Tuesday, March 22, 2011
For Your Information --
I have recently (this year) revamped the below text into a skinny booklet. It's not an official published book, but one I copy at Office Depot and staple together myself, with a pretty cardstock cover! If you desire to have one of these booklets for use in your church, or to give to friends, please contact me at pndoverst@att.net.
Saturday, March 3, 2007
The Permanency of God's Word
INTRODUCTION
The New Testament was written in the everyday Greek language used at the time of Christ. This was the language used by people when they wrote shopping lists, letters, and wills. God chose this very expressive language to tell us His Good News.
Every language has a variety of verb tenses. In English, the tense of the verb mainly refers to the “time,” as in past, present and future. In Greek, the “time” is secondary to the “kind” of action. The present tense is something that occurs continually, such as “I am throwing the ball [over and over].” The imperfect tense is like present tense, except in the past, such as “Yesterday, I was throwing the ball [over and over].” The aorist tense is usually something that happens just once (usually in the past), as in “I threw the ball [one time].”
The perfect tense is more significant. There is no tense in English that has the same meaning. It is used less frequently than other tenses, but when it is used, it is of great importance. This describes something that happened once (usually in the past), that has continuing and permanent effects up to the present time. It would be like throwing a rock into the middle of a pool, with the continuing result that the waves come right up to the edge. The reason God used this tense was to make sure that we understand the security and hope that His plans and promises offer to us today.
As you read through this booklet, each verse reference will have a highlighted verb indicating that is in the perfect tense. It points out something that was done by God, or Jesus, that has permanent, abiding results right up to today. When each verse is read in context with the rest of Scripture, you should have a more well-rounded understanding of His Word.
My prayer as you read this booklet is that you see God’s Word as so comforting that you can wrap it around you as you would a security blanket.
CHAPTER 1
The Permanency of God’s Word
God’s Word was both written and spoken. God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit all worked together through the prophets and apostles to write the Scriptures we have today. Jesus said that His words will not pass away [Luke 21:33]. Holy men (prophets and apostles) spoke as moved by the Spirit [2 Peter 1:21]. All Scripture (both the Old and New Testaments) is God-breathed [2 Timothy 3:16].
The Spoken Word
Christ Himself was called “The Word” [John 1:1, 14; 1 John 1:1; Revelation 19:13]. You may have heard the Greek word for “Word” is logos. This is a noun. The verb form means “to speak.”
Wherever Jesus said in the gospels, “it is said,” followed by an Old Testament quotation, “said” is always in the perfect tense. Jesus emphasized something that was said in the past, and right now, it still applies. It is permanently on record.
After His resurrection, Jesus continued to speak to the apostle Paul to help him in his ministry. When Paul wrote to the Corinthians, he told them that Jesus “… said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you’.”[2 Corinthians 12:9]. What Jesus said stayed in Paul’s mind as a permanent reminder.
The Written Word
God’s written Word is also permanent. The Greek word grapho means “to write, record, or to engrave.” You can see this in our English words, like photograph. Here are three ways this word is used in Scripture:
1. Christ said to Satan, “it is written ” [Matthew 4:4]. Jesus was quoting Old Testament Scripture by saying, “it has been written with the result that it stands written, permanently.”
2. The apostle Paul used the word grapho ten times in 1 Corinthians [1 Corinthians 1:19, 31; 2:9; 3:19; 4:6; 9:9; 10:7; 14:21; 15:45, 54]. He did this to prove the point that all ministry should be based on God’s Word, which is permanent.
3. Jesus told His disciples to rejoice because their “names are recorded in heaven” [Luke 10:20]. You can be sure, because Jesus said it, that at the moment of salvation, your name was written in the Book of Life, and it remains permanently written, forever.
The Word is Permanent
Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever [Hebrews 13:8]. His words will not pass away [Matthew 24:35]. God’s Word stands forever [Isaiah 40:8]. Jesus is God, and all Scripture is God-breathed. God’s words are Christ’s words. Christ is the Word, and His words are permanent.
The apostle Paul was fastened with chains when in jail. So when he wrote to Timothy, he said that “the Word of God is not imprisoned ” [2 Timothy 2:9]. By using the perfect tense, Paul was making the strong point that God’s Word has never been in chains, with the continuing result that it currently is not, and it never will be in the future. Even in today’s world, no matter what anyone does to stop it, God’s Word moves on freely. It is unbreakable [John 10:35], unfailing Romans 9:6], living and active [Hebrews 4:12; 1 Peter 1:23], and and it is permanent.
CHAPTER 2
The Permanency of God’s Love for the Saints
All throughout the Old and New Testaments, God repeatedly demonstrates His love for His creation, in word and in deed. Some people think that God in the Old Testament was a different God than in the New Testament. But He is the same unchanging God [Malachi 3:6; James 1:17].
Both Testaments show His love and compassion, as well as His holiness and justice.
“God so loved the world …” [John 3:16], which is both believers and unbelievers. He has told us that He loved us, not because we loved Him [1 John 4:10], but because of His grace. For the true child of God, His love for us in the pages of Scripture is undeniable. John tells us that love is from God [1 John 4:7]. This is God’s pure love that isn’t just fondness or friendship. His love highly prizes you, because you were bought at a price [1 Corinthians 6:20], with the blood of Jesus.
Here are four ways God tells you how permanent His love is for you:
1. Jesus said that “the very hairs of your head are all numbered ” [Matthew 10:30]. Our English word “arithmetic” comes from this word. God loves you so much that He has taken a permanent count of every hair on your head. And He will take care of your life, your needs, and your soul.
2. The Bible says that believers are “beloved” [Colossians 3:12; 1 Thessalonians 1:4; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; Jude 1:1]. When a sinner believes in Christ as Lord and Savior, from that point on, he is called a “saint.” It means that we are “set apart” from the world for God. God loves each saint with the result that He continues to love them, and never stops. We are “in Christ,” and Christ Himself is also called the “Beloved ” [Ephesians 1:6]. Because God has always loved the Son from before time began, you are also loved in the same way. His love for you is permanent.
