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Three False Doctrines that Threaten Faith
Introduction:
As Christians, I think we need to especially examine three false doctrines related to salvation. I believe that all three can have a devastating effect upon the believer's faith and even their salvation. Although there are many false doctrines, I think these three stand out above most of the others. They are the following:
1) Security of salvation through an organization,
2) Security of salvation through a non-reversible, one-time decision, and
3) Security of salvation through a pre-tribulation rapture.
These three false teachings have proved harmful throughout the history of the Church, and they continue to damage faith today. Even more alarming is the potential threat they pose to believers of the future who, I believe, will face the Great Tribulation.
The Nature of False Teachings:
False teaching has been around from the beginning of the human existance, even since the Garden of Eden, when the devil perverted God's commandment against eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil:
Genesis 3:4-5 (KJV)
4And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.
This was a lie. Adam and Eve did die an immediate spiritual death (alienation from God), followed by an eventual physical death (one of the consequences of their disobedience). I think that Satan's words here provide us an example that we all should take seriously, for the temptation in the garden is an example for most subsequent satanic deception. The essence of a good lie is this: it contains at least a kernel of truth, it is very appealing to believe, and it seems logical:
1) the kernel of truth: Adam and Eve did not immediately fall to the ground, physically dead; and their eyes were "opened". As sinners, they became aware of good and evil, and, consequently, of their alienation from that which is "Good", namely God. God now no longer walked and talked with them personally in the garden during the cool of the day.
2) the appeal: How does one tempt two people who have just about everything? Adam and Eve were living in paradise already. Satan very cleverly found a way. Adam and Eve did have an authority figure in the Lord God, with whom they shared regular fellowship (Gen.3:8; 2:19). Wouldn't you like to be "like God?", the devil asks. It is, without a doubt, the most arrogant of presumptions for a creature to assume he could ever be on an equal level with his Creator, but the phrasing is clever, for it sounds like a "good thing". God is good. Wouldn't being like Him be good too? Of course "being like God" by your own efforts is only the first step in an arrogant delusion of becoming "equal to God", "a God", then, ultimately "replacing God". This, after all, was exactly the process the devil went through, that most favored of cherubs, who is even now still in revolt against the Lord, still intent upon replacing Him. The appeal of becoming "like God" in a self-willed way is a very powerful one.
3) seems logical: Satan, through the serpent, constructed remarks and talks about God, God's knowledge, and personal spiritual improvement. He speaks of God in a favorable way, as someone he knows and respects. He doesn't directly downgrade Him, but rather places a bit of doubt into Eve's understanding of the situation: he suggests; she doesn't have all the facts or have them straight, but now here's the way things really are, the full story; and if you do eat this desirable fruit, you'll be much the better for it; don't you think that God would want you to be a better person, one who knows about good and evil? Truly effective lies never directly oppose the truth, they attempt instead to supplant the truth. To do so, they try and look as much like the truth as possible. Satan dressed up this first big lie in holy-looking garments to the point where Eve was apparently convinced that what she was doing was perfectly all right. It's really no wonder when we consider the subtlety and effectiveness of the devil's attack:
a. a friendly agent: Satan was far too clever to approach Eve directly. Instead, he used the serpent, whom we assume must have been a familiar and friendly companion to Eve.
b. a familiarity with God: He speaks to her using the same language the Lord used. He seems to know the Lord well, although he calls Him the more familiar and generic "God", not Lord, the appropriate term of respect.
c. a legitimizing of secret desires: Satan's promise had two parts: "to know good and evil" and "to be like God". It was a package deal. This very effective lie persuaded Eve that the price ("knowing good and evil") was worth the benefit ("to be like God"). It was unquestionably a terrible bargain, for the truth of it was that she only became "like" God in that she shared His recognition that she had become a sinner, while the price of the knowledge was horrendous: alienation from God, incurring His wrath and judgment in the form of spiritual, physical, and, eventually, eternal death.
Neither Eve, nor later Adam, were mentally challenged. This was a persuasive attack cleverly crafted to their particular circumstances, and we would do very well to resist a modern-day equivalent. How could a close friend or authority figure (such as a pastor or church leader), an organization, or church, who seems to know God, and who is offering you something that's going to be spiritually beneficial to you (something you really find attractive) possibly be telling you a lie? But sometimes it is a lie, and we believers have to develop the discernment to combat such deceptive attacks on our faith.
If we stop to think about it, Adam and Eve had a good source of getting the right information: the Lord Himself! They did not have to accept what Satan told them. And our source is no less impressive. We have the very Word of God. Our first parents did not heed the spoken Word of God. It should not be too surprising, therefore, that many Christians are capable of being deceived, for far too many today do not read or heed the written Word that we have today. They, therefore, fall for deceptions in cases where they should know better, in fact do know better, but fail to heed the knowledge they have in faith. Even more often, many Christians make themselves vulnerable by passing up their opportunities to learn about what God thinks (reading and studying their Bibles), so that when the testing and tempting comes, they are all the more easily deceived by false teaching and false teachers. As it was for Adam and Eve, the information is available to us, and God will not withhold the necessary wisdom from any who ask Him for it (Jas.1:5). By being diligent in our commitment to learn God's truth, it becomes more difficult for the devil to insert an appealing and subtle lie capable of driving a wedge in between us and the truth, and therefore in between us and God.
The Three False Doctrines That Threaten Faith:
I believe that for us as Christians, there is nothing more important than the nurturing, building and preservation of our faith in our Lord and Master Jesus Christ. How do we do that? We do that through being faithful and obedient in keeping His commandments. This is something that must continue right up to the time of the end. That is why I believe that it is so important for believers to be alert and informed about these three wide-spread and often well-respected false doctrines that so threaten our faith and, I think, even our salvation. As previously stated these three false doctrines are 1) Security of salvation through an organization, 2) Security of salvation through a non-reversible, one-time decision, and 3) Security of salvation through a pre-tribulation rapture. These doctrines may seem non-threatening enough on the surface, but in this respect they are similar to the devil's original lie. They are not direct assaults upon our faith, but rather insidious and stealthy attacks that can undermine our faith and salvation.
