Once Saved, Always Saved?

CHRISTIANS have long been divided over the question of whether a man, once saved, can subsequently forfeit salvation. The doctrine of the per severance of the saints popularly defined as "once in grace, always in grace" has been championed with fervor by millions of sincere Christians and devout Bible scholars. It has been opposed with equal fervor by other millions, equally sincere and devout.

In any consideration of the question before us, our real concern must be, "What saith the Scripture?" In all their teaching, our Lord and the apostles constantly appealed to the Holy Scriptures. To them must be addressed our first and final appeal in our consideration of the doctrine of the security of the believer.

The Sower

In this article, we shall consider three discourses of Jesus, the first of which is Luke's account of our Lord's interpretation of His Parable of the Sower.

Let us make two observations concerning these words of our Lord. First, it is possible for one to believe only temporarily (v. 13). We are confronted, of course, with the question of what is meant by the word "believe." Does it here denote actual saving faith, or a "believing" which falls short of true saving faith? The use of the word in verse 12 establishes its meaning as it is employed in the parable. It is clearly a believing unto salvation: "... lest they should believe and be saved." There is no warrant for assigning a different meaning to the word as it appears in verse 13, and any exegesis which requires this is obviously prejudiced. Those who "for a while believe" are depicted by Jesus as making a sincere beginning in the life of faith. Language and context forbid any other conclusion. Their subsequent fall does not obviate the fact that their believing, while it lasted, was actual saving faith.

The second observation which we would make concerning our Saviour's parable is that those who "bring forth fruit with patience" are those who, "having heard the word, keep it" (v. 15) in contrast with those who believe only "for a while." It is essential that those who receive the word "keep it."

The necessity that a man faithfully retain the saving Word once received, if he would continue in grace and eternal life, is declared by Jesus in John 8:51, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying [word, R.S.V.] he shall never see death." Similar are His words in Luke 11:28, "Blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it." The context (verses 24-28) indicates that faithfully keeping the Word, once heard and received, is the way of continued deliverance and salvation. Compare His statement in Matthew 10:22: "He that endureth to the end shall be saved."

The Testimony of Paul, James, and John

Warning that "some shall depart from the faith," Paul admonishes Timothy, pastor of the church at Ephesus, to "take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee" (1 Timothy 4:16). He warns the Corinthians that, by means of the gospel which they accepted when he preached to them, they are now being saved "if you hold firmly to it," "the message that I preached to you" (1 Corinthians 15: 1, 2, T.E.V.).

James urges his brethren to continue to "receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls" (James 1:21). John warns his dear children in the faith against the efforts of apostates to lead them astray through false doctrines, exhorting them to "let what you heard from the beginning [the true gospel] abide in you. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, then you will abide in the Son and in the Father. And this is what he has promised us, eternal life" (1 John 2:24, 25, R.S.V. Compare 2 Timothy 3:13-15, Colossians 1:21-23, Revelation 3:11).

It is the testimony of our Saviour and the New Testament writers that an initial reception of the word of the gospel must be followed by faithful retention, if men are to continue in the saving grace of Christ and the eternal life of God.

The Steward

The second discourse of Jesus which we shall consider in His Parable of the Lord and His Steward.

It has been argued by some that the unfaithful steward of Luke 12:45,46 was never a true disciple, but only a hypocrite from the beginning, and the Lord's sudden appearance simply brings to an end his false pretension of discipleship. Such an argument rests on two false assumptions:

First, it must be assumed that two different stewards are in view in the parable, one of whom proves faithful, and the other of whom proves unfaithful. But Jesus did not speak of two stewards. Rather, He spoke only of "that servant." Language forbids any assumption that more than one servant is in view in the parable.

The second false- assumption on which the argument of original hypocrisy must rest is the assumption that the lord was unaware of the true character of his steward at the time of his appointing, being deceived by his hypocrisy. This might happen in the affairs of ordinary men; but it cannot happen to our Saviour, who is the lord in the parable. While it is true that many pretend to be servants of Christ who do not know and follow Him as Saviour and Lord, it is equally true that Christ Himself cannot person ally entrust responsibilities in His holy service to men who are not His. And it is ever true that "the Lord knoweth. them that are his" (2 Timothy 2:19).

