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.
Philippians 1:6
This is just a sentence in the greeting of a letter to a church that existed well over a thousand years ago, yet the principle behind it brings me endless security. It is called the perseverance of the saints, the last tenant of Calvinism, the ‘P’ in the acronym TULIP. It simply means that once we’re saved, we’ll always be saved no matter what we do. Which means we can’t mess this up! That has always been a huge relief because I am safe no matter what I do. Jesus started the good work in me, and he will finish it. Our salvation is based on Jesus’s life and work on the cross, and he never messed up, not even once!
The work the Lord is completing in us is our sanctification. We will be perfect in our sanctification, fully mature and wide awake. We will be newly untainted by sin yet uniquely enriched by our experiences. We will stand with Jesus at our full stature made holy as God foreknew us to be. Honestly, it will be nothing like we could ever imagine.
The Triune God interacts with each of us, playing a role in helping us part ways with our sinful nature. The thing to keep in mind is the gravity of sin itself and the cost of our freedom. The Bible says and illustrates the cost of sin is death, yet we live! We have abundant life through him now and the hope of eternal life with him in heaven. I’d suggest the name “Perseverance of the Saints” should be changed to The Perseverance of God. He’s the one “putting up” with us.
Jonathan Duncan