[The following material is from O Timothy magazine, Volume 12, Issue 2, 1995. David W. Cloud, Editor. This material cannot be stored on BBS or Internet sites without permission from the author. Any articles which are redistributed by e-mail or print must be left intact and nothing must be removed or changed, including these informational headers. All rights are reserved. O Timothy is a monthly magazine. Annual subscription is US$20 FOR THE UNITED STATES. Send to Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061-0368, fbns@wayoflife.org. FOR CANADA the subscription is $20 Canadian. The Way of Life web site is located at http://www.wayoflife.org/]

Eternal Security and Problem Passages

By David W. Cloud

The following is a reply we sent recently to a reader of our Bible encyclopedia who questioned the doctrine of eternal security:

Thank you for the letter and the questions pertaining to eternal security. I will do my best to give an answer. I can assure you that eternal security is not a dangerous doctrine.

Let me say a couple of things at the outset to preface my comments on the points you mentioned.

First, I admit that some passages present apparent problems which seem to undermine the doctrine of eternal security--if these are not interpreted carefully in light of the context. There are a few passages which do appear to teach that someone who has been saved can eternally be lost in the end. I have mulled and prayed over the passages you mentioned as well as other ones. (The man who led me to Christ was a Pentecostal, and he did not believe in eternal security.) The position I have come to is that the New Testament overwhelmingly promises eternal security to the true believer. I do not believe God would have given so much plain and simple teaching on the eternal nature of salvation only to overthrow it with a couple of relatively obscure passages. We interpret the less clear passages in light of those which are crystal clear. This is a working principle which I believe is honoring to the Word of God, and it is the proper way to handle it. False teachers, on the other hand, delight in using the more obscure portions of Scripture to overthrow the plain. To interpret any of the passages you mentioned as saying that a born again child of God can lose his salvation flies in the face of hundreds of clear passages of Scripture. When the context of a Bible passage is plainly directed to the subject of salvation, there is never a question about the security of the believer.

Second, your list of passages reminds me that most of the texts supposedly proving that a believer can lose his salvation have absolutely nothing to do with such a thing. One has to read the doctrine of insecurity into those passages.

Third, let me also say that I believe that many who teach eternal security do so in an unbiblical manner. To fail to emphasize the necessity of repentance, to fail to warn the casual "professor" that profession is not the same as possession, to comfort and impart security to a professor who has no evidence of regeneration is to do injustice to the biblical doctrine of eternal security. The Bible frequently warns about the possibility of appearing to be saved while actually being lost, about coming close to salvation without actually being saved. Those of us who teach eternal security must not ignore the solemn charges of the Word of God such as John 8:47 and 1 John 3:10.

Now to the passages that you inquired about:

JOHN 15. This passage does not necessarily say that a believer will be cast into Hell. You are reading that interpretation into it. It could be teaching that, if it were not for the fact that the rest of John's Gospel teaches exactly the opposite! Consider these passages in John--1:12,13; 3:14-18,36; 4:14; 5:25; 6:37,40,47; 10:27-30; 11:25; 17:2,3; 20:31. Whatever, therefore, the meaning of John 15:6 in reference to the child of God, it CANNOT mean that the true believer will be rejected and cast into Hell. That would make the promises of Jesus Christ to the believer into a lie. I personally believe Christ is referring here to the difference between sincere and insincere, true and false believers. He mentions such a thing in other passages in John's Gospel. Consider John 2:23-25 and 6:64. I believe John 15 is a warning that the evidence of true faith in Christ is to bear fruit for His glory.

MATTHEW 7:21. This has nothing to do with a believer losing his salvation. To do the will of the Father is certainly not the way to Heaven. It is the evidence of genuine faith in Christ; it is the proof of regeneration.

GALATIANS 5:19-21. This passage does not teach that a believer can lose his salvation, unless salvation is by works. Do you believe salvation is by works? This passage teaches that the genuine believer will manifest a changed life. The person who continues to be dominated by the flesh is not saved (Romans 8:5-14).

