Archive for the ‘Perseverance’ Category
Stand Firm For Truth No Matter What
I saw where Louis Giglio has now resigned after being asked by President Obama to pray at the inauguration. The reason for his resignation was because homosexual groups and the Left were in a firestorm with Obama after someone pulled a sermon Giglio preached in which he called homosexuality a sin and that people in sin (all sins) needed to repent. In his sermon, Giglio quotes from Scripture to back his points. He is not merely giving his opinions but is stating what the Bible says. This caused the uproar and so Giglio withdrew from the inauguration although I am sure the Obama administration politely asked him to not attend.
My advice to all true disciples of Jesus is to not back down from the truth. Preach the Word (2 Timothy 4:2). We will be attacked and put down (Matthew 5:10-12) but stand firm for the truth. We will be viewed as bigots, as old-fashioned, as losing touch with reality, as not being with the times but preach the Word. Stand firm upon our convictions from Scripture that all sin must be repented of as Giglio rightly said (Acts 17:30-31). Truth matters. Don’t compromise. Don’t give into the spirit of this age for the sake of anything. Not for the sake of money. Not for the sake of fame. Not for the sake of sin. Stand firm for Jesus and His kingdom. The Lord will vindicate us (Psalm 73). Jesus will win this war. We are promised this.
Persecution is coming friends. Soon we disciples of Jesus will be hated and killed but the Lord will be glorified as we stand firm for the truth. No matter what may happen, Jesus will win this war. Jesus will be the King of kings and the Lord of lords (1 Timothy 6:15-16). Our blood may be shed for the truth of Christ and His Word but stand firm. God will reward the righteous. He will judge the wicked (Revelation 20:11-15). No immoral person will be in heaven (Revelation 21:7-8) and Jesus will be exalted among His saints. Let us not give one inch to this world (James 4:4) but let us preach the truth to this world until they kill us.
”I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” – John 16:33
Holding Firmly, I Am Held (An Arminian Approach to Eternal Security)
There are two things we really want to know about being a Christian. First, we want to know that we are truly saved by the grace of God. Secondly, we want to know that our salvation is secure. I believe that Arminians can rejoice because we can have both in the context of biblical Arminianism. Too often many err when it comes to these issues by making assurance and the security of the disciple based on their own good works instead of the Person of Christ. I believe a biblical approach to these issues is to focus on Jesus Christ and His finished work instead of trying to look for the answers in ourselves.
Arminianism stresses the necessity of Christ both from our initial salvation to our final salvation. Jesus is our Savior from the time of our salvation to the end. He is our life (Colossians 3:4). I fear that many want Christ to rescue them from hell but they don’t want Him to rescue them from their sins (Matthew 1:21). They want to know that heaven is their reward despite living for hell here and now. This is not God’s way. God’s way is a way of holiness (Matthew 5:48; Hebrews 12:14). God’s call is for us to forsake our sins and follow Christ (Mark 9:42-50). This is the true nature of repentance (Luke 13:1-5; 24:47; Acts 2:38; 3:19; 17:30-31; 26:20; Romans 2:4; 2 Corinthians 7:10; 2 Peter 3:9). Arminianism stresses that faith in Jesus is necessary for salvation and He is necessary in overcoming sin as well (1 Corinthians 10:13). We cannot overcome sin by our own will power for we are dead in our trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1-3) but we can overcome through Christ our Lord (Romans 7:24-25). Jesus is our complete victory!
Our salvation and our assurance of salvation and our security in our salvation comes in Christ. Jesus reminds us of this principle in John 15:1-11 where He stresses the importance of remaining in Him. Here we read:
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. 9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”
Jesus makes it clear here that our total trust must be in Him. We cannot bear fruit apart from Him. He is the vine. We are simply the branches from Him. We must abide in Him and we do this by faith. It is faith that saves us (Ephesians 2:8-9) and it is faith that keeps us (1 Peter 1:5).
