Hands that grasp firmly - All The Good Seed Daily Devotionals for 2023

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone 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 my Father’s hand.
John 10: 27 – 30.

Hands that grasp firmly
One regularly meets people who sincerely believe in the Lord Jesus Christ but wonder whether they can be sure that they have been saved for eternity. Today’s verse gives a clear answer. Jesus was speaking of people who belong to Him and follow Him; He calls them “my sheep”. The Good Shepherd was later to lay down His life for them (v. 17). These sheep hear His voice and He promises them “eternal life”. Eternal means permanent, endless. It is, moreover, life from Him and in Him. Jesus reinforced His statement: “They shall never perish”, adding that no-one “shall snatch them out of my hand”.

Maybe someone will then question: “If I sin again, will I fall from His hand and be lost for ever?” Not at all! Someone may have the impression that he has strayed from the Lord Jesus. But there is another hand, that of the Father, holding him firmly. The Lord Jesus said, “I and my Father are one.” Both God the Father and God the Son are determined in their love to bring these sheep to the fold. So what could possibly happen? No man, no angel, not even Satan can separate the saved from the love of God (Romans 8: 38.39). Being saved means being eternally secure.

When God’s children sin, Christ intercedes for them with God the Father, so that they are restored and once more follow Him (cf. 1 John 2: 1.2).

Today‘s reading: 2 Samuel 12: 1 – 31 · 1 Samuel 5: 1 – 11