3. John tells us that God bestowed His love on us [1 John 3:1], so we’re called His children. Only those who receive Christ have the right to be called the children of God [John 1:12]. God’s love is a gift that never grows old or falls apart, and we can’t lose it. Since we did nothing to deserve it or earn it, there is also nothing we can do to lose it. His love for you is permanent.
4. The Bible tells us that God’s love has been poured out through the Holy Spirit [Romans 5:5] . At the moment you were saved, God’s pure love gushed into your heart through the Spirit, with the result that it still floods your heart. You never have to ask God for His love, or ask for more of it. You can rest assured you already have it. God’s love for you is permanent.
CHAPTER 3
The Permanency of God’s Plans for Jesus Christ
Long before God created the earth, He had everything already planned out for us and our salvation. Paul reminded Titus of the “eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began” [Titus 1:2].
The Old Testament was a “shadow picture” of what would happen in the New Testament. The Jewish people were told by God to sacrifice animals on a regular basis to cleanse them from their sins. The author of Hebrews speaks of the Old Testament priests who offered sacrifices over and over again for their own sins [Hebrews 10:11-14]. But Jesus, who was sinless, made just one sacrifice for our sins.
Let’s look at some of God’s plans for Jesus before the creation of the world:
1. Peter tells us that Jesus “was foreknown before the foundation of the world …” [1 Peter 1:20]. Before time began, Christ was already chosen by God to be the Lamb, the sacrifice in our place. God did not make a last-minute decision to send Jesus as a sacrifice. God made a permanent decision to send Jesus.
2. The following three verses (speaking about Jesus) each have a different English word that is the same word in Greek:
Our English word “horizon” comes from this Greek word. It means “to set a boundary; to mark out definitely.” The first two verses (Luke 22:22 and Acts 2:23) speak of God’s perfect plan for Jesus’ death on your behalf. God determined in the past, with the continuing result that His manner of death would not change. It shows God’s permanent plan of all steps involved in Christ’s crucifixion. God’s love for you is so strong that He planned for Christ to die on the Cross so that you wouldn’t have to die and be separated from Him for all eternity. The last verse (Acts 10:42) tells us of God’s equally strong determination that Christ be the “Judge of the living and the dead.” It was also always in God’s plans that His Son will be the final and permanent judge of believers and unbelievers at the end of the age.
3. Once Jesus was born onto this earth, God had already given Him works to accomplish. John tells us [John 5:36 and 17:4] that God gave Jesus works to do, with the result that these remained His work to do. These works involved preaching the Gospel, preparing for His death, and by doing so, reconciling people to God.
4. Finally, the apostle Peter said that there were witnesses “chosen beforehand by God” [Acts 10:41] to testify of Jesus’ resurrection. This word originally meant “to stretch out the hand to give a vote,” then “to elect” by a show of hands. God elected these witnesses, including the apostles, in time past and nothing would change God’s mind in who the witnesses would be. His decision was permanent.
CHAPTER 4
The Permanency of God’s Works Through Jesus Christ
Jesus reinforced that He is God when He said, “I and the Father are One” [John 10:30]. His work is perfect and permanent.
Scripture tells us that God is Creator [Genesis 1:1; Isaiah 45:12; Hebrews 11:3]. The Holy Spirit is also Creator [Genesis 1:2; Job 26:13; Psalms 104:30]. When we read of Jesus being Creator, Scripture always says that creation was through Him [John 1:3; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Ephesians 3:9; Hebrews 1:2]. God showed Himself through Jesus, and He also showed His creation to us through Jesus. Let’s look at some of the works God did through Jesus:
1. “For by Him all things were created … all things have been created through Him and for Him” [Colossians 1:16]. God, through Jesus, created everything in the universe with the result that they remain permanently created in the present state.
2. The next verse tells us that “… in Christ all things hold together” [Colossians 1:17]. Not only did God, through Christ, create all things, but they are permanently maintained in their present state. At its creation, everything was held together from that moment with the abiding result that all things still hold together. So even though things appear to be out of control in the world, God is always in control.
3. When Jesus was born into this world, He was here as a representative, as the King, of God’s kingdom. When Jesus, and John the Baptist, said in Matthew [Matthew 3:2; 4:17; 10:7; 26:45, 46], Mark [Mark 1:15; 14:42], and Luke [Luke 10:9, 11; 21:8, 20], that the kingdom is at hand , they were telling people that the kingdom had “come near” to earth, with the continuing result that it remained near permanently with His presence. This is similar to when Jesus told the Pharisees that “the kingdom of heaven is among you {or “in your midst”} [Luke 17:21]. This was the Good News.
4. Even before Christ’s death and resurrection, He had already won the victory over Satan. Jesus said that “… the ruler of the world is judged …” [John 16:11]. Satan was already judged in the past, and he remains permanently condemned. The actual “death knell” was at the Cross. Jesus also told His disciples, “I have overcome the world” [John 16:33]. When Jesus said He has overcome the world, He was saying that this is a permanent victory.
5. Jesus lived a completely sinless life. He loved you so much that He “became” sin [2 Corinthians 5:21] on your behalf. As the Old Testament sacrifices were laid on the animal, so were our sins put on Christ [Isaiah 53:5]. As He was dying on the cross, Jesus said, “It is finished ” [John 19:30]. He was saying that He had done everything that His Father sent Him to do, that His work has been finished, and that it remains permanently complete. Because He did the work of paying our debt, there’s nothing that you can do to obtain salvation, except to believe on Him as Savior.
6. As a result of this, the record of your sin was taken out of the way, nailed to the cross [Colossians 2:14]. At the cross, Jesus removed the sin that separated you from God, and it is permanently removed.
7. Festus, while talking to Paul, referred to Jesus as a dead man [Acts 25:19]. In the eyes of Festus and other unbelievers (as well as unbelievers today), Jesus died and remained permanently dead. However, Paul says that Christ died, and was raised [1 Corinthians 15:3,4]. Jesus was resurrected by God with the permanent result that He still lives. He appeared alive before hundreds of people [Mark 16:9; Matthew 28:9, 17; Luke 24:15, 36; 1 Corinthians 15:5-6; John 20:19, 26; 21:1]. And His promise is that in the future, you will be raised from the dead [Acts 24:15; 1 Corinthians 15:22, 23] to live eternally with Him.