We see this again before us in the small book of Jude. Jude 21 says that we must keep ourselves in the love of God and this leads to the end of our faith, our final salvation. Jude 24, however, says that God is able to keep us from stumbling and to present us blameless before the presence of His glory with great joy. The balance here is what Arminianism stresses with the emphasis upon persevering faith in Jude 21 but also the keeping power of God Almighty in Jude 24. It is unfortunate to emphasize one without the other. Too many have placed stress on our perseverance in the faith of Jude 21 but not enough on the power of God to keep us in Jude 24. The true Arminian stresses both.
Charles Spurgeon had written above his Pastor’s College door frame these words, “Holding Firmly, I am Held.” This is the biblical view of our salvation. We are saved by grace through faith and we are kept by grace through faith. We must endure to the end to be saved (Matthew 24:13) but this endurance comes through faith (2 Peter 1:3-11). Our salvation is based completely upon the Lord Jesus Christ and His saving work for us. It is not based on faith plus works. It is based on faith in the Lord Jesus to save us (Romans 1:16-17). The totality of our salvation is found in Christ alone. Not in us. Not in our power. Not in our faith. It is in Christ alone that we are saved and in Christ alone that we are kept by God’s sovereign power. May true Arminians stress this biblical truth that holding firmly, we are held. Jesus upholds us as we hear His voice and follow Him wherever He leads (John 10:27-29).
Arminius on Perseverance of the Saints
My sentiments respecting the perseverance of the saints are, that those persons who have been grafted into Christ by true faith, and have thus been made partakers of his life-giving Spirit, possess sufficient powers [or strength] to fight against Satan, sin, the world and their own flesh, and to gain the victory over these enemies — yet not without the assistance of the grace of the same Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ also by his Spirit assists them in all their temptations, and affords them the ready aid of his hand; and, provided they stand prepared for the battle, implore his help, and be not wanting to themselves, Christ preserves them from falling. So that it is not possible for them, by any of the cunning craftiness or power of Satan, to be either seduced or dragged out of the hands of Christ. But I think it is useful and will be quite necessary in our first convention, [or Synod] to institute a diligent inquiry from the Scriptures, whether it is not possible for some individuals through negligence to desert the commencement of their existence in Christ, to cleave again to the present evil world, to decline from the sound doctrine which was once delivered to them, to lose a good conscience, and to cause Divine grace to be ineffectual.
Though I here openly and ingenuously affirm, I never taught that a true believer can, either totally or finally fall away from the faith, and perish; yet I will not conceal, that there are passages of scripture which seem to me to wear this aspect; and those answers to them which I have been permitted to see, are not of such a kind as to approve themselves on all points to my understanding. On the other hand, certain passages are produced for the contrary doctrine [of unconditional perseverance] which are worthy of much consideration.
Teach People to Endure, Persevere, Remain Faithful, Continue in the Faith
The question of whether you hold to eternal security is not on the table in this post. I myself hold to personal apostasy and believe the Scriptures are clear that apostasy is both real and to be avoided at all costs. I believe the teachings of Jesus alone could be studied concerning the reality of personal apostasy but for now, this post is not about that. It is not about conditional security.
My focus is on teaching people to endure (Matthew 24:13), to persevere (Romans 11:20-22), to remain faithful (Colossians 1:23), to continue in the faith (1 Corinthians 15:2). I believe that we certainly should teach the people of God much about God’s love for us (Romans 5:8-9), the Lord’s work of intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25), or about the security we have through faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 8:1, 37-39). I see nothing wrong with emphasizing the biblical truths of forgiveness of our sins (Ephesians 1:7) or the reality and assurance of our salvation in Christ (Romans 8:16). I see nothing wrong with teaching passages such as Philippians 1:6 or Jude 24-25, about the keeping power of God given to us freely in Christ Jesus through saving faith.
But I would equally love to see the Church teaching the people of God to remain faithful to the Lord. Even Paul, the true grace teacher, taught the disciples to remain faithful. We read in Acts 14:22 (NASB), “Strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying, ‘Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.’”
Notice that Paul taught these disciples in Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch to remain faithful to the Lord, to endure, to remain steadfast even in the midst of persecution. Paul didn’t avoid teaching people to persevere no matter what your view may be regarding eternal security. He clearly taught the disciples to remain faithful.