It is obvious that Jesus' parable has no application to men who do not know Him as Saviour and Lord, and who have not sincerely undertaken to follow and serve Him. His parable concerns only men who know Him and to whom He commits solemn responsibilities as His true disciples.

A correct analysis of the parable is as follows:

The Question (v. 42): Who is "the faithful and wise steward" whom his lord will reward at his coming?

The Answer (v. 43): That servant whom his lord when he cometh shall find doing as instructed.

The Reward (v. 44): "He will make him ruler over all that he hath."

The Peril (v. 45): "That servant" may grow careless and become unfaithful during his lord's long absence.

The Penalty (v. 46): The lord will come unexpectedly and "cut him in sunder" and "appoint him his portion with the unbelievers" (or the "unfaithful").

Some may wish to argue that the parable, after all, is only hypothetical— which, of course, may be argued with respect to all the parables of Jesus. But such argument is without point. Our Lord's parables were given, not as entertainment, but to convey solemn spiritual verities. Whatever else our Lord's parable may teach, it cannot be denied that it clearly teaches that one who is a true disciple of Christ, known of Him and entrusted with solemn responsibilities, can through carelessness and presumption depart from the path of faithfulness and finally inherit everlasting shame and ruin.

The thesis that there are two possible courses open to the disciple during his Lord's long absence is substantiated in Luke 12:39. Jesus declared that the goodman of the house who "suffered his house to be broken through" could have watched, had he chosen to do so. The thesis is frequently affirmed in the New Testament, perhaps nowhere more concisely than in Hebrews 10:38: "Now the just shall live by faith: but if he draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him."

Possibility of Paul's Rejection

Paul recognized the fearful possibility of ultimately finding himself rejected, should he allow himself to become careless and indulgent toward sin. In 1 Corinthians 9:27, he declares his purpose to continually subdue his body, with its fleshly appetites, "lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway [be rejected, N.E.B.]."

Many have contended that Paul's fear was not that he might fail of salvation, but rather that he might find him self disqualified for further service as an apostle and that he might fail to receive the full reward which faithfulness secures. Appeal is made to the earlier part of chapter 9 as context, especially verses 16-18. But such an appeal ignores the significance of the immediate context, 9:23-10:14. Paul appeals to the experience of the Israelites in the wilderness in confirmation of his statement concerning himself in chapter 9:26, and as a powerful warning to the Corinthians who may be tempted to flirt with the idolatrous practices of their neighbors. Influence of the immediate context establishes the fact that Paul's fear was the possibility of losing, not opportunities or rewards for service, but the salvation of his own soul. It is a humbling thought for us all to see this whole some fear instead of smug complacency in this greatest of all heralds of Christ.

The Foundation Principle

The third discourse which we shall consider contains some of the most solemn and intimate words ever uttered by our Saviour concerning the nature of the relation between Himself and all who would be His. The words were spoken on the eve of His betrayal shortly after He had instituted the simple supper which is to serve as a memorial of His death until He comes again, and which is the symbol of our partaking, by faith, of the body and blood of Him who is our life.

The words of our Lord in John 15 contain the foundation principle governing the relation of Christ and the individual throughout his earthly sojourn in a moral and spiritual universe. Every pertinent Bible passage and every consideration of the question of the individual's relation to the Saviour must be equated and evaluated in the light of the foundation principle enunciated by our Lord.

Throughout his earthly sojourn, the relation of the individual to Christ is never a static relationship existing as the irrevocable consequence of a past decision, act, or experience. Rather, it is a present mutual indwelling of the believer and the Saviour, the sharing of a common life which emanates from Him "who is our life" (Colossians 3:4). For the believer, it is a living participation proceeding upon a living faith in a living Saviour. The principle is reduced to its simplest statement in the words of Jesus, "Abide in me, and I in you" (John 15:4).

