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Daily Devotionals
Bowen's Daily Meditations
Devotional: September 11th

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"Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure." - 2 Peter 1:10.

The context sheds all the light that we need upon this passage, explaining both the nature of the diligence that we are to use, and the object to be obtained by it. "If ye do these things, ye shall never fall." The things are mentioned before: " Giving all diligence, add to your faith, virtue; and to virtue, knowledge; and to knowledge, temperance, etc. The words " shall never fall" have an immediate reference to the words " to make sure." Let no one bring in here his theory of election to destroy the force of this passage. God has his elect ones; and he accomplishes his purposes with regard to them by teaching them to take heed lest they fall, and to use all diligence in making their calling and election sure. They that despise these admonitions make it certain that they are not elected.

It is not to be supposed that after an individual believes on the Lord Jesus Christ he must wait a good while and make great progress in holiness, before he can make his calling and election sure. There is no reason why he should not have assurance of faith at the moment when he first looks to Christ for salvation. He that thirsting comes to Christ and drinks, may with absolute confidence conclude that his name is written in the Lamb’s book of life. But that which makes his calling and election sure then, will not suffice to make it sure in days that follow. There must be growth in grace and there must be expanding evidence. The soul must keep adding to its spiritual stores; must show that it has commerce with the skies. It can no more derive assurance from past experience than it can derive life from it.

In an important sense, salvation is neither a past thing nor a future thing; but strictly a present thing. If Christ is my Saviour, then he is saving me to-day. If he is my Shepherd, then he is leading me to-day. If he is my Lord, then he is ruling me to-day. To-day he teaches me, warns me, encourages me, blesses me, intercedes for me, brings me to God, destroys the works of the devil.

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