Do we? Do we exhort the saints of God to remain faithful to Him no matter what? Do we remind them of His promises to over-comers in Revelation 2-3? Do we teach them, that while God will keep them by His grace, that they should remain in faith? We are saved by grace through faith and kept by grace through faith. This should be our clear message.
In Paul’s last letter in the New Testament, 2 Timothy, we read over and over again of his desire to see Timothy and God’s people remain faithful to the Lord. He tells Timothy to not be ashamed of the testimony of the Lord or him and to suffer for Christ (2 Timothy 1:8), to retain the standard of sound doctrine (2 Timothy 1:13), to guard through the Holy Spirit the treasure which has been entrusted to us (2 Timothy 1:14), to be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus (2 Timothy 2:1), to teach faithful men (2 Timothy 2:2), to suffer hardship as a soldier (2 Timothy 2:3-4), to compete as an athlete (2 Timothy 2:5), and to work hard like a farmer (2 Timothy 2:6). To remember Jesus Christ (2 Timothy 2:8), to die with Him (2 Timothy 2:11), to endure (2 Timothy 2:12), to remember His faithfulness (2 Timothy 2:13), to avoid people who want to argue (2 Timothy 2:14) but instead study the Word of God faithfully (2 Timothy 2:15). To avoid worldly and empty chatter and wicked men (2 Timothy 2:16-18). To be sanctified and useful to the Master (2 Timothy 2:19-21) and to avoid ungodliness but pursuing righteousness (2 Timothy 2:22). To remember how wicked people will become (2 Timothy 3:1-9) but follow Paul’s example and suffer for the kingdom (2 Timothy 3:10-13) and remain faithful to the Scriptures which are able to save us (2 Timothy 3:14-4:2) for the time will come when people will cast away sound doctrine for lies (2 Timothy 4:3-4) but Timothy is to be sober in all things, enduring hardship (2 Timothy 4:5). Paul ends with his own testimony of faithfulness in the midst of apostasy (2 Timothy 4:6-22). His point is clear: Timothy, be faithful to the Lord but remember the Lord is faithful to us!
My plea here is to just be like Paul. Preach the great truth of God’s love for us but preach His hatred for sin and His call to holiness (1 Peter 1:15-16). Preach that holiness is necessary for seeing the Lord (Matthew 5:8; Hebrews 12:14). How are we to be holy? By grace through faith. How are we to remain faithful to Jesus? By grace through faith. How are we to endure while others turn away from Jesus and others blaspheme His name? By grace through faith. How are we to continue in the faith while sound doctrine is being cast aside for error, while people are living in open sin while claiming Christ? By grace through faith.
What a mighty Savior we serve and He is able to help us as we cry out to Him!
Why is Lordship Salvation Not Dealt With Much by Arminians
Back in the 1990′s a theological controversy was taking place and for the most part Arminians stayed out of the debate. The debate centered around the question of “Does one have to make Jesus their Lord in order for Him to be their Savior?” Among Calvinists, this debate raged. Dr. John MacArthur got the fires of the debate hotter when he wrote his book, The Gospel According to Jesus, which I still highly recommend though I would disagree with Dr. MacArthur here and there. MacArthur followed up that book with his book, Faith Works: The Gospel According to the Apostles. In both books Dr. MacArthur was attacking the non-Lordship view and he built a strong case from the Bible and from Church History to show that the idea that Jesus can be your Savior without Him being your Lord is not biblical nor historically taught by any of the great men of God in the past.
So why did Arminians remain out of that fight and why have we still not seen an Arminian publish a book on the Lordship salvation issue? I will give my own views regarding this.
1. Because We Believe in Personal Apostasy.
Most Arminians (though not all) hold to personal apostasy and reject the teaching of eternal security or the perseverance of the saints. Thus, if a person lives in sin, Arminians would call that person to repent lest they perish in their sins. The idea that a person can abide in continued sin and still claim to be a Christian for who knows how long is foreign to our thinking. In our minds, holiness and salvation go hand in hand. This view leads us to teach from the beginning that Jesus must be Lord (1 John 2:3-6). You cannot have a little of Jesus and a little of the devil. You must embrace Jesus fully and surrender all to Him to be saved (Luke 9:23-25; 14:25-35). 1 Corinthians 10:21 says that we cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too. We cannot love God and still love the world (1 John 2:15-17). Because we believe that a person can return to their vomit (2 Peter 2:20-22), we believe that a person must continue in faith in the Lord Jesus to be saved which would include glorifying Him through our obedience to His Lordship.
