Spiritual Formation

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Everyone will not be saved, but those who are saved cannot be lost. Salvation is priceless like a fine pearl or a hidden treasure. Those who have it, value it above all else and act accordingly in the primary aspects of life. Jesus contrasts two groups of people in Matthew 25. Five virgins are respectful, prepared, and discerning; they are wise by the Spirit of God. But the other five virgins are impulsive, entitled, and careless; they are foolish, lacking God’s Spirit. In this parable, God only saves the wise.

Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.

Matthew 25:1-4 ESV

So, the foolish did not prepare to endure to the end, like the wise.

Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’

Matthew 25:7-9 ESV

God Does Not Save the Unprepared

Some believe this text teaches it is possible to lose salvation. They tell us that all of the virgins are saints, the lamps are the hearts of God’s people, and the oil is the grace of God; and when the lamps of the foolish virgins went out, they lost their salvation. The first objection to this interpretation is that the text says, “They took no oil with them” and if the oil is grace, they had no grace, to lose.

Whether they had “no oil,” or “not enough oil” makes no difference. The result is the same. God says to both, “I do not know you.” The foolish ones did not think to take (enough) oil to last however long was needed. They were not thinking about heaven, but only the immediate circumstances in this life. They did not have in mind what was necessary for eternal life and were unprepared. It is not like they had sufficient oil, but then decided to dump it out to forfeit their inheritance. No! They were insufficient from the very beginning.

The foolish virgins said their lamps had gone out. Certainly, their lamps were never properly lighted for someone heaven-bound. They were insufficiently prepared from the beginning because only a genuine Christian will persevere until the end. A lamp without oil will not burn long; likewise, a profession without grace will not last long.

Afterward the [foolish] virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’

Matthew 25:11-12 ESV

And, this is even more strongly stated earlier in Matthew, where amazing spiritual works do not guarantee anyone entrance into heaven:

On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

Matthew 7:22-23 ESV

No doubt these foolish virgins thought their lamps would burn long enough, and felt secure and ready for the approach of the bridegroom. “Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12). They thought they were standing complete in Him, and felt that all was well, but when the cry was heard, they found, to their astonishment and grief, that they were unprepared. All their hopes had been built on the sand.

These foolish virgins more closely represent the unsaved who are only professors. They were among the ten virgins, so unsaved professors are in the church. They thought their lamps would keep burning, so carnal professors have a form of Godliness but are strangers to its power. They were disappointed in the end, so all mere professors will be astonished when they hear it said, “Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41).

God Saves by Oil not by Works

Oil represents the Spirit of God. To be content without oil, therefore, means to rely on some other working for salvation. These foolish virgins thought they had been doing all that was necessary. Perhaps they lived under the impression that salvation was by works, and their lamps would be kept fueled by their works. But to their astonishment, in the presence of the assembled world, God himself will say, “Depart; I never knew you.” All your profession was without real knowledge of Him; you flattered yourselves that you were earning Heaven and His approval by your works, while your works were at best fifthly rags.

The righteousness of the best of men will not bear the test here; the righteousness of God is all that will pass. The fools were professors, but not clothed in Christ’s righteousness, which is the “wedding garment.” They have ever trusted in their works, while nothing but grace will save sinners.

The five wise virgins had their own oil. The foolish virgins lacked their own and so attempted to borrow others, which was impossible (verse 9). People will not be saved by borrowing another’s righteousness, except if it is Christ’s righteousness.

If these ten virgins represent the church, and all of them were Christians, it appears the visible church would be composed entirely of Christians. But since a large part of the professed followers of Jesus are utter strangers, having never been broken in heart for sin, or brought low at the feet of Jesus, nor been true mourners, or truly contrite in heart, yet seem to have more assurance than those who have felt what is it to be sinners. How many professors are there nowadays, who are even leaders in their churches, and yet not safe in the common business of life, whose words cannot be relied on by anyone, when there is anything at stake?

It does seem fitting that these wise and foolish virgins should represent the whole church. The foolish virgins are so foolish as to be content without enough oil; likewise, thousands in the church are foolish as to be content, though they have not even tasted that God is gracious. Only the people who have truly experienced God’s grace are aware of having been heavy-laden souls and guilty, condemned sinners before God.

