Predestination and Eternal Security

The once-saved-always-saved issue is a hot topic of debate in today’s church. On one side, people can make a profession of faith and then have a false sense of security even though they have no relationship with Jesus Christ at all. On the Calvinist side, people have the attitude that if God wants it done, He will do it or make me do it. I once talked with a man claiming to be a Christian who was trying to justify his pornography habit. He stated that he didn't think that he was accountable for his addiction. If God wanted him to change, God would change him. Until that time, he was free to sin at every urge that God permitted to tempt him.

I have also heard many people say that God will send people to the church if He wants them to be saved. All we have to do is look around to see if this is true. The churches that thrive outside their four walls are reaching people and are on fire when they come together each week. Churches that only minister to themselves and those 'God sends' have little impact on the culture around them and are often cold inside the walls of the church. Jesus taught that we are to go into the highways and hedges to find those who will come – go out into the all world. In Mark 16:15, Jesus issues the great commission to go out and reach the world, not wait for God to send the world to us. A church hiding behind the walls is in disobedience and by their own actions, limit God’s blessing that He longs to invest in them. Numbers does not indicate spiritual maturity. I know large churches that are cold as ice and small ministries that are on fire and impacting the world for Christ.

Why did Jesus give us the ‘Great Commission’?

Calvinism

The most popular doctrine of predestination is Calvinism. Calvinism takes its name from John Calvin who wrote the 5 points of Calvinism:

Total Depravity of Man – all are born sinners

Unconditional Election – God has already chosen who will go to Heaven and Hell

Limited Atonement – Jesus died only to redeem those who were pre-chosen

Irresistible Grace – Man is saved by the will of God without choice

Perseverance of the Saints – Those predestined cannot be lost

I will state up front that I do not believe in Calvinism. Some of his views are basic Christian doctrine, but many are not. One proof against this doctrine is its fruit. Jesus said that we would know teaching by the fruit it produces. Generally speaking, Calvinist churches are only reaching people who are already believers. Obviously there are exceptions to this, but as a whole, evangelism is not a part of this movement. The believers they reach become like-minded and if they were outreach minded, they abandon the idea. I was once under a pastor who was a Calvinist. We built a church in a heavily populated unchurched community and it was an ideal location. The members present when the church was built were the same members present when I left 8 years later. I have a friend who still attends. They are the same today as they were 20 years ago. Where is the fruit? Where are the changed lives, the spiritual growth and the disciples who should now be disciplers teaching others? The whole purpose of the church is to reach the lost, then equip and encourage people for their personal ministries. True discipleship produces more discipleship. In other words, I should be equipping people to become teachers, preachers and ministers who will go out and reproduce themselves. A minister is anyone who is following God's call and doing what He has equipped them to do. Each person should grow to the point where they are not dependent on someone teaching them. We still are commanded to come together and learn and draw encouragement from others, but growth is limited if we are only growing in church.

Why does Calvinism thrive in heavily churched cultures but not in non-Christian cultures?

Read Romans 10:13-15. If we are depending on God ‘adding to the church daily’ alone, how do we incorporate this message from Romans into this belief?

God’s Foreknowledge

Look at the passage most Calvinist’s use:

Romans 8

 29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.

 30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

What is the main point of this passage?

It is to conform to the image of Christ. We are predestined to conform to His image. This passage tells us that every Christian is included in this destiny God has ordained. However, we don’t see every Christian conforming to Christ. Under the Calvinist viewpoint, this passage would be a false statement in my opinion.

Who didn’t God foreknow?

Did God foreknow sinners?

Even the unbeliever was foreknown. God foretold of the sinners who would try and crucify Jesus. God foreknew the wicked kings of Israel. God foreknew the wicked kings that would defeat Israel in judgment. God foreknew the wicked people that would inhabit the Promised Land sworn to Abraham. If you look back to the promise, God said that his people would be taken captive for 400 years and would inherit the land once the sins of the people God would judge were complete. In other words, God foreknew the people and what choice they would make. In Revelation, God foreknew the wicked leaders and the people who would reject and accept Him during the Great Tribulation and He gave a glimpse in His prophecy.

What this passage in Romans is telling us is that God has planned our lives before hand. He has given us everything we need to conform to the image of Jesus Christ. Look at Psalm 139:

 16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, The days fashioned for me, When as yet there were none of them.

 17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them!

 18 If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand

If God knew my days and fashioned them before they came to be, does this eliminate choice?

If all things work together for our good (Romans 8:28), is there anything that can prevent me from conforming to the image of God as I was created to reflect?

