The alternative to belief and eternal life is, “He that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him” (John 3:36b). Abideth (meno) is to “remain” in wrath, in this case. Thus, wrath is enduring and so is belief.
Jesus said, “I 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” (John 15:5). What is the “fruit” therein? Jesus called out the fruit: “He that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal” (John 4:36). Fruit is the sustenance for eternal life. It is remaining on the “Vine” of Jesus without falling off.
Compare John 15:5 to this: “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life.” Everlasting life is enjoying much fruit forever. To have eternal life one must remain in their belief.
Branches grow from the vine. Remaining in Jesus is growing in Him. Remaining in Jesus is the “fire insurance” for safety. Growing in Him is healthy for eternal life. Jesus used the “Parable of the Pounds” to represent that: The man who did not grow the pounds was cursed in the parable; to wit: The nobleman said, “Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant” (Luke 19:22). All the others had grown the pound that the ruler of the kingdom had given them, but one believed in the nobleman, but did not grow his estate for him. Of course, the nobleman is not just “Lord” but LORD GOD, and the “servants” represent His subjects.
The partial verse, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life,” is used by Calvinists to get across the idea of “preservation of the saints,” which theologians call “eternal security.”
It is obvious that even devils believe in Jesus! Does that provide to them eternal life? No, it does not! Jesus will, in the end, destroy all the devils and the Devil with them. Consequently, belief is abiding faith until the end.
For one thief, “the end” was that day. He would not die that day, but live eternally in Paradise. For some, “the end” may be next week. If they remain in the faith until next week, then they will have eternal life, commencing when they first believe because their faith did not wither.
In the “Parable of a Day’s Wages,” regardless of how long the workers worked, they received the same wage. [i] In that parable, the workers each received a silver coin regardless of their time working. The point to the parable is that the duration of faith is unimportant, but that each work until the end of the workday. None who worked quit, in that parable, but payment was made when the work was finished.
The same goes for remaining in the faith. To be paid in the end, the worker must still be tending the Vine (Jesus) in His vineyard. Those who quit before the “day” has ended receive no wages!
The same pay was equitable because in the end, they all served the Husbandman (God) when pay time came. If any had left the vineyard before pay time would get no pay! Even in life, quitters who quit before the end of the day are scoffed at and receive no pay for the time they wasted. Their obligation to work the full day is not met.
Now for work: The parable used work for the example. Is work required to be paid? James, the brother of the Messiah wrote, “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also” (Jas 2:26). The “end of the day” for those believers is when they quit before the day has ended. They are dead because their bodies lack the Spirit.
“Life” is having the Spirit of God. [ii] To remain “alive” means “remaining faithful.” Anyone whose faith withers into doubt is no longer alive, even “alive” in the world, let alone “alive’ in death. Faith keeps believers alive! No eternal life for those who have no Spirit of God remaining in them!
Just as Noah found grace, [iii] and was kept safe for 120 years until the end of the world when he was saved, those who are “born again” have found the same grace to keep them safe until wages are paid at the end of the day. Grace can be found, but not lost. No instances of losing grace can be found in scripture. However, Simon the sorcerer “believed” and continued for awhile in the faith: “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 8:13).
For the lust for money, Simon forfeited his faith for Peter said to him, “Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God” (Acts 8:21). History details that Simon later claimed that he was the true Christ, and that he founded the competing religion of Gnosticism. (Wikipedia; “Simon Magus”). Does that still happen? Yes, even Billy Graham’s co-evangelist forfeited his faith and died as an atheist!
What does it take to become a believer? Persuasion!
“Persuading” is, “to move by argument, entreaty, or expostulation to a belief, position, or course of action” (Merriam-Webster Dictionary).
In the case of “belief” — the position that Jesus is the Son of God and has the Power to save mankind from the Evil One — the “argument” must convert one from unbelief to belief. If that belief is abandoned by later argument, then it is not as if the person did not once believe, but another argument converted to disbelief. Hence, God uses persuasion to convert sinners to Christians, but Satan also uses persuasion to prevent belief or even convert believers into non-believers.
Persuasion requires mental work, but that too is a gift of God: cognition, reason, and logic are used to convert the minds of people to become Christians.
Paul traveled much of the known world and used persuasive arguments to convert people of the pagan nations; not only to persuade to believe but to continue in belief: “When the congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God” (Acts 13:42). They had found grace and he convinced them to continue in the grace that they had found.” Paul and Barnabas used “persuasion.”
Later Jews “persuaded the people” by stoning Paul, the “Persuader.” They used persuasion to revert the people to their original false belief that Jesus is not the Son of God and that He cannot save.
Persuasion is the argument that Jesus is the Promised Messiah (Christ). Rather than stones, Paul used reason; to wit: “He reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks” (Acts 18:4).
Paul’s “thorn” was perhaps Simon Magus, for Paul remarked, “There was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me” [iv] Paul was attacked. Not by stones this time, but “the messenger of Satan.” History reveals that while Paul was persuading, Simon Magus was right there persuading otherwise. Christianity about died-out because of Gnosticism. Simon’s “secret knowledge” convinced Christians that Simon was the Christ!
There are two steps to becoming a Christian: (1) following Jesus as a disciple; not for a short time as the Gnostics, but for the duration, and (2) baptism of the Holy Ghost of Jesus. The former is by the persuasion just as Paul used, and the latter by the blood and water spilt by Jesus! [v]
Agrippa was “almost persuaded” to become a Christian. [vi] Paul used much argument to convert the king. Belief is by persuasion, and as was shown, people can be unconverted by persuasion. The sacrifice of God of His only Son for the sins of mankind is enough to persuade any but the “stiff-necked.” They are those beyond persuasion and refuse to accept the truth, or perhaps, are willing to die for a lie because the Wicked One has deceived them so intensely.
Is the mind work? Many think so! Indeed, without the electrical circuits of the neurological system firing through the brain’s synapses, there would be no thought!
One last thought on “work: “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling” (Phil 2:12). This time “ergon” is not used but “katergazomai” — work to a conclusion or be fully persuaded. That is tiresome mental work.
For myself, it took many weeks, perhaps years, to be fully persuaded. I had some faith, thanks to God, but only by considering the Word was I convinced. Each day, Satan tries to unconvince me by the lusts of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life” (1 John 2:16).
The last several commentaries were for one purpose: To refute the false doctrine of “eternal security” and to propagate “conditional security” as the truth. The only condition for eternal life is faith in Christ.
The world is tribulation because Satan’s and his demons’ tactics are to use persuasion to undermine faith. “The Great Tribulation” is when he uses his own sword to persuade Christians to abandon their faith. Satan is ergonomically inclined and knows that the word may be more powerful than the sword, but the sword is a quicker way of persuasion. Perhaps that is why Paul saw his adversary as a huge thorn in his flesh.
My intention with this commentary is to persuade that there is a more efficacious doctrine than Calvinism. We can resist grace… we are not elected but must be persuaded… that believing once is not enough security… and that belief must abide in the mind.
(picture credit: Psychology Today; "Mental Work")
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