It does seem from this that many poor, deluded souls will believe to the very last that their lamps are burning and that they are ready to meet God, and shall learn that all their hopes were vain. What a disappointment to fully believe that many wonderful works will save you, and in the end, when you need everything, to find you have nothing.

What a pity that so many of our preachers, instead of preaching the plain, simple gospel of Christ in its raw power, are declaring that salvation is by works, and in this way turning the minds of the people from Christ, and fixing their confidence in duties. Let each of us ask ourselves the question. Have I the real grace of God, or am I a mere Christian in name only? Have I real hope, and can I give a reason for that hope? Is all my hope fixed on God? Do I trust him for every grace?

These five virgins were foolish. It is said in Proverbs 1:7, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” If these virgins were foolish, they were not wise, and if the first principle of wisdom is to fear God, these foolish virgins did not fear him and therefore were not real Christians. I fully believe that all who do not fear God are unconverted, and I am not arguing that unconverted ones cannot be lost. Thus, we have seen that the parable of the virgins cannot be made to teach apostasy.

This is post 23 in a series; you can read the previous post. This post started as the public domain works of J. H. Oliphant. While sections are the same in many ways, I modernized the language and added my thoughts to provide greater clarity for my readers.
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Adam was at first good, and very good. But he fell into sin and experienced spiritual death. He broke like a jar of clay. Some believe this to be an instance of apostasy. The following shows this cannot be possible.

Adam Did Not Lose His Salvation When He Fell

Adam did not have salvation before the fall, so he could not have lost it. God brought Adam (and Eve) into this world differently than all following humans. God created them directly but the rest of us were brought into this world through physical birth. Adam was created without sin but with the potential for sin. The rest of us are born into sin without a choice in the matter. We don’t only have the potential to sin, we are born spiritually dead, sinning from the beginning. Adam knew what it was like to be without sin but he did not know what it is like to be immune to sin because he always had the potential to sin.

Although Adam was good, he was but a natural man. God formed his body from the dust, perishable. But when God raises a person, the body is spiritual, imperishable.

So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body.

Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.

1 Corinthians 15:42-49 ESV

Adam was under the law, while saints are not under the law, but under grace, and sin shall not have dominion over them (Romans 6:14). God does not impute sin to saints.

In Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.

2 Corinthians 5:19 ESV

God considers the saints as righteous without them performing any works. David calls the saints blessed because their sins are never counted against them (Romans 4:6-8). So he does not impute sin to his people, and he did impute sin to Adam. We know this because Adam died spiritually and God removed him from the garden.

Christ dwells in His saints, but He did not dwell in Adam. “Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4 ESV). “He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you” (Romans 8:11 ESV). Many passages show that Christ dwells in his people; and there is no evidence that he did dwell in Adam, for before the fall there was not (yet) the need of a Christ.

Saints do not stand justified for their righteousness, while Adam’s only hope was in his record of keeping the law.

God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption.

1 Corinthians 1:28-30 ESV

Therefore, Christ is the righteousness of saints. No human can boast in their righteousness but must rely solely on Christ’s. The saints’ justification comes from God, not by any self-effort.

But in that coming day
    no weapon turned against you will succeed.
You will silence every voice
    raised up to accuse you.
These benefits are enjoyed by the servants of the Lord;
    their vindication will come from me.
    I, the Lord, have spoken!

Isaiah 54:17 NLT

Saints Cannot Lose Their Salvation

Saints are not vulnerable to sin like Adam because they have experienced a spiritual rebirth. If Adam’s righteousness had been of the Lord, and if Christ had been his righteousness, he would not have fallen; but such was not the case with him, and therefore he fell; yet such is the case with saints, and therefore, they will not fall.

Saints are inclined to keep the law, or to do the will of God; for God works in them both to will and to do of His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13). If God had worked in Adam to do His pleasure, the result would have been different. God not only makes His saints sufficient to meet the demands of the law, but He also keeps them to that standard by His Holy Spirit dwelling in them. They are shielded, so that the wicked one cannot touch them.

Christ is the strong tower into which the righteous run and are safe. He is the rock of ages and is to them a high rock in a weary land. God has appointed salvation as walls and bulwarks around the saints.

