CLOGHER VALLEY
BIBLE CLASS
THE REFORMED FAITH
A STUDY IN
THEOLOGY AND DOCTRINE
TULIP
T otal Depravity of Man
U nconditional Election
L imited Atonement or
Particular Redemption
I
P
rresistible Grace or
Effectual Calling
erseverance of the Saints or
Eternal Security
TULIP
P
ERSEVERANCE OF THE SAINTS
THE MEANING OF THIS
DOCTRINE
Professor Louis Berkhof
“The doctrine of the perseverance of the saints is to the effect
that they whom God has regenerated and effectually called
to a state of grace, can neither totally nor finally fall away
from that state, but shall certainly persevere therein to the
end and be eternally saved”
Systematic Theology, Banner of Truth, Page 545
IMPLICATIONS OF THIS
DEFINITION
1:
Election and regeneration are irreversible
2:
Those who are effectually called cannot
fall from that grace
3:
They will persevere in their profession
of faith
4:
They will be finally and eternally saved
DANGERS OF MISUNDERSTANDING THE
DOCTRINE
1. That this perseverance is dependent upon the
activity of man in holiness.
2. Berkhof points out that Reformed theologians
argue “that the believer would fall away if left to
himself” (Page 546)
3. The work of man is neither the sole nor
fundamental factor in this perseverance.
BERKHOF’S CAREFULLY
GUARDED DEFINITION
“It is strictly speaking, not man but God who
perseveres. Perseverance may be defined as
that continuous operation of the Holy Spirit in
the believer, by which the work of divine
grace that is begun in the heart, is continued
and brought to completion. It is because God
never forsakes His work that believers continue to stand to
the very end”
Systematic Theology, Banner of Truth, Page 546
CLARIFYING THE
DOCTRINE
1:
God perseveres with man
2:
This is the work of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of the elect
3:
God’s people need this perfecting and purifying
influence because they will never be sinless in this life
4:
Without the continual operation of the Holy Ghost we could
persevere and would therefore be lost forever
5:
The faithfulness of God is the basis of this doctrine
THE WESTMINSTER
CONFESSION CHAPTER 17
Section One
“They, whom God hath accepted in His Beloved,
effectually called, and sanctified by His Spirit, can
neither totally, nor finally, fall away from the state
of grace: but shall certainly persevere therein to
the end, and be eternally saved”
(John 10:28, 29; Phil.1:6; 1Peter1:5, 9; 2Peter 1:10;
1John 3:9).
THE WESTMINSTER
CONFESSION CHAPTER 17
Section 2
“This perseverance of the saints depends not upon their own
free will, but upon the immutability of the decree of election
flowing from the free and unchangeable love of God the
Father (Jer.31:3; 2Tim. 2:18,19); upon the efficacy of the
merit and intercession of Jesus Christ (Luke 22:32; John
17:11,24; Rom. 8:33-39; Heb. 7:25; Heb. 9:12-15; Heb.
10:10, 10:14; 13:20, 13:21); the abiding of the Spirit, and of
the seed of God within them (John 14:16, 17; 1John 2:27;
3:9); and the nature of the covenant of grace (Jer. 32:40):
from all which ariseth also the certainty and infallibility
thereof (John 10:28; 2Th. 3:3; 1John 2:19).”
THE WESTMINSTER
CONFESSION CHAPTER 17
Section 3
“Nevertheless, they may, through the temptations of Satan and
of the world, the prevalency of corruption remaining in
them, and the neglect of the means of their preservation, fall
into grievous sins (Mat. 26:70,72, 74); and, for a time,
continue therein (Psalms 51:14 and title): whereby they incur
God’s displeasure (2Sam. 11:27; Isa. 64:5, 7, 9), and grieve
His Holy Spirit (Eph. 4:30), come to be deprived of some
measure of their graces and comforts (Psalms 51:8, 10, 12;
Son. 5:2-4, 6; Rev. 2:4), have their hearts hardened (Isa.
36:17; Mark 6:52; Mark 16:14), and their consciences
wounded (Psalms 32:3, 4; Psalms 51:8), hurt and scandalize
others (2Sam. 12:14), and bring temporal judgments upon
themselves (Psalms 89:31, 89:32; 1Corinthians 11:32).”
P.B. POWER ON JOHN 6:37
“Can we imagine the blessed Jesus thus deliberately thrusting any earnest soul into
the very Jaws of Death? Can we imagine His deliberately giving the devil such a
terrible and eternal triumph as this? Oh! If Jesus were to cast out a single soul that
came to Him, in repentance and belief; I can well believe that that soul would
henceforth be the greatest phenomenon of the land of perdition-the strangest
curiosity of hell. All would understand, how the murderer and adulterer fell into
the land of woe; how the impenitent and unbelieving dropped into the lake of fire;
but how came this man there? Who can solve the riddle of his being damned? There is
not a devil that would not look upon him with wonder; the archfiend himself would
confess, that this man’s being lost, was a greater mystery than all others being saved;
the devil’s choicest treasure would be this rejected soul.
