On his website, Arminian Perspectives, Ben Henshaw has a questions page at which he answers questions about Arminianism and Calvinism that visitors to his site pose in the comment section of the page. Here are some edited questions from a man named Hutton followed by Ben’s answers and some editorial additions:
Questions: I read somewhere in a comment that Esau went to hell and it made me think back to Romans 9: “I loved Jacob but hated Esau.” Did Esau really go to hell? That was just a little question I had, but the bigger question I have regards that many people can walk away from being saved because it gets to hard, but I cant think of any believer who would walk away because they intentionally rebel against the Lord. How could someone who loved God, hate him?????? I know that sin hardens our heart a lot, but all of us were dead in sin and some of us living in it solely, but God was still able to get through to us. Now if someone walked away, what would stop God from getting through to them again?? I know people walk away and come back, sometimes because it was too hard, sometimes because of persecution, and sometimes because they feed their sinful desires, but what would prevent them from coming back???? And how would anyone walk away because they hate the Lord after Loving him? Why would any true believer want to live in sin?? If they were loving God wouldn’t they not want the sin? I mean if we get saved because we love God how could anyone continue in sin unless they weren’t truly saved? If someone got saved because God revealed to them their sin and they chose to accept Christ, once they were saved what would make them not listen to the Holy Spirt confronting them as they sinned? Because if they ignored the Holy Spirit at the time they were already saved, you would think they would definitely ignore it when they were dead in sin before they were saved and God was calling them.
The answers below will first quote from the above questions and then give the answer:
Answers:
“I read somewhere in a comment that Esau went to hell and it made me think back to Romans 9 “I loved Jacob but hated Esau” did Esau really go to hell?”
The Bible doesn’t really say, but Esau is held up as an example of wickedness in Scripture in that he sold his birthright, considering it worthless. That serves as a type for those who walk away from Christ in Hebrews. They forfeit their birthright in Christ for the temporal pleasures of sin, etc.
“That was just a little question I had, but the bigger question I have regards that many people can walk away from being saved because it gets to hard, but I cant think of any believer who would walk away because they intentionally rebel against the Lord. How could someone who loved God, hate him??????”
I think it is most often a gradual thing. That is why Scripture is always warning us of the dangers that can lead to apostasy. However, traumatic events could have such an impact on a believer that he or she might rather quickly turn from Christ (a death of an unsaved loved one, a tragic death of a child, unanswered prayers, etc.).
“I know that sin hardens our heart a lot, but all of us were dead in sin and some of us living in it solely, but God was still able to get through to us. Now if someone walked away, what would stop God from getting through to them again??”
It might. Some see that as what is being described to some extent in Hebrews 6 and 10. Even some of the earliest Christian writers took this view. If we reject all of God’s working in grace once we have fully received and experienced them, what more could God do to bring us back that He has not already done? We have already fully rejected Him after having fully experienced Him.
“I know people walk away and come back, sometimes because it was too hard, sometimes because of persecution, and sometimes because they feed their sinful desires, but what would prevent them from coming back????”
I think it depends on the degree of rejection in walking away. Only God knows the heart and if they can still be reached. However, I do believe their are some who put themselves beyond God’s reach (Heb. 6). Not all Arminians agree on this though. [Editor’s note: For an argument that Hebrews 6 does not teach that apostate’s cannot return to the Lord, see Brian Abasciano, “My Argument for Apostasy Not Being Irremediable in Hebrews 6.”]
“And how would anyone walk away because they hate the Lord after Loving him?”
Even in our personal experiences we can see people move from love to hate. Again, this usually is quite gradual. Jesus said that the love of many would “grow cold.”
Editor’s note: Something that can be added to Ben’s answers is that Christians still have a sinful nature that influences us toward sin, and there are also the sinful World and the Devil that seek to lead us away from Christ and faith in him and obedience to him. And to that, we must add that we have free will and can choose to yield to these sinful influences although God empowers us and enables us to resist them and to persevere in faith and obedience in Christ. But since God’s grace is not irresistible as Calvinism teaches, but it is resistible, we can choose to yield to these other influences and choose against the Lord, become hardened, and turn away from him and even from loving him to hating him. God has not made us as puppets or robots who have no choice about our relationship with him or trusting him or loving him. This should serve as a warning to us not to receive God’s grace in vain (1 Cor 6:1) or to neglect such a great salvation (Heb 2:3) or to fall from grace (Gal 5:4) that he has given us, but to “continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting away from the hope of the gospel” (Col 1:23).