Let us observe three essential truths in our Lord's teaching in John 15:1-6. First, the mutual indwelling of the disciples and the Saviour is dependent upon the volition of the disciples. "Abide [meno dwell, remain, continue] in me, and I in you" (verse 4). The indwelling of Christ within the disciples is presented as the corollary of their abiding in Him.

The second truth to observe is that the consequences of continuing to abide in Christ are His continued indwelling (verse 4, first part), and the consequent fruitfulness of the disciple: "I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit" (verse 5).

The third important truth is that the consequences of failure to abide in Christ are (1) fruitlessness, verses 4, 5; and (2) removal, verses 2, 6.

Advocates of the doctrine of unconditional security invariably have found themselves hard pressed to interpret John 15:1-6. Reading their comments on this brief passage, one is continually reminded of the words on the sign over the old ironsmith's shop: "All kinds of fancy twistings and turnings done here."

Of those who are cast forth from the Vine, proponents of the doctrine of eternal security would have us believe that "doubtless there are those who seem to depart from grace, and to go back from union with Christ; but we need not doubt in such cases that the grace was not real, but seeming, and the union was not true, but fictitious." This, of course, is a necessary assumption for the advocates of unconditional security. Its necessary corollary, further more, is the contention that the "branches in Me" of which Jesus spoke are not necessarily true believers.

Necessity of Denning

Unable to deny that "branches" defect and are cast forth, the proponents of unconditional security find themselves under the necessity of "defining" the branches. They therefore contend that it cannot be shown that a "branch in Me" must mean a believer in Me. It means nothing more than "a professing member of My church, a man joined to the company of My people, but not joined to Me." Such a contention is necessary, of course, if one is to defend the doctrine of unconditional security. But some of us find it difficult to conceive of Jesus as saying to His apostles, "I am the vine, and all who are professing members of My church and joined to the company of My people, though not necessarily joined to Me, are the branches in Me."

Another advocate of the doctrine states, "In a certain sense, even hypocrites may be said to be in Christ, partly because, in the external fellowship of the Church, they partake of the sacrament of union with Christ, and therefore boast themselves of being in Christ: partly because they are esteemed by others to be such as belong to the mystical body, or at least are tolerated in the external communion of the disciples." But again, it is difficult to conceive of Jesus as saying: "I am the vine, and all who partake of the sacrament in the external fellowship of the church and who therefore boast themselves of being in Me and are esteemed by others to be such as belong to My mystical body, or at least are tolerated in the external communion of My disciples, are the branches."

Similarly, in an attempt to reconcile the passage with their point of view, another commentator declares that ". . . many are supposed to be in the vine, according to the opinion of men, who actually have no root in the vine." The simple fact is, however, that Jesus was not speaking about the opinions of men but about solemn realities—about things as they are, not as man may imagine them to be. We must protest that any definition of the branches that cannot easily be inserted into our Saviour's discourse without a sense of glaring incongruity is obviously inadmissible. And again, it is unthinkable that Christ should say, "I am the vine, and all who are supposed to be in the vine ac cording to the opinion of men, some of whom do not actually have root in the vine, are the branches." Such arbitrary definitions of the branches, ridiculous as they are, are nevertheless unavoidable for all who deny this fact: Jesus taught that men who are true believers can ultimately abandon faith and fail to abide in Him, thus to wither, be cast forth and, in the end, burned.

Again, all who would define the branches as mere professors outwardly associated with the visible church must require Jesus to refer, not to Himself, but to the church as "the vine." But Jesus did not say, "The church is the vine," but rather, "I am the vine." Nor did He speak of "branches in the church," but of "branches in Me." Let it be observed that only what has first been alive can become withered.

Let us be done with "all kinds of fancy twistings and turnings" in a futile at tempt to reconcile John 15:1-6 with erroneous views concerning salvation and eternal life. Let us recognize the union of Vine and branches to be what it is— the living union of Christ and all true believers, who derive life from Him. Let us accept at face value our Saviour's grave and loving warning that it is in deed possible for us to forfeit eternal life by failing to abide in Him "who is our life."