If the fate of believers in
eternity is sealed (safe and secure in heaven) and decided 'once and for all'
the moment they believed in Christ:
Why
did Jesus warn believers to endure to the end in order that we might be saved
(Matthew 24:13)?
Why did Jesus warn believers (branches) to abide in Him (Vine) or they will be lifeless, useless, thrown away and be burnt (John 15:6)?
Why did Paul urge us to watch our life and doctrine so that we might save ourselves (1 Tim. 4:16)?
Why did Paul warn believers that God is kind to us provided we continue in his kindness or else we will cut off (Romans 11:22)?
Why did Paul stress that, one day, we will be presented holy and blameless before God IF we continue to be steadfast in the faith (Colossians 1:22-23)?
Why did Paul say that it is possible to believe in vain (though we are saved) if we do not hold fast to the word (1 Corinthians 15:1-2)?
Why did Paul compare the Christian life to a race in which he had to exercise self-discipline so that he won’t be disqualified (1 Corinthians 9:27)? https://bit.ly/2zta94e
Why
did both Paul and Jude warn that it is possible to be saved and later destroyed (1 Corinthians 10: 1-12, Jude
5)? https://bit.ly/2Xyipb3
Why
did Peter remind us to make every effort to confirm our election so that we will not stumble (2 Peter 1:10)?
Why did Peter warn that a believer who gets entangled in sin (world’s defilement) once again will face condemnation worse than if he had never believed (2 Peter 2:20-21)?
Why did Peter warn that a believer who gets entangled in sin (world’s defilement) once again will face condemnation worse than if he had never believed (2 Peter 2:20-21)?
Why
did the writer of Hebrews warn that it possible to fall away from God and lose our inheritance, like those who failed
to reach the Promised Land (Hebrews 3:12-14)?
Why it may be impossible for a believer (with five clear-cut unmistakable characteristics of genuine faith) who turns his back on God (commit apostasy) to repent and be restored (Hebrews 6:4-8)? https://bit.ly/3esnBnQ
Why did the writer of Hebrews warn that believers who willfully live in sin will incur God’s judgment as Christ’s atoning blood no longer avails for them (Hebrews 10: 26-31)?
Why
did the writer of Hebrews exhort us to endure and not shrink back in our faith in
order to receive the promise and not be destroyed (Hebrews 10: 36-39)?
Why
did John tell us to overcome sin so that our names will not be blotted out from
the book of life (Revelation 3:3-5)?
These
are just some thought-provoking questions for believers to consider when it
comes to the issue of eternal security.
All
these questions tell us one thing: Salvation is conditional, even though many sweet and soothing messages from famous
teachers that tell us otherwise. Though saved by grace, believers still have to
exercise personal responsibility.
As
believers, we come from different church backgrounds. But we must not allow any
teacher or theological school to influence us regarding this issue—whether Once
Saved, Always Saved (OSAS) is true or false—before we do serious Bible study ourselves.
We
should not hide behind the cloak of integrity of famous teachers for finally we
ourselves will be held accountable to God for our beliefs; being deceived by a
false sense of security that OSAS offers is extremely dangerous as it concerns
our eternal destiny.
This is my personal invitation to all believers to investigate first-hand the above questions and their associated verses—like the Bereans—without allowing any preconceived ideas and prejudices to colour or cloud your judgment. Go to the primary source, the Bible, and discover the truth, setting aside your favourite teachers or articles posted on the Internet.
This is my personal invitation to all believers to investigate first-hand the above questions and their associated verses—like the Bereans—without allowing any preconceived ideas and prejudices to colour or cloud your judgment. Go to the primary source, the Bible, and discover the truth, setting aside your favourite teachers or articles posted on the Internet.
You can choose various versions of the Bible, study aids and commentaries and even pursue the original texts in the process of studying. I hope you will be enlightened for the sake of your eternal destiny. God bless.
DOCTRINE OF SALVATION
We
are saved the moment we confessed our sins and believed in Christ. But that is
just the beginning of a process. We only get to inherit salvation in the future
if we remain faithful, endure and persevere.
Salvation
is a process: justification, sanctification and glorification (the latter
certainly has not happened yet). Justification: when God sees us as righteous
based on Christ’s blood the moment we believed in Christ. Sanctification: the ongoing
process of transformation of the believer to increasingly conform to the will
and image of Christ. Glorification—the redemption of our bodies—is the final
stage of salvation, which we eagerly await like Paul, will only happen at the
rapture (Romans 8:23, 1 Corinthians 15:52-53).
