P – Perseverance of the Saints:
Defined:
The Westminster Confession of Faith (1648):
Chapter XVII, I. They, whom God has accepted in His Beloved, effectually called, and sanctified by His Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved (Palmer, p. 130; Steele & Thomas, p. 56).
This doctrine is also known as; “Once saved, always saved…Perseverance of God…Preservation of the saints…(and)…Eternal security” (Palmer, pp. 68-69).
Here’s an excerpt from a Calvinist tract presenting some unavoidable inferences:
We take the position that a Christian’s sins do not damn his soul! The way a Christian lives, what he says, his character, his conduct, or his attitude toward other people have nothing whatever to do with the salvation of his soul…All the prayers a man may pray, all the Bibles he may read, all the churches he may belong to, all the services he may attend, all the sermons he may practice, all the debts he may pay, all the ordinances he may observe, all the laws he may keep, all the benevolent acts he may perform will not make his soul one whit safer; AND ALL THE SINS HE MAY COMMIT FROM IDOLATRY TO MURDER WILL NOT MAKE HIS SOUL IN ANY MORE DANGER…THE WAY A MAN LIVES HAS NOTHING WHATEVER TO DO WITH THE SALVATION OF HIS SOUL” [A Discussion Which Involves a Subject Pertinent to All Men, Rev. Sam Morris, pp. 1-2: (Calvinism, Samuel G. Dawson, p. 13)].
Scriptural Considerations:
Let’s recap one more time. Calvinism says: Because of being born in sin, all of us are spiritually dead, so dead we are unable to even have faith (Total Depravity). Therefore, in order for us to be saved, God alone had to save us. We know that everyone doesn’t “get saved,” so, God had to choose those to whom He would give grace (Unconditional Election). Jesus couldn’t have died for everyone or everyone would be saved. So, because some are lost, we know Jesus didn’t die for everyone (Limited Atonement). If you’re one of the ones God picked, you can’t change it (Irresistible Grace). And since God picked you to be saved and you can’t do anything about it, there is no sin that you could ever commit that would cause you to lose your salvation (Perseverance of the Saints).
Calvinists, speaking of salvation, say:
If you ain’t got it, you can’t get it.
If you get it, you can’t lose it.
If you lose it, you never had it.
To verify that they approve of this little aphorism:
The doctrine of the perseverance of the saints does not maintain that all who profess the Christian faith are certain of heaven. It is saints–those who are set apart by the Spirit–who persevere to the end. It is believers–those who are given true, living faith in Christ–who are secure and safe in Him. Many who profess to believe fall away, but they do not fall from grace for they were never in grace. True believers do fall into temptations, and they do commit grievous sins, but these sins do not cause them to lose their salvation or separate them from Christ (Steele & Thomas, p. 56).
Because of this, when discussing the “possibility of apostasy,” a Calvinist will often try to escape the force of a passage by insisting that the person being discussed was not really a Christian. They say that he might have professed to be, or even thought he was, but in reality had never been redeemed by the blood of Christ. We want to look at some passages which cannot possibly be speaking of anyone but those who have been redeemed by the blood of Christ, those who are unquestionably Christians:
For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God, and put Him to open shame (Hebrews 6:4‑6).
Someone has “fallen away” [“if” (v:6 KJ, NIV) is not in the greek text]. This is someone who has “once been enlightened,” has “tasted of the heavenly gift,” and has “been made partakers of the Holy Spirit,” etc. This cannot possibly be speaking of anyone but a once true Christian. This passage is contending that it is possible for a Christian to fall away to such an extent that they find it impossible to repent. (Contextually it is speaking of ex-Jewish Christians who would leave Christianity altogether, and probably return to the Old Law: Hebrews 2:1-3; 3:12; 4:1, 11; 6:11-12; 10:23, 32-39; 12:3, 12-13.)
As a Christian we are instructed to “repent…and pray,” if we sin (Acts 8:22, note Simon was a true believer: Acts 8:13). “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves (2 Peter 2:1).