2. Holiness.
Antinomianism is foreign to Arminianism. We reject any teaching that allows for continued sinning in the life of the saint. By the very word saint, we are saying that a person is set apart by God (1 Corinthians 1:2). Sanctification occurs when a person places their saving faith in Jesus (Acts 15:9) and is a lifelong process (Hebrews 10:14) that ends in glorification in heaven (Hebrews 12:23). Be believe that the New Testament teaches that God’s people are to pursue holiness (Hebrews 12:14) and to be holy as God is holy (1 Peter 1:15-16) and thus to live in sin would lead to either a person not being saved (Matthew 7:21-23) or an apostate (Hebrews 10:19-39). There is no place for “carnal Christianity” in Arminian theology.
3. Conditional Security.
Because most of us Arminians believe in conditional security, we believe that a person must be committed to Jesus as Lord and Savior their entire lives and not just a one time embrace of Him. The non-Lordship folks allow for this because they embrace eternal security as well. Arminians believe we are secure in Jesus (2 Corinthians 1:24). There is no assurance of salvation outside of Jesus nor is there assurance of salvation for those abiding in sin (1 John 3:6-9). If we are in Jesus Christ by faith, we are saved and secure in Him who prays for us (Hebrews 7:25). There is no fear when we are seeking Jesus (Romans 8:31-39). Because of our views regarding the security of the believer, we believe that a person only has assurance when they are in Christ by faith (1 John 5:1). This witness comes by the Spirit (Romans 8:16; Galatians 4:6). Why then would we teach people that they need not surrender to the Lordship of Jesus when we believe that we must embrace Him always to be saved (Romans 6:23)?
4. Our View of Sin.
Arminianism teaches that sin is still powerful and is destroyed only in Jesus Christ (Romans 6:1-23). Why then would we teach that a person can abide in sin knowing that sin will destroy a person? We proclaim holiness because we hate sin and we know what sin can do if we don’t forsake sin (James 5:19-20). Why preach cheap grace that allows for sinning (Jude 4)? Why preach that a person can abide in sin and still be saved? Does this not lead to more sinning? All of us enjoy sinning however we must look to Jesus to help us stop sinning and forsake our sins (John 8:11). We cannot overcome sin in our own power but must look to the Holy Spirit to empower us to overcome sin (Romans 8:9-13). God has promised a way of escape (1 Corinthians 10:13) but we must be willing to forsake sin and be holy. This occurs through the Lordship of Jesus in our lives.
5. Our View of Good Works.
We believe, as Dr. MacArthur does, that faith works. Ephesians 2:10 makes it clear that works will flow from true saving faith. Paul again wrote in Titus many times about good works. Titus 2:7, 14; 3:1, 8, 14. It would seem clear that Paul the Apostle wanted the people of God to do good works. Arminianism teaches that works flow from our salvation. They are not the basis for our salvation nor even for our assurance but they do flow naturally from being born again in Christ. How then could we teach that person can be saved and not doing good works? How then could we teach that a person can call Jesus Savior and yet deny Him as their Lord by their lives (Titus 1:16)?
Conclusion
Perhaps in the future an Arminian will write a book defending Lordship salvation but for now, Arminians are comfortable proclaiming Jesus as Lord and Savior to all who will hear. Salvation involves the full surrender to the Person of Christ which includes His absolute Lordship over our lives (Luke 6:46-49). No doubt justification is by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5-7) but faith leads to good works which is the Lordship of Jesus reigning among His people and working through them by His Spirit and for His glory.
For now, I recommend Dr. MacArthur’s book and would pray that all of us would preach the Lordship of Jesus to all.
Seeing Liberty in the Scriptures
I was reading the Works of Arminius today and Arminius’ statement on the perseverance of the saints. Battle lines have long been drawn on this issue with Calvinists holding to unconditional perseverance of the saints and in some cases, preservation of the sinner. Arminians have historically opposed perseverance of the saints. This has often kept some from claiming Arminianism as they feel that to claim Arminianism would be to embrace apostasy as a real possibility in the life of the believer of which they oppose. Many Baptists are in this camp.
