Protected by Jesus

When I was very little I can still remember the confidence I had when Mom and Dad where carrying me around in their arms. I felt safe. I feared nothing. As long as I was in their arms I knew I was protected because I knew they loved me and would protect me with their strength from anything that threatened me.

It has been a long time for most of us since we had that feeling of security....but it doesn't have to be that way. Because in the verse that we are going to take a look at today we are going to see that we are still being carried in the arms of a Father. The apostle John tells us this in I John 5:18, "We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil does not touch him."

The Bible tells us that all of us are born spiritually dead (Ephesians 2:1). Because of our sin nature we are separated from God at conception. But God has provided a way for us to spend eternity with him through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. Jesus took our sins upon himself and God punished him for our sins on the cross. If we will simply believe that Jesus has paid the penalty for our sins, the Holy Spirit causes us to be born again, and then indwells us so that we have the power and wisdom to live a life pleasing to him.

Anyone who is born of the Father does not keep sinning. For that person knows what Jesus did to pay for those sins, and a normal sense of gratitude coupled with the power of God will keep us from wanting to sin. Furthermore, the Holy Spirit, living in the believer, will convict the believer of their sin. Not only that, but the Word of God has the power to make us aware of sin in our lives and give us a way to return to the path that God wants us to follow. The apostle Paul spoke of this in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, "All Scripture is breathed out by God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work."

If we are spending time the God's Word on a regular basis, God himself will use his Word to help us stay on the path of his will.

Even God's people, the church, have been given to us so that we will choose not to sin. The writer of the book of Hebrews talks about this in Hebrews 10:24-25, "And let us consider how to stir one another up to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near."

Well, Dave, you might be saying, "Even though God has done all these things for me, I am still sinning. Why is that?" I would ask you if you have put your trust in Jesus to save you? Are you indwelt by the Holy Spirit? Because if you haven't taken that step, you cannot help sinning. The power of God is not available to you.

And even if you have taken that step, I would ask you if you are spending time in God's Word. Having a Bible isn't enough. This isn't magic. You have to read it and be committed to obeying it whatever it tells you to do.

And finally, are you going to a fellowship of believers that is committed to helping you grow in Christ? God has given you all the resources to obey him, but you have to choose to make use of his resources.

I love what the apostle John wrote next, "He who was born of God protects him, and the evil on does not touch him."

In other words, the eternally begotten Son of God is the one who carries us in his arms. The one who created the universe and keeps it running is the one who carries us in his arms. The One who loved us so much that he gave himself for us is the one who protects us. He protects so well that the devil can't even lay a finger on us. And all we need to do is choose to use the resources he has placed at our disposal.