This is day 6 of a video series called 21 Days of Once Saved Always Saved Salvation Assurance. It’s January 2022 and, in honor of the new year, my church in Marietta GA has asked us to dedicate 21 days to the Lord to draw closer to Him.  Over these 21 days, I’m going through 1 passage of Scripture a day that proclaims our salvation assurance in Christ and shows how salvation can never be lost or forfeited but is held securely in place for us by our heavenly Father so we can have confidence that we are eternally saved.

Today’s passage is 1 Peter 1:3-5:

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively (living) hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1 Peter 1:3-5 KJV)

This amazing passage is yet another one of those passages that should end all debate over Once Saved Always Saved, for it speaks of the indestructible qualities of our eternal salvation, how our salvation cannot be corrupted, defiled or lost. It also speaks of how it is God Himself Who keeps us saved, not our own efforts through obedience. We don’t keep ourselves saved. He does it. He saves us and He keeps us saved. To Him be all the glory.

This passage begins with a statement of authorship, telling us where the whole idea of salvation originated. It originated with the Father.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively (living) hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, …” (1 Peter 1:3 KJV)

Salvation is from the Father and through the Son. We see this also in John 3:16, where is says 

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16 KJV)

It is the Father Who gave the Son so that we can have eternal life. It is the Father, Who is perfect in love, Who originated the plan of salvation, that whoever believes in His Son should not perish but have everlasting life.

Why did the Father do this? Peter says,

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively (living) hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, …” (1 Peter 1:3 KJV)

Peter tells us that God the Father did this because of His abundant mercy. This means His kindness, goodness and unmerited favor toward us who are in a hopeless condition called sin. This means we didn’t do anything to earn our salvation. There was nothing good in us that would cause God to save us. But He did it anyway out of His abundant or overflowing mercy. 

Through that mercy, it says He “hath begotten us” which means He caused us to be born again. We are born physically born at birth, but when we place our faith in Christ we are then spiritually born. We are born again.  

It says we are born again to a lively or living hope. This hope of eternal life is forever alive. It never dies, for it has been secured for us through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. All of us are sinners before a perfectly holy God, which means none of us can earn God’s favor by trying to be good. God said the wages of sin is death in Roman 6:23. What our sin has earned us is death.

But God the Father, in His abundant, overflowing mercy, sent His Son Jesus to die for us, paying the penalty for our sin. Jesus died for us, was buried and then rose from the dead on the third day. It is His death that pays our debt of sin. It is then His resurrection that give us eternal life.

Because of this great gift of eternal life, which we don’t deserve, the result from us should be praise unto the Father. Therefore, the verse starts off with the word, “Blessed.” “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Forever we’ll be praising the Father because of His abundant mercy.

But what kind of salvation is this? Peter refers to our eternal salvation as our “inheritance.” An inheritance is what a child receives after the death of the parent. When we place our faith in Christ, we are born again into God’s family. We become a child of God. And because Jesus died for us, we receive an inheritance, which is our eternal salvation. 

In verse 4, Peter gives us four characteristics that describe our eternal salvation. 

First, it is incorruptible.  This means it cannot be corrupted by anything. It is not liable to corruption or decay. It is imperishable. Nothing we do and nothing done to us can corrupt our salvation. It will not grow old and decay. It is everlasting and cannot be corrupted.

Second, it is undefiled. This word, “undefiled,” means forever pure, unsoiled, forever without defect. This means that not even our sin as believers can defile it. Even when we sin, our inheritance, our salvation, remains pure and undefiled. Lordship Salvationists deny this verse. They think sin can cause you to lose your salvation. But the plain reading of this text is clear: Our salvation is incorruptible and undefiled by sin or anything else. Our salvation cannot be corrupted or defiled by anything. It remains forever pure and secured.

Third, Peter tells us that our salvation “fadeth not away.” Our salvation will never fade. It is enduring. It will never go away. Think about that when you think about sinning as a believer. It’s not up to us to keep ourselves saved. No matter what we do, our salvation “fadeth not away.” When we sin as believers, God will chasten or discipline us. So, we should not sin. Sin is never ok. But when we sin, our eternal salvation is not affected because it is an everlasting gift from God, not something we earn. Even when we sin, our salvation remains secure, incorruptible, undefiled and will never fade away.  

