Tag Archives: once saved always saved

The letter to Laodicea: Who at the door is standing?

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The imagery of Revelation 3:20 captures the imagination, Jesus standing and knocking at the door of the sinner’s heart. Many have used this as an image of conversion, taking this passage as a teaching verse for non-Christians.

lettersThe only way to do that is to ignore the context. This letter isn’t going out to the unconverted. This is an appeal to the Christian who has fallen away. In Letters From The Lamb I wrote:

Jesus is speaking to a group of people who already profess to be his followers. They need to recognize that they have reached the point where Jesus is no longer in their lives, no longer in their hearts, and they need to find the way to let him back in… Christians can reach the point where Jesus vomits them out of his mouth, they can travel to the place where Jesus is no longer in their lives. That’s when we stop, repent, and open the door to let him back in. Or we will have our name blotted out of the Book of Life.

(Letters From The Lamb, pp. 154-55)

I hope you’ve enjoyed these excerpts from the book. Starting next week, we’ll move on to another topic.

The letter to Sardis: The Book of Life

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lettersJesus talks to the Christians of Sardis about the Book of Life. That’s a concept that may sound a little strange to us, but it’s pretty common in the Bible. In Letters to the Lamb, I note:

These victors will never have their names blotted out of the Book of Life. Ancient cities kept a book of names, names of the inhabitants of the city. If someone’s name was not found in the book, they were not considered to be citizens of that city. If someone committed a serious crime or a treasonous act against the city, their names were removed from the book. In Exodus 32, Moses refers to God’s book, asking to be blotted out of the book if the rest of Israel was not forgiven of their rebellion. In the book of Psalms, the Psalmist says of his enemies: “May they be blotted out of the book of life and not be listed with the righteous.” (Psalms 69:28) The prophet Daniel spoke of a book of names, when he wrote: “At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered.” (Daniel 12:1) In the New Testament, Paul refers to the Book of Life in Philippians when he writes: “Yes, and I ask you, loyal yokefellow, help these women who have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.” (Philippians 4:3) This is the first reference in Revelation to God’s book, but it is mentioned several other times in this prophecy. Those who are in God’s book are citizens of his holy city, destined for eternal life. The fact that he can still blot the names of Christians out of his book should be a sobering one. The possibility of losing our citizenship through a lack of vigilance is a very real one, one that should motivate us to pay careful attention to what is said to the church in Sardis.

(Letters From The Lamb, pp. 120-21)

I want to be known as a citizen of God’s city. I want my name to be found in the Book of Life, not a blotted-out smudge where my name once was. Like the people of Sardis, I need to be alert spiritually rather than sleeping in complacency. “When the roll is called up yonder,” I want my name to be found.