I have never heard an argument made in favor of apostasy, without a false foundation: that salvation is by works. The Bible abounds with obvious contradictions of this position. Have you ever heard any man defend the doctrine of apostasy, urging that it is by works that we become saints and continue to be saints, but also admit that there is no merit in works and that all the merit is in Christ? What a messy contradiction.

If salvation is by works, then Christ’s blood is to be of no avail, and the whole plan of salvation is a failure. If by works, then Heaven could be empty, and hell full of the purchased by the Savior’s blood. No matter how often or how positively God’s word says it is not of works, despite all this, the advocates of apostasy invariably declare salvation to be of works.

How shocking the thought that a man may miss Heaven, though he has

• been redeemed by the blood of Christ.
• been born of the Spirit and incorruptible seed, even born of God.
• in him the very Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead.
• Christ within him and his life hidden with Christ in God.
• eaten the Savior’s flesh and drank his blood.
• drank of the water of life.
• been built upon Christ as a sure foundation.
• been joined to him as a wife to a husband.
• rejoiced in the thought that the God of the whole earth is his shepherd and that he shall not want.
• said with joy, The Lord is my rock and my fortress, my deliverer and my God, my strength in whom I trust, my buckler and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.

Despite all this, some believe he may lose his salvation and go to hell forever. How discouraging such an idea would be to those who are weak, who say, “When I would do good, evil is present with me. Oh, wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from this body of death?” If there is a doctrine calculated to starve the weak, to discourage mourners in Zion, to fill the wicked with carelessness on this subject, this is the doctrine. Who could or would with courage seek the blessing of salvation, if the odds are a thousand to one against remaining saved?

Thankfully, the Bible is clear that salvation is for eternity. This never means that saints can sin as much as they want–that would be the attitude of the unsaved. Only the saved, by God’s power, leave behind the constant desire to sin.

This is post 22 in a series; you can read the previous post. This post started as the public domain works of J. H. Oliphant. While sections are the same in many ways, I modernized the language and added my thoughts to provide greater clarity for my readers.
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Genuine servants will inherit God’s kingdom; false servants receive nothing but ongoing suffering. Therefore, knowing what distinguishes a true servant from a false one is of utmost importance.

Matthew chapter 25 illustrates the differences between genuine and false believers. A careful interpretation of Jesus’s parables will show the contrast between these two groups. God’s plan for life and redemption focuses on sorting people by their conversion status.

True Servants are Active

In the parable of the ten virgins (v. 1-13), the five faithful virgins act decisively on their convictions. They know God is real and prepare accordingly.

In the parable of the talents (v. 14-30), the two faithful servants also act decisively. They use the abilities God has given them, having the faith to produce results.

During the final judgement (v. 31-46), the sheep actively lived out their faith by ministering to others.

False Servants are Passive

In the parable of the ten virgins (v. 1-13), the five foolish ones lacked conviction. They could not see the reason to be prepared until it was too late to avoid destruction.

In the parable of the talents (v. 14-30), the fearful servant lacked understanding. Being an imposter, he did not know how to use his talent. So he could only make excuses when the master returned.

Finally, during the final judgement (v. 31-46), the goats did nothing to demonstrate the genuineness of their faith–because they had none.

Jesus Contrasts His Servants

I agree with most of Oliphant’s writings, but occasionally he misinterprets scripture, as with Matthew 25:14-30. According to him, all three servants are believers, with God only disciplining the third servant for his lack of productivity.

Let us inquire what is meant by this parable. It is used to define something about the kingdom of heaven, the church. And, by a little thought, you will observe that they were his servants, without these talents; for, “He called his own servants to him and delivered to them his goods.” Then, if they were his servants before they received the talents, they were not the servants of the wicked one; consequently, these talents were some gifts or graces he bestowed, not to make them his servants, or according to their needs, but “according to their abilities.”

Oliphant page 101

However, there are several reasons this interpretation isn’t the best:

• Every person God has created is a servant. A person can be a servant, but not be saved.
• The place of “outer darkness with weeping and gnashing” is most often used to describe the place of eternal torment.
• The context of this parable is between the other two parables, which make sharp contrasts between the eternally saved and the eternally condemned.
• The master calls the servant “wicked.”

But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest.