Security of salvation through an organization:
This is the teaching that salvation is the result of church or organizational membership. Of course there are many varieties of this teaching, and it is often not put in exactly these terms. From direct assertions like the one made recently by Pope Benedict XVI, where he reiterated the statement of the Roman Catholic non salus extra Ecclesiam ("there is no salvation outside of the [Roman Catholic] Church"), to more guarded insinuations that without "joining", one is risking one's eternal future. There are even some protestant denominations which teach that you must be a member of their denomination to be saved. These expressions most commonly put the shoe on the wrong foot, making participation in the organization or church denomination a prerequisite for security. This is because the doctrine is designed to bring people into the organization and keep them there once in. However, the flip-side of this fear-appeal teaching is the equally false corollary (affirmed by many of the groups that expound this doctrine) that if you do join and stay a member in good standing, then you will be saved simply by the fact of your membership. Neither the premise nor the corollary have any biblical basis whatsoever.
Other manifestations of this false doctrine include the dispensing of rituals (such as baptism), blessings (such as the charismatic "second blessing"), or special knowledge - anything whether otherwise legitimate or illegitimate, when the dispensation must come through a certain group or person exclusively in order to provide salvation. The conviction that a church leader, or church or group has something so important, even necessary to salvation, something that can't be obtained elsewhere, leads people to think that it is their allegiance to this earthly person or organization that counts for salvation, rather than allegiance to Christ and His true Church.
There is no better illustration of the phenomenon of Organizational Security and its problems than the contemporary situation faced by our Lord. In Jesus' day, the worship of God had been so "institutionalized" beyond the Mosaic Law, and with so little real feeling for and understanding of the true substance of the truth contained therein, that while the three-fold system of Pharisees, Sadducees and Essenes offered many ways of searching for God, it provided no real way of finding Him. At one point, Jesus tells some representatives of the religious community bluntly that while they assume that they have eternal life in the scriptures they proclaim, in reality they have missed the whole point: the scriptures are about Him (Jn.5:39; see also Matt.23:13-28). This is indeed the whole point. We are to believe in and follow Jesus Christ. Ministers of God and organizations formed to serve Him, are for helping believers accomplish their assigned task of living as Christians. Problems arise when the personalities and institutions that should do so become instead ends unto themselves.
From the point of view of the believer, the danger is first and foremost one of salvation. For one simply cannot put one's primary allegiance in a person other than Christ, or in any organization over Christ and truly be a believer in Christ. At the very least, where personalities and institutional loyalties begin to cloud the picture of faith and hold out the prospect of security based on such loyalty, another danger is complacency. Once the personality or institution becomes the focus of faith, then the need, the drive to grow spiritually, to seek God and draw nearer to Him, inevitably diminishes. And such complacency, ironically, only increases the danger of spiritual vulnerability as we shall discuss below.
In the long history of the Church, security in an organization has been the most harmful of the three false doctrines we are in the process of discussing. As in the devil's deception of Eve, it is a persuasive lie:
1) It has a kernel of truth: The importance of being a vital part of Christ's Church is beyond question, but it is wrong to equate this universal spiritual status of all true believers with any particular earthly person or group. As Christians, we are indeed part of one body, all of us possessing special gifts and entrusted with specific ministries designed to build up the faith of our fellow members (Eph.4:11-16). That "body" is the Body of Christ, not a church organization, and our Lord knows who belongs to Him (2Tim.2:19; cf. Jn.10:14; 1Cor.8:3). No person holds the patent on true faith in Him. No organization holds the key to our salvation. If we truly do believe in Jesus Christ, then we are part of His Church. Throughout the development of so many forms of worship, of service and of collective organization over the last two thousand years of Christian history, that fact has never changed. A Christian's loyalty must be to Christ, not to a tradition, to an organization, or to a person. For it is our steadfast loyalty to Christ, our continued faith in Him, that leads to salvation, not loyalty to any earthly person or group.
2) It has a strong appeal: There are a number of facets of this false doctrine that many have found attractive. The first (and most obvious) is that the institutional follower is spared the trouble of undergoing the internal transformation that for true believers in Christ is a life long process (Rom.12:1-2; Eph.4:23-24). Even pseudo-Christian groups generally require some cosmetic changes from their members, but a real commitment to God from the heart, a serious discipleship to Christ, a daily picking up of one's cross and really following Him - such troublesome devotion is not normally necessary in order to remain a member in good standing. For by merely following the organizations rules, one's "insurance policy" will remain current. The second part of the appeal is a bit more subtle. What God requires of us is a change of heart and a genuine seeking of Him through His Son, but many people want to do things their own way, that is, seek God through their own efforts and be rewarded for their merits. God's policy is grace, and a good thing for us too, because as naturally sinful human beings, anything we do without Him is by definition repugnant to the perfect and pristine character of God. That is why Jesus Christ had to die for us so that we might be able to approach the righteous God on the basis of Christ's work, not our own. But ever since Cain, who preferred to offer God products of his own efforts (rather than the blood sacrifices that bespoke our need for a substitute to die for us), there have been those who are more impressed by what they can do for God than for what God has done for them (consider the case of Naaman the Syrian: 2Kng.5). Works of this sort play a large role in institutions catering to this particular brand of Institutional Security: not only are you safe because you belong, but just look what you've done for God! All such approaches are dangerous folly.
3) It seems logical:
a) a friendly agent: With all the trappings of tradition, the established church of Martin Luther's day had the air of sole and irreproachable authority. Where else was one to turn? We may thank God that he and other men who truly sought the Lord turned to God and His Word rather than relying on what was comfortable, safe and traditional. But we should never underestimate the draw of such traditional agents. The recipients of the book of Hebrews found the temple worship in Jerusalem an irresistible lure, and even though they had been well taught that these symbols had been superseded by Christ's death, out of nostalgia and fear of persecution they were drawn back into a system of ritual that was tantamount to denying the efficacy of Christ's real sacrifice (Heb.6:4-6).
b) a familiarity with God: Large institutionalized religions, even pseudo-Christian ones, invariably speak well of God and reserve a special place for Christ. But we know that there is only one way to God the Father, and that is exclusively through His Son. No combination worship of other "deities" or saints or angels or mortal men and women, living or dead, is acceptable to God (Jn.14:6).
c) a legitimizing of secret desires: It is all too human to have the need to belong to something bigger than ourselves, to have all our insecurities and doubts eased by something larger than we are. Now this is a legitimate desire, properly satisfied by our relationship with our loving Father through Christ's mediation. But to seek satisfaction of this desire in people or human institutions is folly, and to surrender our will and our judgment to the same is to court spiritual disaster, for, ultimately, we are responsible for such choices, even when we have abdicated that responsibility to something or someone "bigger". The danger is real enough, for there is something extremely comforting to human beings about belonging to a large group. "So many people must be right" and "there's safety in numbers". Perhaps, if God had not given us any place to go for the truth, no written scripture, no teaching of His Word, this point of view would be more persuasive. But we have the Bible to consider at our leisure, and we must follow the Lord, wherever He leads, no matter how large the crowd heading the other way (Rev.14:4).
