SPELLING EDITED F-4. WHAT DOES ETERNAL SECURITY TRULY MEAN? I totally believe and teach God’s love and grace. I believe that God is FOR us and never against us. And I believe that any Christian can BECOME fully persuaded in the PROMISES of God to hold fast to those promises so that they will never leave or forsake God. To say this another way. I believe that any Christian can come to the knowledge of the TRUTH so that THEY will KEEP and PERSEVERVE themselves unto the end to receive the END of their salvation. In other words, any Christian can become ASSURED that IF we OBEY the leading of the Holy Spirit and the teachings of Jesus under the New Covenant written in the New Testament that we will never lose our salvation. So for those reasons, we should never FEAR to lose our salvation because we know that we are OBEYING the leading of the Holy Spirit to REPENT and confess our sin if and when we sin. So to me, that is the TRUE meaning of eternal security. We can have ASSURANCE that the Holy Spirit will never leave us or forsakes us. However, the Bible ITSELF does NOT teach us that a true born-again Christian can NEVER LOSE their salvation no matter what they do or do not do. But rather the Bible teaches us that we can be assured that God will never leave nor forsake us. And there is a BIG difference between God leaving and forsaking us than there is from a Christian being DECEIVED by false teaching and falling away from the TRUE faith in the WHOLE gospel of Jesus Christ to depart from the true faith. And without following the TRUE faith one cannot receive eternal life in the world to come. So the once saved always saved eternal security Christians use the argument that those who fall away were never TRULY saved in the first place. They CLAIM that those Christians only THOUGHT they were saved and that they did not TRULY believe. And then they quote verses like 2 Timothy 4:18 OUT of CONTEXT to try and prove that TRUE Christians are eternally saved and can never lose their salvation no matter what. 2 Timothy 4:18. “And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will PRESERVE me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.” First of all, keep in mind that the Greek word SOZO that is TRANSLATED as PRESERVE also means to deliver and protect. sōzō sode'-zo From a primary word σῶς sōs̄ (contraction for the obsolete σάος saos, “safe”); to save, that is, deliver or protect (literally or figuratively): - heal, preserve, save (self), do well, be (make) whole. Now, when this verse is quoted out of its context it may seem to be saying something that it is NOT truly saying when it is correctly interpreted in the light of the WHOLE word of God. Secondly, the context is speaking of Paul being delivered from the lion’s mouth and thus being protected by God from an evil act of being thrown to the lion to be eaten. Now, Paul may be using the lion as a metaphor to refer to the evil man named Alexander. Or the lion may have been a real lion. Either way, this verse has nothing to do with God preserving our salvation so that we will never lose our salvation. It is about God’s protection from HARM. Please read 2 Timothy 4:14-18. “Alexander the coppersmith did me much evil: (The evil work that Paul is speaking about in verse 18 that he has assured himself that the Lord will PRESERVE him from is every evil work of MEN trying to kill him) the Lord reward him according to his works: 15. Of whom be you beware of also; for he has greatly withstood our words. 16. At my first answer, no man stood with me, but all men forsook me: I pray God that it may not be laid to their charge. (This statement does not fit if so be that Paul is teaching eternal security) 17. Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; (To boldly preach the TRUTH of the TRUE gospel of Jesus Christ to this evil man Alexander) that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: (And because Paul was FAITHFUL to stand for the TRUE GOSPEL God delivered him) and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion. 18. And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, (Speaking of evil works that Paul spoke of in verse 14, the evil work of a man PERSECUTING Paul) and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.” Now, some Christians might argue and say that this is my own personal interpretation of verse 18 because it is more pleasing to hear that a Christian can never lose their salvation no matter what they do or do not do. And they do not want to hear that they must ENDURE unto the END to be saved. Again, I am not teaching against the truth that any Christian can BECOME fully persuaded in their own heart and mind that THEY will KEEP themselves by BELIEVING that the Lord will STRENGTHEN them when they stand fast on his promises written in his word. But rather I am preaching against the FALSE teaching that wrongly teaches that a Christian can never lose their salvation no matter what they DO or do NOT DO. I realize that faithful Christians who still teach eternal security know and understand that those who teach HYPER-grace are in ERROR. But here is the thing. How can a new Christian know the DIFFERENCE between The HYPER once saved always saved Christians and the more balanced once saved always saved Christians who believe that a true Christian will fight against sin? For you see, the HYPER once saved always saved Christians do NOT have a SIGN