Matthew 25:26-27 ESV

The master cuts right through the excuses to expose the true condition of his heart. A genuine believer would have at least invested the money to collect interest. But this man had a wicked heart that resulted in slothful behavior. He had no care or concern for building God’s kingdom.

I certainly agree with Oliphant in his conclusion, that a truly saved person cannot lose his salvation. But in this case, we differ on what the scripture teaches. Either way, the point is that Matthew 25 does not teach that a person can lose salvation. It teaches that true believers will naturally act on the faith that God provides, while false believers, those who only profess Jesus in name, will not act for the simple reason that they do not hold enough conviction to motivate them to action.

What are we to do with such tough parables? True believers do not need to panic because they will consistently desire to grow God’s kingdom. They can be discouraged, but not without the hope of eternal life. They can be unproductive for a season, but cannot help but bear fruit because they are connected to the true vine. All you need to ask yourself is, “Am I willing to use whatever God has given me to serve His purposes?” God then works in the willing heart to produce many times over in fruitfulness.

This is post 21 in a series; you can read the previous post.
https://www.bibleref.com/Matthew/25/Matthew-25-30.html
https://archive.org/details/doctrineoffinalp00olip/page/100/mode/2up
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Are infants born qualified for heaven but then as they grow up, they become involved in sin and lose salvation? If so, it could be claimed that every person who crosses the supposed “line of accountability,” loses salvation. I do not believe infants can lose their salvation any more than adults. No one can be saved without being born again.

Original Sin is Highly Relevant To Infants and Adults Alike

The doctrine of original sin is that at the moment of conception, every human already has a sinful nature. Paul describes the Ephesians as having been children of wrath by nature like everyone else (Ephesians 2:1-3) so that their nature must be changed. A clean thing cannot be brought out of an unclean thing; infants born of women are unclean. David says:

Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.

Even from birth the wicked go astray; from the womb they are wayward, spreading lies.

Psalm 51:5, 58:3 NIV

These references are sufficient to prove that infants are not holy by birth. If they are by nature children of wrath, then, by nature, they are unfit for Heaven. Our Savior taught that none can see or enter the kingdom of God, except they be born again.

Some people might object: “Doesn’t God grant infants an exception?” Answer: No, because if adults are saved by being born again, and infants without it, then we have two ways of salvation — one for infants and one for adults — while the Bible speaks of but one way, Christ. The important reason why people must be born again is that their nature must be changed. It is not the change of conduct that results in salvation, but the change of nature.

Certainly, infants, as to nature, are like the parents and therefore need as great a change of nature as the parents. Christ came to save sinners; if infants need saving, they must start as sinners. “He shall save his people from their sins;” and if infants are a part of His people, they have sins, otherwise He could not “save them from their sins.” If they have sins and are sinners, they need to be “cleansed from all sin,” as much as you or I. As to anything we can see about them, they seem innocent, but they are “by nature children of wrath.”

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…
Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned.

Romans 3:23, 5:12 NIV

Here we learn death to be a fruit of sin, and as infants are subjects of death, evidently, they are sinners, and as such need “washing,” “cleansing,” “purifying,” “being born again of incorruptible seed,” just as all others do who shall be saved. Therefore, if you can learn how any one person (descended from Adam) is saved, you will know how all people are saved.

The only difference between infants and adults is infants are not developed. If you could impart to infants your physical maturity, you would see that their nature is evil as fully as your own. The tender, smooth sprout of the thorn only needs age to manifest its nature. The same is true of children; age does not give them a different nature, it only develops the nature they have. I hope I have now said enough to show that infants are not, by natural birth, fit for Heaven. They need a spiritual birth. If there is any other way for Christ’s atonement to reach us, I have not learned that way.

Infants Can Become Born Again Because of Christ’s Atonement

God is able, because of Christ’s atonement, to prepare infants for His service as adults.

he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit,

Titus 3:5 NIV

John the Baptist praised God before birth, and certainly this is evidence that the Spirit can regenerate infants so they can love God. “He that loveth is born of God.” As we have before seen, it is by being born of God that the church is prepared to love and serve Him. Now if all infants are not born of God, then all infants are not fit for Heaven.

