We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him. We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols. 1 John 5:18–21
David Jackman writes:
It is Christ who keeps God’s children safe, so that Satan cannot, literally, ‘fasten himself’ upon them. He may and will attack God’s children, but he cannot gain a foothold; he cannot succeed in getting them back into his grip. That is where the world is, as verse 19 will show us – in the grip of the evil one. But the church is kept safe by the eternal Son, to whom all power is given and who guarantees, in His own words, her total security. ‘I give [My sheep] eternal life, and they shall never perish; no-one can snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; no-one can snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and the Father are one’ (Jn. 10:28-30). So, as we struggle against sin in our lives, we do so with confidence, not despair. Our protector is stronger than our enemy; more vigilant and more concerned than we can ever be. We know it is true, so let us rejoice in it and live in the experience of it, by faith.
MEMORY WORK – Shorter Catechism Q/A 13
Q. 13. Did our first parents continue in the estate wherein they were created?
A. Our first parents, being left to the freedom of their own will, fell from the estate wherein they were created, by sinning against God.