WHO ARE PROTECTED: tous en dunamei theou phrouroumenous
(PPPMPA):
(1S2:9;
Ps37:23,24;
Ps37:28
103:17,18;
125:1,2;
Pr2:8;
Isa54:17;
Jer32:40;
Jn4:14;
5:24;
10:28-30;
17:11,
17:12
17:15
Ro 8:31-32
33-39
Php1:6;
Jude1
24)
Protected
(5432)
(phroureo) is derived from phrouros which means
a sentinel. Phrouros in turn is derived from pro = before, toward +
horao = behold, take special notice of, stare at more. The verb
phroureo therefore means
to pay attention to something, thus giving us a clear picture of the action involved in
guarding or protecting.
Phroureo is used 4x in the NT (1x 2Co;1x
Gal;1x
Phil;1x
1 Pe) and in the
NAS is translated guard, 1; guarding, 1; kept in custody, 1;
protected, 1. Phroureo is found in the
Septuagint (LXX) 4 times but only in the apocryphal books.
Phroureo has three primary
nuances:
(1) to maintain a watch, guard.
Phroureo was was a
military term used to describe the guarding performed by posting
sentries. It carries the idea of setting a protective guard. It also
conveys the idea of a garrison keeping watch over a town either in
order to prevent hostile invasion or to keep the inhabitants of a
besieged city from flight. Phroureo described the soldiers
guarding Damascus when Paul made his escape:
In Damascus the ethnarch under
Aretas the king was guarding the city of the Damascenes in
order to seize me, (2
Corinthians 11:32)
(2) to hold in custody, detain,
confine as in Galatians where Paul explained that...
"before faith came, we were kept
in custody (phroureo) under the law, being shut up to the faith
which was later to be revealed." (Galatians
3:23)
This meaning was consistent with
the Roman use of prisons principally for holding of prisoners until
disposition of their cases, just as the Law supervised us until we
could place our faith in Christ.
(3) to provide security, guard,
protect, keep, this being the primary meaning in the present context.
It is encouraging to examine three
of the four uses of phroureo. In the past, the Lord kept us safe until we heard the
Gospel and responded to it (Galatians
3:23). In the
present, the
peace of God keeps our hearts and minds at peace in troubled times (see
note Philippians
4:7). Finally as Peter
teaches, the Lord keeps us
and will reveal His glory in us when Christ returns (1 Peter
1:5). The keeping power of our Lord is awesome. It is as strong
as His strength and as eternal as His person. No Christian should ever
doubt this providential care of the Lord.
Spurgeon expresses the
encouraging truth of God's guarding providence writing that...
As sure as ever God puts His
children in the furnace He will be in the furnace with them."
John Nelson Darby (1800-82)
founder of the Christian Brethren movement speaking of God's
protective care said that...
God's ways are behind the scenes,
but He moves all the scenes which He is behind.
Phroureo is in the
present tense which emphasizes our need for continual protection in
our struggle in this present life as we await the next life of glory. We are constantly being kept guarded by the power of God
which guarantees every believer's final victory even what may seen to
them now as "against all odds"! The
passive voice in the present
context indicates that the "guarding" was being carried out by an
outside force, specifically God, Whose power was continuously
guarding us. Peter's point is that we will make it to heaven no matter
what trials we experience here, so hangeth thou in there.
Barnes adds that
the idea of phroureo is that
"there was a faithful
guardianship exercised over them to save them from danger, as a castle
or garrison is watched to guard it against the approach of an enemy (see
expositional notes on Psalm 121 describing our Helper and
Keeper). The meaning is, that they were weak in themselves, and
were surrounded by temptations; and that the only reason why they were
preserved was, that God exerted His power to keep them. The only
reason which any Christians have to suppose they will ever reach
heaven, is the fact that God keeps them by His own power. If it were
left to the will of man; to the strength of his own resolutions; to
his power to meet temptations, and to any probability that he would of
himself continue to walk in the path of life, there would be no
certainty that anyone would be saved." (Barnes' Notes on the
Bible)
While our inheritance is being kept
guarded in heaven under the watchful eye of God, we are being
garrisoned about by God’s protecting care for it. The Almighty God
stands sentinel over us all our days guarding our "going out and
our coming in from this day forth and forever" (see notes on
Psalm 121).
The Guard is never changed. He is on duty 24 hrs/day ("24/7"), year in
and year out until we arrive safely home.
Believers are not kept by their own power, but by the power of God.
Our faith in Christ has so united us to Him that His power now guards
us and guides us. We are not kept by our strength, but by His
faithfulness. How long will He guard us? Until Jesus Christ returns We
are in His hand (Jn 10:29).
The story is told of a Scotsman,
who was typically economical, leaving instructions that only one word
should be engraved upon his tombstone. That word taken from this verse
was the single word KEPT
(KJV translation).
Eternal security is not based on the faith of men, but on the
faithfulness of God. Aren't we all thankful for this truth!
J Vernon McGee: in his quaint
style writes...
My friend, do you think He can keep you? Oh, I am
weary of the emphasis being put on the work of the flesh. We are being
told that if we follow some little set of rules, we can become
“adequate Christians.” I wonder if the fellows who are giving all
these messages have reached some celestial level which the rest of us
have not been able to attain. They ask, “Are you sufficient, are you
satisfied?” My answer is, “No—I am pressing on the upward way, I am
pressing toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in
Christ Jesus. I am not satisfied. I have not found life sufficient.”