If can circumstances prevent someone from becoming what God intended?

If I fail to fulfill my God-ordained purpose, what is the reason?

God knew me before I existed and He fashioned me in the womb to fit perfectly in the plan He has for my life. He has also laid out His plan for my life and has given me everything I need to finish my race in this life and stand before Him complete and in victory once this life is over. Therefore, there is no excuse for a Christian failing to become what God intended. If we fall short of the promise, it is because we have refused God’s ways and have instead followed our ways. Predestination does not nullify free will. If there is no free will, there can’t be love. I can’t obey nor disobey if I have no choice. I can program my computer to say, “I love you” every time it boots up. What pleasure would that give me? Why would God program us to be forced to love Him? It is not love if there is not a choice to not love God. We are predestined to conform to His image – which we were originally created to reflect – but we have a choice to conform to the world instead.

If there is no choice, can I obey? Can I disobey?

If there is no choice, can I love God or refuse to love God?

Keep the context in focus

It is always important to keep the whole revelation of God’s word in focus. Scripture enlightens scripture. Every error finds its roots in the fact that one passage is given greater weight than other scriptures. When someone zeros in on a passage and ignores passages that are contradictory to their conclusion, error is the result. It is not the passage that is in contradiction, but the conclusion being drawn when a passage is taken out of context of the rest of scripture. I believe the Calvinist debate falls into this trap. If you only look at the passages that use the word ‘predestined’, then you can easily draw the conclusion of Calvinism. However, when you examine these passages in light of the entire Bible, a complete picture begins to emerge. Anytime someone has to explain away passages that disagree, they are on dangerous ground. Instead, we should look at the whole picture and see where this passage fits in light of the rest of scripture. Calvinism has to get past passages that point to freewill. Predestination and freewill are not in conflict if sound biblical interpretation is applied. These passages compliment each other to give us a complete picture.

Read Romans 3:21-27. Next read 1 Timothy 4:10.

Who is Jesus the Savior for, those who believe or all men?

According to Romans 3, how do we receive the righteousness of God offered through Jesus?

Are passages that teach God’s predestined plan in contradiction of the passages that teach free will and choice?

Eternal Security

The second part of this study will examine the question of eternal security. I was raised to believe ‘once-saved-always-saved’, but a few years back I began to question this doctrine. I read well articulated arguments against it and I began to lean toward the possibility that salvation is volatile. Over the last two years I have studied and returned to my roots, but with a different perspective. I believe the bible is clear on this topic if you look at the entire revelation of scripture.

Can we call salvation eternal life if it is only a temporary state that we must hold on to? Even more so, can we call it grace if it is dependent on us? The first principle of salvation that the apostle Paul hammered down is that salvation is not by works, but by grace alone through faith in Jesus Christ. It is not based on works that we do to earn grace, nor is it what we do to keep grace. Grace is grace, before and after we are born into God’s kingdom. God doesn’t change the rules once we are saved.

Will God save us by His grace, without merit and then require action to keep us saved?

Is it grace if God withdraws it if we don’t measure up?

Even our faith has been measured to us so that we could believe if we want a relationship with God. Romans 12 explains:

3 For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.

The only time ‘I’ comes into the picture is when I choose not to love God. My spirit longs for God and only my will to love the world over God can prevent my relationship with Him. I was created to love God. Ecclesiastes tells us that God placed eternity in our hearts.

Are we created to have a relationship with God?

Read Romans 1:18-20. Do we have to seek or suppress the revelation of God?

When does my will come into the picture, when I love God or reject God?

Read Ephesians 2:8-10. Is salvation an act of my will, or a submission to God’s will?

Does salvation require an effort on my part, or is it rejection that requires my efforts?

By design, my spirit desires eternity, but by my will, I can choose the world over God. So contrary to common opinion, my efforts don’t come into play unless I reject God. Yielding to the Holy Spirit’s conviction is a surrender, only resisting is an effort of work. Therefore, works are not a part of the picture unless I am working against God’s Spirit. I have nothing to boast of, God has done it all. God created me to love Him, He placed eternity within me, and He gave me enough faith to believe on Jesus Christ. Salvation is effortless. Rejection is the effort. If I had to chose to maintain my salvation, then the effort would be mine and then there would be something to boast about. Look again at Ephesians 2:

 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,

 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.

If remaining saved was my effort, then this passage would be voided. If I can boast that I maintain my salvation, then where is grace? Some argue that we are saved by grace but maintain through works or some type of effort, but this is contrary to the word of God.

If God’s grace is intended so that none can boast, can my efforts keep me saved?