on their doctrine of eternal security saying that they are HYPER eternal security believers and that they teach eternal security DIFFERENTLY than the more balanced eternal security believers. Again, let me make it clear to my readers that Paul teaches that any one of us can become fully persuaded that we will never lose our salvation because we know that we will GUARD ourselves and KEEP ourselves close to God by OBEYING the TRUE GOSPEL of Jesus Christ. But the hyper-grace or hyper-eternal security wrongly teaches that a Christian can live in SIN and never lose their salvation. Let us read what Paul says about HIS being fully persuaded. For you see, this is another passage of Scripture that is used to try and prove the doctrine of once saved always saved which is also called the eternal security doctrine. As you read this passage of Scripture, I want you to notice that Paul never mentions that he is persuaded that SIN will never separate us from God. Please read Romans 8:31-39. “What shall we then say to these things? If God is for us, WHO can be against us? (Paul is saying that there is no one greater than God and that God is on OUR side so we need not be afraid of persecution and circumstances of trials that come our way) 32. He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? (Notice that Paul says that we are freely given ALL THINGS. When we search this phrase “ALL THINGS” we find that we have been given all things that PERTAIN to ETERNAL LIFE and GODLINESS. Please read 2 Peter 1:3,4. “According as his divine power hath given unto us ALL THINGS that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that has called us to glory and virtue: 2 Peter 1:4. Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these you might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” And then we read in Titus that the GRACE of God has appeared to us to TEACH us to walk in GODLINESS. Titus 2:11,12. “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Titus 2:12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;” God is not going to FORCE us to learn to walk in righteousness but his Holy Spirit will LEAD us and teach us to walk in GODLINESS. And then it is up to US to do the OBEYING. And if we are OBEYING the TRUE gospel of Jesus Christ) 33. Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifies. (And we know that whosoever walks in righteousness is righteous even as our Lord in righteous 1 John 3:1-10. So then,) 34. Who is he that condemns? (Is it Jesus who condemns. NO! Jesus did not come to CONDEMN the world but to SAVE whosoever believes in him) It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. 35. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? (These are evil things done to us from others and not from God or his Son Jesus. But they were prophesied that they would happen. Jesus warned us that we would suffer persecution. And these trials are to test us to see if we truly BELIEVE to ENDURE unto the END to be saved. And those who remain faithful unto the end CLEAR God’s name of being falsely accused that he created Lucifer evil) 36. As it is written, For your sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 37. Nay, in all these things (Speaking about the persecutions and trials) we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. 38. For I am (Speaking of Paul being PERSUADED and not taught by the true gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul BECAME persuaded through the many TRIALS he ENDURED to not give up. So any Christian can BECOME fully PERSUADED in their own heart and mind that they will never ALLOW), that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39. Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Now, please notice that Paul did not say one word about SIN never being able to separate us from God. Paul did not say one thing about DECEPTION not being able to separate us from God. Paul did not say one thing about UNBELIEF not being able to separate us from God. Paul was simply saying that God is FOR us and not against us and that we can be assured just like him that God will STRENGTHEN us in trials, in persecutions, and in even facing death. Another verse that is used to try and prove that true born-again Christians can never lose their salvation is Jude 1:1. This verse is also taken OUT of its CONTEXT. Jude 1:1. “Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and PRESERVED in Jesus Christ, and called:” Eternal security believers interpret the word “PRESERVED” to mean eternally secure to the point that a true born-again Christian can never lose their salvation. But the Greek word that is translated as preserved means to be guarded or watched over. And in the case of the believer, we are being WATCHED over to be kept safe. And many times, our being kept safe and protected REQUIRE us to OBEY the leading of the Holy Spirit. For example, The Bible says that the Holy Spirit will show us things to come. Please read John 16:13. “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.” Now, contextually, this means things that Jesus still needed to teach his disciples but they were not yet ready to handle that teaching just yet. But this verse could also mean that the Holy Spirit will WARN us of danger that is ahead so that we can avoid harm. I am sure that most everyone has experienced what we can a “gut feeling” or feeling a sense that something is not quite