For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
—Romans 3:38–39
The righteous are kept forever secure by God, both in this life and throughout all eternity. Not one of God’s saints will ever perish:
The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way; though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the Lord upholds his hand. . . . For the Lord loves justice; he will not forsake his saints. They are preserved forever, but the children of the wicked shall be cut off. —Psalm 37:23–28
In this wisdom psalm, David explains that the Lord guards the righteous. Though the saints may fall into sin, they will never fall from grace. Instead, they will be upheld by God and made to stand forever. VanGemeren comments, “The Lord establishes the godly, even in times of adversity. He may ‘stumble’, either by sinning or by being jealous of the wicked or by the traps laid by the wicked, but he will not fall. . . . The ground for all the blessings is the love of God. He loves ‘the just’ and therefore will never forsake ‘his faithful ones.’ . . . Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ (Rom. 8:38–39).” [The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Vol. 5, 302.] God permanently holds the saints in His hand, and will never allow them to slip through His sovereign grip. He will preserve them forever.
—Steve Lawson, Foundations of Grace (Reformation Trust, 2006), 147–148.
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