"My sheep... shall never perish." These are the words of Jesus, the Son of God. He is the Good Shepherd who gave His life for the sheep; and now risen, He gives His own eternal life to the sheep. His own pledge is, "They shall never perish."
No, He does not say, They shall never wander; He does not say, They shall never backslide; He does not say, They shall never stumble, but He does say, "They shall never PERISH."
"Yes," you say, "but there are other scriptures which, it seems to me, say that a believer may be finally lost."
Now stop, my friend, one scripture at a time. Does Christ say of His sheep, "They shall never perish?"
"Yes," you reply, "but surely that must mean so long as they are faithful."
But He says, "NEVER."
Now which is right: your word, that a true believer may be lost after all, or Christ's word, "They shall never perish?"
If "never perish" means anything, it means one cannot be finally lost. There are no ifs, buts, or conditions of any kind attached, but a bare, unqualified, absolute statement: "They shall NEVER PERISH." You are bound to admit that at least one text of Scripture assures the true believer of final security. This being so, I have only to add that if there is any other scripture that appears to you to contradict or qualify this text, it must be that you do not understand that other; for, thank God, there is no possibility of misunderstanding such plain words as "never perish."
My reader, you run no risk in venturing your soul on ONE WORD of the "God that cannot lie" and "cannot deny Himself." Take this word as your sheet-anchor, and wait on God to make clear any other that troubles you.
Do you think, friend, that you could by any possibility sink into hell at last if, as a poor sinner, you had taken Christ at His word and relied on His "NEVER PERISH?" If it could be so—with reverence I say it—all heaven would blush to find the Christ of God unfaithful to His pledge. No, beloved friend, Jesus Christ is "a tried stone, a precious stone, a sure foundation," and "he that believeth on Him shall not be confounded" (1 Peter 2: 6).