When God Engraved Your Name

A person doesn’t have to be a golf fan to empathize with Adam Scott. With four holes to go he had a four shot lead in the British Open. Four shots! Par the final quartet of holes and the trophy was his. Might as well have told him to chew gum. He could par these holes in his sleep. Everyone knew the tournament was his. A craftsman in a nearby workshop began sketching the name Adam Scott on the winner’s medal.

But disaster struck. Missed putts. Wayward shots. The next thing he knew, he was scrambling to make a ten-foot putt to force a playoff. He missed it. “Wow,” he mouthed, chin trembling.

The most poignant moment of the collapse might have been the camera shot of the engraver as he was given the news. He stopped his work and, gulp, erased Adam Scott’s name from the first place medal.

Viewers offered a collective groan.

Many Christians can relate. We fear the same will happen to us. We fear the fatal stumble, the ultimate collapse. Might we fall so utterly that God will erase our name?

No, he won’t.

Jesus couldn’t be more emphatic. “And I shall give them eternal life, and they shall never lose it or perish throughout the ages. [To all eternity they shall never by any means be destroyed.] And no one is able to snatch them out of My hand” (John 10:28 AMP).

Jesus promised a new life that cannot be forfeited or terminated. “Whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned: he has crossed over from death to life” (John 5:24 NIV).

Unlike the medal engraver, Jesus has an eternal perspective. He knew every step of your life before you took the first one. He saw the bogies and the birdies, the strong days and bad ones. He made His choice. When you said “yes” to him, he entered your name into the eternal populace of heaven. Your name is “engraved on the palms of his hands.” (Is.49:16 )

Finish well. But, if you stumble along the way, don’t worry, Jesus doesn’t use an eraser.