CHAPTER 5
The Permanency of God’s Gifts
The Bible speaks many times of things that were given by God or Jesus. These were gifts that were given as a permanent possession. Let’s take a look at some of God’s perfect gifts:
1. Jesus told His disciples that “no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father” [John 6:65]. God’s gift to the sinner is that he is permanently drawn to Jesus by God until he is saved.
2. The apostle Peter said that “there is no other name that has been given under heaven by which we must be saved” [Acts 4:12]. This takes us back to Chapter 3 that explained God’s decision before time began that Jesus would be our Savior. People cannot save themselves through their own good works or good behavior. God gave Jesus Christ to you as your Savior, and He remains your permanent Gift.
3. John said, “See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us” [1 John 3:1]. God gave you the gift of His pure, perfect love, and you will always have it, permanently. You did nothing to deserve His love, but it is by His grace that He gave it to you.
4. Furthermore, John says that “He has given us of His Spirit” [1 John 4:13]. The Spirit was given to you at the moment of salvation, and He never leaves you. He is a permanent gift that proves to you that you are truly God’s child.
5. Jesus also has a gift for us. John tells us “the Son of God has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true” [1 John 5:20]. Christ gave you this gift to understand things about God, through His Word, and this gift is permanent. This way, you may know He is the one true God, and because of Him, through Jesus Christ, you have eternal life.
6. Jesus said, “My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand” [John 10:29]. It is really comforting to know that you, as part of the “body” of believers, have been given to Jesus Christ, and you are a permanent gift that can never be taken away from Him, or from God.
God has given us His drawing, the Savior, His love, and His Spirit. Jesus has given us discernment. Because of this, we ourselves are now “gifts” to Christ.
CHAPTER 6
The Permanency of God’s Salvation
Today, there are many people who say that it is possible to lose our salvation. But just as you receive your salvation by God’s grace, and not your works [Ephesians 2:8, 9], God’s grace keeps your salvation for you. Nothing you do earns your salvation, and nothing you do can lose it.
Remember that the perfect tense tells us of God’s actions and plans in the past, that have present-day results. This should provide even more wonderful security for you when you see the permanency of your salvation in each of the following verses.
1. Through the grace of God, “you have been saved ” [Ephesians 2:5, 8]. At the moment you placed your faith in Christ as your Savior, you were saved [Romans 10:9, 10], and you remain saved, permanently.
2. “You have been born again … through the living and enduring word of God” [1 Peter 1:23]. God regenerated you into a new person, and you will stay that way forever. Your life in Christ is permanent.
3. Jesus says that if we believe in God who sent Him, we have “passed out of death into life” [John 5:24]. At the moment of your salvation, God permanently transfers you into eternal life. And John offers a reminder that “we know we have passed from death to life because we love the brethren” [1 John 3:14]. This change is permanent.
4. Your new life is eternal because it was given by the eternal God through His eternal word. You are now one of “those who have been sanctified by faith” in Jesus Christ [Acts 26:18]. This Greek word means to be “set apart,” and it is the same word that is translated as “holy” and “saint.” Saints are believers who are permanently set apart to God as His possession.
5. Paul tells us that our sin debt has been paid by Christ, that “He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross” [Colossians 2:14]. The removal of that debt has been cancelled permanently, and cannot be presented again.
6. Scripture says twice [Luke 5:20; 1 John 2:12] that “your sins are forgiven you.” Your sins were put away at the cross with the abiding result that they are never remembered against you. Your sins are blotted out permanently.
7. “He who has died is freed from sin” [Romans 6:7]. At the moment of salvation, you are “justified.” You are declared “righteous” by God. (The words “free,” “justified,” and “righteous” are all the same word in Greek.) Your salvation is secure because your freedom from past, present, and future sin is permanent.
8. As a result, Jesus said that we are to rejoice because “your names are recorded in heaven” [Luke 10:20]. Your name was written at the moment of salvation, and it stands written. It is on permanent record.
9. You are secure in Christ because “your life is hidden with Christ in God” [Colossians 3:3]. Your eternal life is a valuable jewel which is permanently and safely deposited with Christ in heaven with God. You are “kept for Jesus Christ” [Jude 1:1]. You are in a state of being carefully and permanently guarded by God as the possession of Christ. You have an “inheritance … reserved in heaven for you” [1 Peter 1:4]. Heaven is the “safe deposit box” where God is permanently guarding your inheritance. It is secured in the hands of Christ.
10. Finally, Jesus said, “I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand” [John 10:28, 29]. The English word “never” in Greek is even more emphatic. It could be translated as “not ever” or “by no means ever.” You were given to Christ by God, and you remain eternally in His care. Your salvation is secure because God’s power to keep you is permanent.
CHAPTER 7
The Permanency of the Results of God’s Salvation in the Saints
The apostles who spent time with Jesus, as well as Paul who had experiences with the risen Christ, all had lasting effects in their lives as a result of trusting in Him as their Savior.
The apostle John speaks repeatedly of what he and the other apostles had heard and seen [1 John 1:1, 2, 3, and 5]. He wrote this letter approximately 60 years after Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. What he and the other apostles heard was so powerful that, 60 years later, it was permanently ringing in their ears. What they saw was so impressive that it remained permanently embedded in their mind’s eye.
The result for Paul was that he was permanently convinced of many things, such as, he was “convinced that neither death, nor life … will be able to separate us from the love of God” [Romans 8:38].
For all other believers, in the New Testament times, as well as us today, at the moment of salvation, there are abiding permanent results of our salvation. Here are three examples that show us what we obtain from God when we’re saved:
1. We are “rooted and grounded in love” [Ephesians 3:17]. The love that God gives you, through the Spirit [Romans 5:5] causes you to be permanently rooted into His love, like tree roots into the ground for nourishment. You are also permanently grounded into His love, as a building on a solid cement foundation.
2. “In Him you have been made complete” [Colossians 2:10]. Because all the fullness of God dwells bodily within Christ [Colossians 2:9], and you are in Christ, at salvation, you are permanently complete in Him. You don’t need to look to your own human strength (or anyone else’s), or any other world philosophy or religion. Christ alone is your completion.
