My Response To A Critic Of Eternal Security

Galatians 2:4-5, “And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage: To whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you.”

The Apostle Paul said that he refused to put up with false prophets, not even for one hour. Paul shut their microphone down (so to speak), and ran them out of the churches!

I received numerous emails yesterday and today from a religious man who wanted to debate eternal security. I kindly told him that I don't debate, but he persisted to pressure me, thinking that he was going to convince me over to his damnable heresy. Here first is his last email to me, and then following I will post my response. This is an important matter, which I want to lay to rest once and for all. The Bible teaches: ONCE SAVED, ALWAYS SAVED!!! If you don't agree with that, then you are not born again and if you don't repent, you will spend eternity burning in Hell, fire and brimstone. It's as simple and frightening as that!

Here is a portion of his foolish email (his grammar is so bad that most of his sentences make no sense at all). I haven't edited anything. Literally, this is exactly what he wrote to me...

I won't quote scripture for I know you know them, but so do I. 

And I have never once read the words "once I am saved I always will be saved" no mater what I do and say to others because if I do anything it is just works trying to save myself.

If we all did not need to do anything then who is not saved by not earning Lord Jesus own death and resurrection Blood Salvation? That he has already gave everyone today even before they were born as sinners and they never could earn it, can they?

Please take no offence, I am not trying to argue, I honestly ask, is "always saved" even Biblical, and if so then why would Jesus own appointed Apostle be lost when he already profess faith in Jesus Christ and who also cast out demons and healed the sick?

Also the 2 born again believers in Acts 5 who Peter drove out their spirit and they fell dead on the ground for their lies they gave against the Holy Spirit.

Also the Holy Spirit has never told me, that I am always saved no matter what I or how I treat others, nor did Apostle Paul never said he was always saved, not that I could read anywhere in scripture. For he said I have finished the race and he looked forward to be saved.

Can we discuss those scripture please, "as it is written" already in the Holy Spirit's Interpretations in Holy scripture with the words God spoke that need no other private reinterpretation from anyone?

Here is my full reply to him...

*****,

Kindly, we don't agree on eternal security. I absolutely believe in, "once saved always saved." No matter what I say, you are set in your beliefs, and so am I.

You are caught between grace and works, because you think YOU have something to do with your eternal salvation. Jesus paid it all and I'm only trusting in CHRIST. The very idea that someone would have to live a certain way to know that they have eternal life, is a fallacy that causes millions of confused people fear and worry every day. No thanks!

Salvation is not a reward for the righteous, it is a gift for the guilty.

Salvation is not doing your best, it is having Christ's best put to your account through receiving Him by faith.

Turning away from sinful ways would be a work. Faith puts all of the merit where it belongs, on the object of our faith, Jesus and His work.

The true Gospel always points you to CHRIST; a false gospel always points to YOU.

I won't debate this with you. You're not going to convince me to adopt a faith in Christ plus my own efforts type of false salvation. You say salvation is by Christ alone, but then you deny your words by suggesting that the life we live somehow can cost us God's free gift of salvation. A "free gift" (Romans 5:18) means there can be no stipulations or obligations.

You are woefully deceived. Nothing I say is going to convince you, and I refuse to listen to your unbiblical heresy.

In Jesus' precious name,
David

Please keep in mind that this was our fifth exchange of emails. I was being patient with him. I sent him a dozen Gospel sermons and books. I wrote at length explaining the difference between service and sanctification. In fact, here is the previous email that I sent to him, so you can see how sincerely I tried to help the guy see the light of the truth. He had asked me, "Do you think you're always saved no matter what you do or how you treat others as the example of Jesus Christ?" Here is my full reply...

*****,

Yes, once saved always saved, because God's gift of salvation is based upon what Christ alone did to pay for our sins through Calvary's cross.

Having said that, no believer has God's permission to life in sin. Romans 6:1-2, "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?" God commands all saints to depart from iniquity and walk in holiness, but when we do sin (and we all choose to), God's grace much more abounds so that we can never lose salvation. It is God's salvation, not ours to give. We cannot lose by bad works what we could not earn by good works. Faith is the only righteous thing that I can do.

