The one who claims he remains in him ought to walk even as that one walked. (author's translation)

This verse is just incredible. John challenges the reader in a way like only "Be perfect" can. This sentence simply means that each person who claims to be in Jesus must live exactly like Jesus.

Again, note the present tense. If you claim to currently be in Jesus, then you need to be living just as He lived. Now, this does not mean you need to become a carpenter or a traveling teacher, rather this means the kind of life He lived with respect to living the gospel.

Do people know you are a Christ-follower because of your life?
If you never spoke a word, could you be convicted of being a Christian?
Does God shine through your eyes?
Does God work through your hands?
Does the Holy Spirit reside in your tongue?
Does Scripture pour from your mouth?
Are you willing to confront sin in believers?
Are you willing to grant mercy to unbelievers?

We finish our exegetical examination of the warning passage in Hebrews 10 with verses 32-39:

We now examine another interpretation that looks to make this sanctification merely outward with no internal reality. It looks to compare the sanctification described in 10:29 with the outward ceremonial cleansing referred to under the old covenant in 9:9 and 9:13.
Peterson and Williams see it as “a covenantal sanctification in which persons are set apart as part of God’s covenant community, the church, but are not necessarily saved.” They conclude that “covenantal but not saving ‘sanctification’ appears in Heb. 9:13 and 1 Corinthians 7:14. In view of the contrast here between the Old and New Covenant, we interpret “sanctified” to mean set apart by virtue of the covenant as belonging to God.” (Why I Am Not An Arminian pg. 86)

Grudem follows this basic understanding by citing numerous passages, most of which occur outside of Hebrews, that do not necessarily have reference to inward sanctification. He then concludes:

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We will now examine one of the alternative interpretations offered by the proponents of unconditional security concerning the apostate of Hebrews 10:29 being “sanctified by the blood of the covenant”. Calvinists are well aware that if the text is stating that the apostate had truly been sanctified by Christ’s blood, then their doctrine cannot stand. It is for this reason that these alternative interpretations are offered despite the clear language of the warning.The first attempt is to assert that the one sanctified by the blood of the covenant is not the apostate at all, but Christ Himself. Grudem does not hold to this view but believes it is worthy of careful consideration (Still Sovereign, pg. 178, footnote #91), while Calvinists Peterson and Williams find it unacceptable (Why I Am Not An Arminian, pg. 86, footnote #24).

The content of this post was authored by Ben Henshaw and is posted on his behalf.

We now examine what I consider to be the most significant warning against apostasy in the entire Bible: Hebrews 10:26-30, 35-39. I will quote the entirety of the text I wish to examine below but this post will deal only with verses 26-30. Verses 35-39 will be examined in a future post.

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Audience:

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And by this we know that we have known him, if we keep his commands. 4 The one who says that he has known him and is not keeping his commands is a liar and the truth is not in him. 5 But whoever would keep his word, by this truly the love of God has been perfected, by this we know that we are in him.

I love this section of 1 John like no other part of the entire Bible, with the possible exception of the intro to the Gospel of John. The grammatical constructs, while strange, make for some memorable verses and the concepts, while simple, take a lifetime to master.

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We will now examine 2 Pet. 2:20-22:

[20] “For if after they have escaped the defilements of the world by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and are overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. [21] For it would be better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn away from the holy command delivered to them. [22] It has happened to them according to the true proverb, ‘A dog returns to its own vomit,” and, “A sow, after washing, returns to wallowing in the mire.’” [NASB]

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This passage is very similar in meaning and application as the passage previously discussed from Christ’s discourse in John 15. It may well be that Paul was familiar with Christ’s teaching on the Vine and the branches, and had His discourse in mind while writing about the olive tree in Rom. 11:15-24:

The content of this post was authored by Ben Henshaw and is posted on his behalf.

Before we examine John 15, I want to give a general outline of how I envision this series unfolding. We will begin by examining what I consider to be the five passages of Scripture which I believe to most clearly teach that true believers can commit apostasy [Jn. 15:1-6; Rom. 11:18-23; Heb. 6:4-8; 10:26-39; 2 Pet. 2:20-22]. We will then look at the passages that are most prominently used by the advocates of inevitable perseverance to see if they truly teach that doctrine. Lastly, we will look to discover which understanding of perseverance best conforms to what the Bible teaches regarding assurance of salvation.

[All quotes are from the NASB unless otherwise stated]

John 15:1-6 reads as follows:

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My next several posts will be dealing with the topic of perseverance. Perseverance of the saints is represented in Calvinism by the P in TULIP. Most Calvinists rest their understanding of perseverance on the certainty of unconditional eternal election. Those who have been elected from all eternity to salvation cannot fail to persevere to the end and reach the destiny of eternal life that God decreed for them. Some Calvinists also rest this doctrine on the nature of the atonement. This foundation is problematic and I intend to explore it in future posts.

A distinction is necessary with regards to the different ways in which perseverance is understood among various doctrinal viewpoints. I believe that these viewpoints fall into three main categories as follows:

by James M. Leonard
arminianbaptist.blogspot.com

Calvinist churches are but a small minority; most evangelical churches are Arminian or semi-Arminian. However, the Calvinist resurgence is producing full Five Point Calvinist pastors looking for work. The resurgence is also prompting Arminian and semi-Arminian pastors to embrace Calvinism. This dynamic is the source of considerable tension in the life of the local church, not to mention in the heart of such pastors as they hold to a view which is often at odds with their churches.

Of course, this is not a problem for those Calvinistic pastors who minister within the confines denominations which are pre-committed to Calvinism. However, this is a huge problem for Calvinistic pastors who minister in theologically mixed denominations. Such denominations would include Southern Baptist Convention, General Baptist Conference, Evangelical Free Church, American Baptist Churches and others, not to mention the many independent churches.

My little children, I am writing these things to you in order that you would not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; 2 and he is the atoning sacrifice for our sin, not only for ours alone but even for the entire world.

These two verses strike a chord within me every time I read them, both theologically and personally.

I love the warmth John exudes in his writing, calling the addressees little children and telling them explicitly his reason for writing. John communicates with them to limit their sin. I sincerely believe John wrote these words knowing full well that they would be preserved for posterity, that future generations would heed the warning of this particular letter.

This post was originally published as the third installment of a series, the first two numbers being "The New Perspective on Paul" and "The New Perspective and the Development of Reformed Doctrine." The background for some of my observations regarding the "New Perspective on Paul" may be found in those two posts.

The New Perspective on Paul is generally associated with a reinterpretation of Romans and Galatians, inasmuch as these two books have been most closely associated with the Old Perspective and the traditional Protestant interpretation of justification being derived from these two epistles. However, the traditional (especially Reformed) interpretation of Ephesians 1 and 2 should also be reexamined in light of the New Perspective.