Pentecost 14 – "Persevere to the End" – Hebrews 12:18-24 – 8/29/10
August 29th, 2010Click play to listen to the audio version of this sermon.
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One of the primary doctrines of the Christian faith is, what is called, "final perseverance." Basically, it says that only those who DIE in the one, true faith will be saved. I meet people who tell me that they used to go to the Lutheran church when they were little, or they used belong to this or that church, or they used to pray a lot and read their bible, but they haven't 'practiced' their religion for a long time. I'm never quite sure if they're asking me to help them to reconnect with the Christian faith, or if they're telling me that they've already had their ticket to heaven punched, and "once punched always punched."
The Scriptures make it very clear that you CAN loose your salvation by falling from faith. One of the saddest verses in the New Testament comes in the 6th chapter of John's gospel, where we read, "many of Jesus' disciples turned back and no longer walked with him." (John 6:66).
At the beginning of His ministry, Jesus warned His followers of the trials and tribulations that they would experience because they follow Him. Jesus cautions them saying, "But the one who endures to the end will be saved." (Mat.10:22). At the end of His ministry, as He prepared His disciples for His departure from them, He warned them that tough times lie ahead saying, "And then many will fall away." "But the one who endures to the end will be saved." (Mat.24:10,13). Whenever you hear Jesus say something at the beginning of His ministry that He then repeats again at the end of His ministry, this is something that we need to be especially alert to. (more…)