My favorite preacher quote is from Pilgrim's Progress book author, John Bunyan, who said:

“If you do not put a difference between justification wrought by the man Christ without and sanctification wrought by the Spirit of Christ within, you are not able to divide the Word aright; but contrariwise, you corrupt the Word of God, and cast stumbling blocks before the people.” —John Bunyan (1628-1688)

We must keep sanctification (service - Romans 12:1) completely separate from justification (salvation - Galatians 3:26), or else we will corrupt the Gospel and cast stumbling blocks before the people. Many preachers make the mistake of citing the book of Matthew, about picking up one's cross to follow Christ, and they foolishly apply it to salvation. But that is discipleship Jesus is talking about in Matthew. God authored the specific Gospel of John to show humanity how to be saved (John 20:31). We find the word "believe" mentioned 85 times in the book of John, but there is no requirement to follow, confess, repent, turn, forsake, live or anything else; but just to believe. John 6:47, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life."

The Bible warns in Hebrews 12:6-8 that if a man is without chastisement from God for his sins, then he is a bastard and not a genuine adopted son of God. God is not an absent parent! There are two wrong extremes to which a preacher can go. The first is to corrupt the Gospel by adding living a holy life (service) to God's free grace. The second extreme is to just preach that people can be saved without turning from sins, but then that preacher never warns believers of God's judgment upon disobedient children (2nd Corinthians 5:9-11).

Dr. John R. Rice (1895-1980) addressed this issue of Lordship Salvation. A lady in the church suggested that some of the young people weren't saved because of their misbehaving and bad attitude. Dr. Rice corrects her by teaching her that the problem is not that the teens aren't saved; but rather, they haven't been properly mentored by the spiritual adults in the church. And of course, it might be that indeed they are not saved. But whether someone is saved or not can only be known by a direct testimony from their mouth concerning Jesus Christ. ...

One of my favorite preachers and sermons is by Pastor Ralph Yankee Arnold. The sermon is titled, "Why Lordship Salvation Is Wrong."

The Bible is full of horrible saints who hurt others at times. King David stole Uriah's wife, impregnated her, then murdered Uriah to hide the unintended pregnancy. David didn't lose God's gift of salvation, he lost the "joy" of salvation (Psalms 51:12). I believe Joseph's 10 half brothers were saved, even though they conspired to sell him into Egyptian slavery. The Bible is full of the sins of the saints. Thankfully, our God is merciful and is always willing to forgive us and give us unlimited chances, as we see with the woman taken in the act of adultery in John chapter 8.

There is none righteous the Bible says, no not one (Romans 3:10). That includes saved believers. The only thing that makes the holiest saint, any more righteous than the vilest dirty unsaved sinner like John Wayne Gacy, is the precious blood of Jesus (1st Peter 1:18-19). James 2:10 says that if a man commits even one sin, he is guilty of all in the sight of God. In other words, all it takes is just one sin to keep a sinner out of Heaven. The only other place to go is the Lake of Fire forever.

I hope that answers your question. I welcome Bible questions. I just don't like to debate with people.

Have a good evening,

David

Like so many fools before him, he doesn't believe in eternal security. He rejects the idea that a person can be saved and then just live any way they want. Well, he is WRONG! Salvation is of the Lord (Jonah 2:9). Either God does the saving, all of it, or else you don't get grace!!!

If You Have To Look At Your Life To Know You're Saved, It Proves You're Not

1st John 3:24, "And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us."

Every born again believer has a relationship with Christ. Demons acknowledge there is a God, but they are not saved (James 2:19). The Apostle James in James chapter two is warning about not becoming a respecter of persons (James 2:1). If a man professes to be a Christian but does not help a brother in need who asks for some food during time of need, James says that that man's faith is dead (James 2:15-20).

It is important to understand that James is not writing about salvation here. He is writing about our manner of life validating our faith in the eyes of other men, not God. In the Epistle of Romans, Paul writes about being justified by faith in the sight of God (Romans 4:1-7). James is speaking about being justified by works in the sight of man, not God. Many preachers foolishly apply James chapter two to salvation, corrupting the Holy Bible and casting stumbling blocks before the people.