Nicodemus (and anyone else) needs to be born again. But if he had been born again in infancy, then he would have needed a third birth; and who ever read of such a thing as a third birth? If all infants were born again and afterward lose salvation, then it follows that every adult who experiences the new birth is born a third time. The idea of a third birth is nowhere hinted at in the bible; neither is there the shadow of testimony that all infants are born of the Spirit. Therefore, the claim that infants lose their salvation when they become adults has no support.

Let us consider the following things: Saints are spiritual, having been born of the Spirit. Have we any evidence that infants are so? He that loveth God is born of him. Saints do this; have we any evidence that infants do? “This is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” Saints do this, and there is no evidence that infants do.

The case of John the Baptist is recorded, not as an ordinary one, but as an extraordinary one, and therefore is no evidence that God deals so with all infants. But I may properly ask, did John lose his salvation? I see no evidence of it. And if all infants, as John was, are born of the Spirit, then universal salvation is the consequence; for that which is born of God, is born of incorruptible seed—so it cannot become corrupted again.

The whole notion of infant fitness for Heaven is based on the opinion that God has two methods of saving — one for adults, and one for infants. There is no foundation for such an opinion in the Bible. “One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one way,” and Christ that way. Regeneration and spiritual birth are that way. The result being, that in Heaven, all are to see and be like Christ. Christ is the pattern after which all are to be formed.

Remember that the atonement (reconciliation), and the receiving of it, are two things.

More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Romans 5:11 ESV

This is spoken about our conversion, and says, “Now received;” showing that:

1. It is one thing for there to be an atonement, and another to receive it.
2. They had not received it earlier.

If they had received it in infancy the words would have been, “again received.” Apostasy and its advocates are hard-pressed when they attempt to sustain their system by such arguments as this. There isn’t one solitary passage that teaches us that infants are spiritual, or that they know God, or that they have been born again, or that they are believers; and in contradiction to many scriptures, that substantially tell us, that they are unfit for Heaven; and in contradiction to the Savior, who taught that all, who see or enter the kingdom, must be born again.

This is post 20 in a series; you can read the previous post. This post started as the public domain works of J. H. Oliphant. While sections are the same in many ways, I modernized the language and added my thoughts to provide greater clarity for my readers.
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Some people argue that Judas was a saint, an apostle, and a Christian for all intents and purposes; and that he lost his salvation and went to hell. But as we will see, it is clear that he never had a saving faith. God keeps and protects anyone with genuine faith by His power (1 Peter 1:5).

There are two classes of wicked men spoken of in the scriptures. One of these classes is called sinners. They readily claim no allegiance to Jesus.

“If the righteous are barely saved, what will happen to godless sinners?”

1 Peter 4:18 NLT

The other is called “hypocrites,” “Pharisees,” “false teachers,” “false prophets,” and “wolves in sheep’s clothing.” They are the tares that grow among the wheat. They have a form of godliness, but know not the power of it; if possible, they would deceive the elect. They are also called “professors” because they claim to be of the faith, but in reality, are not true believers.

Simon Magus was among the saints, and yet he was in the gall of bitterness and bond of sin. The magicians in Moses’ day did very much like Moses; when they cast their rods down, they became serpents and many other wonders they wrought, yet they knew not God. Piety has been counterfeited, and every feature of faith has been abused in this way since the world began. We learn from 1 Corinthians 13, that men may speak with the tongues of men and angels, have the gift of prophecy, understand all mysteries and knowledge, and have all faith so that they could remove mountains, and after all this be nothing.

Judas: A Christian In Name Only

Charity seems to be needed to give real value or importance to the other gifts or graces. There is no evidence that Judas ever had this charity. Judas was undoubtedly chosen to the office of an apostle, took part in the ministry, and was numbered with the twelve. He may have had all the qualifications spoken of in 1 Corinthians 13 except charity.

Some people claim that when Satan entered him, he lost his salvation (John 13:27) but when you consider John 12:6, you will see he made a complaint when the ointment was poured on our Savior, saying it should have been sold and given to the poor. He said this, not because he cared for the poor, but because he carried the bag. So he cared not for the poor long before Satan entered him.