Keeping the Law?

Philippians 1:6 tells us that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it. After salvation, nothing changes. It is grace that saves us, grace that works within us, and grace that leads us home. People who depend on works may not call it ‘the law’, but those who say certain efforts must be made to maintain salvation are actually teaching that our righteousness comes from the law – or keeping certain rules to please God. Even in the Old Testament, the saints were not saved by the law. They were saved by faith in God’s provision of salvation – which is Jesus Christ.

Read Hebrews 11:24-26. How did Moses choose to the reproach of Christ over the riches of Egypt?

If Moses, who gave the law by God’s hand pointed to the future arrival of Christ, what does that tell us about the purpose of the law?

The Old Testament saints kept the law given to them out of faith in what God would one day reveal in Jesus Christ. The law pointed to the cross. Now Jesus has been revealed and He is their Redeemer as well as ours. It has never been the faith in the law that justified the saints. The true believers had faith in God and their faith was evident by keeping the law. They didn’t trust in their works, but in God. This is no different today.

Read Matthew 23:15. Was everyone who kept the Old Testament law right with God?

If someone says they are saved by grace and then maintained by rules, they nullify the work of Christ. Look at Galatians 2 and 5:

2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

 21 "I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain."

Galatians 5

 4 You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.

 5 For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.

Why does the Bible say not to set aside the grace of God, “for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain”?

Why does the Bible say that those who attempt to justify themselves are fallen from grace and are estranged from Christ?

Is this to believers or unbelievers?

We are warned not to turn from grace and to the law or we have fallen from grace. In other words, we are not walking in the grace of God, but are walking according to our own righteousness – which God does not acknowledge. My righteousness means nothing to God. In fact, God said in Isaiah 64:6 that my works of righteousness are filthy rags in God’s sight. In Isaiah 61:10, we are told that we become righteous because God covers us with the robe of His righteousness. This agrees with 2 Corinthians 5:21

21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

We are not righteous, we inherit God’s righteousness. What can we do to become as righteous as God? Nothing. When we try, we end up as rags described in Isaiah 64:6.

If the Bible says that my righteous deeds are filthy to God, what can I do to achieve the level of righteousness that God requires?

Always saved?

The problem with the ‘always saved’ doctrine is that many people who think they are saved really are not. This is what led me back to the doctrine of eternal security. Every time we see people abandoning the faith in scripture, we are told that they were not believers. 1 John 2 addresses this. In verse 19, John says,

“they went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us”.

When a Christian falls away, God draws them back. We live in a deceptive world, however, we have the promise that those who are His will hear his voice. People are deceived for two reasons. One is ignorance, the other is choice. When someone is deceived because they did not know the truth, they will hear God’s call when the truth is taught and respond. When someone chooses the lie over the truth, they will not return unless they recognize the worthlessness of their choice. Many people make professions of faith out of a desire for gain. They want to escape hell. They want to inherit heaven. They want to unload the guilt they are carrying. When someone unloads a heavy burden, they can feel an emotional high and will be excited about church. But when the emotions fade, if they have not truly surrendered to the lordship of Jesus Christ, they begin to drift away because they are not truly His. Salvation has many promises, but ultimately the choice of grace is a desire for God. There must be a choice of laying down our life and surrendering to Christ. Most people in the church want Jesus to be their Savior, but not Lord. It is impossible to receive Jesus as Savior and reject Him as Lord. These people have not really surrendered. The evidence is that they will be drawn by and follow the world. We will ultimately follow our master. There are many who seek a selfish gospel. Their allegiance has always been in the world and they will eventually return to their allegiance. Sometimes they remain in the church, but they also remain very worldly.

Does feeling determine our salvation?

What happens when I except Christ for personal benefit alone and then my expectations are not fulfilled?

What does it mean to be a Christian?

Evidence for Salvation

How do we know we are saved?

The evidence of salvation is found in 1 John 2:

 3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments.

 4 He who says, "I know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

 5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.

 6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

According the scripture, can we live contrary to God’s commands and claim to know or love God?

This is where the law and grace divide the sheep from the goats. Those who try to justify themselves, will have the never ending burden of trying to measure up to God’s standard. Frustration, insecurity and bitterness are constant struggles. We can’t measure up to this standard demanded by the law. How can I walk like Christ? How can I conform to His image? Humanly speaking, this is impossible. Those who try to maintain this standard are walking outside of grace and will never have the peace of a loving relationship with God. Even their good deeds are sin in God’s eyes. Good deeds with selfish motives are not good deeds. Trying to make myself righteous is not only selfish, but it is rooted in pride. God said I can’t make myself righteous. If I think I can override God’s word, then by default, I am sinful in my motives.