The demons acknowledge that there is a God, but they are still damned. James is simply teaching that our talk talks and our walk talks, but out walk talks louder than our talk talks. Again, James is not speaking about the new birth (justification), he is talking about discipleship (sanctification). Faith without works is dead in the eyes of our fellow mankind, but dead faith is still faith. One's faith may be dead, but it still exists.

Eternal life is a free gift (Romans 5:18). To truly be a gift, nothing can be required in exchange. The new birth is not a trade, it is a gift. We simply take a gift by faith, not by anything we need to do, which would be works. Every lost sinner who puts his or her trust in Jesus as their personal Savior is immediately sealed and indwelt with God's Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9; 1st John 3:24; Ephesians 1:13-14). That new believer has a relationship with God as His redeemed child. That is one's POSITION in Christ.

How a believer chooses to live after saving faith is one's CONDITION in Christ. A man's condition may be atrocious in Christ (e.g., Lot, Samson and Solomon), yet he is saved and his position in Christ is safe and secure by faith alone (1st Corinthians 5:5).

Pastor M.R. DeHaan (1891-1965) said it very well:

"There is a vast difference between coming to Jesus for salvation and coming after Jesus for service. Coming to Christ makes one a believer, while coming after Christ makes one a disciple. All believers are not disciples. To become a believer one accepts the invitation of the Gospel, to be a disciple one obeys the challenge to a life of dedicated service and separation. Salvation comes through the sacrifice of Christ; discipleship comes only by sacrifice of self and surrender to His call for devoted service. Salvation is free, but discipleship involves paying the price of a separated walk. Salvation can't be lost because it depends upon God's faithfulness, but discipleship can be lost because it depends upon our faithfulness." —Pastor M.R. DeHaan, “Hebrews”; Zondervan Publishing House; 1959 (p. 117)

The Epistle of 1st John teaches that the acid test to know (1st John 5:13) whether we are saved or not is the presence of the indwelling Holy Spirit. If a man can sin without any conviction whatsoever from the Holy Spirit, then something is wrong. The Bible warns that if God never chastises you when you sin, you're not saved (Hebrews 12:6-8). The Holy Spirit convicts me all the time about my sinning (Proverbs 3:12).

Many hellbound false prophets do "many wonderful works," and they prophesy (preach) in Jesus' name (Matthew 7:21-23). Cornelius fasted, prayed, gave alms to the poor and feared God (Acts 10:1-3), but was still hellbound in his sins. Cornelius didn't get saved until Acts 10:44. So we cannot determine if someone, or even our self, is saved by examining our life. The $64,000 question is: Do you have the indwelling Holy Spirit?

Eternally Secure Forever In Jesus Christ

John 10:27-29, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.”

In the following awesome sermon, Pastor Tom Cucuzza preaches the truth about salvation and the Christian life which we all horribly fail at...

Secure Forever - Part One:
True Salvation And Its Relationship To The Christian Life
~ PART TWO ~
(Pastor Thomas M. Cucuzza)

➙You don't have to repent of your sin to go to Heaven.
➙You can go to Heaven while hanging onto the world.
➙If Christ is not Lord of "all," you can still go to Heaven.
➙If you come to church with a sour and negative position, you can still go to Heaven.
➙If you're practicing certain sins in your life, you can still go to Heaven.
➙If you've grown cold toward the Lord, you can still go to Heaven.
➙If you're not tithing, you can still go to Heaven.
➙If you don't endure until the end, you can still go to Heaven.
➙You can practice sin every day and still go to Heaven.

The biblical teachings of eternal life and eternal security are not two separate doctrines, but are one and the same thing. That is, the man who has eternal life already has eternal security. Religious messes us up, but Christianity frees us. If you have trusted in God's only begotten Son as your personal Savior, then you KNOW that you have eternal life.