Justification: Saved
from the penalty of sin
Sanctification: Saved
from the power of sin
Glorification: Saved
from the effects and possibility of sin
To
summarise, salvation is a work in progress. We were saved, we are being saved
and we will be saved one day ... provided we remain faithful. The danger of
liberal theology is that it presents salvation as a one-off event whereby we
inherit eternal life at the point of entry (conversion). That breeds
complacency. In fact, salvation is a process whereby we have to be faithful and
persevere until the end in order to inherit eternal life. That is Soteriology
101.
THE QUESTION OF AUDIENCE
An
important consideration that underpins all the above questions is this: Who
were Jesus and the apostles addressing? Were they genuine or professing believers?
We
can be sure that in the first question that Jesus was talking to his disciples
in the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24), which is confirmed in the parallel
passage in Mark 13: 3.
Also,
Jesus could not have referred to professing believers in the second question as
believers are compared to branches that originate from the Vine (Christ) in
John 15. Branches are an integral part of the Vine. By the way, John 15 is part
of the Upper Room discourse (John chapters 13 through16), a time when Jesus
bared His soul and taught his disciples before going to the cross.
In
the book of Hebrews, one may argue that there were both genuine and false
believers in the fledgling Jewish church at that time. But the main purpose of
the writer is to warn genuine Jewish
believers the eternal consequences of turning their backs on God and returning
to their old religion or a sinful lifestyle.
For example, it is clear beyond doubt the writer was warning genuine believers: “Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God” (Hebrews 3:12). And, in the ensuing verses, the inevitable judgment of God was spelt out.
Again, there is no doubt that genuine believers (who choose to willfully live in sin) are the ones being warned: For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” and again, “The Lord will judge his people.” It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:30-31).
For example, it is clear beyond doubt the writer was warning genuine believers: “Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God” (Hebrews 3:12). And, in the ensuing verses, the inevitable judgment of God was spelt out.
Again, there is no doubt that genuine believers (who choose to willfully live in sin) are the ones being warned: For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” and again, “The Lord will judge his people.” It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God (Hebrews 10:30-31).
Why
would Jesus, the apostles, the writer of Hebrews take so much trouble to warn genuine believers about the consequences of falling away (and losing
one’s salvation) if such a possibility does not exist?
Calvinists
try to soften the harsh truth. They circumvent the situation by arguing that
these believers were not saved in the first place and that, if they were
genuine believers, they would have persevered till the end in order to fit into
their man-made doctrine, “Perseverance of the Saints.” That is how Calvinists
justify their doctrine of eternal security (OSAS).
If
huge swathes of scriptures are set against a certain doctrine, it is able to stand
firm if it is valid. However, if a so-called established doctrine cannot stand
the above tests (questions from many sections of the Bible), we must sit up and
begin to question whether this doctrine (eternal security) is valid or not, no
matter how many famous leaders embrace it.
EXTERNAL LINKS
The challenge I have with this teaching—ONCE SAVED, ALWAYS SAVED (OSAS)—is its failure to interpret individual passages honestly that disagree with this particular system. For example, Hebrews 6:1-8 and 10:24-29 clearly teach that people, after receiving the saving knowledge of Christ, can fall away and lose their salvation. Second Peter 2:20-22 and James 5:19-20 are as clear as tar on snow that a believer can fall away and once again be called sinners who have to be restored.
CAN BELIEVERS LOSE THEIR SALVATION?
Listen to this balanced, seasoned teacher, the late David Pawson. A must-watch video.
God is able to keep us in the faith AND we are to keep ourselves in His love.
If we keep ourselves in the love of God, He keeps what we have committed to Him.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hG-zaJXv5D0RELATED POSTS
IS SALVATION AN EVENT OR
PROCESS?
Is
salvation merely an event that happens when we make a decision to believe in Christ?
IS CALVIN CORRECT?
John
Calvin, the great reformer, believed that Christians can never lose their
salvation. That is, Once Saved, Always Saved (OSAS). Is he correct?
DON'T MAKE JESUS AND
PAUL LOOK LIKE FOOLS
Two
passages on endurance and perseverance we mustn't ignore in these end times
ONCE SAVED, FOREVER
SECURE?
Some
Christians believe, once they are saved, absolutely nothing can happen to them
to alter their destiny. Even though they might live in sin or deny God, they
believe that one day they will surely reach their final destination in heaven.
To one who studies scriptures with no preconceived ideas (not influenced by Calvinism or the doctrine of eternal security), the message of Hebrews 10:26-31 is very clear:
ReplyDeleteOnce we have been forgiven and redeemed by Christ’s blood, there is no turning back. If we continue to sin as a way of life, there is no chance for a second redemption for we have spurned Christ’s atoning sacrifice. What we have to face is the vengeance of God, who is a consuming fire.
Hebrews 10:26-31 passage:
For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.” It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.