Able to Keep You from Stumbling

“Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever.  Amen.”  Jude 24-25

Since we all stumble in many ways, we need our God to keep us from stumbling.  Without this divine keeping our situation would be hopeless.  No Christian is able to walk the narrow path without daily stumbling into sinful words, thoughts, and actions.  The good news is that God is able to keep us from stumbling.  He begins this keeping at our conversion and continues until he presents us “blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy.”  So let us not grow discouraged or weary or fainthearted in our Christian walk! 

Our God will protect us from the dark path set before us.  When we walk the narrow path in the dark, we are bound to stumble along the way.  But God has given us his Word to light the way and keep us from stumbling.  His Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path.  We can see the stumbling blocks in the road as we carry the lamp of God’s Word. 

Christ also keeps us from stumbling by walking with us and supporting us.  Christians lean on Christ as old men lean on canes.  Christ places his arm around us when we are weak and provides the necessary support.  Rarely do we stumble and fall when we are leaning on the arms of our omnipotent Savior. 

The Lord protects us from those who cause us to stumble.  The thief may come to steal, kill, and destroy, but he is no match for Jesus.  Perhaps a brother unknowingly places a stumbling block in our way; Christ is there beside us granting us the wisdom to avoid the obstruction in our way.  Sinners run aside from the narrow path and call us to join them as they run across the rough terrain of sin and rebellion.  Christ calls us back to his side by his sovereign Holy Spirit.  His sheep always hear his voice and return. 

Sometimes we stumble because our eyes wander away from the narrow path and focus on the world.  We see the pleasures and possessions of this present life, and, while our eyes wander from the way of holiness, we stumble because we are not looking ahead.  Yet again our God is able to set our eyes on him.  He is able to keep us from stumbling.  We know that we will never be sinless in this life, but we can walk uprightly and free from obstruction when we trust the One who is able to keep us from stumbling and present us before his presence on the last day. 

Let us trust our God’s ability today to keep us from the obstacles in the path of holiness.  Let us seek to walk the narrow way.  If we are weak today, let us lean on the arms of Christ and trust his ability to support us as we journey to heaven.  If the road ahead of us seems dark, let us turn to his Word that reveals the way.  Our God is able!  Our confidence is in him!