Security of Salvation Through a Non-reversible, One-time Decision:
This security of salvation is the teaching that salvation is unconditional and irreversible once a person first puts his faith in Christ. For while the idea of "once saved always saved" is extremely reassuring, such a teaching is never expressed in scripture. In fact, the whole tenor and tone of our Lord's preaching speaks to the need for faithfulness in following Him, and we have seen (and will revisit below) numerous Bible passages that very clearly express a point of view diametrically opposed to this false doctrine: "He who endures to the end shall be saved" (Matt.10:22). As in the parable of the sower, scripture admits of a category of people who believe the Word (apparently genuinely), but then fall away from the faith in times of personal trouble and persecution (Matt.13:20-21); still others take deeper root than these, but fail to be productive for Christ because of the distractions of this world (Matt.13:22). Make no mistake - God wants and expects us to stay faithful. Indeed, His will is to have all come to salvation (1Tim.2:4; 2Pet.3:9). Those who never seek Him out, those who do, yet later turn away, and those who go to meet Him empty-handed -- all do so of their own free will.
Also known as "eternal security", the doctrine is an understandable development from a historical point of view. Reacting to the extreme abuses of the medieval church that had set the faithful the impossible and non-biblical task of working their way into heaven, it is no wonder that reformed theologians wished to stress the un-conditionality of God's choice and election. Nor is it strange that modern-day evangelicals have sought to clarify election-theology and resolve it into the more easily understood doctrine of "once saved always saved". But the truth is that God chooses those who seek Him, and delivers those who faithfully follow Him - not sinlessly perfect people, but consistently faithful people who continue throughout their lives through all the ups and downs to choose Him and His Son over the world.
This false doctrine offers much in the way of comfort to Christians, and certainly goes a long way toward removing the false drive of working for salvation. For believers who are naturally motivated to pursue actively their relationship with God, to follow their Savior, and to faithfully exercise the gifts and ministries they have been given, this doctrine is not much of a threat. The main problem with believing that once you've committed yourself to Christ you are saved - no matter what - is complacency. "Once saved always saved" leads to complacency about one's faith and complacency about sin (which, when indulged and un-repented, is ultimately the biggest threat to faith).
The problem is not unprecedented in the early history of the Church. The author of the book of Hebrews is quick to point out to his complacent listeners that they are in danger of "letting their salvation drift away" (Heb.2:1). Rebelling from God and allowing sin to harden their hearts, he tells them, results in unbelief:
Hebrews 3:12-14 (KJV)
12Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. 13But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. 14For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end;
Sad to say, this was exactly the pattern of faithlessness that led the generation of the Exodus to fall away from God, even after having experienced such dramatic miracles of deliverance by the Lord's hand (Heb.3:15-19; 12:25). Thus the false teaching of "eternal security" is not much of a problem in normal times for those Christians who are diligently following Christ in any case. The real problem is that such a doctrine taken seriously can engender a dangerous complacency in those of us who are less than super-human in our Christian application. "Once saved always saved" removes a large part of our "early warning system", has a tendency to make us more relaxed about the threat personal sin poses to our spirituality, and can deaden to a certain degree our motivation to continue serving the Lord with vigor day by day. In the worst case, under times of intense pressure and tribulation, times that may push faith to the edge, it is doubly dangerous to believe that everything will be all right no matter what. This is true ... for believers, only as long as we are careful not to compromise or abandon our faith.
For present day Christians, "Once saved always saved" security has been the most harmful of the three false doctrines we are in the process of discussing. As in the devil's deception of Eve, it too has proved to be a persuasive lie:
1) It has a kernel of truth: God does love us and Jesus Christ did die for us. We are now part of the family of God. We are redeemed, sanctified, elected - and we possess eternal life (and the Holy Spirit as the pledge for that eternal life). All these doctrines and more do speak to the eternal significance and ultimately unbreakable security of our relationship with God the Father through our faith in Jesus Christ, His Son. But we are not yet experiencing that eternal life. We have not been placed in our new, eternal body. We have not been removed from the world, been taken to heaven, evaluated, rewarded and come to be with Christ forever. We are still here - in the devil's world. And as long as we are, the fight continues, as long as we are in this life, we must be faithful, and, above all, maintain our faith. All the eternal blessings promised us are appropriated by and based on this faith we have in our Lord Jesus Christ. But if we abandon that faith, we abandon all the benefits that come with it.
2) It has a strong appeal: The strongest appeal of this incorrect teaching is the false assurance it gives the Christian that his behavior has no consequences, at least not the most grave of consequences - loss of salvation. Having a problem with personal sin? Can't be bothered to pursue a relationship with the Lord? Not interested in serving God through the gift and ministry given to you? None of these things will endanger your salvation. Relax and be at peace - you may have trouble in this life, but no matter how lazy, how irreverent, how evil you become in this life, the fact that you - at one point - expressed faith in Christ will be sufficient for God to vouchsafe you an eternal life with Him and His Son - even if you went so far as to reject His Son. But as we shall see below, neglecting our relationship with God and surrendering to sin will, over time, harden our hearts to such a degree that we become capable of things we wouldn't even have imagined - even rejecting the Lord who bought us, and in whom we once believed:
2 Peter 2:1 (KJV)
1But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
3) It seems logical:
a) a friendly agent: Some of the best respected evangelical preachers and teachers hold to this view.
b) a familiarity with God: The teaching of Positional Security rightly emphasizes the love of God, but ignores His justice and righteousness.
c) a legitimizing of secret desires: At one time or another, we would all like to believe that a loving God would never cast us aside, no matter what we have done. And in fact, God does forgive us our sins on the basis of His Son's work on the cross in our behalf. But if we reject His Son and deny His work, He cannot deny Himself (2Tim.2:11-13).