These fallen, now false, teachers were “even denying the Master who bought them,” consequently “bringing swift destruction upon themselves.” The phrase “who bought them” is speaking of the redemption of Christ (1 Peter 1:18-19). These false teachers were going to deny Christ, the very one who had redeemed them. Would this cause them to lose their salvation? Jesus says, “whoever shall deny Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32‑33).
For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain terrifying expectation of judgment, and the fury of a fire which will consume the adversaries. Anyone who has set aside the Law of Moses dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace ? (Hebrews 10:26‑29)
This passage is speaking of one who had been “sanctified” by “the blood of the covenant,” something he now regards as “unclean.” This is someone who “after receiving the knowledge of the truth” has “insulted the Spirit of grace.” This was a true “sanctified” Christian who, without repentance, will suffer a “severer punishment” than death.
“I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me, and I in him, he bears much fruit; for apart from Me you can do nothing. “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch, and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned (John 15:5‑6).
This is addressed to those who do “abide in” Christ, a Christian. Jesus warns those who would not continue to “abide in” Him that they would be “cast…into the fire.” Abiding “in” Christ means to continue being in fellowship with Christ through obeying His word (2 John 1:8-9).
Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you. And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is under obligation to keep the whole Law. You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace (Galatians 5:2‑4).
Paul is addressing Christians in the churches of Galatia. Paul is warning those who had benefited from the grace of God found in Christ, that if they went back to seek justification in the Old Law (represented by receiving circumcision), they would be “severed from Christ.” They would find that Christ would “be of no benefit” to them for they would have “fallen from grace.” “Certainly no one can be severed from something to which he has not been joined, and one cannot ‘fall out of’ something he has not been in” (Calvinism, Samuel G. Dawson, p. 17).
But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you. You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” Quite right, they were broken off for their unbelief, but you stand by your faith. Do not be conceited, but fear; for if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will He spare you. Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in; for God is able to graft them in again. For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more shall these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree ? (Romans 11:17‑24)
The Jews are represented as natural olive branches, and Gentile Christians are represented as wild olive branches. The thing that is said to connect the branches to the tree of fellowship with God is belief. The warning is that the Jews were “broken off” because of “their unbelief” in Christ, and the Gentile Christians would “also be cut off” if they failed to continue in “faith.” Some, “believe for a while, and in time of temptation fall away” (Luke 8:13). “Take care, brethren, lest there should be in anyone of you an evil, unbelieving heart, in falling away from the living God” (Hebrews 3:12 NAS). If, however, the Jews “do not continue in their unbelief,” they “will be grafted in; for God is able to graft them in again.”
For if because of food your brother is hurt, you are no longer walking according to love. Do not destroy with your food him for whom Christ died (Romans 14:15). Also, “For through your knowledge he who is weak is ruined, the brother for whose sake Christ died” (1 Corinthians 8:11).
Both of these passages are warning us to recognize we may inadvertently contribute to a brother’s sin against his own conscience (1 Corinthians 8:7, 10, 12; Romans 14:14, 23). If we are not sensitive to the conscience of young “weak” Christians, we may encourage them to do something against what their conscience says is pleasing to God. When our “weak” brother “doubts” but goes ahead and does what he doubts is right, “he is condemned…because…whatever is not from faith is sin” (Romans 14:23). The believing “brother for whose sake Christ died” did not act “from faith,” he sinned, and is now “hurt,” “ruined,” and “destroy(ed).” This is a sanctified Christian, one “for whom Christ died,” who has been spiritually destroyed through sin. The word “destroy” in Romans 14:23 means “…to lose eternal salvation” [ Thayer’s, p. 64 (Strong’s #622)] The Bible goes on to say to those who are not sensitive of another brother’s conscience, “And thus, by sinning against the brethren and wounding their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ” (1 Corinthians 8:12).
– Glen Osburn