And cannot we imagine the use he would make of it; how he would make himself
master of all the circumstances of its rejection; how he would chronicle carefully all its sighs and
tears; its timid trial; and its fierce repulse; and then, how he would go forth to
poor perishing sinners, and tell them, that he knew for a fact that Jesus did not receive
everyone that came to Him.” (The I Wills of Christ, page 57,58)
PERSEVERANCE NOT
SECURITY
• The Perseverance of the Saints does supply
the believer with eternal security
• The term eternal security minimises the
persevering which is an essential
characteristic of Christianity and plays into
the hands of the enemies of this precious
truth
THE CHALLENGE OF THIS
DOCTRINE
• Those who are elect will manifest the marks of holiness, Eph. 1:4-6
• Those who possess the Holy Spirit will produce the fruit of the
Spirit, Gal. 5:16-26
• The Spirit’s persevering work gives us desires for godliness and the
ripening of this fruit
• These desires produce assurance in our hearts, 2 Peter 1:3-10
• In so doing we work out our salvation with fear and trembling,
working out what God by his grace has already worked in,
Philippians 2:12-13
ROME’S VIEW OF THIS
DOCTRINE
“If anyone maintain that a man once justified
cannot lose grace, and, therefore that he who
falls and sins never was truly justified let him
be accursed”
Council of Trent
THE ARMINIAN VIEW OF
THIS DOCTRINE
Arminian theology emphasises the will of man
Therefore:
A Election is conditional upon man’s choice
B Man wills himself to commit acts of sin
C Man in his natural state is able to chose God
D The atonement makes salvation possible for those who
decide to exercise faith
E The human will is one of the causes of regeneration
F There is no common grace, the same grace is extended to all
men but is resisted by some and accepted by others
THE ARMINIAN VIEW OF
THIS DOCTRINE
The theology of the will and perseverance
A regenerated believer may chose to:
A
Become conformed to the divine life by
becoming entirely sanctified
Or
B
Fall from grace and be lost forever
THE ARMINIAN VIEW OF
THIS DOCTRINE
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Inherent problems with Arminianism
The emphasis upon the will dethrones a sovereign God
It blatantly flies in the face the multitude of promises extended to
the church
The teaching on entire sanctification compels believers to look to
self as opposed to Christ and produces a terrible bondage
To claim sinless perfection has the appearance of being proud and
absurd as well as being unscriptural
As this teaching is dependant on the human will no-one can be
saved and heaven will be empty because no man could keep
himself in grace even if he could attain such a blessed place by
his own choice alone
THE ARMINIAN VIEW OF
THIS DOCTRINE
Arminians Attack This Doctrine As Encouraging Antinomianism
1.
2.
3.
4.
Antinomianism is the teaching that New Testament Christians
can live without the Law of God
Arminians therefore claim that if all Christians will be in heaven
then there is no incentive to live godly in this world
This is a clear misrepresentation of this doctrine because those
who are elect will persevere through the perseverance of the
Spirit who produces his fruit in the heart and life
Therefore a professor of faith who thinks he has a license to sin
does not have the Holy Spirit and is not converted
CAN CAVNINISTS LEARN
FROM ARMINIANS?
1.
2.
3.
4.
The zeal and passion which some Arminians have displayed in their quest for
holiness is most inspiring (eg William Booth, Oswald Chambers). We may
not believe in absolute holiness but we should seek to be as perfect as it is
possible for a sinner saved by grace to be (Robert Murray McCheyne)
In some instances Arminianism is an over reaction to a dead Calvinism which
fails to extend its doctrine to the life. In a case such as this fellowship with a
living Arminian would be more beneficial
Calvinists do not comfort the backslider with the hope of heaven. While
people do backslide the genuine believer always repents because of the
persevering spirit. We must not give false hope to an unrepentant backslider
Evangelical Arminians are our brothers in the Lord and while we reject their
interpretation of doctrine we must at all times seek to exercise love and grace
ANSWERING THE ALLEGED
ARMINIAN PROOF TEXTS
Galatians 5:4
“Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are
justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.”
1.
2.
3.
Paul was addressing people who had rejected Christ
They had espoused justification by works as opposed to
justification through faith in Christ
Therefore they fell from the grace of the gospel that was
offered to them. They had never embraced the Saviour to
begin with. If they professed then the profession was false
ANSWERING THE ALLEGED
ARMINIAN PROOF TEXTS
Hebrews 6:4-6
For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have
tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy
Ghost,
And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to
come,
If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing
they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an
open shame.
Hebrews 10:26
For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the
truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
THE HEBREW WARNINGS
1.
2.
3.
4.
As apostates are people are people who have professed
the faith and who repudiate their profession the people in
these verses were never saved
They were enlightened and they tasted but the gospel
never made a powerful impact upon their lives
Putting Christ to an open shame would indicate that
these people sinned in a way that was impossible for a
true child of God
Sinning wilfully refers to a professing believer turning
his back on his profession and transgressing without
regard to conscience and conviction
THE HEBREW WARNINGS
1. As these warnings were given to the church we
should take them seriously
2. We should seek the fruit of the spirit in our lives
3. We should fear turning our back upon Christ
4. These warnings were used by Paul to inspire
God’s people to pay greater attention to their
perseverance
5. Taken within the context of the many verses
which teach the perseverance of the saints this is
the only scriptural interpretation
FINALLY
1. Our perseverance is based upon the actions of a
sovereign and loving God
2. The Holy Spirit gives us the power to persevere
3. This doctrine teaches us that we must be serious about
our Christianity in cultivating godliness in our lives
4. This doctrine supplies us with a great and glorious
comfort and hope. We suffer for our perseverance in
this life, but great will be our reward in heaven
5. This doctrine is a vital aspect of our assurance