By examining Matthew 26:14, you will see that Judas made sale of Jesus before Satan entered him. It would seem that Satan entered him, not to give him the will to do the deed, but to nerve him; for he had before this sought to betray him. Long before this was said of him, “He cared not for the poor;” so that if he was a Christian earlier, he cared not for the poor, and he had sought opportunity to betray the Lord.

Christ says, “Have I not chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil!” (John 6:70). He spoke of Judas, who should betray Him, being one of the twelve. Here Christ calls him a devil, at least from seven to nine days earlier, for it was he that should betray Him. So, how can any honest man say he was a Christian?

Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen.

Acts 4:27-28 NIV

Here the whole work of the crucifixion was a subject of divine appointment; not to be done by Christian hands, but by “wicked hands.”

The part Judas took was important because it was fit for a devil more than a meek and lowly follower of Christ. Therefore Judas, “a devil,” was the man “that should betray Him.” This same Judas was seen and known by the Lord hundreds of years before, and pointed out as the traitor; and he then said of him, “Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein.” He is also said to have fallen, that he might go — where? — to his own place; therefore, if he went to hell, hell was his own place, and his own place before he fell.

Our Savior did not need anyone to testify to Him of what was in man, for He knew all things. He therefore knew that Judas would betray Him; for God had pointed him out as the betrayer long ago. To say Christ did not know this is to trample upon His perfections. To say He loved and trusted Judas as a Christian is to say that He loved the man who would betray Him, being a poor covetous wretch who did not care for the poor. Yes, even more, and if possible worse, it is to say He loved as a Christian one that He calls a devil.

You cannot say that Christ did not know he would betray Him, for that would make Him ignorant, not only of what was in man but of the scriptures; for Judas had been pointed out by the prophets. His being visibly a servant of God is no proof that he was a good man, and even now one’s being a professed minister of Christ is no evidence that he is a good man. Bad men always were, and always will be, in the church. It is not my business to show why they are there, but we all know that bad men always have been allowed to be in the church.

If our Savior needed to be betrayed by one in His church, there was at least a necessity that there should be one “son of perdition” in the church, and Judas was that one. God always has fulfilled His purpose with wicked men. Pharoah filled an important place in the world’s history. Haman, Herod, Pontius Pilate, Judas, and the wicked rabble, who, like so many jackals, were thirsting after the blood of Christ, were but making manifest the will of God in the salvation of sinners; and yet there is no proof that any of them were saints.

Like Joseph’s brothers, they all meant it for evil, but God Almighty meant it for good. The rage of the multitude, the criminality of Judas, the timidity of Pilate, and the heartlessness of Herod, all in their place, were but unfolding the purpose of God, as His hand and counsel had determined. “Oh, the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of God; how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!”

Unlike Judas, Genuine Believers Will Persevere

John speaks about the difference between genuine believers and mere professors.

They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.

1 John 2:19 ESV

Now, what conclusion are we forced to concerning this text? He says, “if they had been of us, they would have continued with us.” We cannot doubt that John believed that every real child of God would persevere to the last.

The sentiment of final perseverance is interwoven with every principle of the faith. To deny it is to strike at the heart of the Christian faith. It is a fearful attack on the whole plan of salvation and especially the death of Christ. It substantially puts the success of heaven’s plan of salvation upon the puny arm of man. Poor, fallen, sinful, corrupt man, is to determine the greatest question ever thought of. It is for him to say whether the blood of Jesus is to be a failure; whether all the good designs of God are to be accomplished; whether the Spirit’s work shall be a failure.

Those who have realized the Spirit’s power know that He controls our hearts, and brings us into love and affection for Christ. Oh, how fully our confidence is destroyed in self and lifted up in the Lord; and I certainly think that every Christian feels that it can only be the goodness of God that keeps him. Christian reader, if your continuance in the faith was left for you to make sure, you would certainly fail.

This is post 19 in a series; you can read the previous post. This post started as the public domain works of J. H. Oliphant. While sections are the same in many ways, I modernized the language and added my thoughts to provide greater clarity for my readers.
Image by Sarah Richter from Pixabay

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God can raise the spiritually dead to life, but He never murders the spiritually alive, returning them to spiritual death. God is of life not death. He transfers people from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. Nowhere does the Bible say that He transfers people from the kingdom of light into the kingdom of darkness.

