Guarded by God!
- UnstoppableRevKev
- Aug 27
- 5 min read
📖Scripture: “...who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” –1 Peter 1:5
🔎Reflection: The Apostle Peter assures the suffering elect that our salvation is neither fickle nor precarious—it is established by God and guarded by Him. Salvation is not a reward for human effort, but a gift secured before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4-5; 2 Tim. 1:9). Even faith itself is a gift (Eph. 2:8-9), and the God who grants faith also guards it until the end (Phil. 1:6). This refutes the modern heresy that salvation rests on our decision, emotions, or perseverance apart from Christ. If left to ourselves, we would all betray and abandon Jesus, just as Judas did.
Unlike the first woman, Eve, who was left unguarded by her husband, the Bride of Christ is protected by her Bridegroom, Jesus, and the infinite power of God. This is no excuse for spiritual apathy. Instead, it compels us to truly test and examine ourselves (2 Cor. 13:5) to determine if the WORD, the GOSPEL, indeed Christ Himself is alive in us as faith-filled, devoted, functional members of Christ’s Body (Eph. 4:16); or are we exposed as counterfeit? A faith that cannot endure trials, never bears kingdom fruit, or that exists apart from a local church is NOT authentic biblical faith. God-established and guarded faith matures to produce evangelism, obedience, love for Christ, devotion to and the edification of His Bride, and relentless perseverance through life’s trials, suffering, grief, and loss.
Man-made religious inventions—like “ask Jesus into your heart,” reciting a “sinner’s prayer,” or making a one-time “decision for Christ”—are nowhere found in Scripture. While God may graciously use imperfect expressions of faith, our actions and decisions cannot save. Only the GOSPEL can do that (Rom 1:16). Counterfeit faith continues in the selfishness of sin because it erupts from a deceitful heart (Jer 17:9).
Counterfeit faith seeks only to escape Hell or reap worldly prosperity and blessings. Counterfeit faith invariably collapses under the weight of life’s trials. As Jesus warned: “The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash” (Matt. 7:27). By God’s grace, synthetic “faith” withers, exposing hearts that were never truly secured or surrendered to Christ (Mark 4:16-19), which is yet another blessing from God!
Contrastingly, God-established and God-guarded faith endures because it is given by God, preserved by God, and carried on to completion by God. Faith is not self-generated (Eph. 2:8–9), not man-sustained (1 Pet. 1:5), and not left unfinished (Phil. 1:6). It is the fruit of the Gospel—the living Word of God (Rom. 1:16; Acts 4:12; 1 Pet. 1:23)—and therefore cannot fail. Many readily quote Philippians 1:6: “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion…” Yet Paul’s confidence is inextricably linked to the saints’ “partnership in the gospel from the first day until now” (Phil. 1:5–6). The perseverance of the saints is not a passive assumption but an active reality evidenced in Gospel partnership.
Salvation is not confirmed by a past decision, ritual, or profession, but by God’s perfectly accomplished work at the Cross (John 19:30; Heb. 10:14). Our ongoing Spirit-empowered devotion to Christ, demonstrated in our partnership in the advance of the Gospel (Acts 1:8; Phil. 1:27). Paul warns the Corinthian church, “Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves” (2 Cor. 13:5). The measure is not sentimentality toward Jesus or consumer-driven spirituality, but integral participation in His Body. Christ has ordained the edification of His Bride through every joint and ligament working properly (Eph. 4:11–16). Hebrews 10:23–25 drives the point home: holding fast, stirring one another to love and good works, and not forsaking the assembly is the mark of persevering faith.
True faith endures under trial (James 1:2–4; 1 Pet. 1:6–7). True faith bears fruit in obedience (John 15:5–8; Matt. 7:16–20). True faith joins the mission of Christ to the ends of the earth (Matt. 28:18–20; Phil. 1:5; Rev. 7:9–10). By contrast, a faith that is consumer-oriented, comfort-driven, and prosperity-seeking is not biblical Christianity at all. Jesus warned of such counterfeits: the rocky soil that withers under persecution, and the thorny soil choked by the cares and riches of this world (Mark 4:16–19). Such “faith” has no root in Christ, no fruit of the Spirit, and no partnership in the mission of God. The validation of salvation is not mere verbal confession (Matt. 7:21–23), but Spirit-empowered participation and perseverance in Christ through the Church, for the glory of God in the Church (Eph. 3:21).
🤺Action: Examine yourself by asking: Does my confidence rest in a prayer, my performance, or in God’s keeping power? A faith truly sealed and guarded by the Holy Spirit is never selfish, private, or idle. Its authenticity is proven by clinging to God’s Word, bearing the fruit of obedience in every season, and manifesting as love for Christ in steadfast devotion to His Bride amid hardship with unwavering hope.
Sing to the LORD as the psalmist did in Psalm 139:23-24, “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!”
Do I truly crave God’s correction and hunger for submission to the WORD?
Am I an active, integral, contributing member of Christ’s Body, or a casual observer, critic, and consumer?
When trials and suffering come, do I persevere in Christ, or do I withdraw as my faith collapses?
Do I treat salvation as an entitlement, obligation, or as a joyful covenant secured by Christ’s blood and guarded by His Spirit?
If the Holy Spirit exposes the sin of self-reliance, empty religion, and shallow belief, repent and call upon Christ, who alone has the power to save. Conviction comes from God; condemnation comes from the enemy. If the LORD illuminates—even amid weakness—a genuine faith that desperately clings to Jesus as your only hope, take heart! The same God who began His work in you will carry it to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. At the same time, don’t forget that the human heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure (Jer 17:9). Look not to the frailty of our grip on Him, but to the strength of His grip on us (John 10:28-29) as we give ourselves over to Him for the edification of His Bride through the ministry of the GOSPEL to the ends of the earth!
🙏Prayer: Sovereign LORD, I confess that apart from Your saving, redeeming, life-giving, and guarding power, I would fall away in my sin. Please strengthen my faith to trust in You, not despite trials and suffering but in the midst of them! Establish my faith on the ROCK of my salvation for Your glory! All my trust is in You, Your power, and Your covenant-loyalty. I am confident that You will guard and keep me unto the day of Christ. Amen!
Click the link for a short video version of today's devotional:
Blessings & love,
Kevin M. Kelley
Pastor
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