Monday, December 13, 2004
Coincidence or God at work?
It's interesting that this morning, both Alistair Beg and J. Vernon Magee were talking about the issue of once saved always saved. This after I just raised the question last night. I have come to believe these are "coincidences" are not in fact coincidence but rather the working of the Holy Spirit. You can take it as you see fit.
Alistair's premise is that God will ensure salvation in the life of the believer; although, he made it clear that there is no blank check. He stressed thoughout his message that God will finish the work he began in you. The title of his message is "The Keeping Power of God" and his basic text is Philippians 1:6. He calls this the perseverance of the saints or the continuing work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. He makes a convincing argument that once you have faith in God, He will ensure your salvation. He points to a balance: there is no preservation without faith but those who have faith will persevere.
Magee is preaching through Hebrews and his text is Heb 6:1-9. The challenge lies in versus 4-6 which at first glance suggests that Christians can lose their salvation. In fact, Magee calls it one of the most challenging sections of scripture. He points out that many solid bible teachers have differing views on the subject and some even at polar opposites. He goes through the various interpretations and then gives the one he believes in, which he intends to expand on tomorrow. That interpretation is that the passage is talking about rewards in heaven. You don't lose eternal life but you can lose rewards in heaven. It doesn't sit entirely comfortably with me, but then none really sits well with me given the apparent contradiction with other scriptures. Moreover, it does have a similarity with 1 Cor 3:13-15 which depicts a man who suffers loss at the judgement seat but is still saved (as one escaping through the flames).
Alistair's premise is that God will ensure salvation in the life of the believer; although, he made it clear that there is no blank check. He stressed thoughout his message that God will finish the work he began in you. The title of his message is "The Keeping Power of God" and his basic text is Philippians 1:6. He calls this the perseverance of the saints or the continuing work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. He makes a convincing argument that once you have faith in God, He will ensure your salvation. He points to a balance: there is no preservation without faith but those who have faith will persevere.
Magee is preaching through Hebrews and his text is Heb 6:1-9. The challenge lies in versus 4-6 which at first glance suggests that Christians can lose their salvation. In fact, Magee calls it one of the most challenging sections of scripture. He points out that many solid bible teachers have differing views on the subject and some even at polar opposites. He goes through the various interpretations and then gives the one he believes in, which he intends to expand on tomorrow. That interpretation is that the passage is talking about rewards in heaven. You don't lose eternal life but you can lose rewards in heaven. It doesn't sit entirely comfortably with me, but then none really sits well with me given the apparent contradiction with other scriptures. Moreover, it does have a similarity with 1 Cor 3:13-15 which depicts a man who suffers loss at the judgement seat but is still saved (as one escaping through the flames).
Sunday, December 12, 2004
If we are saved once for all
If we are saved once for all, why does Jesus speak to the churches as He does in Revelation chapters 2 and 3? There is sounds very much as though our eternal life is dependent on what we're doing here on earth. I think many Christians, perhaps myself included, are fooling ourselves by thinking that we have placed our faith in Christ thereby ensuring our ticket to the promised land.