3. “His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness … He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises …” [2 Peter 1:3, 4]. At the moment of your salvation, you were given these gifts, permanently. You cannot lose them. God’s power gives you everything you need to continue to grow in strength in your faith. His promises are your eternal life, your resurrection, Christ’s 2nd Coming, the new heavens and new earth, and the eternal Kingdom.
CHAPTER 8
The Permanency of God’s Justice
In the first 7 chapters, you’ve seen how God shows His love to His children in many ways. Many people today focus only on the fact that “God is love.” Which is true, because Scripture does say just that [1 John 4:8].
However, many people choose to ignore the fact that Scripture also says that God is holy and just. In fact, His holiness is His primary attribute. He has made it clear that, as much as He loves His creation, He will not tolerate sin and rebelliousness in His eternal Kingdom. Scripture also specifies [1 John 5:11, 12] that our eternal life comes only through His Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus is the only way for us to enter into God’s heaven [John 15:6]. Let’s look at four verses that focus on the current condition of unbelievers, and their future without God:
1. Scripture says that “all things are laid bare before God” [Hebrews 4:13]. Our English word “trachea” comes from this Greek word (referring to our throat). It means “to bend the neck back” to expose it, as when an animal is slain. This refers back to verse 12 with respect to the word of God being like a sword, dividing the soul and spirit. We are all like an animal whose neck is ready for the knife of sacrifice (as in the Old Testament sacrifices). This is the permanent exposure of all creation to God. The only reason believers are no longer in that position is because Christ took our place and our judgment at the Cross.
2. Jesus speaks of a “great chasm fixed ” [Luke 16:26]. In the Old Testament, believers in God went to Paradise when they died. When unbelievers died, they went to Sheol. In the New Testament, the name for that is Hades. Jesus tells us that there is a chasm that stands permanently placed between Hades and Paradise. At Christ’s ascension to heaven, He took believers from Paradise directly to heaven with Him [Ephesians 4:8], and today, believers go directly to be with the Lord upon their death. But when unbelievers die, they do not go to heaven. They go to Hades. And nobody ever gets out of Hades until the final resurrection of the dead and their judgment [Revelation 20:13], at which time it is thrown into the Lake of Fire.
3. Jesus tells us that there is a fire prepared for the devil [Matthew 25:41]. In time past, God already had this place permanently ready and waiting for Satan. Sadly, this is also the future eternity for unbelievers who have refused Christ as their Savior [Revelation 20:14].
4. “Anyone’s name not found written in the Book of Life is cast into the Lake of Fire” [Revelation 20:15]. Remember that in this book’s Chapter 6, believers can rejoice because their names are recorded in heaven [Luke 10:20]. The same Greek word is used here in relation to unbelievers whose names are NOT written in the Book of Life. This means that, just as the eternity of believers is permanently settled in heaven, so is the eternity of unbelievers permanently settled in hell.
Keep this in mind. God’s love for His children is permanent. And His judgment against those who reject His Son is permanent.
CONCLUSION
You have read about how much God loves you, and planned for you. You know that Christ always existed, died in your place, and took your sins upon Himself. Can you now believe in Him for your salvation? Do you feel God drawing you to Him? Don’t harden your heart [Hebrews 4:7]. Now is the day [2 Corinthians 6:2]. Tomorrow might be too late.
Be sure you understand what sin is. The Greek word for sin means “to miss the mark.” It’s like shooting an arrow at a bullseye, and missing the target completely. It means that nobody can ever be good enough, or do enough good works [Psalm 14:3; Romans 3:23], to be with God in heaven because He will not have anyone sinful in heaven.
Be sure you understand Who Jesus is and why you need Him as your Savior. Jesus’ existence didn’t begin at His birth in the manger. He always existed, with God, and as God [John 1:1,2; 10:30]. He is the theme of the entire Bible. Remember that Chapter 3 explained about the Old Testament priests who offered sacrifices for sins repeatedly. Jesus was sinless [Hebrews 6:26,27] and made just one sacrifice for our sins. He was temporarily separated from God on the cross on our behalf, so that we would not be eternally separated from God after we die.
Jesus told the disciples [Luke 24:27, 44] of all the Old Testament prophecies concerning Himself, as well as all His appearances in the Old Testament as The Angel of the Lord [for example, in Exodus 3:2 and 14:19]. There are over 300 prophecies in the Old Testament about both His 1st Coming and His 2nd Coming. He alone fulfilled all the prophecies about His birth, death, and resurrection. So we can also believe that Jesus told the truth that He would come back for believers at the Rapture [John 14:2,3; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17], and that He will come back to earth at the end of the Tribulation to reign on earth [Matthew 24:29-30] for 1,000 years, and then for all eternity [Revelation, Chapters 19-21].
Jesus said, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent” [John 6:28, 29]. He also said, “This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life, and I will raise him up at the last day” [John 6:39, 40]. This is the belief that will save you and keep you saved.
The book of Romans contains what is called the “Roman Road” to salvation. There are four primary verses that explain what you need to know to be saved.
The New Testament was written in the everyday Greek language used at the time of Christ. This was the language used by people when they wrote shopping lists, letters, and wills. God chose this very expressive language to tell us His Good News.
Every language has a variety of verb tenses. In English, the tense of the verb mainly refers to the “time,” as in past, present and future. In Greek, the “time” is secondary to the “kind” of action. The present tense is something that occurs continually, such as “I am throwing the ball [over and over].” The imperfect tense is like present tense, except in the past, such as “Yesterday, I was throwing the ball [over and over].” The aorist tense is usually something that happens just once (usually in the past), as in “I threw the ball [one time].”
The perfect tense is more significant. There is no tense in English that has the same meaning. It is used less frequently than other tenses, but when it is used, it is of great importance. This describes something that happened once (usually in the past), that has continuing and permanent effects up to the present time. It would be like throwing a rock into the middle of a pool, with the continuing result that the waves come right up to the edge. The reason God used this tense was to make sure that we understand the security and hope that His plans and promises offer to us today.
