sanctified by God the Father,
and preserved in Jesus Christ."
Jude 1
Two Christian men were having their own debate. One believed you could be saved and lost again. The other man debated that God, who calls and saves us, also preserves us in Christ. He finally said to the other man, "Our difference is not so much whether we could be saved and lost again. This is the main difference. I believe salvation is God working in us what is well pleasing in His sight. You seem to be saying that salvation is something that we work for."
In salvation through Jesus Christ, God "works in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure" (Philippians 2:13). God calls us and sanctifies us in Christ. Also, we are "preserved in Jesus Christ." Salvation is God's work in us, and He completes what He begins. "Being confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6).
Are you saved and sure by the grace of God in Christ Jesus? If we only look to ourselves, all believers could fall. Salvation and assurance comes from the same source - Jesus Christ. "Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith" (Hebrews 12:2). Our salvation is by God's grace alone. So it is likewise with our security. "Now to Him who is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to God our Savior" (Jude 24-25).
Prayer: Father, we trust You to save us and keep us, through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