right. Some people call this “intuition” but many times it is the Holy Spirit guiding us out of harm's way. Sometimes that harm may be physical while other times the Holy Spirit is warning us that what we have been taught by our church denomination is false. But we have to understand that the Holy Spirit is gentle and never forces us to obey his leading. So sometimes we unknowingly brush off the leading of the Holy Spirit by dismissing those leadings of him watching over us. tēreō tay-reh'-o From τηρός teros (a watch; perhaps akin to G2334); to guard (from loss or injury, properly by keeping the eye upon; and thus differing from G5442, which is properly to prevent escaping; and from G2892, which implies a fortress or full military lines of apparatus), that is, to note (a prophecy; figuratively to fulfil a command); by implication to detain (in custody; figuratively to maintain); by extension to withhold (for personal ends; figuratively to keep unmarried): - hold fast, keep (-er), (ob-, pre-, re) serve, watch. There is no doubt that God watches over us. God has given us an earnest of his Holy Spirit to dwell in us to LEAD and to GUIDE us. But that does not mean that all Christians will always OBEY the Holy Spirit. In Acts 21:4-14, the Holy Spirit WARNED Paul TWICE to not go to Jerusalem but Paul went anyway and he was bound just as the Holy Spirit warned that he would be. Also, Jude 1:1 says that we are preserved IN Jesus Christ which means that we must REMAIN ABIDING IN Jesus Christ in order to be preserved. Jesus taught us this truth in the parable of the branch ABIDING IN the vine. We are the branches and Jesus is the vine. And except the branches REMAIN IN the vine they cannot bear fruit. And the branches that do NOT bear fruit will be CUT OFF and burned in the fire. Please read John 15:1-14. “I am the true vine, (Jesus is using the analogy of a branch abiding IN a vine to show HOW we as Christians are PRESERVED IN him) and my Father is the husbandman. 2. Every branch IN me that bears NOT fruit he takes away: (Please notice and understand that Jesus is ONLY talking about branches that ARE INDEED IN HIM. Jesus said that EVERY branch or EVERY true born-again Christian that is IN Him that does NOT bear FRUIT will be taken away and burned in the lake of fire) and every branch that BEARS fruit, he purges it, that it may bring forth more fruit. 3. Now you are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. (Or NOW are you SAVED by grace through FAITH in the gospel but you must REMAIN IN me in order to be accounted worthy to receive eternal life in the world to come. So) 4. Abide (Or REMAIN) in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can you, except you abide in me. 5. I am the vine, you are the branches: He that abides in me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. (So, HOW do we abide or remain in Jesus? Keep reading and you will see that we remain in Jesus by OBEYING what he has COMMANDED us to do. It is we who must do the PERSEVERING. It is we who must fight the good fight of faith. It is we who must crucify our flesh and put off the old man of the flesh. But we do all these things in HIS strength) 6. If a man abides NOT (Or if a true born-again Christians does not REMAIN) IN me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. (So HOW do we REMAIN IN Jesus? Pay very close attention to what Jesus himself is teaching us) 7. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done unto you. (If we call ourselves a Christian and we truly believe the word of God, then we will hide God’s word in our heart to NOT sin. We will communicate with God asking him to help us to bear good fruit. We will not stop fighting the good fight of faith to overcome sin and to bear good fruit) 8. Herein is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit; so shall you be my disciples. 9. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you: CONTINUE you in my love. 10. IF you KEEP my commandments, you shall abide in my love; (Or IF you shall bear fruit BY obeying what I have commanded you to DO, under the New Covenant, written in the New Testament, then you will NOT be cut off and burned in the lake of fire) EVEN AS I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love. (Or even as I had to overcome sin so must you also overcome sin by obeying what I have commanded you) 11. These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. 12. This is my commandment, That you love one another, as I have loved you. .13 Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. 14. You are my friends IF YOU DO whatsoever I COMMAND you.” So then, our being preserved in Jude 1:1 is CONDITIONAL. And the condition that is required of us is that we REMAIN IN Jesus by OBEYING his commandments that we are commanded to obey under the New Covenant written in the New Testament. And we are NOT commanded under the New Covenant to keep the Law of Moses contained in ordinances. But we ARE indeed commanded to KEEP all the MORAL commandments of God. I point this out because some Christians come out of HYPER grace only to be DECEIVED again by Satan to try and keep ALL the Law of Moses in order to receive eternal life. They go from one extreme to NOT keeping the moral commandments to their trying to keep ALL the Law of Moses. They are allowing the false teaching of man to STEAL their crown of eternal life. Revelation 3:10,11. “BECAUSE YOU have KEPT the word of my patience, I also will keep you from the hour of temptation, (Speaking of Jesus keeping us from suffering the WRATH of God at his coming) which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. 11. Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which you have, that no man TAKE your crown.” So you see, it IS possible for our crown of eternal life to be STOLEN from us by are wrongly believing or trust in a FALSE GOSPEL. And BOTH hyper-grace and keeping all the Law of Moses are FALSE gospels. Again, hyper-grace is the EXTREME teaching of the false doctrine of eternal security or once saved always saved. For you see, some Christians who believe in the once saved always saved doctrine have taken it to the extreme by claiming that Christians can live in SIN and even DENY Jesus and still never lose their salvation. Let us now read the CONTEXT of Jude 1:1 which some have wrongly INTERPRETED that the word “PRESERVED” in Jesus means that we can never lose our salvation. Jude 1:1-6. “Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved IN Jesus Christ, and called: (To be saints, called to be holy, called to serve God in righteousness, called to OBEY the commandments of Jesus, called to REMAIN in the vine by bearing good fruit, and called to ENDURE unto the END) 2. Mercy unto you, and peace, and love be multiplied. (This statement does not fit with the INTERPRETATION that the word preserve is intended to mean once saved always saved and we can never lose our salvation. We would not need more mercy, more peace, and more love to be MULTIPLIED to us if the meaning of the word preserved truly means that we can never lose our salvation) 3 Beloved, when I gave all DILIGENCE to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and EXHORT you that you should EARNESTLY CONTEND for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. (Speaking of holding fast to the TRUE GOSPEL of Jesus Christ, to OBEY the commandment of Jesus under the NEW COVENANT written in the New Testament) 4. For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation (Meaning that it was PROPHECIED that there would arise false teachers), ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ. (Sounds exactly like hyper-grace once saved always saved Christians) 5. I will, therefore. put you in remembrance, though you once knew this, how that the Lord, having SAVED the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward DESTROYED them that believed not. (And Jesus has saved us out of the bondage of sin so that sin no longer has dominion over us, to keep us bound to living in sin. But some Christians do NOT BELIEVE that they can overcome sin, so they continue to sin. They have been deceived to wrongly believe that Jesus overcame sin FOR them so that they can continue to live in sin) 6. And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.” Jesus overcame sin to die as a pure and perfect innocent lamb so that whoever BELIEVES in the atonement of Jesus can be CLEANSED from all their past sins. In other words, when we first believed our state became PERFECT and holy even as the Father in heaven is holy. But when we give in to the temptation to SIN, then it is WE that do the LEAVING of our first estate of being saved. It is we who make the CHOICE to disobey the commandments of Jesus and the leading of the Holy Spirit. And when we sin, the Holy Spirit is WATCHING OVER us and he convicts us to REPENT and CONFESS our sin. But we are the ones who must OBEY that leading of the Holy Spirit to repent and confess the sins we commit AFTER we were first saved. And IF we do NOT confess our sins then we are not forgiven of those sins. And the wages of sin is DEATH. Now, some may still yet argue that no true born-again Christian would ever disobey the Holy Spirit to NOT repent and confess their sins just because YOU yourself THINK that you would never do that. So, therefore, you conclude that any Christian who would disobey the Holy Spirit must not be a TRUE Christian. Well, that is YOUR own personal INTERPRETATION of verse like Matthew 7:21-23. Matthew 7:21-23. “NOT everyone that says unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that DOES the WILL of my Father which is in heaven. (And it is NOT the will of God that we SIN. The will of our Father in heaven is that we OBEY the commandments that he gave Jesus to give to us) 22. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name? And in your name have cast out devils? (Remember the seven son of Sceva that tried to cast out devils in the name of Jesus and the devils said back to them, Paul I know and Jesus I know but who are you? Remember that they were NOT ABLE to cast out devils in the name of Jesus because they were not IN Jesus. But those will be told to DEPART from Jesus did indeed cast out devils in the name of Jesus. So, they were indeed true born-again Christians that once walked closely with Jesus but later they fell into sin) And in your name done many wonderful works? 