God's Eraser

"All who are victorious will be clothed in white. I will never erase their names from the Book of Life, but I will announce before my Father and his angels that they are mine." Revelation 3:5

There's a reason why Revelation 3:1 states, "God blesses the one who reads the words of this prophecy to the church, and he blesses all who listen to its message and obey what it says, for the time is near" (NLT).

A very good reason.

Yet, in my nearly 59 years of living, I have not once heard someone read the words of the Book of Revelation aloud from beginning to end.  I have heard many sermons on what people think that it means, but all of the opining falls desperately short, in my humble opinion.

I grew up in the Baptist tradition which teaches, almost as a mantra, "Once saved, always saved."  I do not find these words in Scripture, and prefer that any mantra one might use as a Christian to be at least a direct quote, lest secular humanism's author, Satan, gain a foothold.  

The devil finds such footholds in the pride of every denomination.

You can be sure that God does erase, or the passage referenced above would not be found in Scripture. Hebrews 6:4-6 tells us, "For it is impossible to bring back to repentance those who were once enlightened—those who have experienced the good things of heaven and shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the power of the age to come—and who then turn away from God. It is impossible to bring such people back to repentance; by rejecting the Son of God, they themselves are nailing him to the cross once again and holding him up to public shame."  And there are many more passages warning and admonishing us to finish strong.

But God's Word, so beautifully and perfectly crafted to enable us to finish strong, gives us the antidote!  Throughout its pages we find Word after precious Word that is life-giving and loving Truth!

We must, as James clearly says in Chapter 1 verse 22, obey.  "But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves" (NLT).

America is full of men and women who listen to the pastor's glowing Sunday sermon and then head home to turn on the football game.  If you claim the name, Christian, and see nothing wrong with this, it confirms the grave problem.

Won't somebody read the Book of Revelation in its entirety from the pulpit?  Dear Pastor, the sermon has been prepared for you.

Goodnight, Runners.