In this post, I want to briefly examine several passages of scripture that many have used to argue against the doctrine of unconditional perseverance. After looking at the passages, we will deal with a few more theological issues.
Before we begin, it bears mentioning that the scripture speaks often about false brothers, false prophets, and false converts. We will deal with these passages in another post, but for now, the point I want to make is this: The issue at hand is not whether the false converts, etc will go to hell, but, will those, who were truly born again, fall away, and perish in the end? The more Arminian answer yes, the more Calvinistic answer no. Below are verses that are used frequently by those who are more Arminian in their theology to disprove unconditional perseverance. If these verses are shown to refer to false converts, or to be speaking of something else, then the Arminian position loses all credibility. 1. "I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine dresser. Every branch of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit...If a man does not abide in me, he is cast forth as a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and burned." (John 15:1-2, 6) Arminians argue that since Jesus says every branch "of mine," this verse is referring to genuine believers who can forfeit their salvation, be cast aside, and burn in hell for all eternity. But is this really what Jesus was saying? All throughout his ministry, Jesus used agricultural images to distinguish between true converts and false converts. He used the parable of the sower (Mark 4) and the parable of the wheat and tares (Matt. 13:24-30). Here, in John, he uses another agricultural image- the vine and the branch- to refer to true and false converts. Furthermore, the imagery of the vine and branches used here is limited in how much detail it can give. Jesus picks the imagery because He is referring back to an Old Testament symbol for Israel- the vine. Jesus is now teaching that He is what the symbolism is pointing to; He is the fulfillment of this typology. That being said, since He has chosen this imagery, how else is He going to use it to refer to true and false converts? The only way he could do that with this particular imagery is to refer to people that bear no fruit (similar to those in Mk 4:17 who "had no root in themselves"), and those who do (similar to those who in Mk. 4:20 who "hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty-fold and sixty-fold and a hundred-fold"). In John 15, those branches that do not bear fruit are those who give an outward appearance of being genuine branches, but show their true state by falling away and not bearing fruit at all. 2. "For it is impossible to restore again to repentance those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, if they then commit apostasy, since they crucify the Son of God on their own account and hold him up to contempt. For the land which has drunk the rain that often falls upon it, and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God, but if it bears thorns and thistles, it is worthless and near to being cursed; its end is to be burned. Though we speak in this way, yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better things - things that belong to salvation." Hebrews 6:7-9. Arminians constantly appeal to this verse as undeniable proof that true believers can lose their salvation. Usually they just quote verses 7-8, but I included verse 9 so you can see more of its context. Two things to notice up from that should immediately key us in to the fact that the author is distinguishing false converts from genuine converts. First is his use of agricultural imagery. Scripture consistently uses this imagery to distinguish between the true and the false. Secondly, verse 9. After making these statements, the author says that he has a better estimate of those he is writing to. Things, he says, that belong to salvation. Thus, the context and imagery should clue us in that he has false confessors in mind here. But what about his uses of words like "enlightened" and "partakers of the Holy Spirit" and "tasted of the heavenly gift"? Does this not sound like saved and sanctified people? Well, let's examine these phrases and see. Enlightened- The Greek word here (photizo) gives the idea of learning in general, not so much a learning that results in salvation. It is used elsewhere in scripture to refer to a knowledge that is given man (John 1:9), a knowledge that comes at the final judgment (1 Cor. 4:5), and a knowledge that comes with growing in Christ (Eph. 1:18). Therefore, based on its usage and based on the context, this word is not suggesting that these people came to genuine faith, but rather that they just came to understand what the gospel teaches. Furthermore, the word "once" does not give the indication that something happened one time and can never be repeated, but simply that something happened "once", without saying whether it will happen again in the future. Tasted the heavenly gift...and have tasted the goodness of the Word of God...