ROMANS 11:19-23. Paul is not addressing the subject of personal salvation. He is addressing the matter of the Jews and their place in the program of God. Paul is speaking in a general sense of Gentiles and of the Jewish nation. Today God has turned temporarily from the Jews and is calling a people for His name from among the Gentile nations. The day will come when God will again turn to the Jewish nation to fulfill His promises to them. Verses 24-26 make this plain. Paul is speaking in a general sense, not in a personal sense. A careful reading of this chapter illustrates this.

MATTHEW 25. The parables of the ten virgins and of the talents are given in the context of Christ's coming and of the establishment of the kingdom of God in Israel (see Matt. 25:31-34). The foolish virgins do not have to picture true believers. One has to read this into the parable. Likewise, the wicked and slothful servant of the parable of the talents does not have to picture a true believer. Again, one must read this into the parable. I believe, in light of everything the New Testament promises to the child of God, that the foolish virgins MUST be those who are unsaved. As I have said before, to interpret this otherwise is to throw multitudes of clear Scriptures into confusion. The wicked and slothful servant is not a true believer. First, he did not know the Lord. He considered the Lord "an hard man." It is obvious that he did not know the blessed Lord Jesus Christ! The fact that he is called a servant does not mean necessarily that he is saved. The Jews are called the Lord's servants, but they were not all saved (Is. 43:10). Let me also say that it is not wise to establish doctrine upon parables. The parables have one central point, and if you try to push every detail of the parable you can have all sorts of doctrinal problems.

MATTHEW 8:11-12. The "children of the kingdom" here are the Jews in the nation Israel. One of the key teachings of the Gospels is the rejection of Jesus Christ by His own people, the Jews. Time and again Christ warns and rebukes the Jews and their leaders, but most of them reject him. The first half of Matthew, in particular, documents this fearful situation.

LUKE 21:34. The context here is the Great Tribulation and the coming of Christ. Some would say that this passage teaches that we must prove ourselves in order to be worthy to escape the judgments to come. As noted in the next paragraph, such an interpretation contradicts the clear teaching of Scripture on the matter of personal salvation. It is therefore an impossible interpretation. Others teach that this verse presents a split rapture of some sort, whereby faithful believers will be taken away before the Tribulation and unfaithful believers will remain to go through the Tribulation. Such an interpretation is contrary to the teaching of the New Testament pertaining to the Translation of the saints. 1 Thessalonians 4-5 is probably the plainest passage in the Bible dealing with the Rapture. There is not a hint here that any true believer will go through the Tribulation. Contrariwise, the Rapture is held forth as a source of comfort to all believers (1 Thess. 4:18). Those who are overtaken by the Day of the Lord are contrasted repeatedly with the believers, who are "not appointed to wrath" (1 Thess. 5:1-10).

REVELATION 3:1-6. This warning is addressed, first of all, to the church of Sardis as a whole, not to individual believers. The warning that Christ would come upon Sardis as a thief refers to the fact that He would judge the church. Historically that happened. It has happened time and time again as churches have turned from the Lord and apostatized. The few names in Sardis which had not defiled their garments were the few who were truly saved. Revelation 3:6 actually is a proof text for eternal security. Christ promises that a truly saved person will not be blotted out of the book of life. Those who overcome are simply those who are truly born again and who therefore follow Jesus Christ because they have true faith (Jn. 10:27; Heb. 6:9; Rev. 12:11). To say that this verse teaches that a believer can be blotted out of the book of life if he does not maintain a certain level of obedience is to commit two serious errors: First, such an interpretation is contrary to the method of salvation, which is by grace through faith WITHOUT works (Eph. 2:8-10; Rom. 3:24; 4:1-8; 11:6; Tit. 3:5-7). Second, such an interpretation is contrary to the promise of salvation. John 3:16 and hundreds of other verses promise "he that believeth on him SHALL NOT PERISH BUT HAVE EVERLASTING LIFE." Are those promises true, or are they a deception?

2 THESSALONIANS 2:3. This passage warns of the great apostasy of the last days. It does not refer to a believer losing his salvation. The Apostle does not say that those who fall away are true believers. On the contrary, the true brethren (verse 1) are comforted that they are not the ones being described here. Those who fall away and turn to the antichrist are those who "received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved" (verse 10).