23. And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, you that work iniquity.” Now, the key words here as to WHY Jesus will say to many who call him Lord to DEPART from him is that they are found to be living in SIN. But the Christians who believe in the doctrine of eternal security argue that Jesus NEVER KNEW them. And thus they conclude that those to whom Jesus will say to depart from him were never true born-again Christians. But when you ask them if a true born-again Christian should DIE while living in a lifestyle of sin, such as adultery, if they will receive eternal life when Jesus returns, then they will say that they will lose their REWARDS but NOT their salvation. They are so deceived by this doctrine of eternal security that they sincerely believe that they could die while living in adultery and not lose their reward of eternal life. And they base this misguided belief on the passage of Scripture in 1 Corinthians 3:14,15 which they take OUT of its CONTEXT. 1 Corinthians 3:14,15. “ If any man's work abides which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a REWARD. 15. If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss (Speaking of the loss of the REWARD): but HE HIMSELF shall be SAVED; yet so as by fire.” As I have said many times that any verse or verses when viewed alone and apart from the rest of God’s word may SEEM to be saying something that they are NOT TRULY saying when they are interpreted correctly in the LIGHT of the WHOLE word of Almighty God. So, I ask you to interpret 1 Corinthians 3:14,15 in the LIGHT of the words of Jesus in John 15:1-6 where Jesus plainly states that EVERY branch that does NOT bear FRUIT will be cast into the fire to be burned. Let us start by reading 1 Corinthians 3:14,15 in its CONTEXT so that we can see the TRUE meaning of what WORK Paul is speaking about. Now, Christians who teach the doctrine of eternal security INTERPRET the works to be GOOD works versus BAD works. And we will receive rewards for all our GOOD works and all our bad works will be burned up but we ourselves will still be saved. But that is NOT at all what this passage of Scripture is talking about. The WORKS being spoken of, in this passage of Scripture, are PEOPLE that we bring to the Lord or have helped bring to the Lord. And if THEY remain faithful unto the end, then we shall receive a reward for PLANTING and WATERING the true gospel of Jesus Christ. And if they do NOT remain faithful unto the end to be saved, then we will lose the reward that we would have received if they did not fall away from the faith, but we ourselves will be saved yet so by fire. This means that we are NOT above having our faith tested by trials to see if we will remain faithful unto the end, to be saved. Let us read 1 Corinthians 3:5-18. “Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom you believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? (Notice that the SUBJECT under discussion is about MINISTERS or Christians who SHARE the gospel of Jesus Christ) 6. I have PLANTED, Apollos WATERED; but God gave the increase. (This means that those we witness to do not always come to Jesus the very first time that they here the gospel. Paul is talking about other Christians sharing some more of the gospel to go along with what you already shared. But it is always God who makes the seed of his word grow in the hearts of those to whom we plant and water the seed of God’s word) 7. So then neither is he that PLANTS anything, neither he that WATERS; but God that giveth the increase. 8. Now he that PLANTS and he that WATERS are one: (Meaning that whoever had a part in bringing someone to Jesus will receive a reward IF those that they win to Jesus shall endure unto the end to be saved) and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor. 9. For we are laborers (Or we are WORKERS) together with God: you are God's husbandry, YOU are God's BUILDING. (And every believer is a part of this BUILDING of God called the church, the body of Christ) 10. According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise master builder, I have laid the foundation, and another builds thereon. But let every man take heed how he builds thereupon. (WHY? Why do we need to take heed to what seed we plant and water? Because if our foundation is not the TRUE GOSPEL of Jesus Christ then our labor could be in VAIN) 11. For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. (Keep in mind that some are teaching a different Jesus and a different GOSPEL) 12. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; (In other words, our WORK of sharing the word of God can result in Christians who are rooted and ground in the true gospel of Jesus, OR our WORK of building God’s building could be sloppy and incomplete work that may result in Christians who are WEAK in faith and they are tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine. And thus they are easily DECEIVED by false teaching and could fall away from the faith) 13. Every man's WORK (Speaking of those Christians which we had a part in bringing to Jesus to BUILD the kingdom of God) shall be made manifest: (Or shall be made known whether or not they truly believe to ENDURE unto the END to be saved) for the day shall declare it, because it (Speaking of our WORK being those we bring to Jesus) shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's WORK of what sort it is. (Meaning will the ones we bring to Jesus REMAIN vessels of gold and silver to endure unto the end to be saved. Or will our work of teaching them the word of God result in them being WEAK Christians who continue to live in sin and teach others that they can never lose their salvation no matter what they do or do not do) 14. If any man's WORK abides (Or remain faithful unto the end to be saved) which he has BUILT