As you read through this booklet, each verse reference will have a highlighted verb indicating that is in the perfect tense. It points out something that was done by God, or Jesus, that has permanent, abiding results right up to today. When each verse is read in context with the rest of Scripture, you should have a more well-rounded understanding of His Word.
My prayer as you read this booklet is that you see God’s Word as so comforting that you can wrap it around you as you would a security blanket.
CHAPTER 1
The Permanency of God’s Word
God’s Word was both written and spoken. God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit all worked together through the prophets and apostles to write the Scriptures we have today. Jesus said that His words will not pass away [Luke 21:33]. Holy men (prophets and apostles) spoke as moved by the Spirit [2 Peter 1:21]. All Scripture (both the Old and New Testaments) is God-breathed [2 Timothy 3:16].
The Spoken Word
Christ Himself was called “The Word” [John 1:1, 14; 1 John 1:1; Revelation 19:13]. You may have heard the Greek word for “Word” is logos. This is a noun. The verb form means “to speak.”
Wherever Jesus said in the gospels, “it is said,” followed by an Old Testament quotation, “said” is always in the perfect tense. Jesus emphasized something that was said in the past, and right now, it still applies. It is permanently on record.
After His resurrection, Jesus continued to speak to the apostle Paul to help him in his ministry. When Paul wrote to the Corinthians, he told them that Jesus “… said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you’.”[2 Corinthians 12:9]. What Jesus said stayed in Paul’s mind as a permanent reminder.
The Written Word
God’s written Word is also permanent. The Greek word grapho means “to write, record, or to engrave.” You can see this in our English words, like photograph. Here are three ways this word is used in Scripture:
1. Christ said to Satan, “it is written ” [Matthew 4:4]. Jesus was quoting Old Testament Scripture by saying, “it has been written with the result that it stands written, permanently.”
2. The apostle Paul used the word grapho ten times in 1 Corinthians [1 Corinthians 1:19, 31; 2:9; 3:19; 4:6; 9:9; 10:7; 14:21; 15:45, 54]. He did this to prove the point that all ministry should be based on God’s Word, which is permanent.
3. Jesus told His disciples to rejoice because their “names are recorded in heaven” [Luke 10:20]. You can be sure, because Jesus said it, that at the moment of salvation, your name was written in the Book of Life, and it remains permanently written, forever.
The Word is Permanent
Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever [Hebrews 13:8]. His words will not pass away [Matthew 24:35]. God’s Word stands forever [Isaiah 40:8]. Jesus is God, and all Scripture is God-breathed. God’s words are Christ’s words. Christ is the Word, and His words are permanent.
The apostle Paul was fastened with chains when in jail. So when he wrote to Timothy, he said that “the Word of God is not imprisoned ” [2 Timothy 2:9]. By using the perfect tense, Paul was making the strong point that God’s Word has never been in chains, with the continuing result that it currently is not, and it never will be in the future. Even in today’s world, no matter what anyone does to stop it, God’s Word moves on freely. It is unbreakable [John 10:35], unfailing Romans 9:6], living and active [Hebrews 4:12; 1 Peter 1:23], and and it is permanent.
CHAPTER 2
The Permanency of God’s Love for the Saints
All throughout the Old and New Testaments, God repeatedly demonstrates His love for His creation, in word and in deed. Some people think that God in the Old Testament was a different God than in the New Testament. But He is the same unchanging God [Malachi 3:6; James 1:17].
Both Testaments show His love and compassion, as well as His holiness and justice.
“God so loved the world …” [John 3:16], which is both believers and unbelievers. He has told us that He loved us, not because we loved Him [1 John 4:10], but because of His grace. For the true child of God, His love for us in the pages of Scripture is undeniable. John tells us that love is from God [1 John 4:7]. This is God’s pure love that isn’t just fondness or friendship. His love highly prizes you, because you were bought at a price [1 Corinthians 6:20], with the blood of Jesus.
Here are four ways God tells you how permanent His love is for you:
1. Jesus said that “the very hairs of your head are all numbered ” [Matthew 10:30]. Our English word “arithmetic” comes from this word. God loves you so much that He has taken a permanent count of every hair on your head. And He will take care of your life, your needs, and your soul.
2. The Bible says that believers are “beloved” [Colossians 3:12; 1 Thessalonians 1:4; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; Jude 1:1]. When a sinner believes in Christ as Lord and Savior, from that point on, he is called a “saint.” It means that we are “set apart” from the world for God. God loves each saint with the result that He continues to love them, and never stops. We are “in Christ,” and Christ Himself is also called the “Beloved ” [Ephesians 1:6]. Because God has always loved the Son from before time began, you are also loved in the same way. His love for you is permanent.
3. John tells us that God bestowed His love on us [1 John 3:1], so we’re called His children. Only those who receive Christ have the right to be called the children of God [John 1:12]. God’s love is a gift that never grows old or falls apart, and we can’t lose it. Since we did nothing to deserve it or earn it, there is also nothing we can do to lose it. His love for you is permanent.
4. The Bible tells us that God’s love has been poured out through the Holy Spirit [Romans 5:5] . At the moment you were saved, God’s pure love gushed into your heart through the Spirit, with the result that it still floods your heart. You never have to ask God for His love, or ask for more of it. You can rest assured you already have it. God’s love for you is permanent.
CHAPTER 3
The Permanency of God’s Plans for Jesus Christ
Long before God created the earth, He had everything already planned out for us and our salvation. Paul reminded Titus of the “eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began” [Titus 1:2].
The Old Testament was a “shadow picture” of what would happen in the New Testament. The Jewish people were told by God to sacrifice animals on a regular basis to cleanse them from their sins. The author of Hebrews speaks of the Old Testament priests who offered sacrifices over and over again for their own sins [Hebrews 10:11-14]. But Jesus, who was sinless, made just one sacrifice for our sins.
Let’s look at some of God’s plans for Jesus before the creation of the world:
1. Peter tells us that Jesus “was foreknown before the foundation of the world …” [1 Peter 1:20]. Before time began, Christ was already chosen by God to be the Lamb, the sacrifice in our place. God did not make a last-minute decision to send Jesus as a sacrifice. God made a permanent decision to send Jesus.
