Able to Keep You from Falling
Some dear friends of ours believe that it is exceedingly wicked to believe or to testify that men can live sinless lives down here in this world by the grace of God. They believe that man is too weak and too lacking in understanding to please God. They believe that the commandments of the Word of God on this point are not really possible, and that the Bible’s teachings on this subject are simply noble goals—out of reach, but uplifting and inspirational.
Now, if it were simply up to us to achieve and sustain the standard of the Word of God; why—we would agree with our friends; for it is manifestly impossible to live to the Bible standard of holiness and purity without the help of God, both in the radical change of the human heart and in the keeping of that regenerated heart. Men cannot live for God and please Him without His constant assistance any more than Peter was able to walk on the water without the assistance of the Savior.
In Titus 2:11, we read that “the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.” (Titus 2:11) We note that the word translated should, is more properly rendered, may. That is, it is our privilege. Accordingly, we find in the Word of God that, “According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” (2 Peter 1:3-4) We see here that God has “given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness,” and that the effect of these Divine provisions is to have brought about an escape from sin while we are yet in a world of evil. Furthermore, a saved man is changed from being by nature the child of wrath into a partaker of the divine nature. What a wonderful salvation God hath wrought! It brings an end of the sinning business in a person’s life (Daniel 9:24). It translates the sinner from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of the Son of God, making the sinner an ex-sinner in the process (Colossians 1:13). The fourteenth verse informs us that this happens when our sins are forgiven.
Now sin is the thing that separates between us and God (Isaiah 59:2). It brings death to the inner man, i.e., separation between God and the soul (Genesis 2:17; Ephesians 2:1; 1 Timothy 5:6). Salvation is a resurrection, a quickening to life. It produces a new creature, a new man (or woman). The change is profound (2 Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 6:15).
It is important here to realize that the sin that separates from God involves willful disobedience—there is an element of rebellion in the doing or not doing of what we comprehend. The rebellion (or lack thereof) is in the motive, and this is what God regards. For “sin is not imputed when there is no law.” (Romans 5:13) God will judge everyone according to their light and understanding and what they have done with it. Note how this works even in those who have no understanding of the Bible: “For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;) in the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.” (Romans 2:14-16) We see that people who may seem to have little or no understanding still yet have a law written in their hearts, of which their conscience bears witness and accuses or excuses their actions. This bears out the thought that we are judged in terms of the understanding we have, and whether we have kept what we knew to be right or not.
Early in our lives, we are unconscious of our own motives enough that God does not impute sin to us. We do not know what we doing. We properly term this state of mind and heart a state of innocence. Very little children and babies do things that are wrong, but it is not imputed to them, as they are unaware that they are violating a moral law. They are innocent, and this innocence is a beautiful thing to see. In every one of us, except Jesus, this innocence was lost when we came to an age of accountability. At that point, we continued to act out what was in our hearts, but we became aware that what we were doing was wrong; and we lost our innocence and became guilty before God. It was not only that we continued to do wrong things and could not desist from sin, but we also realized that we have been wrong all along, and now we were accountable to God. How precious to hear the Good News at that point! The Son of Man is come to seek and save that which is lost. Here begins the striving of the Spirit of God to turn each of us from the way of destruction to the way of salvation. It continues until we yield and find God’s great salvation, or until it is too late.
Now to find God’s great salvation is to find this childhood innocence all over again with this one great difference: now I am no longer oblivious to the law under which I live. “And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 18:2-3)
“But,” cry some our friends, “that is just it! We are just little children. We know not how to come in or go out. We cannot stay clean, any more than children can. In our flesh dwelleth no good thing (Romans 7:18). God has great mercy on us, but you cannot contend that He expects more of us than we are capable of doing.”
We would certainly agree that God expects reasonable service—not unreasonable service. But we would also quote you from the words of Jesus, “With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26) We would also like to ask you to stop a moment and pray (if you are skeptical) that God will help you to get a glimpse of what He has prepared for the human race as they live in this present world. We are aware that you will not see it if God does not help you. You need more than our words, or even the words of the Bible. You need “flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 16:17)
Let me quote you this scripture, “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.” (Jude 1:24) Do you believe this? Do you really believe that God is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless?
“Well, yes,” you say. “I know God can do anything.”
When does He start the process? Before God can keep you from falling, He must lift you above your sins, mustn’t He? Is He really able to do that and to sustain you afterwards? “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) After the event here related—the confession, forgiveness, and cleansing of our sins, God does what? He cleanses us from all unrighteousness? How much unrighteousness is left at that point?
“Okay,” you may say. “When God forgives and cleanses us, all sin is gone. But you can’t stay like that. The world is too wicked.” We will answer you with the Word of God: “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.” (1 John 4:4) This scripture is unmistakable. It teaches that God’s children are of Him (partakers of the Divine nature), and that they are overcomers. They are overcomers because He within is greater than he that is in the world. Read also 1 John 3:5-10.
Now, if you have more faith in the weakness of man than the power of God, and feel that it is more appropriate and even glorifying to God for men to fail continually, more or less (Romans 6:1-2), what will you do with the clear and unmistakable message of these scriptures? After God has cleaned up a man or woman and changed their heart, can He keep them without sin for one minute? Two minutes? An half hour? An hour? A day? A week? A month? A year? Five years? All the rest of their lives?
Jesus has a salvation that saves to the uttermost. It will produce an individual experience that will measure to Ephesians 5:27—a regenerated and sanctified heart that will be wrinkle-free, spot-free, and glorious. And He will direct and guide the soul, sustaining it, winnowing the path, shielding and succoring it in time of temptation.
Dear and precious saints of the Old Testament did not possess this salvation, for it was not available to them. “For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.” (Hebrews 10:4) “Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: and by Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.” (Acts 13:38-39)
Daniel, Joseph, Abraham, Elijah, and all other Old Testament brethren. They were not new creatures in Christ Jesus. They were not born again. They lived up to all that was available in their day. Even the least child of God in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John the Baptist, the last of the Old Testament prophets (Luke 16:16; Matthew 11:11).