Security of Salvation Through a Pre-tribulation Rapture:
Tribulational Security is the teaching that believers of this present age will not have to undergo the period of Tribulation, but will instead be gathered up in a living resurrection just before the start of that dark age. Otherwise known as the Pre-tribulational Rapture (or simply "rapture", for short: see below on the post-tribulational rapture), this doctrine is comparatively modern. It arose in the 19th century amid the well-spring of interest in Biblical prophecy and the Bible's teachings regarding the predicted future events. The central core of this teaching is based almost exclusively on 1st Thessalonians 4:13-18, where Paul is seeking to correct the Thessalonians of their understanding of some false information that had infected that church. The rumor was apparently being spread that the resurrection applied only to those alive at Christ's return - the obvious implication being that those who had died had missed their chance for an eternal body and eternal life. Paul assures them that such is not the case, and that, in fact, the dead in Christ will be the first to rise at Christ's return:
1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 (KJV)
15For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 16For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 17Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
On account of the controversial nature of this teaching, a brief rebuttal of the doctrine of a pre-millennial, pre-tribulational rapture is necessary:
1. The word parousia: In the passage above, the word translated "coming" is the Greek parousia, a word exclusively used in theological contexts in the New Testament for the return of Christ, that is, the 2nd Advent when our Lord will return to earth to establish the Kingdom of Heaven (cf. Matt.24:3; 24:27; 24:37-39; 1Cor.15:23; Jas.5:7; 2Pet.1:16, 3:4 & 12; 1Jn.2:28). Even within the context of this very letter, 1st Thessalonians, the rule holds true (cf. 1Thes.2:19; 5:23), leading us to conclude that our Lord's gathering up of the believers in this passage too will take place at the 2nd Advent, and not (as the pre-tribulational position claims) prior to the Tribulation.
Furthermore, that Paul's use of parousia in the passage above was meant to be taken by the Thessalonian church as the 2nd Advent is made unmistakably clear in the apostle's second letter to these same believers. For in 2Thes.2:1-3 and 2:8 Paul states in no uncertain terms that the parousia of the Lord must follow the Great Apostasy and the advent of the Beast (unquestionably events of the Tribulation), so that the word parousia in those verses must also refer to the 2nd Advent, the final return of Christ after the Tribulation, not to a temporary return prior to the Tribulation in order to "rapture the Church".
The immediate context of the passage above confirms this view. With the Thessalonians so confused about the time of the resurrection, surely a clarification would have been essential here had Paul really been using parousia to refer not to the "final return" of our Lord, but only to a brief, pre-Tribulational rendezvous (especially since it is an event unprecedented elsewhere in scripture). The associated language used by Paul in this passage would also - without any explanation to the contrary - most naturally have been taken by his readers to mean the 2nd Advent. The shout of command (Jn.5:28; and cf. Jn.11:43), the archangel and his trumpet blast (Matt.24:31; 1Cor.15:52: Rev.11:15 and cf. Rev.19:1-6) are signs of the gathering together of the faithful, both dead and alive, prophesied to occur at the return of the King (Matt.24:31; Mk.13:27; cf. the Feast of Trumpets, which celebrates the predicted regathering of Israel at the 2nd Advent: Lev.23:23-25 & Num.29:1-6). Even the mention of the "clouds" (the armies of the returning, resurrected believers: Rev.19:14) is a clear allusion to the 2nd Advent (Dan.7:13-14; Matt.24:30; 26:64; Mk.13:26; 14:62; Lk.21:27; Rev.1:7).
2. Absence of any evidence for raptured believers: Despite the importance which this doctrine of a rapture should have for all believers of the present age, we find no mention in prophecy of resurrected believers biding their time in heaven until the 2nd Advent. This argument from silence possesses merit, because Revelation 6:9-11 does clearly mention the non-resurrected believers who have been martyred during the Tribulation and their spirits are in heaven awaiting their resurrection at the 2nd Advent (also mentioned in Rev.7:9-16 & 15:2-4).
3. The three echelons of the resurrection: Paul's description of the phases of the resurrection in 1st Corinthians 15:20-28 paints a clear picture of how the resurrection of the righteous will unfold historically. It will happen in three increments. These three phases of resurrection will occur as follows:
a. "Christ, the first-fruits" (v.23). Our Lord, of course, has already been resurrected, the event occurring exactly 3 nights and 3 days after His burial!
b. "Then those who are Christ's at His coming" (v.23). The word "coming" is parousia again, so that this second phase is certainly composed of all believers at the time of the 2nd Advent. These are the "clouds" of believers who return with the King of Glory (Rev.19:14, which describes their return with Him).
c. "Then the end, when He shall hand over the Kingdom to our God and Father" (v.24). At the conclusion of the 1,000 years, the heavens and earth as we know them will be replaced by "the new Jerusalem, the new heaven and the new earth" (Ps.102:25-27; Is.34:4; 51:6; 65:17ff; 66:22; Matt.24:35; Heb.1:10-12; 12:22-27; 2Pet.3:10-13; Rev.20:11; 21:1-4).
As the discussion above shows, the three phases of resurrection Paul describes mesh perfectly with other pertinent scripture. The idea of an additional phase of the resurrection (which a pre-tribulational rapture would need to constitute) occurs nowhere in scripture.
4. Other 2nd Advent Passages: A pre-millennial, pre-tribulational rapture of believers is also difficult to assume from other passages treating the return of our Lord. What these other 2nd Advent scriptures all have in common is that they look forward to Christ's final return (i.e. the 2nd Advent) as the focus for our hope, not to a rapture that precedes this event by seven years.
a. 2nd Thessalonians 1:3-12: In this the lengthiest Pauline treatment of the 2nd Advent, these same Thessalonian believers would have a hard time with Paul's description of imminent events, assuming 1st Thessalonians chapter four teaches a pre-tribulational rapture. For the picture painted in the context of 2nd Thessalonians 1:3-12 is one of long-suffering believers granted relief at the "revelation of Jesus Christ" (1Thes.1:7: clearly the 2nd Advent; cf. Rev.1:1-3), while their tormentors receive a just judgment at the hands of the returning King "on the day when He comes to be glorified among all His holy people and be marveled at by all who believe" (v.10). If Paul had really taught the Thessalonians at 1st Thess.4:15-18 that they would be raptured seven years prior to this point and be waiting out the Tribulation safely in heaven, we might well imagine their shock and confusion to learn from this passage that instead they would still be in need of relief from persecution on the day of Christ's glorious return (v.7).
