A Thumbnail Theology – Peter Lundell, D.Miss.
Throughout the Old Testament God expects the people of Israel to obey and live out their covenantal relationship with God. When they do not, the consequences are often catastrophic.
A vast amount of Old Testament prophetic writings concern this issue, and it is prominent in the books of Kings and Chronicles.
Throughout the New Testament God expects believers to faithfully live out their covenantal relation with God. They are secure in their salvation—as long as they are true to it.
Following are main points to consider:
_______________
We Have Assurance of Salvation.
We are definitely and unequivocally saved by grace through faith in Christ.
John 3:16
John 5:24
Romans 8:1
Romans 10:13
Ephesians 2:8–9
_______________
We Have Security in Christ.
No one can take your salvation away from you. No one can take you out of God’s hands. And you will not somehow, inadvertently lose it.
John 10:28–29
Jesus’ sheep “shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand.”
Security in Christ Is Different from Eternal Security.
Security in Christ is a Calvinistic doctrine, based on logic of their presuppositions, that because of God’s sovereignty—which they define in terms of absolute and total control, rather than absolute authority—if God saves us, we are guaranteed salvation no matter what we do with our lives because for God to do otherwise would contradict his sovereignty, that is, their definition of it.
Of those who turn away from God and renounce their faith, they look to 1 John 2:19 to say that their turning away from the faith shows that they were never truly saved to begin with.
_______________
“Losing Your Salvation”
You need never fear “losing” your salvation. There is no verse in the Bible that uses that term, and there is no Bible verse that implies in any way that you can lose track, misplace, forfeit, or inadvertently lose salvation.
Ezekiel 3:16–22
These verses must be taken into consideration. First, a righteous man can “turn from his righteousness,” and God will see that he dies and that his righteous deeds will not be remembered. This is Old Testament, not covenant in Christ. Yet it still exhibits God’s position that a person can turn away from their righteousness and suffer death. The Old Testament primarily speaks in terms of earthly punishment and death rather than the eternal, which is less clear. The New Testament speaks primarily in terms of the eternal.
Matthew 24:10
You can “turn away from the faith.”
2 Peter 2:20
You can “turn your back” on the way of righteousness.
2 Peter 3:17
You can “fall from your secure position.”
Hebrews 3:7, 15
You can “harden your heart” (quoted from Psalm 95).
Willful Choice
Every verse and implication throughout the Bible on this subject indicates that once having salvation and then no longer having salvation is a willful, deliberate choice. It’s not about doubting, because mercy is given to doubters. It is not about backsliding, which is not a renunciation of faith but a drifting away from it, and a person can return to faith.
This hardening of heart and turning away is a consistent, willful attitude of rejection or renunciation of faith in Christ. It is not a person having a bad day and sinning or grieving and being mad at God. The Psalms, for example, contain plenty of that.
This willful rejection of faith usually occurs over a period of time in a shifting way of thinking and believing in reaction to some kind of experience (especially trauma or indignation) or changing thinking (especially in education that turns a person away from faith).
_______________
Holiness or Hell
This is the view, once in a while seen in holiness circles (less now than previously), that to go to heaven, we must be entirely sanctified. If we do not live a holy life, despite our being saved and believing in Christ, and specifically, if we commit a sin, and we die or Jesus returns before we repent of that sin, we will not be saved, which is to say we will go to hell.
It is largely based on Hebrews 12:14, “Without holiness no one will see the Lord.” But to accurately interpret this verse, it’s important to note the literary context in which it is written. Preceding this statement, the first part of 12:14 says, “Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy.” Following this statement, 12:15 says, “See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.” Thus, the context is all about holy living among surrounding people, the benefits of holiness and the consequences of a lack of holiness. Without our holy living, people will not see the Lord. It’s more about being a good witness than about salvation.
The verses above on assurance of salvation also dispel the notion of holiness or hell.
———
What about when a believer sins, acts, or lives disobediently despite their faith in Christ—and then dies without repenting of those sins prior to their death?
This is where the distinction between salvation and reward is important. All true believers receive salvation. But only believers who faithfully live out their faith will receive a reward. There are many verses and parables about this, but 1 Corinthians 3:10–15 gives the most succinct statement about this.
1 Corinthians 3:10–15
Our Christian lives will be tested with fire. Those who live their Christian lives faithfully and well will receive their reward. Those who do not will still be saved but only “as one escaping through the flames.”
The following verses imply that a believer can go to heaven and receive the opposite of reward—punishment or shame.
Luke 12:47–48
Those who know the master’s will and disobey will be beaten with many blows. Those who do not know and disobey will be beaten with few blows.
1 John 2:28
Continue in faith so that when Jesus appears, we may be confident and unashamed before him.
_______________
Our Security in Christ Is Conditional.
Our final salvation is conditional upon faithfulness to our covenantal relationship of faith in Christ. Conditional fidelity to the covenant is God’s consistent position and practice throughout Scripture. He always punished Israel, even catastrophically, not when they carelessly strayed or messed up, but when they deliberately and consistently disobeyed, defied God, and gave themselves over to false gods.
We also can harden our hearts and willfully turn away from our faith unto ultimate damnation.
Ezekiel 3:18–21
The wicked and the righteous—changing consequences and warnings.
Matthew 7:21–23, 24–27
Only those who do the will of the Father will enter heaven.
Matthew 5:29–30
Gouge out your eye or cut off your hand if they cause you to sin in terms of giving up your faith and cause you to end up in Gehenna (the biblical word for eternal hell).
Matthew 10:22
You will be hated because of Christ, but those who stand firm to the end will be saved.
Matthew 10:33
Whoever disowns me before people, I will disown them before my Father in heaven.
John 5:24
Assurance of salvation to those who believe.
John 10:28–29
Jesus’ sheep absolutely shall not perish; no one can snatch them out of his hand.
Romans 11:17–24
If God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either.
Romans 11:22 / 1 Corinthians 15:2 / Colossians 1:22–23 / Hebrews 3:6 / Hebrews 3:14
You’re saved provided you continue / if you hold firmly to the word / if you continue in your faith. / if we hold firmly to our confidence / if we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end.
1 Corinthians 9:27
Paul disciplines himself so that after preaching to others, he himself will not be disqualified.
1 Corinthians 10:12
If you think you’re standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall.
Philippians 2:12–13
Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.
Hebrews 6:4–8
If you fall away, you cannot be brought back to repentance.
Hebrews 10:26
If you deliberately keep on sinning after receiving knowledge of the truth… judgment, raging fire.
2 Timothy 2:12–13
If we disown him, he will also disown us. If we’re faithless, he will remain faithful.
2 Peter 1:10
Make your calling and election sure; if you do, you will never fall.
2 Peter 2:20–21
If you know Jesus and go back to corruption, you’re worse off in the end because it’s better not to have known the way of righteousness than to know it and then turn your back on it.
2 Peter 3:17
Be on your guard so that you do not fall from your secure position.
Jude 24
To him who is able to keep you from falling…
