A quotation from Arthur W. Pink, An Exposition of Hebrews (emphasis his):
In the past, dear reader, there have been thousands who were just as confident that they had been genuinely saved and were truly trusting in the merits of the finished work of Christ to take them safely through to Heaven, as you may be; nevertheless, they are now in the torments of Hell. Their confidence was a carnal one; their “faith,” no better than that which the demons have. Their faith was but a natural one which rested on the bare letter of Scripture. It was not a supernatural one, wrought in the heart by God. They were too confident that their faith was a saving one, to thoroughly, searchingly, frequently, test it by the Scriptures, to discover whether or no it was bringing forth those fruits which are inseparable from the faith of God’s elect. If they read an article like this, they proudly concluded that it belonged to some one else. So cocksure were they that they were born again so many years ago, they refused to heed the command of 2 Corinthians 13:5 “Prove your own selves.” And now it is too late. They wasted their day of opportunity, and the “blackness of darkness” is their portion forever.
Two problems to highlight here.
First, we must wonder how Calvinists who are confident they are true believers but boldly stand in judgment of the types of apostates Pink speaks of and boldly proclaim that their faith and love was not genuine can be certain that their own present faith and love is real. They have no problem conceding that the apostate may have truly “thought” their faith and love was genuine despite the fact that it wasn’t. How then can they be sure that they are not likewise deceived by their present faith and love for Christ? Perhaps it only “seems” real to them. How can they be sure that their faith and love for Christ will not someday fail, thereby proving that their faith was never “real” and they were never “really” saved to begin with, but merely a deluded hypocrite all along? It is common for Calvinists to speak of those who were convinced that their faith was real when in fact it was not. So the Calvinist cannot even have assurance of present salvation as he can never be sure that his faith will in fact endure to the end until it actually endures to the end. It may yet fail and the Calvinist must admit to this. Therefore, they cannot possibly know “now” that their faith is real and that salvation is truly theirs. Their faith may be false since the only infallible test of genuine faith, according to their doctrines, is the test of ultimate and final endurance.
Second, how could the reprobate possibly waste their “day of opportunity”? If God chose from eternity to pass over them and deny them the grace to believe and be saved, then there was never any real “opportunity” at all. It is also nonsense to say “now it is too late.” No, it was too late from the day they were born since there was never any hope or possibility for them to be saved.
[This post was put together and adapted from Ben Henshaw, Perseverance of the Saints Part 13: Salvation Assurance and from comments Ben made on the Questions Page at his website, Arminian Perspectives.]