b. 1st Thessalonians 5:1-11: In the chapter immediately following Paul's supposed discussion of the pre-tribulational rapture, the Thessalonian believers are told not to worry about the exact time of future events (v.1), for "the day of the Lord" (i.e., the 2nd Advent) will come "like a thief in the night" (that is, without warning). For unbelievers, this means "swift destruction" which "they shall not escape" (v.3). Believers are to stay "sober and alert" (v.6), donning their "breastplate of faith and love" and "helmet of the hope of deliverance" (v.8). And it is for "taking possession of this deliverance" (v.9) that we have been appointed. As in 2Thes.1:3-12, this is clearly a context of the judgment of unbelievers contrasted with the deliverance of believers at the ultimate return of our Lord. The meaning of the passage is clear: had they lived long enough, the Thessalonians would have had to maintain their faith and vigilance through the dark days of the Tribulation until the "day of the Lord", with no early release through a pre-tribulational rapture.
c. The parable of the virgins (Matt.25:1-13), and the parable of the talents (Matt.25:14-30), both of which occur in the context of our Lord's discussion of His return (in the immediately preceding Matt.24), speak of the imminency of Christ's return in terms of the 2nd Advent, not a pre-tribulational rapture. We are to be diligent with the resources God has given us, like the faithful stewards, because our Lord's return in imminent and can come without any warning. Following His return, He will dispense rewards to the faithful and punishment to the unfaithful (as at the 2nd Advent; cf. Rev.11:18). And like the wise virgins, we are to keep our lamp of faith burning brightly until the time of our Lord's final return. When He does come back, those who have let their faith expire will not enter the Kingdom with the bridegroom (cf. Rev.19:5-10), but will be excluded. Both parables clearly set the 2nd Advent, the time of Christ's final return following the trials of the Tribulation, as event to be anticipated, hoped for and watched for, not a rapture that precedes the Tribulation and our Lord's final, glorious return.
d. Other passages that fix our hope on the 2nd Advent:
i. Titus 2:13: ... as we await our blessed hope, namely the glorious and majestic appearance of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ ...
ii. 2nd Peter 1:19-20: You too would do well to pay the closest attention to this [prophetically inspired Word], just as to a lamp shining in a dark place (cf. Ps.119:105), until the day dawns, and the Morning Star rises (i.e., Christ returns in glory), pondering in your hearts this principle of prime importance: no single verse of prophetically inspired scripture has ever come into being as a result of personal reflection.
iii. 1st Corinthians 1:7: So that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift, as you await the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ.
iv. Luke 21:25-28: When these things [signs and wonders of vv.25-27] begin to happen, stand up and raise up your heads, because your redemption is near.
v. Philippians 1:6: I am confident of this very thing - that He who has begun such a good work in you will keep on perfecting it until the Day of Christ Jesus.
In addition to the evidence cited above, one may say that the tone of imminency running throughout all prophecy in the New Testament is difficult to ignore. To cite but two examples where our Lord speaks to us about His return, He tells us at Matthew 16:27 that "the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His holy angels, and then He will pay each in full according to his deeds", and at Revelation 2:25 that we should "hold on tight to what you have accomplished until I return". Especially in light of our discussion above, it would seem best that to take these words of Christ - one set from the gospels and one from the last book of the New Testament - as actually applying to us, His disciples, so that the day of His revealing is clearly the Second Advent.
The issue is of some consequence. Even in times of little spiritual pressure, alertness toward these future events helps to develop a more heavenly, less earthly point of view. For, after all, we may be in this world, but we are not of this world (Jn.17:11-16). We should be eagerly looking forward to that future day, striving for a heavenly reward rather than the transitive things of this life:
Matthew 6:19-21 (KJV)
19Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 20But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: 21For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Since the teaching of Tribulational Security has the effect of redirecting the believer's focus entirely away from any end time events, that focus naturally comes to rest, not on heavenly things, but on the ebb and flow of worldly events (Col.3:1-4). The less we think that the Bible's prophetic scriptures really have (or will have) anything to do with us, the more we tend to lose touch with our heavenly citizenship (Phil.3:20), and concentrate on the things of this life instead (Jn.2:15-17). Such a perspective cannot help but adversely affect our Christian motivation.
Another, particularly damaging aspect of the worldly focus caused by buying into the false doctrine of Tribulational Security is that it has a tendency to cause believers to be complacent about personal tribulation. This complacency in turn makes them vulnerable when particularly severe waves of testing hit. The reason is simple enough: the belief that you personally will not have to experience the actual Tribulation, an event of severe testing upon which the scriptures focus much attention, tends to nourish the assumption that one's own personal testing will also always be of a moderate type. Whereas in fact, we shall face much personal tribulation in our lives right here and now, and we must handle this in similar fashion to the way in which believers of that future day will have to negotiate the actual Tribulation (Acts 14:22b). In the early days of the Church, or during the Reformation, when believers were, with regularity, being martyred for their faith, such an attitude would have been more difficult to develop. But in our modern, western world (with some exceptions), personal tribulation of such an obviously extreme degree is relatively rare. Personal tribulation however, itself is, in fact, anything but rare. By the grace of God, we know that we can endure whatever testing He sends our way (1Cor.10:13). But the danger comes in should we be unprepared and thus fail to make use of that grace when such episodes of tribulation come our way. In such cases, faith may be shaken to its very foundations. By shifting our focus from heavenly things to the things of this world, and by rendering us unprepared for severe testing, the false doctrine of Tribulational Security weakens faith and can thus be hazardous to our eternal life.
The teaching of Tribulational Security is even more likely to do damage in the future, specifically to that generation of believers who suddenly and undeniably find themselves in the middle of a Tribulation they had thought to avoid. Once again, as is the case with all false teachings, this false doctrine too follows the pattern of the devil's original deception of mankind:
1) It has a kernel of truth: 1st Thessalonians chapter four does indeed teach that we, living believers will be gathered up to be with the Lord when He returns for us. And to a casual observer, it may well seem that the exact time of this event is of little or no consequence - a trifling fact. But as we saw with the serpent's clever bending of the truth, such "small distinctions" can mean everything. God does protect and preserve those who trust in Him and in His Son. Sometimes, however, his deliverance brings us through the fire, rather than delivering us from having to face it at all. This is an important lesson, an important distinction to which all believers must remain alert, lest "that day come upon you like a thief" (1Thes.5:4).
