The “Church” is divided, and an honest analysis will certainly offend because of the doctrine commonly called “eternal security.”
This is written, not to be mean
or even arrogant. I write it because I believe it to be the truth. However, I
would be arrogant if I demand that everyone adhere to my doctrine.
Doctrine is how certain people understand the same scripture. Somebody is wrong
and because of pride in our own mental acuity, nobody likes to be wrong!
Let’s begin with the definition
of “eternal security.” First off, that terminology is not in the English Bible per
se. Some believe that it is implied by certain verses. One way to
refute a doctrine is to refute that the verses do not imply eternal security,
but first off, the concept of eternal security must be known.
The best neutral definition that
is available is from AI: Eternal security “teaches that once a person is
genuinely saved, they cannot lose their salvation, is not explicitly mentioned
with those exact words in the Bible” (AI Overview).
That does fit most people’s understanding,
so let’s go with it. For what it’s worth, I personally want to believe
that. I would be silly not to! Let me now surprise you… I do believe in eternal
security. I do believe in once saved always saved because the concept
of the verb unsaved is irrational. How can a person that is “saved”
get unsaved? It cannot be done!
It disturbs me because Christ is “The
Word” (John 1) yet people take His Words flippantly. Words do mean things or
else the Bible has no significance. Our eternal destiny is based on words and
our understanding of them.
Let’s use an example that exemplifies
that: Nicodemus was a seemingly educated person who encountered Jesus.
Nicodemus was a pharisee and a ruler of the Jews. He wasn’t stupid.
Jesus said to him “Except a man
be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3). Nicodemus failed
to understand how that could be. His mind went to natural birth as could be
expected. Natural birth, Jesus implied, was not rebirth. He said, “Except a man
be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God”
(John 3:5).
To be honest, that did not help
much! To increase his understanding, Jesus explained further, “That which is
born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit”
(John 3:6). Therefore, it is not the flesh that is made anew but the soul with a
spirit.
The spirit of Satan is in us. We
were born in iniquity as King David wrote (Psalm 51:5). That spirit must be
discarded, replaced by the Spirit of God.
Jesus added, trying to get
through to Nicodemus, “Marvel not; you must be born again” (John 3:7).
Jesus then challenged the
perception of Nicodemus, implying, You aren’t as smart as you’re given
credit to be (John 3:10). Keep up with him. You may not understand
either. So, what is “born again”? Understanding the Words of Jesus is the first
step.
Then Jesus went on to explain
rebirth… “The Son of man be lifted up: that whosoever believes in Him should
not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:14:15). Unknown is whether Nicodemus
was ever born again, or even whether he understood Jesus’s explanation.
As a pharisee, however, implied
by Jesus is that he should have known. The answer was in the Israelites
with Moses who encountered vipers (John 3:14). He called upon Nicodemus to
recall his knowledge; he must understand that the “Son of man must be
lifted up” and to find how that is done, please recall Moses in the wilderness.
Now let’s do that.
The Israelites sang, “The Lord is
my strength and song, and He is become my salvation: He is my God, and I will
prepare him an habitation; my father's God, and I will exalt Him” (Exod 15:2).
Suffice is to say, that should have something to do with rebirth — for them to
exalt God.
Exultation is to “raise on
high”
Exultation is recognizing that Jesus
is “The LORD” Yehova (from the Hebrew); that the LORD is everything to them;
that He is “sovereign” and Him alone.
Calvinists won’t like it, but the
word, “sovereign” is not in the entire Bible. However, the song of the
Israelites does imply that God is Sovereign because He does have supreme power,
They all sang but did they believe it? The LORD tested their claim. He set up
an experiment.
Soon, “The people spoke against
God, and against Moses, ‘Wherefore have You brought us up out of Egypt to die
in the wilderness?’” (Num 21:5). The “God of their salvation” (Jesus) was leading
them to safety by following Moses who was directed by God. They quit singing;
their faith had diminished in their journey.
God intended to save them, but they stood in their own way. Satan was no place around. The lack of faith was squarely on themselves. God was still sovereign because He still led the Way, but they lost the faith that they once sang about. What follows was God’s test of the seriousness of their song:
The Lord sent fiery serpents among the
people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died. Therefore, the
people came to Moses, and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the
LORD, and against you; pray unto the Lord, that He take away the serpents from
us.” And Moses prayed for the people.
And the Lord said unto Moses, “Make for
yourselves a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass,
that every one that is bitten, when he looks upon it, shall live.”
And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived. (Num 21:5-19)
Everyone was bitten but some
lived; they were saved from death. Some knew the LORD, admitting we have sinned,
pray. Pray to whom? “Unto the Lord.”
After being mortally poisoned,
they understood their position. God was indeed the sovereign of some of them
and not for others. Only “He” (The Lord God) could take away the serpents. More
precisely the poison of the serpents within them. They were already as dead,
having been bitten.