Understanding Bible Repentance

Here are some excellent sermons by Pastor Thomas M. Cucuzza at the Northland Bible Baptist Church located in Saint Cloud, Minnesota, explaining Bible repentance. When you trust Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, you have repented. It is as simple as that, as you will learn in these helpful sermons by Dr. Cucuzza. I thank God for doctrinally sound preachers! There is not a more important topic than repentance to be saved. Pastor Curtis Hutson is right, who compared repentance to buttoning a dress shirt. That is, if you get the first button wrong, then all the other buttons will be wrong too!

Understanding Biblical Repentance - Part One

Understanding Biblical Repentance - Part Two

Amen and amen! Now with these precious truths in mind, now take a look at the false meaning of repentance that is being wickedly taught at religious cults like Pensacola Christian College today. Wow be unto the false pastors! ...

The Lordship Salvation Cult At Pensacola Christian College

I stopped supporting Jack Chick's ministry about 20 years ago, when I realized that he is preaching a counterfeit plan of salvation. On the back page of all his 1.2 billion "Chick Tracts" he says that it is not enough to admit you are a sinner to get to Heaven; but also, he requires you to turn away from your sinning to be saved. That is works (Jonah 3:10).

False Repentance And A Counterfeit Gospel In 'Chick Tracts'

Kindly said, Jack Chick misunderstood the biblical meaning of repentance. In so doing he perverted the Gospel. The following heretical page is from the tract titled: "This Was Your Life" by Jack Chick (1924-2016)...

Damnable False Teaching In 'Chick Tracts'

Surrender your life to Christ? That's not what the Bible says! Acts 16:30-31, “And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” So where did Jack Chick get the garbage that to be saved you must, “Surrender your life to Christ?” Jack Chick is a false prophet and an infidel now tragically burning in the fires of Hell forever. You cannot be born again by partial faith in Christ plus something else. Faith is the only righteous thing that I can do. Run from the toxic poison of Chick Tracts!

To "repent" simply means to change one's mind. From reading the context and by comparing Scripture with Scripture, we learn that we must change our mind about two things to be saved:

1. WHO WE ARE - We must change our mind to admit that we are a guilty SINNER in the sight of a holy God (Romans 3:19-20).
2. WHO JESUS IS - We must change our mind to admit that Jesus is the Christ, the only begotten Son of God (John 20:31).

Nowhere does the inspired Holy Bible teach that repentance means to turn away from one's sinning to get to Heaven. Ungodly men added those words (Proverbs 30:5-6). It is a dangerous and serious thing to mess with God's Word.

I think what happens is that a lot of preachers get corrupted without even realizing it. They make friends and hobnob with corrupt preachers and then adopt their false doctrine. The old adage is very true: Birds of a feather flock together. John Wesley wisely said what one generation tolerates the next generation will embrace. That is exactly right! It is in our human nature to try to cooperate and get along with others. But if we love and desire to put obeying God first in our life, then we must choose to serve God above all. That is what Jesus meant in the Bible when He said:

Matthew 10:34-39, “Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. And a man's foes shall be they of his own household. He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.”

We sometimes have to go against our own parents, siblings, friends and family tradition to side with God (Joshua 24:15). Sadly, most Christians don't want to suffer reproach for the name of Christ. They don't want to be put outside the gate with Jesus. This includes preachers and the entire clergy. It is in our sinful human nature to want to go along with the crowd. This is sometimes referred to as having a “herd mentality.”

Please Don't Follow Corrupt Infidel Pastors Into Hell

The Apostle Paul praised the Bereans for double checking what he had taught them from the Bible. They searched the Scriptures daily to verify Paul's preaching (Acts 17:10-11). Sadly, that is not what 99% of churchgoers do, they merely believe whatever their pastor tells them, which is why there are so many cults today (2nd Peter 3:16-17). Think for yourself and search the Scriptures.

Hebrews 6:1 Says “Dead Works” Cannot Save Us

Hebrews 6:1-3, “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. And this will we do, if God permit.”