This is the end of the list of problem passages that you mentioned. Let me mention two more, though, that are commonly offered as proof texts to overthrow eternal security:

2 PETER 2:20-22. Though this passage is often used to prove that eternal security is not true, it actually says nothing about losing ones salvation. The context is false teachers who promote damnable heresies and deny the Lord (v. 1). It should be obvious that it is not saved men who are the focus on this passage, but hypocrites and deceivers. Any interpretation which says these are saved men who lose their salvation flies in the face of the context. The fact that "the latter end is worse with them than the beginning" and "it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness" does not imply that they were saved and now are lost. They were dogs and pigs who were unchanged (v. 22). The fact that they return to their wickedness proves that they were never regenerate. When the context is taken into account, there really is no problem in this passage in regard to the doctrine of eternal security.

REVELATION 21:8. I believe this passage contrasts the saved with the lost. The saved are overcomers (v. 7). The lost continue in their sin (v. 8). A twin doctrine to that of eternal security is the perseverance of the saints. The Bible plainly teaches that those who are truly born again will evidence their salvation and will continue on with the Lord (John 10:27-28; 1 Cor. 15:1,2; Col. 1:21-23; Heb. 6:4-9; 10:38; 1 John 3:3). The one who permanently falls away demonstrates that he did not belong to the Lord in the first place (Heb. 12:5-8). If a professing Christian murders someone, it probably proves that he was not genuinely saved. Revelation 21:8 is similar to 1 John 3:9. These passages are not talking about an act of sin but a way of life of sin. If these passages are referring to an act of sin, no one can be saved. It is obvious from other passages that a Christian can commit any act of sin, including idolatry and adultery (1 John 1:8-10). This is why we are often warned not to commit these evils (1 Cor. 6:18; 10:6,14; 1 John 5:21). Salvation is to be placed into an entirely and eternally new position in Jesus Christ. The old flesh cannot be redeemed; it can only be condemned and crucified. Our new position in Christ is that our old man is dead and we rise to new life in Jesus Christ. The law can no longer condemn us. It is crucial to understand the difference between POSITION and PRACTICE, between union and communion, between the believers standing and his state, between his relationship with God and his fellowship with God. The book of Ephesians makes this distinction very plain. The believers position is purchased by the blood of Christ and is eternally secure; his practice depends upon his obedience but it does not affect his position. Ephesians 1-3 describes the believers POSITION in Christ. The word "grace" is used 11 times in these chapters. The phrases "in Christ" and "in heavenly places" are used 29 times. The believer is "blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ" (1:3). Ephesians 4-6, on the other hand, describes the believers PRACTICE. The subject changes dramatically. The word "walk" is used seven times in these chapters. The believer is a child of God and has eternal salvation in Jesus Christ; now he is to walk like a child of God in this present world. Ephesians 5:8 summarizes these two aspects of the Christian life: "For ye were sometimes darkness, but NOW are ye light in the Lord: WALK as children of light." To return to the teaching of Revelation 21:8,9, salvation requires perfection, and the only perfection that we can ever have is that which we receive from Jesus Christ because of the Propitiation He purchased on Calvary. Even one sin will keep me out of Heaven, but, praise God, I do not have any sin in Christ. He has taken it all away forever.

You mentioned James Robison and asked, "Are you saying that he's still saved and is going to heaven or, because his salvation is permanent, he still has a chance to repent?" I don't have the foggiest idea about James Robison's eternal condition, and I have never tried to figure such things out. That is God's business, not mine. I don't have the knowledge to make such determinations. I know this, though. A man can preach the Gospel and rebuke liberalism without necessarily being born again. I'm not saying that James Robison is not born again. I am saying that it is possible that he is not, and I am saying that I simply do not know. Let me also say that I don't know that Robison has rejected the Gospel. He has accepted certain Charismatic doctrines and practices that I believe are unscriptural, but it is the Gospel that saves a man, not what he believes about tongues or healing or ecumenism or many other things.

I do not profess to be able to answer every question which can be raised on this subject. No man can. Eternal security, though, is a Bible doctrine that has satisfied and blessed my heart for 21 years. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

WAY OF LIFE LITERATURE ONLINE CATALOG