Month: August 2022

Hope is an Anchor

by Anastasia Irene, posted in Poetry, Scripture, The Christian Walk

Hebrews 6:19-20 (NKJV)
This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which enters the Presence behind the veil, where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus, having become High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

What hope is the author of Hebrews referring to in this passage? The previous verse introduces the topic of hope. The author says that since it is impossible for God to lie, “we might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us.” I love the phrase “fled for refuge”. It reminds me of Psalm 91. What a beautiful picture–we are fleeing for the refuge of God and grasping the Living Hope, Jesus Christ. The anchor of our hope is sure and secure, and instead of being planted in shifting sands, it is rooted firmly on the Rock of Christ.

Verse 20 speaks of Jesus as a forerunner. Looking at this word in the original Greek reveals its deeper meaning. This word was used in the 2nd century AD to describe smaller boats sent into the harbor by larger ships which were unable to get there themselves due to stormy weather. The smaller boats carried the ship’s anchor through the large waves, paving the way and securing it for the ship.

This is what Jesus Christ did for us! Not only is He our anchor, but He also took our anchor and secured it at port. Therefore, there is no question as to where we will eventually land.

I wrote this poem about our hope in Christ.

Hope

The waves toss and turn, full of fright.

The storm rages in my deepest night.

And yet, my anchor stands firmly in port–

My anchor is rooted on Heaven’s shore.

Without hope, we couldn’t live, so

My hope is in Christ, this I know:

He’ll never fail me, He’ll always stay true.

He is a refuge for me and for you.

To place hope in earthly things is vain–

They are passing away and futile the same.

But Christ is eternal, immutable, tender with His sheep;

He is always the same; His promises He’ll keep.

He took my anchor, that anchor of hope,

And He paved my way, securing my rope.

He dropped my anchor firmly in placid waters,

And blazed the trail for me to follow.

So though the storms are tempestuous, and the waters roar,

My hope, my confidence is steady as I make my way to heaven’s shore.

Perseverance of the Saints

by Anastasia Irene, posted in Scripture, The Christian Walk, Theology

Can true Christians ever permanently fall away from the faith? John 10:28-29 says, “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…no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.” In Philippians 1:6, God promised us that He will finish His salvation work in us. Romans 8:38-39 states that nothing can separate us from God’s love in Christ.

John MacArthur gives great insight into the topics of apostasy and perseverance of the saints in his book Biblical Doctrine. He says, “Scripture…identifies those people who counterfeit their profession of faith in Christ–outwardly and temporarily giving the appearance of being truly regenerated by the Spirit, only to eventually fall away and abandon the faith.”

He goes on to say that these people who at first proclaim Christ and then renounce Him prove that they have never experienced true conversion. When they leave the church, they demonstrate that they never truly knew Christ. 1 John 2:19 “They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us.”

Later on in his book, MacArthur speaks of the gentle balance between God’s sovereignty upholding true believers and our responsibility to persevere and continue in the faith. Believers are “…kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time,” (1 Peter 1:5), but must “…hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end,” (Hebrews 3:14).

MacArthur uses Matthew 7:21-23 to prove his point. He says: “Interestingly, Jesus does not say, ‘I knew you once, but you failed to persevere and fell away from the faith.’ Rather, He says, ‘I never knew you.'” This shows that no matter how sincere a person’s confession may seem, only God knows whether it is genuine.

I pray that the Lord will help each of us to examine our hearts to see whether we are abiding in the True Vine and produce much fruit for His glory.