Unbreakable Security: God's Power in Our Salvation

Devotional

Day 1: God's Unbreakable Chain of Salvation

Our security as Christians is not based on our own efforts or past experiences, but on the omnipotent power of God who holds the chain of our salvation. This chain is unbreakable and forged by God, ensuring our salvation from eternity past to eternity future. The image of a chain illustrates that our salvation is not something we forge ourselves, but something God holds and strengthens. Our security lies in the fact that God is actively involved in our lives, sustaining our faith and ensuring our salvation. We are not left to wonder if we will make it to the end; God is the one who ensures that we do. [12:05]

Ephesians 1:13-14 (ESV): "In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory."

Reflection: Consider a time when you felt insecure about your faith. How can you remind yourself today that your salvation is secured by God's unbreakable chain?

Day 2: Divine Protection Through Faith

God actively protects us by His divine power through faith, ensuring that we reach the salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Our faith is not something we create on our own; it is a gift from God, sustained by Him. The only thing that can keep us from reaching our inheritance is unbelief, and God protects us from this by sustaining our faith. This divine protection is a testament to God's commitment to His people, ensuring that they are not left to navigate their spiritual journey alone. [02:28]

1 Peter 1:5 (ESV): "who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time."

Reflection: In what ways can you actively rely on God's power to sustain your faith today, especially in moments of doubt or challenge?

Day 3: The Gift of Faith

The key to understanding our security is recognizing that our protection comes from God, specifically through His power. Our faith is not something we muster on our own; it is a gift from God, created and sustained by Him. This understanding shifts the focus from our own efforts to the divine work of God in our lives. It is a humbling realization that our faith journey is not a solo endeavor but a partnership with the divine, where God is the primary actor. [11:51]

Ephesians 2:8-9 (ESV): "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast."

Reflection: Reflect on how you can acknowledge and embrace faith as a gift from God in your daily life. How does this change your approach to spiritual growth?

Day 4: Protection from Unbelief

The only thing that can keep us from reaching our inheritance is unbelief, and God protects us from this by sustaining our faith. Our protection comes from God, specifically through His power, and not from our own efforts. This assurance allows us to rest in the knowledge that God is actively working to keep us in the faith, guarding us against the pitfalls of doubt and disbelief. It is a comforting reminder that we are not alone in our spiritual battles; God is our shield and protector. [16:04]

Jude 1:24-25 (ESV): "Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen."

Reflection: Identify an area of your life where unbelief tends to creep in. How can you invite God to protect and strengthen your faith in this area today?

Day 5: Peter's Lesson in Faith

The life of Peter illustrates that despite our failures, we are kept by God's power through Jesus' intercession. God sustains our faith, ensuring that we reach our inheritance, and this provides us with a profound sense of security. Peter's story is a testament to the fact that even when we falter, God's grace is sufficient to uphold us. It is a powerful reminder that our failures do not define us; rather, it is God's unwavering commitment to us that secures our place in His kingdom. [19:50]

Luke 22:31-32 (ESV): "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers."

Reflection: Think of a recent failure or setback in your life. How can you see God's hand sustaining you through it, and how can you use this experience to strengthen others in their faith journey?

Sermon Summary

Our security as Christians is not found in our own efforts or in the removal of life's challenges, but in the omnipotent power of God who holds the chain of our salvation. This chain, forged by God, stretches from eternity past to eternity future, and is unbreakable. Our salvation is not a result of our own strength or faithfulness, but of God's sovereign work in our lives. He has chosen us, caused us to be born again, and prepared an inheritance for us. God does not leave us to navigate the journey from new birth to inheritance on our own. Instead, He actively protects us by His divine power through faith, ensuring that we reach the salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

The image of a chain is used to illustrate this concept. This chain is not something we forge ourselves, but something God holds and strengthens. It is not our responsibility to create links of faithfulness to connect to our inheritance; rather, God is the one who forges these links. Our security lies in the fact that God is actively involved in our lives, sustaining our faith and ensuring our salvation. We are not left to wonder if we will make it to the end; God is the one who ensures that we do.

The key to understanding this security is recognizing that our protection comes from God, specifically through His power. Our faith is not something we muster on our own; it is a gift from God, created and sustained by Him. The only thing that can keep us from reaching our inheritance is unbelief, and God protects us from this by sustaining our faith. This is illustrated in the life of Peter, who, despite his failures, was kept by God's power through Jesus' intercession.

Key Takeaways

1. Our security as Christians is not based on our own efforts or past experiences, but on the omnipotent power of God who holds the chain of our salvation. This chain is unbreakable and forged by God, ensuring our salvation from eternity past to eternity future. [12:05]
2. God actively protects us by His divine power through faith, ensuring that we reach the salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Our faith is not something we create on our own; it is a gift from God, sustained by Him. [02:28]
3. The image of a chain illustrates that our salvation is not something we forge ourselves, but something God holds and strengthens. Our security lies in the fact that God is actively involved in our lives, sustaining our faith and ensuring our salvation. [11:51]
4. The only thing that can keep us from reaching our inheritance is unbelief, and God protects us from this by sustaining our faith. Our protection comes from God, specifically through His power, and not from our own efforts. [16:04]
5. The life of Peter illustrates that despite our failures, we are kept by God's power through Jesus' intercession. God sustains our faith, ensuring that we reach our inheritance, and this provides us with a profound sense of security. [19:50]
** [19:50]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:12] - Our Security in God
[00:34] - The Power of God Protects Us
[01:13] - From New Birth to Inheritance
[02:28] - Divine Protection Through Faith
[03:14] - The Image of the Chain
[04:11] - God's Unbreakable Chain
[05:26] - The Link of New Birth
[06:11] - Misconceptions About the Chain
[07:31] - The Chasm of Faith
[09:44] - God's Image of Protection
[11:51] - No Safety Belt Needed
[12:34] - The Power of God in Our Lives
[14:18] - Protection from Unbelief
[19:50] - Peter's Lesson in Faith
[21:11] - Gloriously Secure in God's Hands