All sin comes from spiritual darkness, but even those who are spiritually alive can sin. A pattern of ongoing sin might indicate spiritual death, however, God is the sole determiner of who has life and who has death. Therefore, we must be careful not to judge (eternally) believers based on sin that surfaces in their lives.

Saul and Spiritual Death

We all start in spiritual death. No one is born into this physical world spiritually alive. Did Saul become alive and then dead again?

On the ground that King Saul did a great deal of evil, some say that he “fell from grace” and was lost. First, I grant that Saul did very many wrong things, and had he been dealt with according to his life, he would have been lost. But if our sins were marked against us, we would all be lost. If Saul ever had been born of the Spirit, which I will not deny, then, notwithstanding his life had many things connected with it that were evil, yet in God’s account these evil things were not imputed to him.

No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.

1 John 3:9 ESV

Have you or I the right to say that King Saul was not interested in this text?

Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

Romans 7:20 ESV

Romans 7:20 explains 1 John 3:9. Who has a right to say that King Saul shall be excluded from the benefit of this text? Paul claimed it, and Saul needed it as much as Paul. But I deny that any man has a right to say that Saul had no interest in these passages. But I know that if he was born of God, he could not continue in sin. To say he could is to flatly deny God’s word.

“Blessed is the man unto whom God will not impute sin.” Who knows that Saul was not such a man? If God did not impute sin to him, how could he fall? If God should mark but one sin, and that the least of all our sins, none of us could be saved. So, the reason why Saul or anyone else is saved, is that God does not impute sin to him. We are told that “God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them.” Here we see that God’s way of reconciling is by not imputing sin to those whom he reconciles.

Now, if Saul was one that God ever reconciled, he was one that sin was not imputed to, and if sin was not imputed to him, we can know what happened to him; he experienced physical death, not spiritual death. The sin against the Holy Spirit is the only unpardonable sin, and I am certain there is no evidence that Saul had committed that sin.

There is not a single passage that proves Saul was lost. There were marks of repentance in Saul at different times. An evil spirit troubled him from God, and if you take pains to examine the whole history of Saul, you will be convinced that no man living has a right to say that the plan of salvation would not embrace him. He was rejected from being king over Israel, and truly this was a sore punishment, both to him and his posterity, but who has the boldness to say that God not only afflicted him but also sent him to hell?

Suppose Saul did, in the heat of battle (seeing himself about to be delivered into the hands of his enemies), prefer death at his own hands. Shall he for this be called a murderer in the sense that excludes him from Heaven? Let no man say that Saul’s sins were not all washed away in the blood of Christ unless he has some evidence of that fact.

When Samuel arose from the dead and communed with Saul, he said, “Tomorrow shall you and your sons be with me.” Therefore, if Saul went to hell, Samuel must have been in hell. Not only he but also Jonathan, the man whom David so greatly loved. If there is nothing better than the case of Saul to sustain apostasy, it will have to fail.

Israelites and Spiritual Death

Some say that the Israelites, who died in the wilderness, all “fell from grace” and went to hell. Question: What evidence have we that they were all Christians, or that they all went to hell? Where is Miriam, the sweet singer, who led in praise to God on the banks of the Red Sea? What about Moses, the mighty man of God, who appeared on the Mount of Transfiguration with our Savior, and many other devoted servants of God that might be named? They all must have gone to hell, to make this argument good.

When a righteous person turns away from his righteousness and does injustice, he shall die for it; for the injustice that he has done he shall die.

Ezekiel 18:26 ESV

Read the entire chapter. Some say this chapter teaches the possibility of apostasy. But this could only be a valid argument if eternal salvation was the intended subject.

I do not deny that many of the Israelites did die, as a penalty of law, from the time Moses went up into Sinai, and amid smoke and fire received the law. All Bible readers know that the law, or first covenant, did not require men to keep its conditions in order to live naturally (if there were so everyone would die instantly). However, physical death (not spiritual death) was a penalty attached to the violation of that law. There never was a law given to men that could give eternal life.

Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law.

Galatians 3:21 ESV

There is no place in the scriptures where eternal life is promised to those (non-believers) who keep the law of Moses, or eternal death to those (believers) who violate it.