thereupon, he shall receive a reward. (BUT) 15. If any man's WORK shall be burned, (Meaning that if a person that we bring or help bring to Jesus does NOT bear good fruit and they are cut off and burned in the lake of fire) he (Speaking of the BUILDER or the Christians who share the gospel) shall suffer loss: (Speaking the loss of the reward that they would have received if their work would have remained faithful unto the end to receive eternal life) but he himself shall be saved; (Meaning that we will not lose our salvation simply because someone we help bring to the Lord does NOT remain faithful unto the end to be saved) yet so as by fire. (Means that we who share the word of God to others are not above being tempted or being deceived) 16. Know you not that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 17. If ANY MAN (Including good faithful vessels of gold or silver) defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple you are. 18. Let no man DECEIVE himself. (With the false doctrine of eternal security that they can never lose their salvation no matter what) If any man among you seems to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise.” We are not deceiving ourselves when we read and study God’s word to become ROOTED and GROUNDED in our love for Jesus Christ to OBEY his commandments. But those who have “ITCHING” ears to hear God’s word and place their own private interpretation upon verses that they take out of context will turn away from the TRUTH. So those Christians who heap to themselves teachers that teach them what they DESIRE to hear, such as, you can never lose your salvation no matter what you do or do not do, are DECEIVING themselves. 2 Timothy 4:3,4. “For the time will come when they will NOT endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 4. And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.” The word itching ears means that some doctrines are more pleasant to hear because they do not require ENDURING unto the END to be saved. Which is more pleasant to hear? Would your FLESH rather hear that even if you fall back into sin, you will never lose your salvation? Or would your FLESH rather hear that we must ENDURE unto the END and fight the good fight of faith to OVERCOME sin in our lives to be granted the right to receive eternal life in the world to come? Our flesh is lazy and that is why we are WARNED that if we follow our FLESH we shall DIE, But if we follow the Holy Spirit we shall LIVE. Please read Romans 8:12-17. “Therefore, brethren, we ARE DEBTORS, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. 13. For if you live after the flesh, you shall die: but (We ARE DEBTORS to OBEY the Holy Spirit and the commandments of Jesus) IF you THROUGH the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, you shall live. 14. For as many as are LED by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. (But not every Christian who is LED by the Holy Spirit always OBEYS the leading of the Holy Spirit. However, those of us who do obey the Holy Spirit, to REPENT and confess our sin when we fall into disobedience, do not need to FEAR of losing their salvation. For you see, you are OBEYING the leading of the Holy Spirit when you repent and confess your sins. Now, if you are arguing with the Holy Spirit, trying to reason away your sin, to say that it is not a sin, then you need to have the FEAR of the Lord. For you see, you are in danger of losing your salvation if you deceive yourself that your sin is not a sin and you push away the leading of the Holy Spirit who is begging you to repent and confess your sin) 15. For you have not received the spirit of bondage again to FEAR; but you have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. (This is speaking of the bondage of fear of keeping the LAW of Moses contained in ordinances) 16. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: 17. And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; IF SO BE that we SUFFER with him, THAT (Or SO THAT or IN ORDER THAT) we may be also glorified together.” Jesus SUFFERED temptation but he OVERCAME those temptations to not sin. And we are called to SUFFER along with Jesus by doing the SAME if so be that you want to be GLORIFIED to be like Jesus at his coming. If you have this HOPE, in you, to receive eternal life in the world to come, then YOU will PURIFY YOURSELF even as Jesus is PURE. 1 John 3:1-10. And we do this first by doing our best THROUGH the POWER of the Holy Spirit to NOT sin. And if we do sin, then we purify ourselves by REPENTING and asking forgiveness for those sins that we commit AFTER we first believed. 1 John 1:9. And this is the only BIBLICAL way that we can be assured of receiving eternal life in the world to come. We can be eternally secure in our FAITH to know that God is ALWAYS FAITHFUL and just to FORGIVE us if and when we sin. This is a large subject to cover in just one study so please be sure to read all the studies under the heading >>>CAN WE LOSE ETERNAL LIFE?<<< that expose the errors of interpretation made by those who teach hyper-grace, once saved always saved, and eternal security where no true born-again Christian can ever lose their salvation. Thanks for reading and may God bless you richly as you teach the TRUTH of the WHOLE gospel of Jesus Christ. Your brother in our Lord Jesus Christ, Brother Mark.
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