Moses was to make a serpent of brass.
Was that meant to be the Lord God on high with a diadem to show his sovereignty?
I don’t think so, it was a display to show that The Serpent was already
as if dead. It pointed to Judas hanging in the Judas Tree. Who was sovereign the
day that Jesus was crucified, Judas or Jesus? The implication is that Jesus
would kill the fiery Serpent because He was sovereign, not Satan who was in
Judas.
That the serpent was lifeless had
much meaning, primarily that Satan could poison them, but only the Lord God
could save them from the Wicked One.
Who saved them from death” The
Lord God. Why were they saved? They saw God is the only Way to salvation. For
those who looked at what God could do, that look exalted God. It was God executing
the Serpent, but to be healed of the poison, they must only look at what God
alone could do. They exalted God when they recognized that only God could
overcome death.
What must they do to be
saved? Exalt God as Lord; recognize Him as the sovereign Lord.
It was like in Noah’s day where
God provided the boat by the hands of Noah, but to be saved, they must get onto
the boat. In both cases, the Israelites only had to exercise the faith that
they had once sang about.
The song says much; they once had
affection for God and during the wilderness journey, some lost that affection;
murmuring against God that rather than save them, Moses and God were killing
them.
The exodus was many tests of
faith, and the vipers were only one of them. Would they be discouraged against
God or have the courage to go wherever He would lead them?
In short, the Israelites once had
affection for the Lord God and sang songs to Him at the beginning of the Way.
After many stumbling blocks and much discouragement, God tested their faith. We
don’t know how many, although some trusted God, others did not. They no longer
sang songs to God but criticized Him. Many of those who were saved from the vipers
even though they endured almost to the end of the exodus, lost faith in
God. Only two individuals endured to the end out of some say, “millions. Two
endured to the end: Joshua and Caleb.
Moses endured to the end but didn’t get the crown. Joshua wore the crown of Moses.
Note that Moses made it to the “Promised Land.” Some were seeking the wrong estate, so to speak; they were thinking of Canaanland, but the “Real Estate” was Paradise in heaven. Moses and true Israelites took a shortcut to the Estate of God, so don’t feel sorry for his failure to see the Promised land. The death of Moses took him to his reward, and as a child of God, he got his inheritance without ever seeing the landed estate. Surely, there were others who made it there by death.
The point is that many sang but few lived the song when their faiths were tested. They began the Way singing confidently, “He has become my salvation.” By the end, most of them had lost what they once had — affection for the Lord God. The Lord had never abandoned them, but most had defected from God because of the lack of necessities from the world.
Paul wrote to the Hebrews, the following:
For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good Word of God, and the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. (Heb 6:4-6)
“Enlightenment” is born again; that it is a clear
understanding that God is sovereign but not a dictator, and that you have no
power to save yourselves. With that, God surely plants a seed in your mind that
may grow into trusting Him in all things.
“Tasting the Good Word” is having affection for The
Word of God (Jesus).
“Falling away” is apostasia in the original Greek. It
is defection, obviously after once having affection for Jesus. You
cannot defect unless at first there is an affection. The song of the Israelites
was true, endearing affection but before long almost all of them defected. They
“fell away” from God and saw Him not as salvation but sure death.
Indeed, apostasy is in the Bible, but some people make excuses
as if it only applies to Jews. In that case, then Gentiles would have to ignore
all Paul’s letters to any other groups in which you do not fall. There is “One
Lord, one faith, one baptism…” (Ephes 4:5), and that applies to the Jews as
well. There are not different ways to obtain eternal life or to give it up!
Indeed, God will never leave nor
forsake you (Heb 13:5) but you are free to leave Him. God led the Way to
the Promised Land. Sovereigns always lead and servants follow. God was not a
Dictator and He never dragged anyone of them into the Promise Land!
Born again is therefore
explained and to have eternal life, as Jesus said, “You must be born again.”
Now you know what Nicodemus may or may not have understood.
In brief, rebirth is when you
come to realize that you cannot save yourself, but because God is sovereign in
power and authority, He can! Rebirth is submission to the power of God
and understanding that you are not gods and as such have no power of any type.
There you have it: You cannot believe
both that God is sovereign and that anything you do can save you. It is not
what you do, but how you think.
The “working our your own salvation”
(Phil 2:12), is not by your works (Greek; ergo) but thoughts (katergazomai)
— “to render” yourself to God as a servant renders to the master; to decide
to whom you belong and serve (i.e., to surrender to Jesus or not).
Jesus implied to Nicodemus that
he should be rational and decide who it is that has the power and authority to
save, and that He can do it! Surrendering is not physical work, but a careful
thought process. If you are facing death, who alone can save you? Think on that
until the next time when you consider the word, “salvation.”
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