2. The following three verses (speaking about Jesus) each have a different English word that is the same word in Greek:
- “The Son of Man is going as it has been determined …” [Luke 22:22]
- “… this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God …” [Acts 2:23]
- “… the One who has been appointed …” [Acts 10:42]
Our English word “horizon” comes from this Greek word. It means “to set a boundary; to mark out definitely.” The first two verses (Luke 22:22 and Acts 2:23) speak of God’s perfect plan for Jesus’ death on your behalf. God determined in the past, with the continuing result that His manner of death would not change. It shows God’s permanent plan of all steps involved in Christ’s crucifixion. God’s love for you is so strong that He planned for Christ to die on the Cross so that you wouldn’t have to die and be separated from Him for all eternity. The last verse (Acts 10:42) tells us of God’s equally strong determination that Christ be the “Judge of the living and the dead.” It was also always in God’s plans that His Son will be the final and permanent judge of believers and unbelievers at the end of the age.
3. Once Jesus was born onto this earth, God had already given Him works to accomplish. John tells us [John 5:36 and 17:4] that God gave Jesus works to do, with the result that these remained His work to do. These works involved preaching the Gospel, preparing for His death, and by doing so, reconciling people to God.
4. Finally, the apostle Peter said that there were witnesses “chosen beforehand by God” [Acts 10:41] to testify of Jesus’ resurrection. This word originally meant “to stretch out the hand to give a vote,” then “to elect” by a show of hands. God elected these witnesses, including the apostles, in time past and nothing would change God’s mind in who the witnesses would be. His decision was permanent.
CHAPTER 4
The Permanency of God’s Works Through Jesus Christ
Jesus reinforced that He is God when He said, “I and the Father are One” [John 10:30]. His work is perfect and permanent.
Scripture tells us that God is Creator [Genesis 1:1; Isaiah 45:12; Hebrews 11:3]. The Holy Spirit is also Creator [Genesis 1:2; Job 26:13; Psalms 104:30]. When we read of Jesus being Creator, Scripture always says that creation was through Him [John 1:3; 1 Corinthians 8:6; Ephesians 3:9; Hebrews 1:2]. God showed Himself through Jesus, and He also showed His creation to us through Jesus. Let’s look at some of the works God did through Jesus:
1. “For by Him all things were created … all things have been created through Him and for Him” [Colossians 1:16]. God, through Jesus, created everything in the universe with the result that they remain permanently created in the present state.
2. The next verse tells us that “… in Christ all things hold together” [Colossians 1:17]. Not only did God, through Christ, create all things, but they are permanently maintained in their present state. At its creation, everything was held together from that moment with the abiding result that all things still hold together. So even though things appear to be out of control in the world, God is always in control.
3. When Jesus was born into this world, He was here as a representative, as the King, of God’s kingdom. When Jesus, and John the Baptist, said in Matthew [Matthew 3:2; 4:17; 10:7; 26:45, 46], Mark [Mark 1:15; 14:42], and Luke [Luke 10:9, 11; 21:8, 20], that the kingdom is at hand , they were telling people that the kingdom had “come near” to earth, with the continuing result that it remained near permanently with His presence. This is similar to when Jesus told the Pharisees that “the kingdom of heaven is among you {or “in your midst”} [Luke 17:21]. This was the Good News.
4. Even before Christ’s death and resurrection, He had already won the victory over Satan. Jesus said that “… the ruler of the world is judged …” [John 16:11]. Satan was already judged in the past, and he remains permanently condemned. The actual “death knell” was at the Cross. Jesus also told His disciples, “I have overcome the world” [John 16:33]. When Jesus said He has overcome the world, He was saying that this is a permanent victory.
5. Jesus lived a completely sinless life. He loved you so much that He “became” sin [2 Corinthians 5:21] on your behalf. As the Old Testament sacrifices were laid on the animal, so were our sins put on Christ [Isaiah 53:5]. As He was dying on the cross, Jesus said, “It is finished ” [John 19:30]. He was saying that He had done everything that His Father sent Him to do, that His work has been finished, and that it remains permanently complete. Because He did the work of paying our debt, there’s nothing that you can do to obtain salvation, except to believe on Him as Savior.
6. As a result of this, the record of your sin was taken out of the way, nailed to the cross [Colossians 2:14]. At the cross, Jesus removed the sin that separated you from God, and it is permanently removed.
7. Festus, while talking to Paul, referred to Jesus as a dead man [Acts 25:19]. In the eyes of Festus and other unbelievers (as well as unbelievers today), Jesus died and remained permanently dead. However, Paul says that Christ died, and was raised [1 Corinthians 15:3,4]. Jesus was resurrected by God with the permanent result that He still lives. He appeared alive before hundreds of people [Mark 16:9; Matthew 28:9, 17; Luke 24:15, 36; 1 Corinthians 15:5-6; John 20:19, 26; 21:1]. And His promise is that in the future, you will be raised from the dead [Acts 24:15; 1 Corinthians 15:22, 23] to live eternally with Him.
CHAPTER 5
The Permanency of God’s Gifts
The Bible speaks many times of things that were given by God or Jesus. These were gifts that were given as a permanent possession. Let’s take a look at some of God’s perfect gifts:
1. Jesus told His disciples that “no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father” [John 6:65]. God’s gift to the sinner is that he is permanently drawn to Jesus by God until he is saved.
2. The apostle Peter said that “there is no other name that has been given under heaven by which we must be saved” [Acts 4:12]. This takes us back to Chapter 3 that explained God’s decision before time began that Jesus would be our Savior. People cannot save themselves through their own good works or good behavior. God gave Jesus Christ to you as your Savior, and He remains your permanent Gift.
3. John said, “See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us” [1 John 3:1]. God gave you the gift of His pure, perfect love, and you will always have it, permanently. You did nothing to deserve His love, but it is by His grace that He gave it to you.
4. Furthermore, John says that “He has given us of His Spirit” [1 John 4:13]. The Spirit was given to you at the moment of salvation, and He never leaves you. He is a permanent gift that proves to you that you are truly God’s child.
5. Jesus also has a gift for us. John tells us “the Son of God has given us understanding, so that we may know Him who is true” [1 John 5:20]. Christ gave you this gift to understand things about God, through His Word, and this gift is permanent. This way, you may know He is the one true God, and because of Him, through Jesus Christ, you have eternal life.
