If we are not interacting with the Lord Jesus each day we are not entering the Kingdom of God. It can be seen from this that the disastrous "once saved always saved" concept is not logical or relevant. It is based on an erroneous concept of salvation.

Once we have been saved (delivered) from lying we might say we have been eternally saved from lying. This is true if we cease lying and continue to tell the truth in every instance. Such eternal deliverance is expected and entirely possible through the power of the Lord Jesus Christ. But to state that once we make a profession of Christ we never again can be lost to the purposes of Christ no matter how we behave is not even remotely related to the holy Scriptures.

"With fear and trembling." We must work out our salvation each day by conquering the world, sin, and rebellion against God's will. We must work it out. We are to work out our salvation. Working out salvation is a continual interaction with the Word of God and with the Holy Spirit of God as He sanctifies us. We do not work out our salvation in an overconfident, frivolous manner as we see today but with fear and trembling because of the great and dreadful Day of the Lord that is at hand.

Working out our salvation means overcoming worldliness, lust, and self-will as the Holy Spirit leads us step by step, "city by city."

It may be noted that today any expression of the seriousness of being saved or being lost, or of accountability, the Day of Judgment, Hell, or eternal punishment, is often greeted with scorn. It is becoming popular to despise God's authority, to maintain that God would be unjust to punish people.

In some instances God is being presented as a person who desires that people be unhappy and that Satan is the god to be adored. This attitude is a direct expression of Satan and his angels and demons. Thus we have some claiming that God wants us to be happy all the time and others who declare that God desires we have no joy whatever.

The human being who dies with the attitude that the God of Israel wishes people to be miserable, and has a spiteful, bitter attitude toward God, will carry his hatred of God into the spirit realm, there to await the certain judgment that will fall upon all rebels in the great and dreadful Day of the Lord. The fate of such sinners is not enviable.

Whoever does not continually work out his own salvation with fear and trembling is not partaking of the Divine redemption. He may be denied entrance to the Kingdom of God in the Day of Wrath. At the same time, Christian believers have abundant reason to rejoice always in the Lord. God continually showers blessings of all sorts on those who do His will with a glad and thankful heart.

To be continued.