Bible Study Guide

Bible Study Discussion Guide

Bible Reading:
- 1 Peter 1:3-5
- Luke 22:31-32

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Observation Questions:

According to 1 Peter 1:5, how are believers protected, and what is the ultimate goal of this protection? [02:10]
In the sermon, what image is used to describe the security of our salvation, and what does this image signify about God's role in our salvation? [03:31]
How does the sermon describe the role of faith in the process of salvation, and what is God's involvement in sustaining it? [16:57]
What lesson did Peter learn from his experience of failure and restoration, as described in Luke 22:31-32? [19:50]

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Interpretation Questions:

What does it mean that our security as Christians is not based on our own efforts but on God's omnipotent power? How does this understanding affect a believer's view of their spiritual journey? [12:05]
How does the image of a chain help us understand the concept of salvation from eternity past to eternity future? What does this imply about God's sovereignty? [03:31]
In what ways does the sermon suggest that unbelief is the only thing that can keep us from reaching our inheritance? How does God protect us from this danger? [16:04]
Reflecting on Peter's experience, how does Jesus' intercession play a role in sustaining a believer's faith, even through failures? [19:50]

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Application Questions:

Reflect on a time when you felt insecure about your faith journey. How can the understanding that God holds the chain of your salvation provide comfort and assurance in such moments? [12:05]
The sermon emphasizes that our faith is a gift from God, sustained by Him. How can you actively rely on God to sustain your faith in your daily life? What practices can help you remember this truth? [02:28]
Consider the image of the chain of salvation. How does this perspective change the way you view your past, present, and future in Christ? What steps can you take to align your life with this understanding? [03:31]
Unbelief is highlighted as a significant threat to reaching our inheritance. What are some practical ways you can guard against unbelief in your life? How can your community support you in this? [16:04]
Peter's story shows that failure is not the end, but a part of the journey. How can you find encouragement in this truth when you face personal failures? What role does community play in your restoration process? [19:50]
How can you incorporate the practice of prayer, as demonstrated by Jesus' intercession for Peter, into your life to support others in their faith journey? [19:50]
Identify one area in your life where you need to trust God's power more fully. What specific action can you take this week to surrender that area to Him? [12:34]

Sermon Clips

Our security lies in the fact that we are protected by the very power of God. This sermon was originally preached at Bethlehem Baptist Church on October 17, 1993. You might believe that God is merciful, you might believe that God caused you to, and you might believe that God raised Jesus from the dead. [00:28:03]

God does not leave us to make it on our own from New Birth to The Inheritance. He moves in by his divine power to protect us through life for a Salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. So Peter's goal here is very clear that he wants every believer in this room to experience this morning a profound sense of security. [02:34:81]

The image is a chain, links like this big chain. Your salvation is a chain that extends back into eternity past and forward into eternity future, and it is an Unbreakable chain. Wherever you look on this chain, what you see is God at work forging unbreakable, divinely sustained Links of iron. [03:31:72]

Our security does not lie in removing the criteria of getting to the other side; it lies in the fact that God Almighty holds the chain and God Almighty forges the links. That's what our security lies in. If you have any security at all this morning that's real, it is not by looking back at a past experience. [11:42:18]

Our protection comes from God, or more specifically, the verse says the power of God. We are being protected by the power of God. Connect us with verse 3 now. Last Sunday's message, last Sunday I stressed that you were born again by God. God caused you to be born again, verse 3. [12:28:79]

What is it that at the bottom line is the only thing that can keep you from getting across that chasm, which is another way of asking the question, what must God protect us from if we are to make it across? Death won't keep us from salvation, so we don't need protection from death. [14:03:18]

If God does not undertake to protect us from unbelief, we will perish. Now that provides my interpretation of the phrase through faith in verse 5. If I had not asked you that question and gotten that answer, you might have answered what this means by saying, oh, I see, I believe. [15:59:64]

Faith is the issue. If you don't make it, it's because you don't believe. If you make it, it's because you believe. So what's there for God to do? Sustain your faith. That's what through faith means. He is protecting us by divine power through sustaining your faith. [17:11:54]

The only reason Peter wept bitter tears and ran out and fell on his face and repented is because almighty God moved in in answer to Jesus' prayer. Relevant parents, brothers, sisters, those who are born again are being kept by the power of almighty God through the sustaining of our faith. [19:48:40]

I have prayed for you, Peter, that your faith failed not, and after you have collapsed in sin, you're coming back. I will do it with my father, and you will be a rock, and you will write a letter, and they will preach it 2,000 years from now, and your brothers and sisters will be strengthened. [20:26:64]

The chain of Salvation is unbreakable. It is under the arms of God Almighty. He will complete it and put it together. He has created our faith, and he will sustain our faith, and therefore you are this morning in his hands gloriously secure. [21:57:36]

I'm your host Dan Krueger. Thank you for listening. On our next episode, John Piper will preach on God's design in our distress, the sixth sermon in our 12-part series, god-given hope for Exiles. I hope you'll join us. [22:49:88]

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Unbreakable Security: God's Power in Our Salvation

Devotional

Day 1: God's Unbreakable Chain of Salvation

Day 2: Divine Protection Through Faith

Day 3: The Gift of Faith

Day 4: Protection from Unbelief

Day 5: Peter's Lesson in Faith

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Chatbot

Unbreakable Security: God's Power in Our Salvation

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