And then fourth, our salvation is “reserved in heaven” for us. In John 14, Jesus said:

“In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.” (John 14:2-3 KJV)

Jesus promised not only to prepare a place for us, but He guaranteed that He would come back for us and take us to be with Him so that we may be with Him for all eternity. Our salvation, our home that He has prepare, is reserved in heaven for us. And in all of the New Testament, there is not one verse saying that our reservation can be cancelled. Peter tells us plainly that our reservation is not at risk but remains in effect. There is a reservation waiting for each of us who have placed our faith in Christ. Jesus Himself said that He will come for us so that our reservation can be filled. It’s not up to us to keep that reservation. Jesus is coming for us to make sure each and every one of us fills that reservation.

But how do we know for certain that our reservation can’t be cancelled? Peter tells us in verse 5:

“Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” (1 Peter 1:5 KJV)

Keeping ourselves saved is not up to us and our obedience. We don’t keep ourselves saved by obeying commandments. Obeying God is very important but that’s not what saves us or keeps us saved. Peter is very clear on this: It is God Who keeps us saved by His power. 

This word, “kept,” is a military term in the Greek. It means to stand guard over, to secure. It was used to describe a military garrison surrounding a prized possession to keep it safe and secure. And the word is in the present tense, meaning that God’s power to keep us saved is forever ongoing. God’s protection of our salvation never stops. This means we can never lose our salvation because it is the power of God that keeps us saved, that keeps us secure and safe. 

Peter says this power of God operates through faith. Our faith in Christ, believing in Jesus for salvation, is the means through which we are saved and is the means through which God keeps us saved by His power. 

But can’t a believer lose his or her faith. No. We looked at this on Day 5 of this series. The moment we believe, we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit comes to live inside us and seals us until the day of redemption. This means that. as a believer starts to have doubts or starts to drift away from the faith, the Holy Spirit is still right there, sealed inside that believer, with the express purpose of leading and teaching that believer in the truth. God uses His Holy Spirit in us to keep us in the faith so that none are lost. There is no such thing in the New Testament as a saved believer who become an unbeliever or an apostate. We are kept by the power of God through faith. We are kept by the Holy Spirit so that we never lose our faith. Scripture says even when we are unfaithful, He remains faithful. God will keep us in the faith by His power. Therefore, salvation can never be lost.

 Peter tells us that our salvation is “ready to be revealed in the last time.” As we look at our prophetic timeline, we’re just about there. The rapture is just about ready to happen. When it does, we’ll instantly move from these mortal bodies that are so easily affected by sin into our eternal bodies that will never be affected by even the presence of sin. 

The current Age of Grace where God is giving people time to turn to Him to be forgiven for their sins is almost over. God is just about ready to get all the next steps underway, which will include the rapture and a 7-year tribulation where God will judge this world for their unbelief and pour out His wrath. God is ready to start all this. The question is: Are you ready? Are you saved?

Salvation = God’s Grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.

Nothing more. Nothing less. There are no other requirements to be saved than to believe in Jesus, that He is God’s Son Who died on the cross to pay for your sins, that He was buried and rose from the dead on the third day. Have you taken that step of faith? Are you 100% sure God will save you?

God’s judgment is coming. Those who are not saved will be separated from God for all eternity. Don’t take chances with God. Don’t play with Him. Take Him seriously.

If you are not 100% sure you are saved, don’t put it off any longer. You can know with certainty that you have eternal life today. Do it now before it’s too late.

Making Sure You Are Saved Is As Easy As ABC

Admit to God that you have sinned.

Believe that Jesus, God’s Son, died to pay for
your sins 100%, was buried and rose from the dead.

Call upon Jesus and ask Him to forgive you and save you.

If you make that decision to call upon Him, God gives you this assurance:

“For whosoever shall call upon the Name of the Lord shall be saved.” (Romans 10:13 KJV)

If you are still not sure, I’ll include a link to a video I did called, “What is the Gospel (in 6 Words)?”

Thank you for watching.