Abraham Lincoln created the Secret Service on April 14, 1865, the day he was assassinated. Although it was originally designed to discover counterfeit currencies, its agents began watching over president’s full time following the 1901 assassination of President William McKinley. In addition to tracking nearly 1,500 presidential death threats each year, and coordinating their efforts with various government agencies, Secret Service agents act as bodyguards. Like the police and military soldiers, Secret Service agents also take an oath to fulfill their duty, knowing one’s life may be lost. They are expected to provide maximum security to United States presidents, regardless of personal cost.

We need maximum security in the spiritual realm also. Our Savior did not “take a bullet” for us, but He willingly suffered three nails and a spear, as He laid down His life to ransom lost sinners from eternal punishment. Thankfully, once we trust in the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ as our only hope for eternal life, we are given complete forgiveness and eternal security. Ephesians 1:13 tell us that at the moment we trust in Christ alone, we are “sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise.” It is interesting that God chose to use the word “sealed” to describe how secure we are in our salvation. We are sealed like a vault so that no one, not even Satan, can break in to steal us, God’s valued possession. We are sealed like a can of precious fruit so that the outside air cannot damage what is inside, nor can the purchased product spill or be lost. Romans 8:35 confirms this principle, explaining that nothing can “separate us from the love of Christ” —nothing we can do, nor anything that happens to us. We are also sealed like a legal document, identified by a mark made in wax, or by an official signature. The indwelling Holy Spirit is the special agent of God designated with the duty of keeping our salvation secure. From the moment we trust in Christ, His indwelling presence (II Corinthians 1:22; I Corinthians 6:19) is like an authoritative stamp guaranteeing that we are “sealed unto the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30).

Don’t trust your feelings, your track record of sinful behavior, or what others say about losing your salvation. Trust in what God says in His Word. Scripture states that we are sealed by the Holy Spirit, and promised that we are eternally secure. Rejoice in this truth and share it with someone today.

Clear and accurate instructions are vital. After a plane hit the World Trade Center on 9/11, an employee of Aon Insurance Company on the 93rd floor had begun his escape. But he returned to his office because security officers made the announcement that the building was safe, and everyone should stay inside until they were told to leave. Before he died, he spoke to his father on the phone saying, “Why did I listen to them – I shouldn’t have.”

A disaster took place once Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden. They plunged the entire human race into the guilt of sin, condemning each one of us to eternal punishment in the Lake of Fire. Our only hope is to be rescued. Unfortunately, there are many voices that send errant instructions, resulting in many who remain confused as to how to find escape from eternal destruction. Some voices say there is no hell. Other voices say you can only escape if you perform certain religious works, or if you are a member of their church. Tragically, some voices garble the message that points to the cross of Calvary as our only hope by saying things like, “Give your heart to Jesus,” or “Make Jesus the Lord of your life.” It is imperative that we who know Christ as Savior use clear, accurate, biblical words when we persuade others to flee from eternal destruction. Ephesians 1:13 tells us it is a matter of choosing to trust in Christ alone. This verse says, “In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the Word of truth, the gospel of your salvation…” We must place our entire trust in the Lord Jesus Christ as our only hope for forgiveness and eternal life. “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day, according to the Scriptures” (I Corinthians 15:3-4). We must trust in His death as the payment for our sins and accept eternal life as a “free gift” (Romans 5:15-16,18). We must not trust in our merit, because “…by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Make sure your presentation of the gospel is clear and accurate. Emphasize that lost souls need to trust in the finished work of Christ alone.

Our grandson is a good learner, but he’s not always a willing participant. He’d rather play with his brothers, watch TV, or play video games. When he is called to the table to resume schoolwork, he sometimes complains and asks why he has to do so. At this point, he can’t see that what he is learning now is key to him becoming a happy, productive, fully functioning adult. But one day he’ll see the big picture and realize how important his early education has been.