6. Jesus said, “My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand” [John 10:29]. It is really comforting to know that you, as part of the “body” of believers, have been given to Jesus Christ, and you are a permanent gift that can never be taken away from Him, or from God.
God has given us His drawing, the Savior, His love, and His Spirit. Jesus has given us discernment. Because of this, we ourselves are now “gifts” to Christ.
CHAPTER 6
The Permanency of God’s Salvation
Today, there are many people who say that it is possible to lose our salvation. But just as you receive your salvation by God’s grace, and not your works [Ephesians 2:8, 9], God’s grace keeps your salvation for you. Nothing you do earns your salvation, and nothing you do can lose it.
Remember that the perfect tense tells us of God’s actions and plans in the past, that have present-day results. This should provide even more wonderful security for you when you see the permanency of your salvation in each of the following verses.
1. Through the grace of God, “you have been saved ” [Ephesians 2:5, 8]. At the moment you placed your faith in Christ as your Savior, you were saved [Romans 10:9, 10], and you remain saved, permanently.
2. “You have been born again … through the living and enduring word of God” [1 Peter 1:23]. God regenerated you into a new person, and you will stay that way forever. Your life in Christ is permanent.
3. Jesus says that if we believe in God who sent Him, we have “passed out of death into life” [John 5:24]. At the moment of your salvation, God permanently transfers you into eternal life. And John offers a reminder that “we know we have passed from death to life because we love the brethren” [1 John 3:14]. This change is permanent.
4. Your new life is eternal because it was given by the eternal God through His eternal word. You are now one of “those who have been sanctified by faith” in Jesus Christ [Acts 26:18]. This Greek word means to be “set apart,” and it is the same word that is translated as “holy” and “saint.” Saints are believers who are permanently set apart to God as His possession.
5. Paul tells us that our sin debt has been paid by Christ, that “He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross” [Colossians 2:14]. The removal of that debt has been cancelled permanently, and cannot be presented again.
6. Scripture says twice [Luke 5:20; 1 John 2:12] that “your sins are forgiven you.” Your sins were put away at the cross with the abiding result that they are never remembered against you. Your sins are blotted out permanently.
7. “He who has died is freed from sin” [Romans 6:7]. At the moment of salvation, you are “justified.” You are declared “righteous” by God. (The words “free,” “justified,” and “righteous” are all the same word in Greek.) Your salvation is secure because your freedom from past, present, and future sin is permanent.
8. As a result, Jesus said that we are to rejoice because “your names are recorded in heaven” [Luke 10:20]. Your name was written at the moment of salvation, and it stands written. It is on permanent record.
9. You are secure in Christ because “your life is hidden with Christ in God” [Colossians 3:3]. Your eternal life is a valuable jewel which is permanently and safely deposited with Christ in heaven with God. You are “kept for Jesus Christ” [Jude 1:1]. You are in a state of being carefully and permanently guarded by God as the possession of Christ. You have an “inheritance … reserved in heaven for you” [1 Peter 1:4]. Heaven is the “safe deposit box” where God is permanently guarding your inheritance. It is secured in the hands of Christ.
10. Finally, Jesus said, “I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand” [John 10:28, 29]. The English word “never” in Greek is even more emphatic. It could be translated as “not ever” or “by no means ever.” You were given to Christ by God, and you remain eternally in His care. Your salvation is secure because God’s power to keep you is permanent.
CHAPTER 7
The Permanency of the Results of God’s Salvation in the Saints
The apostles who spent time with Jesus, as well as Paul who had experiences with the risen Christ, all had lasting effects in their lives as a result of trusting in Him as their Savior.
The apostle John speaks repeatedly of what he and the other apostles had heard and seen [1 John 1:1, 2, 3, and 5]. He wrote this letter approximately 60 years after Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. What he and the other apostles heard was so powerful that, 60 years later, it was permanently ringing in their ears. What they saw was so impressive that it remained permanently embedded in their mind’s eye.
The result for Paul was that he was permanently convinced of many things, such as, he was “convinced that neither death, nor life … will be able to separate us from the love of God” [Romans 8:38].
For all other believers, in the New Testament times, as well as us today, at the moment of salvation, there are abiding permanent results of our salvation. Here are three examples that show us what we obtain from God when we’re saved:
1. We are “rooted and grounded in love” [Ephesians 3:17]. The love that God gives you, through the Spirit [Romans 5:5] causes you to be permanently rooted into His love, like tree roots into the ground for nourishment. You are also permanently grounded into His love, as a building on a solid cement foundation.
2. “In Him you have been made complete” [Colossians 2:10]. Because all the fullness of God dwells bodily within Christ [Colossians 2:9], and you are in Christ, at salvation, you are permanently complete in Him. You don’t need to look to your own human strength (or anyone else’s), or any other world philosophy or religion. Christ alone is your completion.
3. “His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness … He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises …” [2 Peter 1:3, 4]. At the moment of your salvation, you were given these gifts, permanently. You cannot lose them. God’s power gives you everything you need to continue to grow in strength in your faith. His promises are your eternal life, your resurrection, Christ’s 2nd Coming, the new heavens and new earth, and the eternal Kingdom.
CHAPTER 8
The Permanency of God’s Justice
In the first 7 chapters, you’ve seen how God shows His love to His children in many ways. Many people today focus only on the fact that “God is love.” Which is true, because Scripture does say just that [1 John 4:8].
However, many people choose to ignore the fact that Scripture also says that God is holy and just. In fact, His holiness is His primary attribute. He has made it clear that, as much as He loves His creation, He will not tolerate sin and rebelliousness in His eternal Kingdom. Scripture also specifies [1 John 5:11, 12] that our eternal life comes only through His Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus is the only way for us to enter into God’s heaven [John 15:6]. Let’s look at four verses that focus on the current condition of unbelievers, and their future without God:
1. Scripture says that “all things are laid bare before God” [Hebrews 4:13]. Our English word “trachea” comes from this Greek word (referring to our throat). It means “to bend the neck back” to expose it, as when an animal is slain. This refers back to verse 12 with respect to the word of God being like a sword, dividing the soul and spirit. We are all like an animal whose neck is ready for the knife of sacrifice (as in the Old Testament sacrifices). This is the permanent exposure of all creation to God. The only reason believers are no longer in that position is because Christ took our place and our judgment at the Cross.
