not say we were merely weak and needed a little help. He says we were dead and God made us alive. So It was God all along, not me, that awakened me to salvation. I may have decided to follow him, but it was only after he awakened my desire and ability to do so. That’s good news! And he doesn’t stop there. Paul writes in Phil 1.6 6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. We call this the preservation of the saints, and it is what fuels our perseverence, that is, our walk on the Christian road. This is what Psalm 121 depicts as itgives us a picture of a pilgrim traveling toward Zion. The pilgrim has a destination, but there is a difficult journey between where he is and where he is going. He must take real steps or he will never arrive. At the same time, his confidence is not found in his own strength or skill, or even his determination to get there. His confidence comes from this important truth, stated plainly in verse 5: “The LORD is your keeper.” Not your determination. Not your skill in staying on the path. Not your ability to muster enough courage and faith to keep moving. The Lord is your Keeper. This does not mean the pilgrim has nothing to do. He must walk. In the same way, sanctification requires real steps away from sin and toward God. But our hope that we will arrive does not rest upon our willpower. It rests upon the keeping power of God. We see this in three ways. The Lord is our Helper, our Keeper, and our Guarantor.