I read the following tremendous words today from 'The Strand Study Bible,' which I bought recently and cherish it. In fact, I bought two of them from Amazon I am so pleased with it. Proverbs 23:23, “Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding.” You can purchase a much cheaper used one at Abe'sBooks (from time to time). Here is the last portion of Brother Strands exegesis for Hebrews 6:1...

6:1c The work done to secure salvation was not done through “dead works” (i.e., human effort - Jn 1:13). It's not our works that save us or are saving us (Gal 3:1-3), but Christ's “WORK” of redemption on the cross (Exo 14:13, 30-31, Hab 1:5, Rom 13:11, Titus 3:5a and John 6:28-29). Salvation is of the Lord (Jonah 2:9). We are not headed to Heaven because we're good, but because Christ is good (II Cor 5:21 Mt 19:16-17). 

NOTE - Whereas religion says, “Look what I've done for Jesus. I've been good, baptized, faithful to church, etc.” (i.e., religious works), Christianity says, “Look what Jesus did for me. I was headed to Hell and He offered me salvation and I accepted it.” (i.e., grace). 

SOURCE: Pastor Brad Strand, 'The Strand Study Bible,' p. 2070; © 2009

Bravo! I am so thankful for Pastor Strand's time and intense labor in putting together his life's work in this helpful Bible commentary. It took him 33 years and over 30,000 hours of labor! It is worth every penny!

In the Bible we find that truth is synonymous with righteousness. The word “truth” is mentioned 41 times in the Old Testament book of Psalms. Psalms 119:30, “I have chosen the way of truth: thy judgments have I laid before me.” It is tragic that most believers can sit in front of the television for hundreds of hours each month without getting bored, but find it a chore to read and study the Holy Bible for 5 minutes each day. That ought not be! Of course, the words of no man should ever be placed on equal footing with the inspired Words of God. A Bible commentary helps guide us, but the Word of God is our final and only authority in all matters of life and faith.

You won't find any theological garbage in this study Bible that teaches the Devil's lies of Lordship Salvation, or that you must turn from your sinful habits, to be saved; nor any other rubbish that is commonly taught in corrupt churches nowadays. Brother Strand is 100% free grace Gospel and I love him for it. Like never before there is a need for Christian saints “to earnestly contend for the faith” (Jude 1:3b) in these perilous times of doctrinal deception in the Bible colleges and churches. I encourage you to get yourself a copy of 'The Strand Study Bible' while they're still available. I am confident that you won't be disappointed my friend.

The Repent Of Your Sins Heresy Exposed

Acts 16:29-31, “Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.”

Someone sent me this excellent 3:50 hour video documentary today, which exposes the Devil's lie that you cannot go to Heaven unless you turn away from your sinful behavior (which is works and not God's grace).

REPENT OF YOUR SINS 2, The Hypocrites
(Documentary, false prophet exposure)

I encourage you to watch the documentary dear reader. Pastor Ralph Yankee Arnold said it best, I humbly think:

“There is power in this Gospel message. Most people just don't know how to present it... The clarity of the Gospel is what makes it easy for them to believe.” —Pastor Yankee Arnold, a quote from the excellent MP3 sermon titled, “WHY GRACE CAN SAVE THE WORST MAN!”

Pastor M.R. DeHaan (1891-1965) said it very well:

"There is a vast difference between coming to Jesus for salvation and coming after Jesus for service. Coming to Christ makes one a believer, while coming after Christ makes one a disciple. All believers are not disciples. To become a believer one accepts the invitation of the Gospel, to be a disciple one obeys the challenge to a life of dedicated service and separation. Salvation comes through the sacrifice of Christ; discipleship comes only by sacrifice of self and surrender to His call for devoted service. Salvation is free, but discipleship involves paying the price of a separated walk. Salvation can't be lost because it depends upon God's faithfulness, but discipleship can be lost because it depends upon our faithfulness." —Pastor M.R. DeHaan, “Hebrews”; Zondervan Publishing House; 1959 (p. 117)

Faith is the only righteous thing that I can do. I have received countless emails from web visitors who thank me, letting me know that they had previously been confused about how to be saved, but then God led them to my website ministry and they were saved when they saw a clear presentation of the Gospel.