Expert: Marvin Howard - 1/3/2012

Question
hello Bro. Marvin,

Can you explain why these bible passages does not refer to eternal security:


1Peter 1:23: "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever."
John 5:24: "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life."
John 6:35-37: Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out."
John 10:27-29: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand."
Romans 5:9: Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.
Romans 8:1: There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Romans 8:35: Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?
Romans 8:38-39: For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 11:29: For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
Hebrews 3:14: For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end.
1 John 2:19: 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 it might become plain that they all are not of us.
1 Corinthians 15:10: But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me.
2 Corinthians 5:19: ...that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
Ephesians 2:4-6: But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ — by grace you have been saved — and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus...
Ephesians 4:30: And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
Philippians 1:6: And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
2 Timothy 1:12: ...which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me.
2 Timothy 2:13: ...if we are faithless, he remains faithful — for he cannot deny himself.
Hebrews 13:20-21: Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
1 John 3:9: No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God.
1 John 5:4-5: For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world — our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
Ephesians 1:13-14: In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
John 17:2,12: "...since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him." (12) "While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled."
1 Corinthians 1:6-8: ...even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you — so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24: Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.
2 Thessalonians 3:3: But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.
Hebrews 9:12: ...he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.
1 Peter 1:3-5: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
1 John 5:11-13: And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.
Hebrews 6:17-19: So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain...
Jeremiah 32:39-40: I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me forever, for their own good and the good of their children after them. I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me.
Psalms 121
Isaiah 46:3-4: Listen to me, O house of Jacob, all the remnant of the house of Israel, who have been borne by me from before your birth, carried from the womb; even to your old age I am he, and to gray hairs I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save.
Romans 9:6-8: But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel, and not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but "Through Isaac shall your offspring be named." This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring.
Psalms 20:6: Now I know that the LORD saves his anointed; he will answer him from his holy heaven with the saving might of his right hand.
Psalms 31:23: Love the LORD, all you his saints! The LORD preserves the faithful but abundantly repays the one who acts in pride.
Psalms 37:28: For the LORD loves justice; he will not forsake his saints. They are preserved forever, but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.
Psalms 55:22: Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.

I found these preferences in Wikipedia when i searched perseverance of saints. Pls. help me because these bible passages sounds convincing. Thank you

Answer
In 1st Peter 1:23, it is not us that are incorruptible. The seed is Christ (Galatians 3:16), and HE is incorruptible.

In John 5:24, you need a Greek definition. Has (hath in the KJV) is the following:

ἔχω
echō
ekh'-o
A primary verb (including an alternate form σχέω scheō skheh'-o used in certain tenses only); to hold (used in very various applications, literally or figuratively, direct or remote; such as possession, ability, contiguity, relation or condition): - be (able, X hold, possessed with), accompany, + begin to amend, can (+ -not), X conceive, count, diseased, do, + eat, + enjoy, + fear, following, have, hold, keep, + lack, + go to law, lie, + must needs, + of necessity, + need, next, + recover, + reign, + rest, return, X sick, take for, + tremble, + uncircumcised, use.

So, we "hold" eternal life. There is nothing to say we cannot let it go.

In John 6:35-37, Jesus will never cast us out. Nothing says we cannot walk away.

In John 10:27-29, how many times have you returned a gift to the store? And, we cannot be kidnapped, but no one said we cannot run away.

Romans 5:9 is actually part of a larger context. Going back to 5:2 tells us He gave us "access" to grace because of our faith. This is a parallel with Ephesians 2:8-9. Just because we have access does not mean we will be thrown inside, that we will cross the threshold, or that we will be trapped once inside. At one time, we were sinners. Christ loved us anyway. As sinners we came to see that. Once we are Christians, we should see it better. in the context, we progress from access to a warning quite similar to 2nd Peter 2:20-22.

Romans 8:1 is a conditional statement. It only applies to those walking after the spirit, not the flesh. Once someone starts following the flesh again, this verse no longer applies.

Romans 8:35-39 says that no thing or person can separate us. But, the context goes through the end of the chapter, and the recapitulation say "other" creature. In other words, nothing or nobody outside of us can separate us.

In Romans 11:29, I do not know which translation you are using, but it is teaching extreme error by using the word, "irrevocable." The correct translation is without repentance. in other words, God gave gifts and called us; and He is not sorry that He did.

Hebrews 3:14 is a conditional statement. We must hold our confidence until the end for this to apply.

1st John 2:19 only proves people CAN be lost. The contrast is made in the next verse between the ones that left and the ones that had miraculous knowledge (unction) of all matters religious.

In 1st Corinthians 15:10, Paul said that the grace he received was not meaningless (vain), and he was so appreciative that he worked harder than the rest to maintain that grace.

2nd Corinthians 5:19 is talking about bringing man and God back together. That is done by the elimination of debt. That message is contained in Mark 16:15-16. But, what happens when we forget our example? Read Matthew 18:23-35; paying special attention to verse 34 where all the original debt is reinstated.

I find it peculiar that people want to quote Ephesians 2:4-6, and Ephesians 2:8-9, and skip verse 7. Verse 7 defeats Once Saved Always Saved. God "might" show the exceeding riches in ages to come.

In Ephesians 4:30, we have the use of an interesting word, "sealed." This word is also used in real estate. It is another word for the earnest money required from the buyer to promise a purchase. in fact, The blood of Christ purchases us. This is the promise from God that He will redeem us at the closing of the sale. He cannot take it back. BUT, the seller (us in this case) can give it back and cancel the deal.

