Perseverance of The Saints Part 2

Romans 8:35–39 NKJV

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” 37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

This is the last of the five unanswerable questions Paul fires off to conclude Romans chapter 8.

1. If God is for us who can be against us?

2. If God did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?

3. Who will bring a charge against God’s elect?

4. Who is he who condemns?

5. Who or what could ever separate us from the love of Christ?

He brings these five questions almost like a challenge to any to even dare try to answer.

These question come after Paul first lays that foundational teaching in verses 28-30

Romans 8:28–30 NKJV

28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. 29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

These verses teach us to absolute, irrevocable truth that if you are among the foreknown then God has predetermined a path for you which is destined to reach the conclusion of you being glorified. You will know that you are among the foreknown only at the point that you are effectually called. At which point you will know that God has begun a work in you

Philippians 1:3–11 NKJV

3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, 5 for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; 7 just as it is right for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart, inasmuch as both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers with me of grace. 8 For God is my witness, how greatly I long for you all with the affection of Jesus Christ. 9 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, 10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, 11 being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

So in the light of this incredible truth Paul challenges any with the questions.

1. If God is for us who can be against us?

2. If God did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?

3. Who will bring a charge against God’s elect?

4. Who is he who condemns?

5. Who or what could ever separate us from the love of Christ?

As we consider what could separate us from the love of Christ perhaps things begin to fill our mind. Knowing this Paul gives us some possibilities that we might consider.

He gives seven possibilities that can be grouped into three categories.

External Affliction

Tribulation, Destress, and Persecution

Christ taught us that we can expect that these things will come.

Matthew 24:9 NKJV

9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake.

Matthew 5:10–12 NKJV

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

1 Peter 4:12–14 NKJV

12 Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 13 but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy. 14 If you are reproached for the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified.

But Paul’s question is “will these things separate us from the Love of Christ?”. Or another way to put it “will these things prevent God’s plan of your glorification?”.

How can I know that God will Bring me through these things? how can I know that I will persevere?

1 Corinthians 10:13 NKJV

13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.

Basic Needs

Famine, or Nakedness

Christ taught

Matthew 6:31–34 NKJV

31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

And yet God does let His people get hungry and thirsty and cold sometimes.

Exodus 16:3 NKJV

3 And the children of Israel said to them, “Oh, that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the pots of meat and when we ate bread to the full! For you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”

Exodus 17:3 NKJV

3 And the people thirsted there for water, and the people complained against Moses, and said, “Why is it you have brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?”

So again is God’s grace sufficient to keep me even in hunger?

2 Corinthians 12:9–10 NKJV

9 And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Death

Peril, or Sword

The word peril meaning a danger is probably related to threat of death.

Again Christ warned that they would deliver us up to be killed. It is estimated that 90,000 Christians are martyred every year.

Philippians 1:19–21 NKJV

19 For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20 according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

Hebrews 11:13–16 NKJV

13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. 14 For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. 15 And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.

Hebrews 11:35–39 NKJV

35 Women received their dead raised to life again. Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. 36 Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. 37 They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented— 38 of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. 39 And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise,

The faith that God gives us in His grace by His grace will keep us even in the face of death. He has promised to never leave or forsake us so that we can say with David “tho I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil for you are with me.”

Paul gives his answer to the question Who can separate us from the love of Christ? in his concluding statement of Chapter 8

Romans 8:37–39 NKJV

37 Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

How can we have confidence that we will persevere?

Matthew 24:9–13 NKJV

9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. 10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

Paul said in all these thing we are more than conquerers. By what will we endure?

1 John 5:4–5 NKJV

4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 5 Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

I know that I will endure to the end, not because of my ability to keep believing but because my faith that the God who granted me faith to believe in Jesus in the first place is faithful to keep me believing. Faith is not a once and done thing it is an ongoing grace of God. And by grace and through faith which is a gift of God we can know that we are more than conquerers, we will endure to the end, and nothing will ever be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.