I myself hold to conditional security meaning that I believe that our security is conditioned upon faith in Jesus. If we maintain faith in Jesus, we remain saved (1 Corinthians 15:1-2). I believe that the warning passages in the New Testament are not myths but very real possibilities. What is the point of warning people if the warnings are not true? I find that disingenuous if in fact the warnings are not real warnings but were meant to only scare us to keep us saved. What is the point of that? I believe that if we abide in Jesus, we have no fear (John 8:51). I believe that if we keep hearing the Shepherd’s voice and follow Him, nothing would be able to take us out of His hands (John 10:27-30). I fully agree with Paul the Apostle in Romans 8:38-39 that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. I believe that 2 Timothy 2:12 is true, “If we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us.”
I agree with 1 John 2:24-25,
Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you too will abide in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that he made to us— eternal life.
Seems not too much to ask that we abide in Christ through faith (2 Corinthians 1:24).
Yet I do appreciate Arminius’ approach to this issue. Arminius doesn’t come out dogmatically in favor of one position over the other. In fact, he stays in the center on this issue. Arminius said,
My sentiments respecting the perseverance of the saints are, that those persons who have been grafted into Christ by true faith, and have thus been made partakers of his life-giving Spirit, possess sufficient powers [or strength] to fight against Satan, sin, the world and their own flesh, and to gain the victory over these enemies — yet not without the assistance of the grace of the same Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ also by his Spirit assists them in all their temptations, and affords them the ready aid of his hand; and, provided they stand prepared for the battle, implore his help, and be not wanting to themselves, Christ preserves them from falling. So that it is not possible for them, by any of the cunning craftiness or power of Satan, to be either seduced or dragged out of the hands of Christ. But I think it is useful and will be quite necessary in our first convention, [or Synod] to institute a diligent inquiry from the Scriptures, whether it is not possible for some individuals through negligence to desert the commencement of their existence in Christ, to cleave again to the present evil world, to decline from the sound doctrine which was once delivered to them, to lose a good conscience, and to cause Divine grace to be ineffectual.
Though I here openly and ingenuously affirm, I never taught that a true believer can, either totally or finally fall away from the faith, and perish; yet I will not conceal, that there are passages of scripture which seem to me to wear this aspect; and those answers to them which I have been permitted to see, are not of such a kind as to approve themselves on all points to my understanding. On the other hand, certain passages are produced for the contrary doctrine [of unconditional perseverance] which are worthy of much consideration.
So Arminius left open both views. He didn’t state either for or against perseverance of the saints. He believed that we should debate out the key passages in the Bible about this. He hoped the Synod would perhaps debate this issue. They did but after he was dead and the court was highly stacked in favor of the Calvinists.
I believe that we can still agree in many issues and not agree on all. I have a few Arminian friends who hold to eternal security. I do not. Yet I don’t allow that to keep me from preaching the gospel with these brothers nor would I separate from them over this issue. I believe that if we are seeking Christ, that is what matters. If a person is seeking to live in sin and wants to debate over the issue of security, that is another issue involving repentance and forsaking sin (Romans 6:1-4; Jude 4). In fact, mature disciples rarely debate this issue of security. We know that there is no life apart from Jesus because we have been saved from sin and out of sin and we don’t want to go back (2 Peter 2:20-22). True disciples need not debate how much sin can we enjoy and still be saved. We want more of Jesus in our lives! We want to follow Him at all costs (Luke 14:25-35). We despise this world (James 4:4; 1 John 2:15-17) and we want nothing but Jesus alone (Colossians 3:1-3). True disciples don’t fear apostasy. We fear God (Romans 11:20-22) but we also enjoy His friendship and love (1 John 3:1-3).
It is the weak, those living in sin who want to argue about how secure are we. They want to wander from the love of God and the fellowship of the Spirit toward the flesh. They want to call God their Father but not abide close to Him as His child. They want to claim Jesus as their Savior but not follow Him as their Lord (Luke 6:46-49). These are those who want to argue over eternal security.