2) It has a strong appeal: The appeal of a pre-tribulational rapture should be obvious. Especially for believers who have an interest in or have otherwise made a study of end time events and have learned something about the terrors of the Tribulation. It is very comforting to be able to keep a mental distance from such foreboding events, to be able to contemplate the deliverance of being gathered up to be with the Lord, but without the corresponding furnace of testing that the believers of that day will actually be delivered through. The main problem with this, as we have said, is that this false view can lull the believer into worldliness and complacency, leaving him unprepared - not only for the Tribulation, a future event that may or may not occur within his lifetime, but perhaps even more importantly for personal tribulation, the fiery furnace of testing into which all who diligently seek the Lord will eventually be thrown (1Pet.1:7; 4:12; 5:9).
3) It seems logical:
a) a friendly agent: The Christian credentials of many individuals and groups who teach the doctrine of a pre-tribulational rapture are beyond reproach. This is one reason why this belief, though relatively modern as we have mentioned, has come to be endowed with such authority. The pre-tribulational rapture teaching comes out of a legitimate interest in an important area of scripture that was largely overlooked in the Reformation (believers of that era had enough personal tribulation to deal with). But individuals and groups who belong to the tradition and philosophy of searching out the truth of scripture in spite of tradition should be wary about excepting their own teachings from the same test of scripture.
b) a familiarity with God: What could be wrong with anticipating the return of the Lord to gather His people up to be with Him? We all do look forward to this blessed hope of being with Christ and God the Father at last and forever, but the belief that this event will occur before rather than after the great time of testing that will come upon the whole earth makes it of little importance. The rapture becomes, essentially, an excuse for not having to worry about the prophetic future at all, rather than what it should be: the anticipation of God's deliverance of all those who "hold out until the end" (Matt.24:13). Believing in a pre-deliverance of this sort skews our focus. Instead of training ourselves, hardening ourselves for life's many challenges to our faith, the false teaching of a pre-tribulational rapture tempts us to look for the easy way out and therefore leaves us unprepared to deal with the reality of testing.
c) a legitimizing of secret desires: The fact is, no one would choose pain or suffering or severe testing. We understand from scripture that the testing experience is good for us, a refining process that strengthens and purifies our faith (as we have seen throughout this series), but we are not actively seeking it out. How much more then would we like to avoid the actual, coming Tribulation. In our heart we don't want to lose everything we have - our possessions, our freedom, even our lives. We don't want even to have think about the consequences of the terrible events described in Revelation, Daniel and elsewhere in scripture, let alone actually have to suffer through that horrendous future. The truth of the matter, however, is that the Kingdom of Heaven and Satan's kingdom of this world are at war. By choosing Christ, we have chosen sides, and, since the time of our Lord's death on the cross for us, many of our fellow believers have had to take a life-ending stand for their faith and undergo martyrdom for His holy Name. We personally may never be called upon to make this ultimate sacrifice, but we are called upon to be ready to do so:
Matthew 16:24-27 (KJV)
24Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. 25For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. 26For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? 27For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.
In His great and matchless grace, God has given us His Son - to die that we might live. He has already given us everything. Will He not then also be faithful to bring us safely through whatever it is His will that we endure? Whatever the trials, whatever the fiery furnace of testing it be our lot to endure, if we will but walk with Him, He will gently lead us by the hand till He has brought us safely home to be with Him and our Lord Jesus Christ forever (Rom.8:31-39).
A Note on the Post-Tribulational Rapture:
As we have demonstrated above, the rapture does not occur before the period of Tribulation prophesied in scripture, but afterwards, at the moment of the 2nd Advent. Our Lord was very specific about our "gathering together" after the events of those days, when He returns to deliver His own from that inferno of testing:
Matthew 24:31 (KJV)
31And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
The word "rapture" is meant to convey this idea of our being "snatched up" from the earth to be with the Lord (cf. Matt.24:36-44; Lk.17:34-37).
Passages that Support a Post-Tribulational Rapture:
There a number of key passages in the New Testament that firmly fix our "blessed hope" of resurrection to the time of Christ's return:
1. 1st Corinthians 15:51-52: Behold, I tell you a mystery: all of us will not fall asleep [die physically], though all of us will be changed - in a moment of time, in the blink of an eye, at the final trumpet blast. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will rise incorruptible, and we too will be changed.
[Note: This passage clearly connects the rapture with the resurrection at the 2nd Advent. At the occurrence of this next phase of the resurrection, that is, the believers who "are Christ's at His coming", not only do the dead in Christ rise, but the living in Christ are also "changed", that is, transformed while still alive. This "change" is a mystery, because until Paul received special revelation of the fact, it had not been specifically revealed that even those living and gathered up at the time of Christ's return would also be transformed into their eternal forms, receiving a resurrection body just like all those who had already passed on to be with the Lord.]
2. Colossians 3:1-4: Therefore since you have been resurrected with Christ, strive for the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Think on the things above, and not the things on the earth. For you are already [positionally] dead [to all that], and your [true] life has been hidden away with Christ in God. When Christ - your [true] life - is revealed [at the 2nd Advent], then you too will be revealed in glory (i.e. resurrection).
3. 1st John 3:2: Beloved, we are already the children of God, but what we shall be has not yet been revealed. We know that when He is revealed, we will be like Him, that we shall see Him exactly like He is.
4. Philippians 3:20-21: For our [true] citizenship has a heavenly existence, and it is from there that we expectantly await our Savior, Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform this humble body of ours into one that matches His glorious body through His powerful ability to subordinate everything to Himself.
5. Romans 8:18-24: For I do not consider these present hardships in any way comparable to the glory destined to be revealed for us [at the 2nd Advent]. For all creation eagerly awaits the revelation of the sons of God. For the created world is now subject to futility - not of its own choosing, but because of Him who subjected it [as a consequence of Adam's sin] - but not without hope. For [at the 2nd Advent] the created world will be liberated from its enslavement to decay at the glorious liberation of the sons of God (i.e. our resurrection). For we know that the whole creation has been experiencing intense pain and agony right up until this present time. And not only the created world, but we too who have received the Holy Spirit as a foretaste [of the good things to come] agonize within ourselves as we eagerly await our adoption, that is, the redemption of our body (i.e. resurrection). This is the hope with which we were saved.
