Saved Forever

Can you think of anything that is “forever?” A forever stamp? A diamond? A dull sermon?

God says through his prophet Isaiah that we are to consider the heavens and the earth and know that “the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment and its inhabitants die like flies” (v 6). Everything that we now know will eventually be destroyed …

Except God’s Word and His salvation. Our last verse from Isaiah says that, “Though the heavens vanish like smoke and the earth wears out like a garment, God’s salvation is Forever. And God needs for us to believe this forever salvation because it makes a difference in how we live as His people. So let’s take a closer look at our brief reading from Isaiah to better understand the nature and significance of this “forever salvation.”

The first thing about this forever salvation that we must learn is that it is a salvation that is forever, and it is already saving, but it is also, “not yet.” This is confusing—how something can be going on right now, but can be waiting to happen too at the same time. This is how God’s work through His Word often happens, however, and so we simply accept that there is a “now” part to God’s salvation, and as Isaiah says, in verse 5, that His God’s salvation “has gone out” (ESV). Something has already been done by God, and His salvation is available NOW. God seeks our attention today, and He does so with a simple invitation in verse 4: “Listen to me, my people; hear me, my nation”. Here God alerts us to a reality that shapes our heart and hopes today, and He tells us in verse 6 to “lift up our eyes to Him” to be saved by Him. All of these things are happening now—God’s salvation is here in Jesus, God calls us to listen to Him, and we are encouraged to keep our eyes on Him in heaven because He keeps us secure in His salvation.

But as we look around us, we know that in some sense, at least, we are still waiting to fully experience and enjoy God’s salvation. Bad things still happen, evil seems to win, and yes, we’re still waiting for Jesus to return. And so we wait for God’s salvation even when He tells us it’s here—and it is. We wait with hope and confidence that when Christ comes again at the end of time and the dead in Christ are raised for eternal life in the new heaven and earth, then the full enjoyment of that which we already have will be ours.

And as we wait for Jesus to come back in glory in the crowds, we must remember that God’s salvation is forever for us and it is forever for ALL people. In verse 5, Isaiah mentions that people from the “coastlands” are hoping for God’s salvation too, even if they don’t know HIM. God wants all people to experience his true and forever salvation, and He wants us to be at work while we wait—sharing the message of His love in Jesus with our neighbors. Jesus’ salvation isn’t a treasure that we are meant to keep for ourselves.

We may laugh when we hear of an eight-year-old writing a letter to God: “Dear God, I can’t wait to get to heaven because I know Sarah won’t be there! Sincerely, Mark.” But in our hearts there are people whom we would love to see excluded from heaven. God knows of no such distinction. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). And Peter reminds us, “[God] is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Pet 3:9). God’s forever salvation is given by God so that ALL people may be saved, and we know we will find our greatest joys as God’s people sharing this precious gift.

As we wait for Jesus to return, we can fall into thinking that we’ve got all the time in the world to tell others about salvation in Jesus. And we can fool ourselves into thinking that time will keep going on as it always seems to, but God tells us that “the Heavens will vanish like smoke,” and the earth will “wear out like a garment.” Even a favorite T-shirt must eventually be thrown into the ragbag. Even the most beautiful mountains and serene lakes will be destroyed. And Isaiah reminds us that, both now, and on the Last Day, their “inhabitants die like flies” (v 6). Nothing on this earth will remain that now exists—everything will be judged, destroyed, and remade in glory on the Last Day, and only God’s Word and the salvation it offers will last forever.

God’s call to you in Isaiah this morning is a call to listen and to look to Him and away from all the false hopes that the world offers. It is a call to seek His eternal salvation, to yearn for it more than we do food, friendship, or financial gain. While none of us can claim to do this perfectly, it is precisely for this reason that God’s salvation is so precious and pure. It is His righteousness that will not fail. It is God’s salvation that will last forever. He calls us to receive what He has provided in the cleansing blood of Jesus, and to share Christ’s forgiveness with others. God promises that we will be forever saved and forever glad as we trust in Him.