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A Protected Class…

By July 18, 2021December 7th, 2022Devotional

As you may recall, I wrote last week that our youngest child, Andrew, turned 40 on July 13th. I remember when I turned 40, 28 years ago, and the party that Janet threw for me to mark the occasion. Friends of mine came in from across the country and we had a deejay – and and a very memorable evening that I still remember with fondness. The kids were even there and so it is very difficult to realize that now all three of our children have passed the 40 year old mark!

This benchmark is probably made even more prominent in our lives as Janet and I don’t really feel any older but clearly we are… and as we look back on pictures from those days almost three decades ago, it proves that we are now in a different phase of life. Our kids all looked so young back then.

After my birthday bash, Janet and I went on a trip to Grand Cayman Island and spent a week sitting on the beach and watching the filming of “The Firm” with Tom Cruise and Gene Hackman. In fact, we were in the top floor of the hotel and right next to several rooms that were being used for filming the scenes that happened in the Cayman islands during the movie.

It was so nice to be able to watch the filming and go down in the middle of the night and watch Hackman or Cruise doing scenes at the pool or on the deck surrounding the beautiful grounds. Likewise, they ate locally every night and it was common for us to see one or both of them at a restaurant in the area. It was a wonderful trip with the added bonus of seeing one of our favorite movies being made.

I also remember thinking that I had attained the age of legal protection as far as employment law was concerned. Back in the day, there was a big deal made when someone turned 40 as it provided some additional protection as the government worried about discrimination against “older” workers and employers were much more hesitant to fire or lay off those of us who had attained protected status. What is even more difficult to realize is that not only are Janet and I part of the protected class, all three of our children now fall into the same category!

Just think of that – our kids are old enough to be protected under the law against age discrimination! Who would have ever thought that it would come to that?

Of course, in reality, I don’t think the age of 40 really affords any more protection that younger folks get, but there are ways that all believers are part of a protected class. That’s right – each of us who believes in Jesus as Lord and Savior are part of a protected class in that we are assured that we have been sealed by God and will spend eternity with Him.

One of the great things about this is the fact that you can be protected as soon as you accept the free gift of eternal life. You don’t have to be 40, or 30, or even 20 for that matter. You must just be able to understand that God loves you and wants to spend the rest of eternity with you. You are, therefore, immune from the advances of Satan and cannot lose your salvation once you have been truly saved.

Our verse for tonight highlights the fact that we are part of a protected class. That should give us great relief to know that we have eternal security. The apostle John tells us in his first epistle that those born of God will not keep on sinning. By the way, this doesn’t mean that we will never sin, but sin will not be a default way of life for us. It will be the exception and not the rule in our lives. John tells us, in 1 John 5:18, “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.”

My encouragement this evening is that God wants all of us to be protected by Him. Regardless of whatever age we are. My prayer is that we will all rest in the knowledge of our eternal security and lead others to a knowledge that they can be part of a fully protected class as well. Have a great day in the Lord, grace and peace…

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