The Future Threat:
We are now ready to summarize the dangers of the three false doctrines threatening our faith. The "last days" (2Tim.3:1; 2Pet.3:3), that final prophesied period of time that culminates in the return of our Lord (i.e. the Tribulation ended by the 2nd Advent), will bring unique and intense challenges to our faith. It is an era that has been imminent since the early days of the Church, but we should not assume that it will never touch us, or become like the mockers of 2nd Peter 3:4 who ask sarcastically "Where is His promised return? For from the days of the patriarchs who have long since died, the world has been carrying on in the exact same way - ever since the beginning of creation." Peter's response to them is blunt, explaining that the very world upon whose constancy they depend will eventually be blasted from existence to make way for the New Heaven and New Earth (vv.5-13). We may not be the generation whose faith will have to run the gauntlet of the Tribulation, but - whether we are or not - it is unwise to make such an assumption, and ultimately unhealthy for our faith, as we have already seen. Reliance upon any one of the three false doctrines we have studied, Institutional Security, Positional Security, or Tribulational Security, is dangerous because of the threat such reliance poses to our most precious faith. The dangers are real, here and now, but belief in any of these false teachings will be an even greater liability for those who carry such a belief into the Tribulation:
Institutional Security:
Danger now: Depending upon a particular church or individual for salvation risks "drifting away" from true salvation through faith in Christ (Heb.2:1-4).
Future danger: Those with this perspective will be tremendously vulnerable to being drawn in by the great, world-wide false religion of the Tribulation, and may end up worshiping the beast instead of the Lamb of God (Matt.24:24; 2Thes.2:1-12; Rev.13:1-18).
Solution: If instead of loyalty to an individual or organization we rely on our membership in the Body of Christ through true faith in Christ for our salvation, that faith will remain incorruptible no matter what false steps our leaders or organizations may take.
Positional Security:
Danger Now: Belief in a salvation that is secure completely apart from our behavior weakens our resolve to withstand sin and can lead to the hardening of our heart, apostasy and loss of our eternal life (Gal.6:7-8; Jas.1:14-16).
Future Danger: This danger will intensify geometrically when the Great Apostasy of the Tribulation begins, and the intense pressures of that era cause many to fall away from the faith (Matt.24:9-13; 2Thes.2:3ff).
Solution: If we are progressing with our spiritual growth, our faith will be growing apace and we will never need to have any fear of falling into this trap (1Tim.4:16; Jas.1:21).
Tribulational Security:
Danger Now: The conviction that we will not have to face the ultimate threat to our faith, the Tribulation, negatively affects our alertness here and now. It renders us unprepared for the personal tribulations of life, and shifts our focus away from Christ's return, and instead attracts our gaze to the "things of this earth", thus sapping much of our motivation to be productive for the Lord as we look to our future reward (Col.3:1-4; Phil.3:19).
Future Danger: If it is our lot to face that last, terrible period of Satan's world rule, alertness will be essential for the survival of our faith. Nothing could conceivably better set us up to be blind-sided by the peculiar threats of the Tribulation (including the Satanic, world-wide religion) than a belief that we shall never face such threats. Such a perspective will render its adherents unprepared for the crisis and unalerted to its dangers (Lk.12:37 & 40; 18:8).
Solution: Waiting and watching for our Lord's imminent return helps us fix our hope squarely on Him, on our eternal life, eternal reward, and resurrection. Looking to Christ's establishment of His kingdom as a genuine, near-term reality sets our hope truly in heaven, like an anchor that keeps our thoughts and aspirations directed towards eternity, protecting us from what is false in this world ( Heb. 6:18-20).
"How narrow is the gate, and how constricted the road which leads to life!" (Matt.7:14). We Christians know who it is in whom we must believe: our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ - and no personal or organizational affiliation can substitute for faith in Him. We know what it is we must do in this life: follow our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ - and no once-upon-a-time expression of faith in Him that has long since withered away will cause Him to affirm those who now deny Him. Finally, we know how we must follow Him: pick up our cross - and no wishful thinking about an easy deliverance from our trials will exempt us from the testing, both prophetic and personal, that must be borne if faith is to endure.
In our Christian lives, truth is the issue. Our Lord is the "way, the truth and the life" (Jn.14:6), and all who would worship Him and the Father must do so in "spirit and in truth" (Jn.4:24). Our source for truth is the Word of God (Jn.17:17a), and it is by means of the truth in His Word that we are to sanctify ourselves, to set ourselves apart from the devil's corrupt world (Jn.17:17b). Since false teaching and false doctrines corrupt this truth and thus attack the very marrow of our faith (Matt.7:15; Jn.10:1-18; Acts 20:29), we need to develop the same respect for scripture that our Lord demonstrated (Matt.5:17-20; Jn.10:34-35; Jn.17:12), and take full advantage of our marvelous opportunity to read, study and learn from the Bible every day. By doing so, and by progressing with our spiritual growth, we will insulate ourselves not only against the false teachings discussed here, but against any and all fabrications that may fall upon our ears in the future.
Summary:
1. There is no Institutional Security: To lay hold of our salvation, we must put our faith in Christ for that salvation, and not trust instead in any organizational affiliation or allegiance to any charismatic personality. Lest, like the seed that fell by the roadside, our faith lack true roots (Matt.13:4, 19; Mk.4:4, 15; Lk.8:5, 12):
Acts 4:12 (KJV)
12Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
John 14:6 (KJV)
6Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
2. There is no Positional Security: To preserve our salvation, we must continue to follow Christ with our faith, and not assume that having once believed, our behavior is longer at issue (for our behavior affects our faith - whether for good or for ill). Lest, like the seed that fell on the rocky ground, we abandon our faith amid temptation and testing (Matt.13:5-6, 20-21; Mk.4:5-6, 16-17; Lk.8:6, 13):
Romans 11:22-23 (KJV)
22Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off. 23 And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be grafted in: for God is able to graft them in again.
3. There is no Tribulational Security: To be secure in our salvation, we must continue to grow spiritually in Christ and help others do the same through our spiritual gifts, and not substitute earthly goals for the hope of our eternal reward. Lest, like the seed that fell among the weeds, our faith lose its eternal focus and be choked by life's temptations and tribulations, so that our production and growth are stunted (Matt.13:7, 22; Mk.4:7, 18-19; Lk.8:7, 14):
2 Peter 1:8-11 (KJV)
8For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. 10Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: 11For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
The Danger of Backsliding: It is not only the three false doctrines treated above that pose a threat to the faith of individual believers. In fact, all teachings that give the believer a false sense of security but in the end leave him feeling confused, betrayed and abandoned can bring spiritual growth to a standstill, and even reverse a positive growth trend. The term often used to describe such a reversal of spiritual direction is "backsliding", and the process of such spiritual degeneration is an alarmingly simple one that gradually undermines the whole-hearted allegiance to Christ we call faith in Him:
1) a negligent attitude: What does the Lord require of us but that we act justly, love mercy and walk humbly before Him (Mic.6:8)? We cannot walk with Him without listening to Him, learning from Him and seeking Him with our whole heart, and this is impossible without devoting ourselves to His Word (Jn.4:24). Neglecting our spiritual growth adversely affects everything in our lives, for it is only by the truth of the Word that we are transformed, that we are sanctified (Jn.17:17-19). Carried to an extreme, indifference toward the truth of the Word of God, produces a void in our hearts which will inevitably be filled (Eph.4:17-19).
