Is Salvation a Sure Thing or Dependent Upon Us? Part 1

Theology and Politics from a Conservative, Biblical Perspective

I want to take a look at several sections of Scripture to determine their meaning regarding salvation and eternal security. You’ll recall – if you’ve read any of my previous articles – that I believe it is incumbent upon every student of the Bible to allow Scripture to interpret itself. We do this by comparing Scripture to Scripture, since ultimately, every part of it was written by God Himself. I want to discuss Hebrews 10:14 and Romans 8 as well as numerous other sections of Scripture in this short series. Keep an open Bible handy as we go through this, will you?

While it is doubtful that each person will ever arrive to a full (or even a 100% correct) understanding of God’s Word in all areas in this life, the chances of being wrong about God’s intended meaning diminishes the more we allow Scripture to speak to itself.

Since the beginnings of the Church in Acts 2 (yes, I’m aware that there are those who believe the Church was not “born” on the Day of Pentecost as recorded in Acts 2, but I disagree), there have been numerous misunderstandings regarding what the Bible teaches, especially concerning the New Testament. Logically, since the New Testament of the Bible wasn’t finalized for several hundred years after the included books were written, it stands to reason then that besides determining the Canon of the New Testament, much discussion needed to be done to determine exactly what the Bible taught regarding things like eternal security, the triune nature of God, the deity of Christ, etc.

These (and many others) are very important aspects of what the Christian believes. It cannot be stated enough how vastly important it is to comprehend them to the best of our ability as we submit our minds to the Lord for discernment and wisdom.

There are specific things which will make or break our Christianity. For instance, the belief that Jesus was “a type of divine” Person, but not God cannot save you. If the Bible teaches that Jesus was/is very God as well as a perfect human being, then anything less than this is – unfortunately – heretical. Jesus is God or He is not. There is no such thing as being “a god” as some would have us believe.

Some believe that a person’s view of Eschatology (study of end times or last days) will also make or break a person with respect to whether or not they are authentically saved. I do not find any connection whatsoever between what a person believes about the end times and that person’s salvation. However, I WILL say that those who do not believe in a physical return of Jesus believe dangerous theology that likens Jesus to a liar (not to mention the two angels in Acts 1). In my view they are fully deceived because they have arrived to their conclusions by allegorizing Scripture when there was absolutely no logical reason to do so. Today, a good deal of angst is directed toward those who believe in a PreTrib Rapture, a 7-year Tribulation, ending with the physical return of Jesus Christ to this planet, and the setting up of His Millennial Reign from his “father” David’s throne in Jerusalem. I have arrived at these conclusions through years of careful study and understanding the difference between taking the biblical text literally, literalistically, and allegorically.

Could I be wrong? It’s possible I could be and I’m quite certain when I stand before Jesus at the Bema Judgment Seat (for believers), I will learn of exactly where I went wrong. I do not kid myself into thinking that I will have everything all wrapped up and my beliefs will be 100% in line with God’s intended meaning, when I stand before Him. It simply will not happen. I’m quite certain the Lord will “straighten” me out in His love and compassion.

For the remainder of this article, I want to talk about eternal security. It is in vogue today to believe that authentic Christians can lose their salvation if we aren’t faithful to God. Quite frankly, I believe this is error and I have studied both sides of the issue for some time. Could I be wrong? Yes, absolutely, I could be wrong, but I believe I’m trusting Him to set my course, to illumine my heart through faith in His ability to guide and direct my steps. He knows how desperately I want to know Him and His truth and I trust Him (continual, ongoing) to make that happen.

So what about whether or not a Christian can lose his/her salvation? Is it possible? The short answer for me is no, not from where I sit based on my understanding of God’s Holy Word. We could go back and forth discussing passage after passage of Scripture, literally hitting each other over the head with it (and many do), but unless we are willing to look at overriding principles, we will likely not get any closer to knowing the truth about such an important theology.

What many fail to understand is that salvation is entering into an authentic relationship with Jesus Christ, the King of kings, and God of glory. In order for this to happen, there must first be spiritual transaction that occurs in the life of the new believer.

Throughout the Bible, we see that God considers some to be righteous and others unrighteous. This is based one thing and one thing only: whether or not a person believes in God or not! If we consider Hebrews 11 alone, we learn how people became righteous in God’s eyes and it has nothing to do with whether or not a person can earn salvation. There is absolutely nothing we can to do to earn salvation (Ephesians 2:8-10). Salvation is a completely free gift. The only requirement – if you want to call it that – is that we believe God; who He is and what He has accomplished for us regarding salvation.

Once we believe God (take Him at His Word), our eyes become open to the truth. Once we see the truth, we have the option of embracing that truth or rejecting it. Embracing the truth about God means we also embrace the truth about salvation because there is no true salvation apart from God. This was Paul’s message as laid out in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4.

“1 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, ² by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.

³ For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, ⁴ and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…”

These verses explain very clearly what salvation is, who it is from, and what we gain from it. I bet you noticed a “problem” though, didn’t you? In verse 2, notice it says “…if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.” Many people use this verse as a prooftext for their belief that salvation can be lost. However, if we allow Scripture to interpret (or define) its own meaning, we have to use other portions of Scripture to determine the entire truth.

There is at least one response (many, in fact!) that clarifies this text from 1 Corinthians. In 1 John 2:19, John states, “They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us.” While John is referring to those who follow the same path of the coming Antichrists. These people are often found in churches, even as leaders. Unfortunately, they come to a point where they fully cast off any semblance of true Christianity. In that case, it is clear – according to John – that when that happens, those individuals were not truly part of the Church or they would not have left. This is actually what Paul is saying!

Paul adds the last part about holding fast the word because this is from a human perspective. Like John, Paul was assuring everyone that all true believers – all authentic Christians – would hold fast through faith! He is not saying, some might depart from the faith (and we’ll get into that in an upcoming article) as if it is possible to quit being a Christian.

We need to understand what takes place when a person truly becomes saved. We’ll deal more with that in the next installment, but let me end this one by stating what being a Christian is NOT. It is not…

• mere mental assent
• following “dos” and “don’ts”
• saying a quick prayer (e.g. “Come into my heart, Lord Jesus…”)
• going by how we feel about being a Christian
• going to church, praying, or reading your Bible

Becoming a Christian involves a spiritual transaction where a number of things happen (which we will most likely never “feel”). They are done by God and for us, in order that our lives will glorify Him. We will get to the nitty-gritty next time!

Theology and Politics from a Conservative, Biblical Perspective