Jun 15, 2017

Salvation to the Uttermost


(Heb 7:25Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

Often in our lives, after we experience the joy of salvation, we may get complacent about the grace that the Lord offers us and imagine that we have completed the race. This is so far from the truth! The race is ahead of us - this is why Paul says he is straining towards the mark of the high calling in Phil 3:13-14 and only in the epistle that he writes just prior to his death does he say that he has finished the race that was set before him (2 Tim 4:7). Here's an illustration for the stages of Salvation that Jesus offers us.
Stage 1Stage 2Stage 3
SavedBeing SavedShall be saved
PastPresent continuousFuture
JustificationSanctificationGlorification
Spirit renewedMind being renewedBody shall be renewed
Unable to not sin
(before the new birth)
Able to not sinUnable to sin
Given power to be sons of GodBeing led by the Spirit as mature sonsSons of God revealed in glory

​​
Look again at the verse Heb 7:25 - He is able to save to the uttermost - those that come unto God by Him.

1) Jesus is able to save us to the uttermost - The ability of God is a great relief for us. When paul cries out the cry of despair (Rom 7:24-25) - Who shall deliver me from the body of this death ?!, he immediately is inspired by the Holy Spirit to thank God through Jesus Christ - for that is the key to victory! Jesus is able to save us! Jude 1:24says: Jesus is able to keep you from falling and He shall present you blameless before the presence of the glory of God with much joy! What a loving God ! His joy at presenting us on that day will be much greater than any joy we've seen.

2) Jesus is able to save us to the uttermost - Beloved, the hope for us is that the Lord is able to save us to the uttermost. As I have heard some of the servants of God say - The Lord is able to save the "Guttermost" to the "Uttermost". However dark and sinful and ugly your past was, the Lord is able to bring to completion the salvation plan for our lives and He is able to complete the good work that He has begun in us. (Phil 1:6). In other words, he is able to transform the chiefest sinner before the throne of heaven into a Glorified person who shall live and reign with the Lord Jesus forever enjoying the eternal rewards and a close fellowship with the Lord Himself - IF - he comes to God through Jesus! 1 Samuel 2:8 - In the inspired words of a Godly mother - Hannah, "He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, [and] lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, to set [them] among princes, and to make them inherit the throne of glory"

3) Those who come to God through Jesus - The fullness of salvation is available only to the people who come to God through Jesus Christ. Many people try to come to God on the basis of their works, some on the basis of false human doctrines and philosophies, some through other people and so-called 'gods' and so-called 'saints'. 1 Tim 2:5 reminds us that there is one God and there is one mediator between Man & God - Jesus Christ! In John 14:6 Jesus says: I AM the way the truth & the life - No man comes to the father but by Me. Meaning, Jesus is the only way. He is the only truth and He is the only source of Life. The work of intercession that Jesus does for us is the basis of our standing righteous before God.

Why should we seek another way to save our souls when the Lord says: He is all-sufficient to save us to the uttermost ?!

No comments:

Post a Comment