What happens when we try to keep ourselves saved by keeping God’s commandments?

Read Psalm 119:127-131. When God is our focus, how does that affect our ability to keep His commandments?

If we are struggling with sin, what does that tell us about the health of our relationship with God?

Why do kids imitate their parents?

The person who loves God will conform to Christ because that is what he or she desires. I am not pursuing my works, I am pursuing my relationship with God. He then shapes me into His own image and gives me the grace to walk as He walks. The only effort on my part is keeping myself unspotted from the world. I draw near to Christ and a hunger to be like Him is born. I begin to thirst for His word and grow in maturity. It all boils down to desire. If I desire the world but want heaven, I have missed what makes heaven what it is. Heaven is not a vacation resort in the sky. Heaven is an eternal kingdom centered around a loving relationship with God. People who want heaven but not a relationship with God, don’t really want heaven. A relationship with God requires that I die to myself and live for Him. Look at Hebrews 12

 28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.

 29 For our God is a consuming fire.

Can we desire heaven and not desire God?

Many want a kingdom made to suit them. However, the true believer rejoices in the promise of a kingdom centered around God and find pleasure in serving Him. If I resent serving God now when I have a choice, why would I desire a place where my only option is to serve God? Works are the evidence that I have truly made a transfer of citizenship. I serve God now because I love God and I am honored to be used in building His kingdom. Someone who does not love God and has no pleasure in serving God should examine their lives to see if they truly belong to Him. Those who fall from the faith have lost faith in their god, not our God. They may call their god the God of the Bible, but they have made Him into their image instead of conforming to His image. They may believe in Jesus, but they have never surrendered to Him. Someone who belongs to God will not turn away without a longing to return again.

What role does works play?

If my citizenship is in heaven, should I find pleasure in building God's kingdom now?

If someone loses faith, which god failed them?

I have been asked many times, “If someone was a Christian and becomes an atheist, do they lose their salvation?” Look at 1 John 3

 9 Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.

 10 In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother.

Can a child of God turn from the faith?

No, not according to the scripture. Someone religious can. Someone who calls themselves a Christian can. But someone who has the Holy Spirit living within them cannot abandon the faith – at least not for long. People can get discouraged and quit, but the Spirit within them will burden them until they come home. Look now at 2 Timothy 2

 11 This is a faithful saying: For if we died with Him, We shall also live with Him.

 12 If we endure, We shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us.

 13 If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.

What is the prerequisite to these promises?

They key to this passage is ‘if we died with Him’. Those who abandon the faith have never died to self. The questionable portion is verse 12, ‘He will also deny us’. There are two possibilities here. One is to ask what He is denying from us? Is it salvation? I don’t believe it is because scripture follows by saying that He remains faithful to the faithless who have died with Him. Remember Peter denied Jesus 3 times and was restored and became the rock of the church.

What is the Bible referring to when it says, “if we deny Him, He also will deny us”?

I personally believe verse 12 is a ‘side bar’ comment. If we deny Him by refusing to make Him Lord, He will deny us when we call Him Lord. If we compare scripture to scripture we see another piece to this mystery in Matthew 7:

 21 " Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.

 22 "Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?'

 23 "And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'

They called Him ‘Lord’, but denied Jesus of His rightful place as Lord. When they stood before Him, He denied them as His own. In spite of their works, they were called ‘you who practice lawlessness’ and were judged as unbelievers.

Why did men present their good works and Jesus responded, “you who practice lawlessness”?

When we look at the entire revelation of scripture, we see security is a promise. When we lose faith, He remains faithful. However, He will not allow us to go back to being as someone unredeemed because His seed, the Holy Spirit remains within us. Yes, I do believe in eternal security. The real question is ‘who are the redeemed?’ The evidence of salvation is that we are conforming to the image of Christ. The evidence that we don’t belong to Him is that we depart. In the middle are those whose hearts are in the world, but practice religion without a heart for God. Those are the lukewarm who feel secure, but God stated that He will spew them out of His mouth.

Is everyone who falls away spiritually lost?

What happens when a true believer falls away from God?

The prodigal will depart from the church, but his or her heart belongs to God and they will return. So in the end, only God knows where a person is spiritually. From the outside, we cannot judge someone’s salvation. We can judge their actions and words, but ultimately only God knows the heart. We can only examine our own lives and judge ourselves by the truth of scripture. Each of us must surrender or choose the world. The two cannot be married.

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