If you begin at 2nd Timothy 2:11, and go through verse 13, it will make more sense. Paul is a preacher. He is charging Timothy to be a preacher. He admonishes Timothy to stay sound. Paul is saying he did the same thing. Paul is saying that if God could take him safely through all his trials, God will help keep his preaching pure. Paul was committed to God, and God could keep him faithful if Paul continued to trust (committed) Him.

Again, you need context to understand 2nd Timothy 2:13. Go back to verse 11. The dead will live. Those suffering will lbe rewarded. If we deny Him He will deny us. BUT, whether or not we believe, God will still know He exists.

Hebrews 13:20-21 says nothing about our security. It says that God will never quit offering the covenant to all so that He won't be unfair to any.

1st John 3:9 speaks not of individual sins. It talks about a sinful lifestyle. It is easy to get repentance from individual sins. A sinful lifestyle, especially after knowing truth, makes us so ashamed we don't want to admit it. That is how it is for us. For God, on the other hand, sin is sin. If it is not eradicated by repentance, a person will be lost.

For 1st John 5:4-5, start with the last two verses of the previous chapter. We have to love mankind before we can love God. And, God commands us to love Him. If you love God you love Jesus. If you love God, keep His commandments. Don't keep His commandments and it shows you do not love Him. They aren't hard. Anything that comes from God overcomes the world. The victory that overcomes the world is faith. Only people who believe Jesus have faith. Now, "overcometh," Is a present/imperfect tense verb. This means that its action will continue; it is not a one time event. In other words, our faith KEEPS overcoming the world every day.

In Ephesians 1:13-14, we are again dealing with an earnest. God will not end the transaction of redeeming us, but we can.

In John 17:2 and 12, "kept" is the form that speaks of preventing harm; not keeping them from escaping salvation. Christ gives us eternal life: true statement. But, in light of other Scriptures, against OSAS, the eternal life is not awarded till Judgment, but the earnest has already been paid.

1st Corinthians 1:6-8 speaks of the miracles they could perform, said none of them were more important than the other, and that the gifts would prove they brought the word of God. The "Who" of verse 8 is just as easily "Which." It is the gifts that did the confirming.

1st Thessalonians 5:23-24 begins with a conjunction. In other words, all of the things in front of it within the context are related. So, IF we do all of the things in verses 19-22, THEN you will be set apart. God is faithful to keep the promise of making you blameless if you do the things He said.

2nd Thessalonians 3:3 begins the context running into the next verse (see all the conjunctions). It is a conditional statement, conditioned upon keeping the commands delivered by the Apostles.

Hebrews 9:12 is in the middle of a very long passage, talking about how blood was necessary for salvation, and how Jesus' blood was better. then it says His death was necessary to institute the testament. But, in verse 12, it is talking about eternal redemption being the result of His death. The point of this passage is the eternal nature of the testament, that needed His death, and not the possibility of never being lost.

1st Peter 1:3-5 speaks of the inheritance being eternal; not our reception of it. in other words, God will never take this inheritance out of reach of humanity.

In 1st John 5:11-13 we have a record. This record is evidentiary in nature. What evidence were we given? Hebrews 11:1 says our faith is that evidence. It also says it is a hope. If we were already in a position where we could not fall, the hope would have been realized, and no longer hope. It would be sight instead of faith. Faith is the word of God (Romans 10:17), and the word of God is Jesus' death (the whole gospel) so that eternal life is available.

Hebrews 6:17-19 speaks of the anchor in our our life. This is God who cannot change. It is Him that cannot move; not us. In fact, the passage also talks about encouraging us to not let go of the anchor, so we will not be swept away.

Jeremiah 32:39-40 only promises that the covenant would be everlasting. It has no bearing on whether we accept the covenant, reject the covenant, or abandon the covenant.

Psalm 121 has Jehovah as Lord; not Christ. This is a prophecy of Christ, and that He would remain a sinless sacrifice for us.

Isaiah 46:3-4 talks about bringing at least part of the earthly nation of Judah out of captivity, no matter how long it takes. Look at verse 2. Verse 1 even tells who would have the captivity; Bel (Ba'al) or Babylon. This was already fuflilled in Ezra and Nehemiah.

Romans 9:6-8 says that God made a flesh promise and a seed promise to Abraham and his sons. The flesh promise, which received the Law of Moses, was not going to get the seed promise. This is not because the word of God failed, but because Israel failed nd was rejected.

Psalms 20:6 needs to be taken with the whole Psalm. When Israel had trouble, God will give them a way. God would send Jesus from Heaven to come through Zion. He would remember the faithful of Israel (that did the sacrifices as commanded). God will give us everything we need. He won't break His promise. The faithful would be happy when Christ comes. God will save Jesus from temptation. We know this is talking about Jesus, because it speaks of saving Him, not them or us.

Psalms 31 is a prayer of David that God will protect him  as people tried to kill him. Verse 23 is just David thanking God in advance for granting his prayer.

Psalms 37 is prophecies of Christ. For example, verse 24 speaks of the crucifixion. Even though Christ would die, and hang on a tree to be cursed, God would still resurrect Him. In verse 28, we are preserved, that is given a hedge, to protect us. This is the way of escape promised in 1st Corinthians 10:13. God will never allow Satan to take us against our will.

Psalms 55:22 needs to be contrasted against verse 23. He will take the deceitful into the pit of Hell, but those that cast their burdens on the Lord will not fall. If we quit casting our burdens on Him, then we will be permitted to fall.

I hope these have gone a long way toward helping you. Do not trust things the majority control. The majority is not Christian according to Matthew 7:14. They do not really believe God, and are looking for supposed contradictions to make us quit.

I am sorry it took me so long to reply. I never saw your notice in my inbox. It was there, but it got buried.