The Perseverance Of The Saints

"And pray in The Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.  With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints."  Ephesians 6:18 (NIV)

In his letter to the believers in Ephesus, the Apostle Paul, the human author of thirteen of the fourteen epistles contained in the twenty-seven Books of The New Testament, encouraged them to pray, after he told them to put on the whole armor of God. (Ephesians 6:11-17)  He encouraged them to pray for the perseverance of the saints.  ("... with all perseverance and supplication for all saints ..." Ephesians 6:18 KJV)

The perseverance of the saints literally means that the believers will keep on believing until the very end, until they die.  As Christians, we are never to give up on God, and never to stop believing in Christ.  We are to keep the faith regardless of our situation or circumstance. (John 15:9, Galatians 6:9, and Revelation 3:11)  We are also to pray for other believers, that they too will be strengthened and keep the faith.  Prayer is not part of the whole armor of God, but it is an important and essential weapon in the fight against the powers of evil.  We are all under attack, and we are to put on the whole armor of God and pray.  The Word of God and prayer are our only weapons against the spiritual evil that we face.  We are to pray, and to be consistent and persistent in our prayers. (Luke 18:1 and Luke 21:36)  We are to pray for the perseverance of the saints. (Revelation 14:12)  Pray at all times, on all occasions, and keep on praying, not only for ourselves but all saints, that we all may persevere until the end of this life.  For Jesus Christ said that he who put his hand on the plow and looks back is not worthy of the kingdom of God. (Luke 9:62)  We do not want to be left out of the kingdom of heaven because we lost faith and looked back or let go.  We do not want to be turned into a pillar of salt, like Lot's wife, for looking back and longing for that which was left behind. (Genesis 19:26)  So saints, persevere, keep the faith, don't look back, don't wish for our pre-Christian life, and don't let go of our faith in God.  He will never leave us or let go of us. (Matthew 28:20, John 10:29, and Hebrews 13:5)