My friend, let me add a strong statement that may startle you: You
cannot live the Christian life! Perhaps you are asking, “Do you
really mean that?” Yes, I do. I would challenge you to show me a verse
or any Scripture where God has asked you to live the Christian life.
He has never done that...The only way in the world that you can live
the Christian life is by the power of the Holy Spirit and by the fact
that you are kept by the power of God—right on through until the day
when you will be delivered to Him in heaven. (McGee,
J V: Thru the Bible Commentary: Thomas Nelson
or
Logos)
BY THE POWER
OF GOD THROUGH FAITH: tous en dunamei theou dia pisteos:
Power
(1411) (dunamis
from dunamai =
to be able, to have power)
(Click study of
dunamis) is the capability as well as
power. Inherent power residing in something (God
in this case)
by virtue of its nature (His
Omnipotence among other attributes)
Dunamis refers
especially to achieving power, to intrinsic power or inherent ability,
the power or ability to carry out some function, the potential for
functioning in some way (power, might, strength, ability, capability),
the power residing in a thing by virtue of its nature.
Dunamis is the implied ability or capacity to perform. It conveys
the idea of effective, productive energy, rather than that which is
raw and unbridled.
Through (dia) refers
the instrument, the intermediate or efficient cause of activating the dunamis (inherent power) of God...it is faith.
In other words this
protection
is God’s response to our faith which we exercised in the Lord
Jesus as Saviour and which now rests in Him as our Preserver. Our
faith lays hold of this power, and this power strengthens our faith,
and thus we are preserved.
(Wuest,
K. S. Wuest's Word Studies from the Greek New Testament: Eerdmans
or
Logos)
FOR A SALVATION READY TO BE REVEALED
IN THE LAST TIME: eis soterian hetoimen
apokaluphthenai (APN) en kairo eschato: (Heb
9:28)
(1
P1:13;
1Ti 6:14,15;
Titu2:13;
1Jn3:2
Job19:25)
Salvation (4991)
(soteria
from
soter = a savior or deliverer) (Click study of
soteria.
See also related study of
soter) means safety, deliverance, preservation
from danger or destruction.
Stated another way In the salvation
referred to here is "future tense" (see
Three Tenses of Salvation), the consummation referred to as
glorification of our mortal bodies,
free from corruption, free from the presence of sin, free from the
pleasure of sin. Oh happy day!
The salvation spoken of here is "future
tense salvation" culminating in the glorification of
our bodies. We received our justification at the moment we believed
(past tense salvation). We are receiving our sanctification, namely
victory over sin and growth in the Christian life now (present tense
salvation). We will yet receive that part of salvation which awaits us
in Glory (future tense salvation). (See
Three Tenses of Salvation)
As
Barclay writes
Salvation is a many-sided thing. In
it there is deliverance from danger, deliverance from disease,
deliverance from condemnation and deliverance from sin. And it is
that, and nothing less than that, to which the Christian can look
forward at the end.
Ready (2092)
(hetoimos
from an old noun heteos = fitness) means ready, prepared, in a
state of readiness.
Hetoimos
is a stronger word than "about to be", or "destined to be", as it
implies a state of waiting or preparedness and thus harmonizes well
with "reserved"
Revealed
(601)
(apokalupto from apó = from +
kalúpto = to cover, conceal) (See
study of related word
apokalupsis) means literally to remove the
cover from. To make manifest or reveal a thing previously secret or
unknown.
The veil or covering will one day be removed exposing to open view for
all to see what was before hidden...our "future tense salvation" or
glorification.
The
world does not understand who we are as believers nor the future glory
we shall experience. But one day that will all change. In the meantime
"hangeth thou in there."
Note
that
apokalupto is in the passive voice indicating that the action is
performed by an outside force, in context referring to God Himself.
The
last time comprises the period
between Christ’s first and second comings. "Last" (eschatos)
is the source of our English word eschatology.
The assurance of heaven is a
great help to us today.
As Dr. James M. Gray expressed it in one of
his songs, “Who can mind the journey, when the road leads home?”
And like the Steven Curtis Chapman song says "We Are Not Home Yet!"
The idea that we are not home yet is one we all would do well to keep
foremost in our mind as illustrated by the true story of Henry C.
Morrison a little known "hardworking
farmer" in God's missionary
fields, toiling some forty years in the difficult fields of Africa. As
the story is told, he became sick and had to return home to America,
and as providence would have it, the boat he returned on was also
carrying a well known guest. As the great ocean liner docked in New
York Harbor there was a great crowd gathered to greet President Teddy
Roosevelt who received a grand welcome-home-party after his widely
publicized African Safari. Resentment seized the "hardworking
farmer", Henry Morrison, and
he turned to God saying "I have come back home after all this time and
service to the church and there is no one, not even one person here to
welcome me home." Then a small voice came to Morrison reminding him
"You're not home yet." Our ultimate harvest is yet future and our
future reward is out of this world! Ready to be revealed in the last
time! Praise the Lord.
If
we can get the truth firmly planted in our mind that suffering today
means glory tomorrow, then suffering becomes a blessing to us.
The unsaved have their “glory” now, but it will be
followed by eternal suffering away from the glory of God (2Th 1:3-10).
In the light of this, ponder (2Co 4:17-18)—and rejoice!
For momentary, light affliction is
producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison,
while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things
which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but
the things which are not seen are eternal.