M'man Pastor Chris Anderson has blessed us with a brief, pointed look at the Biblical doctrine of security and perseverance of the believer. On the essay itself, I don't have much to say beyond go! read!
Chris is highlighting a crucial truth. The Bible teaches we are saved through faith — not by claiming to have faith. I fear many are hoping for Heaven and heading for Hell, thanks to a false notion of eternal security. Never forget: the lost in Matthew 7:21-23 were all sure they would be saved.
Tuesday, August 03, 2010
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6 comments:
I totally agree with your comment about people with a false sense of security. I'm about to finish a book on nominal Christians that saddens my heart in many regards (while convicting me in areas). Just another reminder of how much ALL sinners need to have the gospel preached to us.
Sorry to double post, but I just went and read it. That was an excellent read...thanks for the reference. Pastors would do well to go through John's epistles with new members/believers. I will have to keep this in mind for Bible teaching with my sons as well.
Read the article. It's always humbling and convicting to read about the perserverance of the Saints. Not being saved is such a horrid thought that I constantly worry about. Am I involved enough, reading enough, doing enough, praying enough?
The one thing he stressed in the article was perseverance. I thought repentance was more the point. You'll persevere if you have faith, but you don't have faith if you don't have repentance. And if you continue in sin after saying the prayer...you haven't repented.
The heart of the article (4th paragraph) really hits the nail on the head. It was a sober reminder of a couple of past attempts on my part to "mentor" younger women in my former church (myself still being young, mind you), and after it ended, realizing that I should have started with the gospel, rather than assume they were believers. I still have much to learn. (That's why I love this blog and that other one.)
Sir Aaron, sorry to hear about your constant worry. Involvement, reading, praying, doing ... is guilt or love the motivation for those things?
Sir Aaron,
By perseverance and even repentance, Scripture isn't putting out a "Christians will stop sinning" expectation. The best of Christians will struggle until we're with Christ. But I think that's part of the key--we'll *struggle*, not shrug. And when we fail (which will happen all too often), we'll grieve (which is a fruit in itself) and run to Christ.
That last point--running to Christ--is essential. I'd suggest that you meditate much on 1 John 2:1-2. "Plan A" for the Christian is that we not sin. That's what we yearn for. But when we do, we don't doubt and fear. We don't obsess with ourselves. We run immediately to Christ. "Plan B," if you will, is that when we sin we have Christ, our Advocate and Propitiation--two amazing words. Those verses have become among the most precious in the Scriptures to me. To be frank, I use them often as a balm for my smarting conscience. I hope they'll be a balm for you as well!
(FWIW, I wrote a hymn that focuses on 1 John 2:1-2 (in the final stanza) called "I Run to Christ." You can hear a choral demo here and read it here if you'd like.)
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