In Ephesians, Chapter One, God revealed the big picture of His plan for an eternal state. Previously, “the mystery of His will” (1:9) had been kept secret, but now God pulls back the curtain to reveal His ultimate plan. It is “that in the dispensation of the fullness of times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in Him” (1:10). God will fulfill His promise to rapture believers from the Dispensation of Grace into heaven, and then bring seven years of tribulation. This will be followed by the millennial reign of Christ upon the earth. Then the heavens and earth will be renovated by fire to prepare for an eternal state (II Peter 3:10-14). Ephesians 1:8-11 reveals the events that follow. “All things,” both in heaven and earth, will be “gathered together,” or united, “in Christ.” Satan and his forces, now occupying the atmospheric heavens and attempting to thwart the cause of Christ, will have already been banished to the Lake of Fire. The Body of Christ will forever occupy these heavenly realms (Ephesians 2:6-7). All lost souls, and remnants of sin, will be removed, and the redeemed of Israel will occupy the new earth. Both we in heaven and redeemed Israel on earth will happily serve God the Father and God the Son, who will dwell in the New Jerusalem on Earth. Occupants of both heaven and Earth will be united in harmony, joy, service to God, and in willing obedience. This is the big picture of God’s plan for eternity; and God’s Word declares we who believe have “an inheritance” in this future (1:11).

Do you see the big picture? God would have us realize that the things of this life are not as important as our eternal existence. Those who are saved must prioritize “laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come…” (I Timothy 6:19). Be faithful!

In Iran, it is standard practice for families to oversee the execution of one who murders a family member. They are also given the choice to pardon the offender. On April 15, 2014, Samereh Alinejad watched as a noose was slipped around the neck of Bilal Gheisari, her son’s killer. This was her chance to have the vengeance she’d waited seven years to have. Instead, she and her husband stepped forward at the last minute and removed the noose from his neck. It was an act of mercy and forgiveness.

Our family once had a bumper sticker that said, “Jesus paid a debt He did not owe, because we owed a debt we could not pay.” That aptly describes the hopeless plight of every human since Adam. We were all born guilty sinners who commit sin every day. Because God is holy, just, and righteous, He cannot allow sin in His presence, nor can He allow sin to go unpunished. This means that our debt of sin set each of us on a path toward eternal punishment in the Lake of Fire. But God intervened. God the Father loved us so much that He sent His only Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to bear our sin and punishment on the cross of Calvary. Doing so enabled the Lord Jesus to offer forgiveness and eternal life to all who will trust in His payment for sin, apart from anything else. Ephesians 1:7 explain it this way: “In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace.” The word “redemption” means to ransom in full, or deliver, and “forgiveness” means freedom, pardon, or deliverance. The basis of our pardon and ransom is the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Only the lifeblood of an innocent victim can atone for sin. The Savior is the spotless Lamb of God, slain for our sins. In effect, we all stood guilty and condemned with the noose of eternal judgment on our necks, and Christ stepped forward to grant us forgiveness. So full is our forgiveness that we are released from eternal punishment, made acceptable to the Father, given access to His throne, given new abundant life, and showered with “all spiritual blessings” (Ephesians 1:2-12).

With a sense of deep gratitude, we should praise God continually for the complete forgiveness He has given us. Why not start right now in prayer and song?

In 1978, doctors discovered cancer in the left eye of Ron Hamilton and determined his eye needed to be removed. Just before going into surgery, a comforting verse came to Ron’s mind that later became the theme for a song he wrote, “Rejoice in the Lord.” It states, “God never moves without purpose or plan when trying His servant and molding a man. Give thanks to the Lord, though your testing seems long. In darkness He giveth a song. Rejoice in the Lord. He makes no mistake; He knoweth the end of each path that I take. For when I am tried and purified, I shall come forth as gold.”

Many of us have wondered why a path of trial, heartache, or physical hardship has entered our lives. Part of the answer is found in the life of Job. In a brutal attack from Satan, faithful and godly Job lost his children, wealth, and his health. With agonizing boils from the crown of his head to the soles of his feet, he sat in misery, scraping his sores with a broken clay pot. His wife urged him to curse God and die. His friends who came to comfort him accused him of being punished by God for some hidden sin, which was not the case. For a time, in his discouragement and despair, he “felt” as if God had abandoned him. He said, “Oh that I knew where I might find Him…Behold, I go forward, but He is not there, and backward, but I cannot perceive Him” (Job 23:3-8). Thankfully, he eventually realized God had made no mistake in allowing his overwhelming circumstances. Like Ron Hamilton, he concluded that God was allowing these painful circumstances to mold him into an even stronger, more godly man. In Job 23:10 he says, “But He knoweth the way that I take: [and] when He hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.” In faith, Job chose to see His painful circumstances as a refining process to remove the dross of imperfections in his life.

God allows trials, not to ruin us, but to refine us. Just as raw materials are transformed into steel by intense fire, God seeks to transform us into His image by allowing trials. Don’t despair or distance yourself from God. Allow your trial to draw you closer to Him and remove whatever is unworthy of His name.