Canning Time

Once each year, my old Granny Morrison of Kentucky would set aside a week for canning. During this time she would take the fresh vegetables and fruits they had grown and put them in jars, and then seal the lid to preserve them. If not sealed properly, in time the lid would pop and the ingredients spoil.

God preserves also, but He has never had one container that did not, or will not, make it to His heavenly table. He seals His children with the Holy Spirit, and the Spirit keeps what is committed to Him from spoiling and going bad. The saints’ perseverance is only because of God’s preservation.

Jesus said that both He and His Father keep their sheep, which, He states, are in the hands of them both. They’re sandwiched in, so to speak. This, says our Lord, is why no man is able to pluck them out of their hands. We are clasped between Sovereign hands. 

To suppose that this doctrine leads to careless living is a misconception and misunderstanding of the Holy Scriptures. In every real saint there is heart-holiness. True, a sheep may fall into a mud hole, but it is out of character for it to stay there. It is not its nature! A hog will wallow in the mire and enjoy it, but God’s sheep is miserable until restored to righteousness.