- Common sense tells us that tasting something is a temporary thing, and that after one has tasted something, there is no guarantee that they will accept the thing they tasted. The Greek word is the same as our English word, and is used when Jesus "tasted" the bitter wine on the cross, and refused it. The word is also used in a figurative sense in the Greek language, and gives the idea to "come to know something." Clearly, the passage at hand is using this term in the figurative sense. It thus means that the people mentioned here have come to understand the power of the Spirit, the Word of God, and the powers of the age to come in some way. However, it does not mean that they had genuine saving faith, but have observed the Spirit moving in the congregation and heard the Word of God proclaimed. Partakers of the Holy Spirit- The word "partakers" has a wide range of meaning in the Greek, and may refer to a close association with something, or a loose association with something. Hebrews 3:14 is an example where the former sense is used. Here, the author is saying that to become a "partaker" with Christ means to have very close association with Him in a saving aspect. Elsewhere in scripture, it is used in a very loose way (see Lk. 5:7; Eph. 5:7). Given that this word is already used to refer to a close association with Christ in Hebrews, why would it be any different in chapter 6? Simple- context. Everything else in this passage points towards false converts and not genuine believers. That being said, it is more appropriate to understand this term as referring to a loose association with the Holy Spirit. Their lives were influenced by Him by their mere association with other believers, weekly gatherings, and the Word of God. Yet this in no way implies that regeneration and conversion has happened. Restore again to repentance- Some have argued that if what is mentioned here is a repentance unto which these people need to be restored again, then if must be genuine repentance that is in view. But this is not so. In scripture, the word "repentance" does not always accompany with it a inward heart change unto salvation. One example is found in the book of Hebrews itself. In using the example of Esau, the author uses the word in 12:17 to refer to Esau's change of mind and regret over the sale of his birthright. This is not repentance to salvation, just simply a change of mind. In the context of chapter 6, the author does not specify whether the repentance is genuine or not. He is simply arguing that if someone has sorrow for their sins, and comes to understand the gospel, but then turns away, it will be impossible to restore that person again. This verse never implies that the repentance was unto salvation. This passage refers to those who sit among the church, here the Word preached, but never come to salvation, and in due time, they fall away. There is much more we could discuss on this passage, but we have covered it sufficiently enough to get the basic idea. 3. He who conquers shall be clad thus in white garments, and I will not blot his name out of the book of life." Rev. 3:5. Arminians claim that when Jesus says this, he is implying that it is possible that those who have already had their name written in the book- those who are saved- can indeed have their name blotted out and lose their salvation. This is nothing more than a misunderstanding of how language is used. Just because Jesus emphatically states that he will not do this should in no way be taken as teaching that he will do this thing in other cases. The exact same negative Greek construct is used in John 10:28, where Jesus says of his sheep, "they will never perish." Taking the Arminian logic, does this mean that there are some sheep who do not hear his voice and follow him and perish? No, it is simply affirming the fact his sheep will by no means perish. Again, when God says "I will never fail you or forsake you" (Heb. 13:5), it does not mean that He will leave and forsake others, it just emphatically means that he will not leave or forsake his people. An even better example is Matthew 12:32, where Jesus says that whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit "will not be forgiven, either in this age, or in the age to come." This does not mean, and the Roman Catholics argue, that some sins can and will be forgiven in the age to come. This is just bad logic and bad reading of the text. Basically, the wording in Revelation 3:5 is used by Jesus to give those who are his; those who have remained faithful, strong assurance that they will not have their name blotted out. It implies nothing more than this. 4. "You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law, you have fallen away from grace." Galatians 5:4. I hesitated to mention this one, simply because it is so easy to refute, but decided to include it, since it is often cited. The context of the book of Galatians is clear- Grace to live the Christian life comes from Christ and his work on the cross, not the keeping of the law. Paul is arguing here that if a believer wants to depend upon his keeping of the law to help him overcome sin and live a victorious Christian life, then he is cutting himself off to the means of grace necessary to do so. This verse is not talking about the loss of saving grace, but the forfeiting of sanctifying grace. Therefore, all things considered, we see that these verses are not talking about genuine believers, or are not really teaching that a genuine believer can lose their salvation. In our last post, we will discuss the practical applications of the doctrine of unconditional perseverance.
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