A brother wrote that he found a wealth of biblical information that refutes the Calvinistic idea “once saved, always saved” (or the perseverance of the saints). How then, he inquired, should he arrange such a vast array of material for a brief, 15-minute presentation. As with any biblical topic, the Bible contains much more information than can usually be presented effectively at one time, even if the time allotted is considerably longer than a quarter of an hour. Therefore, in every case, one simply must select some of the supporting biblical evidence for the current presentation and allow that another time may afford further opportunity to pursue the topic. Besides some future public occasion during which one might visit a former topic, individuals may inquire privately about something that has been publicly taught, at which time the extra biblical resources may be used profitably. The following paragraphs seek to address briefly the anti-biblical principle of “once saved, always saved.”
The doctrine of “once saved, always saved” or the plank of Calvinism styled the “perseverance of the saints” is anti-biblical because: (1) It is not taught in the Bible, (2) It is denominational in origin, and (3) It diametrically conflicts with abundant biblical evidence to the contrary. First, we hasten to assure our readers that we do not intend to disparage in the least the sincerity of proponents of the perseverance of the saints. Further, from a superficial reading of some passages of Scripture, it may appear that salvation while on earth has an eternal, enduring quality that cannot be reversed. We are indebted to the resource cited immediately below for a concise explanation of the perseverance of the saints by proponents of the same.
Perseverance of the saints — their certain continuance in a state of grace. Once justified and regenerated, the believer can neither totally nor finally fall away from grace, but will certainly persevere therein and attain everlasting life. This doctrine is clearly taught in these passages, John 10:28, 29; Rom. 11:29; Phil. 1:6; 1 Pet. 1:5. [Easton, M. G., M. A. D. D., Easton’s Bible Dictionary, (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.) 1996.]
The argument for the perseverance of the saints from Scripture references in the above quotation include these verses.
“And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand” (John 10:28-29).
“Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6).
“Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:5).
When considered in their immediate contexts, plus the overall context of the Bible, neither these verses nor others can teach the perseverance of the saints (i.e., once saved, always saved). To conclude that the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints is nevertheless true sets aside the abundant biblical testimony that a saved soul can sin so as to be lost. Considering the many passages that teach explicitly or implicitly that a saved soul can sin so as to be lost, to affirm that the Bible, though, teaches the perseverance of the saints portrays the Bible as contradictory. If the Bible is contradictory, it is unreliable and we have no sure Word of God whereby we can legitimately anticipate our coveted heavenly habitation.
John 10:27 reads: “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” The “eternal life,” whatever it is in John 10:28, is conditional upon: (1) souls hearing or heeding the Word of Jesus, (2) Jesus acknowledging that those souls have heard and favorably responded to the Word of Jesus, and (3) those souls are practicing the will of Jesus. However, is the reception of “eternal life” also conditional upon saved souls continuing to heed and respond to the Word of Jesus? Second, is the eternality of the “eternal life” the nature of that reward at the conclusion of a life-long heeding the Word of Jesus or something received while one yet resides in this temporal world? In view of other Scripture that place the actual reception of the eternality of the coveted reward after this life concludes, one must view the expression of “eternal life” in John 10 as inclusive of the salvation from past sins and the prospect of receiving eternal salvation at the end of life’s road. Otherwise, as we will see, the Bible is contradictory.
Philippians 1:6 addresses the willingness and ability of God to do his part regarding the final redemption of humanity. The verse, though, does not address man’s participation in his own redemption, or the lack thereof. No one and nothing can overpower God to prevent him from granting redemption to those upon whom he intends to confer such at the end of time. However, as we will see, man can actually ruin his own eternal future so as not to receive the blessing God would prefer to bestow (2 Peter 3:9).
Far from being a proof-text of the perseverance of the saints, 1 Peter 1:5 implies that “eternal life” is not now a present acquisition, but something to be received at the end of time. The verse acknowledges human participation as well as divine involvement in a salvation that is not received prior to the conclusion of our earthly pilgrimage. Faith is man’s part, without which all that is involved in that biblical teaching, one does not actually receive eternal salvation, though he may have had salvation from past sins previously.
Generally, each of the hundreds of warnings to be careful not to sin or fall away is a passage that implies the possibility of apostasy (i.e., that a child of God can sin so as to be eternally lost). Consider, for instance, these verses: 1 Corinthians 10:1-12; Hebrews 3:12.
Many verses of Scripture explicitly warn of the possibility of apostasy by the child of God. One must first be a child of God before he could apostatize, fall away and leave “the faith.”
“Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron” (1 Timothy 4:1-2).
“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition” (2 Thessalonians 2:3).
“Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness” (2 Peter 3:17).
“Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God” (Hebrews 3:12).
Others passages illustrate the possibility of a child of God sinning so as to be lost.
“For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire” (2 Peter 2:20-22).
To escape the “pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” is to obtain salvation from past sins — to become a child of God. Resorting to the worldly ways of sin by which one is “overcome” amounts to apostasy, surrendering one’s salvation and sinning so as to be lost. So doing, in some way, makes the latter circumstance worse than the lost condition experienced before becoming a child of God. The “latter end is worse.”
Some passages give examples of children of God who sinned so as to be lost (i.e., if they did not repent). Simon of Acts 8 is such a one. Proponents of the perseverance of the saints strongly deny that Simon had really become a child of God, since to admit that he had become a Christian and later sinned so as to be lost would undo their contention for “once saved, always saved.” However, Simon did exactly the same things the other Samaritans did in response to the Gospel, whereby they were saved.
“But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done” (Acts 8:12-13).
Simon was whatever the other Samaritans were when they and he believed and were baptized. Nowhere does the context intimate that there was any distinction in what the Samaritans did and what Simon did, or that they were saved and he was not.
Verses that exhort brethren to recover fallen brethren indicate that one might apostatize.
“Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins” (James 5:19-20).
Passages of Scripture that teach that souls once entered in the Lamb’s Book of Life may be blotted out teach the falsity of “once saved, always saved” or the perseverance of the saints.
“And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Oh, this people have sinned a great sin, and have made them gods of gold. Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin–; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written. And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book” (Exodus 32:31-34). (See Revelation 3:5; 20:12).
Summarized, God saves the obedient (Hebrews 5:8-9) and will punish the disobedient (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9). In this life, even a child of God may travel between the camps of obedience and disobedience. As long as the Christian yet lives, he may, like Simon, repent (Acts 8:22). At time’s end, those practicing faithful obedience will realize the actual reception of “eternal life.” “. . . be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life” (Revelation 2:10). From every biblical vantage, “eternal life” is conditional and in its fullest sense, a prized reality after time is no more.
