YOUR SECURITY AS A BELIEVER
Chapter 4
Since you are in the Family of God now, what is your security as a believer or a member of
that family?
A. When I was born into my natural family, I was given their name.
You are now called a Christian. That is the highest name you can be given. Just as your
family name was highly thought of, so is your Christian name. Sometimes I made mistakes
that disappointed my earthly father, but he never rejected me. He never asked me to leave the
family. He never asked me to stop using our family name.
Dad would often correct me and discipline me so I would learn right from wrong. And although
I never enjoyed the discipline, I knew my parents loved and cared enough about me to correct me. They saw that if I was left to myself I would ruin my life and they had my best interests at heart. They had already learned valuable lessons through experience, and they wanted to spare me any grief they could....but they always loved me despite my mistakes.
So it is with your new spiritual Father. When you do something wrong or sin, God does not kick you out of the family, although it grieves Him.
“....if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”
(I John 2:1)
The word advocate means lawyer. Jesus defends us to the Father.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse
us from all unrighteousness.” (I John 1:9)
God disciplines us to bring us back to the right paths and right living. That’s a sign that He cares about us and loves us.
“For whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives.
For if you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is
there whom the father does not chasten?
But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you
are illegitimate and not sons.
Furthermore we have had human fathers who corrected us, and we paid
them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection unto the
Father of spirits, and live?
For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best to them; but He
for our profit, that we might be partakers of His holiness.
Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but grievous; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been
trained by it.” (Hebrews 12:6-11)
B. God really loves you, and loved people are secure people.
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever
believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
So never doubt God’s love for you. He loved us even when we were a mess and in sin. God loved us before we ever knew Him. Now that we know Him we can be assured that He loves us. In fact, there is nothing that we can do that will change His love for us. His love is the same to
all people, but as His children, we want to please Him by keeping His commandments.
“In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to
be the propitiation for our sins.” (I John 4:10)
“This is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the
commandment, that, as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk
in it.” (II John 6)
“Now he that keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by
this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.”
(I John 3:24)
C. You have God’s protection.
Just as my big brother would “watch out” for me, so Jesus, my elder brother, loves me and protects me. God promised Israel, His chosen people, protection. That same promise is to us also since by birth we are in His family as children. Note how many ways God said He would protect you in Isaiah 43:1-4. Also read Psalm 56 and write down what you think God is saying to you.
Remember, too, that God will continue to perfect and build you. You are His workmanship and God does good work.
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which
God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10)
If you fail, tell God about it and get back up and keep walking. He really loves you despite your failures.
“Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in
you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 1:6)
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