2) an openness to lies: As we saw earlier in this study of the devil's clever original deception in the garden, every lie begins with an attack on the truth. The believer who fails to follow the Lord cannot remain at a standstill. In the Christian life, it is impossible to "halt between two opinions" for very long (1Kng.18:21), and loss of interest in God's way will soon be replaced by a curiosity for other ways. Abandoning our search for God's truth is the first stage in exchanging that truth for a pack of lies that will stream into the void in our hearts (Rom.1:25). Becoming indifferent to the truth leaves us vulnerable to the lie.
3) permissiveness toward sin: Sin will always be a danger - at least as long as we are in these mortal bodies. Once we start to drift away from the truth of God's Word as our standard and begin instead to operate on false information, the pattern of sinful degeneration described in the book of James becomes that much easier to slip into (Jas.1:14-15). Outside of the Word of God, earthly desires of all sorts are often deemed acceptable, even justifiable, so that the process of desire, leading to sin, leading to unrestrained sin is accelerated (1Pet.2:11; Jas.4:1b).
4) hardening of the heart: Increased sin in the life, whether that sin is obvious or hidden, socially unacceptable or commonplace, intensifies our alienation from God. When we become complacent to sin, we begin to lose all sensitivity to what He desires, and He is seldom in our thoughts (Jn.12:40; 2Cor.3:14). At that point, we are no longer interested in coming to Him, because our deeds are evil, and we have no desire for Him to shine His light upon them (Jn.3:19-21; Eph.4:17-24; 5:8-14). The way of sin has alienated us from Him (Is.59:2). Severe discipline from the Lord is often necessary at this point to penetrate the thick wall that the renegade believer has thrown up between himself and God (1Cor.5:5; Rev.3:19-20).
5) spiritual death: Finally, as James describes it, this unrestrained sin gives birth to death, that is, spiritual death (Jas.1:15). Spiritual death, our original state at birth, is the eventual outcome of the backsliding process. For to continue following the path of sin, without repentance, without restoration, requires that we constantly and deliberately choose against our Master, Jesus Christ, until He gradually becomes less and less in our thinking, and gradually disappears from our hearts altogether (Matt.7:21-23). That is why sin's reward is always death (Rom.6:23). At that point, separation from God is complete, and the former believer in Christ has become an enemy of His cross (Phil.3:18), and has been enslaved again in sin's captivity (Jn.8:34-35). And the ending is worse than the beginning (2Pet.2:20-23), for, in the end, this path leads to the rejection of Christ (1Jn.5:16-17; cf. Matt.12:31; Heb.6:4-6).
It is no wonder, then, that scripture is replete with passages that warn us to be alert and to carefully evaluate our manner of life. Such passages should never be taken lightly, since the issue at stake is our faith and our eternal life.
1. Passages demonstrating that salvation is conditional upon continued faith:
Colossians 1:21-23 (KJV)
21And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled 22In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: 23If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister;
2 Timothy 2:11-13 (KJV)
11It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: 12If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us: 13If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.
1 Corinthians 15:21-22 (KJV)
21For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. 22For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
Hebrews 3:6 (KJV)
6But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.
Hebrews 3:14 (KJV)
14For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end;
2. Passages that warn us to protect our faith:
2 Corinthians 13:5 (KJV)
5Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
1 Corinthians 10:12 (KJV)
12Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.
2 John 1:8-9 (KJV)
8Look to yourselves, that we lose not those things which we have wrought, but that we receive a full reward. 9Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.
John 15:5-6 (KJV)
5I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. 6If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
3. Passages teaching that sinful behavior is antithetical to faith:
Galatians 5:19-21 (KJV)
19Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 21Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
1 Corinthians 6:9-11 (KJV)
9Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, 10Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.
Ephesians 5:3-7 (KJV)
3But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; 4Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. 5For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. 6Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. 7Be not ye therefore partakers with them.
1 Timothy 6:9 (KJV)
9But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
Preserving Your Eternal Life: As believers in Jesus Christ, we possess eternal life. And it is our most valuable possession. Like the man who found a treasure hidden in a field and sold all that he had to purchase that field (Matt.13:44), life everlasting is a joy beyond comparison to anything this world has to offer. Also like that hidden treasure, our eternal life has not yet been unearthed. It is hidden in Christ, ready to be unveiled at the resurrection (Col.3:1-4). Nevertheless, we possess that life, that eternal life, right here and now, and nothing could more important than safeguarding our most valuable possession. As long as faith lives, our eternal life endures, for our faith is the very heartbeat of our eternal life (Jn.5:24). By protecting and strengthening our faith, we keep our eternal life secure (2Pet.1:10). No organization can provide this life. No one-time declaration can guarantee this life. And no denial of the pressures of life, now or in the future to come, can protect it from the worries and trials we must face. Security is not to be found in turning back to the Egypt of this world, but in pressing ahead towards the promised land of eternity. In seeking God through His Word (1Pet.2:2), and in serving God through the gifts He has given us (1Tim.3:13, 4:15-16) we shall continue our walk up that steep eternal path no matter the cost, knowing that at the end of the road lie all the wonders of eternity, the blessings and rewards of victory, the new heaven, the new earth, the new Jerusalem, the resurrection, and life everlasting in fellowship with our Master Jesus Christ forever.
If we build our lives on this Rock, our Savior Jesus Christ, our foundations will be secure come what may. For He is our only true security, firm and solid no matter what tribulations we are called upon to endure. If we keep on trusting in Him, if we keep on picking up our cross and following Him every day, then we shall never have anything to fear, and our faith will grow like the mustard seed, until we discover that what had started as a mere seedling has grown before our eyes into a mighty, magnificent tree, one which cannot be shaken by the stormy tribulations of life, no matter how severe.