Consider Deuteronomy 28 to see what is promised to the obedient, and also to the disobedient. Here we have the obedient blessed in the city, field, the fruit of his body, his cows, sheep, store, and basket. His enemies shall be smitten and all people shall fear him. Not one promise of eternal life, but every solitary blessing there named is of a natural kind. Why? Because men never did nor ever will go to Heaven for their works of any kind. We also see in that chapter that the wicked is cursed in the city, field, basket, store, and the fruit of his body, etc.

The Lord will send on you curses, confusion, and frustration in all that you undertake to do, until you are destroyed and perish quickly on account of the evil of your deeds, because you have forsaken me.

Deuteronomy 28:20 ESV

Not one word about being lost. Compare Deuteronomy 28 with Ezekiel 18, and you will see that it is plain that the prophet is setting forth God’s purpose revealed to Moses. Neither of these chapters mentions eternal life or eternal death, in connection with obedience or disobedience. If you carefully compare these two chapters I am sure you will not find either of them referring to saving faith in Christ.

Besides, we have the plain words of scripture, setting all this aside. In Hebrews 8 we learn that God’s people are not under the old covenant of works, but under one of grace, — a new one. “For sin shall not have dominion over you, for ye are not under the law, but under grace” (Romans 6:14). The Bible says sin shall not have dominion over you; apostasy says it may. Reader, which do you believe?

In verse 15, Paul considers the reasoning of those who believe apostasy is possible, saying, “What then? Shall we continue in sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace?” Apostasy and its friends say, “Yes, go your length in sin if you are to be saved freely by grace.” But true piety says, “How shall we that are dead to sin live in it any longer?”

Therefore, we have shown the argument for apostasy to be a straightforward misapplication of God’s word, as you will find every other argument brought in favor of apostasy.

Spiritual Life and Spiritual Death

The spiritually dead remain so without the fullness of God’s help. The spiritually dead can only change their appearance, to look like life, for some time.

What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.”

2 Peter 2:22 ESV

So that you may see clearly that this has no reference to losing salvation, consider the following:

1. The whole chapter shows that these are mere external professors; “spots they are, and blemishes;” “having eyes full of adultery;” “hearts exercised with covetous practices;” “cursed children;” “they are servants of corruption.”
2. “It is a true proverb.” It is a proverb that never fails; therefore, all such referred to in this chapter will certainly go back into open sin.
3. They are compared to the dog that vomited up his foul contents. However, he yet has the stomach of a dog and consequently goes back to the old mess. The sow likewise, being only washed on the outside, retains her swinish nature.

Because this is a true proverb, it is one that never fails. Therefore, if it even proves that God’s children can fall, it proves that all will certainly fall. We have seen enough to declare that the advocates of apostasy are ready to grasp at anything to support their beliefs.

We can see that how much a person sins does not primarily determine whether a person is saved, but it is their status before Christ that matters. Who does God see when He looks at you? Does He see His forgiven child, with all sin cast onto His Son Jesus, or does He only see a person yet living in spiritual death, separated from life in Jesus? Only God can truly know and judge this for anyone other than yourself.

I would not knowingly falsely comfort God’s children; but certainly, we are kept by the power of God, are in his hand, and none can take us from him, for he is greater than all; he keeps us as the apple of his eye. A woman may forget her baby, but God will not forget us. No weapon shall prosper against us. He that has begun a good work in us, shall perform it till the last.

Oh, let us praise God for His faithfulness. In the last day, Jesus will say, “Behold I and the children which God hath given me.” All will be there — none left behind. Praise the Lord, all His saints!

Thy works, not mine, oh Christ,

Speak gladness to this heart,

They tell me all is done;

They bid my fear depart.

To whom, save thee —

Who can alone

For sin atone —

Lord, shall I flee?

Thy pain, not mine, oh Christ,

Upon the shameful tree,

Have paid the law’s full price,

And purchased peace for me.

To whom save thee —

Who can alone

For sin atone — Lord, shall I flee?”

This is post 18 in a series; you can read the previous post. This post started as the public domain works of J. H. Oliphant. While sections are the same in many ways, I modernized the language and added my thoughts to provide greater clarity for my readers.
https://www.gotquestions.org/was-King-Saul-saved.html
Image by Daniel Bahrmann from Pixabay