2. Jesus speaks of a “great chasm fixed ” [Luke 16:26]. In the Old Testament, believers in God went to Paradise when they died. When unbelievers died, they went to Sheol. In the New Testament, the name for that is Hades. Jesus tells us that there is a chasm that stands permanently placed between Hades and Paradise. At Christ’s ascension to heaven, He took believers from Paradise directly to heaven with Him [Ephesians 4:8], and today, believers go directly to be with the Lord upon their death. But when unbelievers die, they do not go to heaven. They go to Hades. And nobody ever gets out of Hades until the final resurrection of the dead and their judgment [Revelation 20:13], at which time it is thrown into the Lake of Fire.
3. Jesus tells us that there is a fire prepared for the devil [Matthew 25:41]. In time past, God already had this place permanently ready and waiting for Satan. Sadly, this is also the future eternity for unbelievers who have refused Christ as their Savior [Revelation 20:14].
4. “Anyone’s name not found written in the Book of Life is cast into the Lake of Fire” [Revelation 20:15]. Remember that in this book’s Chapter 6, believers can rejoice because their names are recorded in heaven [Luke 10:20]. The same Greek word is used here in relation to unbelievers whose names are NOT written in the Book of Life. This means that, just as the eternity of believers is permanently settled in heaven, so is the eternity of unbelievers permanently settled in hell.
Keep this in mind. God’s love for His children is permanent. And His judgment against those who reject His Son is permanent.
CONCLUSION
You have read about how much God loves you, and planned for you. You know that Christ always existed, died in your place, and took your sins upon Himself. Can you now believe in Him for your salvation? Do you feel God drawing you to Him? Don’t harden your heart [Hebrews 4:7]. Now is the day [2 Corinthians 6:2]. Tomorrow might be too late.
Be sure you understand what sin is. The Greek word for sin means “to miss the mark.” It’s like shooting an arrow at a bullseye, and missing the target completely. It means that nobody can ever be good enough, or do enough good works [Psalm 14:3; Romans 3:23], to be with God in heaven because He will not have anyone sinful in heaven.
Be sure you understand Who Jesus is and why you need Him as your Savior. Jesus’ existence didn’t begin at His birth in the manger. He always existed, with God, and as God [John 1:1,2; 10:30]. He is the theme of the entire Bible. Remember that Chapter 3 explained about the Old Testament priests who offered sacrifices for sins repeatedly. Jesus was sinless [Hebrews 6:26,27] and made just one sacrifice for our sins. He was temporarily separated from God on the cross on our behalf, so that we would not be eternally separated from God after we die.
Jesus told the disciples [Luke 24:27, 44] of all the Old Testament prophecies concerning Himself, as well as all His appearances in the Old Testament as The Angel of the Lord [for example, in Exodus 3:2 and 14:19]. There are over 300 prophecies in the Old Testament about both His 1st Coming and His 2nd Coming. He alone fulfilled all the prophecies about His birth, death, and resurrection. So we can also believe that Jesus told the truth that He would come back for believers at the Rapture [John 14:2,3; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17], and that He will come back to earth at the end of the Tribulation to reign on earth [Matthew 24:29-30] for 1,000 years, and then for all eternity [Revelation, Chapters 19-21].
Jesus said, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent” [John 6:28, 29]. He also said, “This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life, and I will raise him up at the last day” [John 6:39, 40]. This is the belief that will save you and keep you saved.
The book of Romans contains what is called the “Roman Road” to salvation. There are four primary verses that explain what you need to know to be saved.
- Romans 3:23 says that we are all sinners.
- Romans 6:23 says that the wages of sin is death.
- Romans 5:8 says that Christ died on our behalf.
- Romans 10:9 says that if we believe in Christ as our Savior, we are saved.
Remember, because He did the work of paying your debt, there’s nothing that you can do to obtain salvation [Ephesians 2:8], except to believe on Him as your personal Savior. Nobody is saved by belonging to a church, or giving money, or being baptized, or being a good person.
It is important to understand that Jesus is not just a man. He is 100% man and 100% God. He took upon Himself our penalty for our sins, which is death. Since God cannot dwell in the presence of sin, and since the wages of sin is death, every one of our sins must be paid for.
If you want to be saved right now, just between you and God, talk to Him. Just saying this prayer by itself will not save you. It must be the work that God is doing in your heart, causing you to want to turn from your old life and changing your mind to turn to God, and believe in Christ. This is called repentance.
Dear God,
I agree with You that I am a sinner, and I know that there is nothing I can do to save myself. I cannot forgive my own sin or to work my way to heaven. Right now, I trust in Jesus Christ alone, that He took on all my sin when He died on the cross. I believe that He did everything necessary for me to be cleansed so that I can stand before You.
I thank You that Christ was raised from the dead, and I know this means that I will also be resurrected in the future to eternal life with You. Right now, I put my faith and trust, and my entire life in Jesus Christ as my Savior. I am grateful that He has promised to receive me despite my many sins and failures, and I know that when I die, I will always be with You.
I thank You for the assurance in your Word that You have already taken care of everything I need for my life on earth, as well as my eternal life. Thank you for hearing my prayer.
In Jesus’ Name. Amen
You can now be sure that you are eternally saved! It is important that you find a Bible-believing, Bible-teaching church, so that you can learn the Word on a regular basis, and be involved with other believers [Hebrews 10:25]. Then you should be baptized. You are not saved by being baptized, but baptism testifies to the world that you are saved. It is the outward sign of your inward faith in Christ and of your union with Christ. Read the Bible so that you can grow spiritually from it [Psalm 19:7-9; 2 Timothy 3:16; 1 Peter 2:2] and pray every day [1 Thessalonians 5:17]. And remember that you always have the Holy Spirit and Jesus acting as Intercessors and Advocates on your behalf [Romans 8:27, 34; 1 John 2:1] for the rest of your life.
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