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 is a comment on that page by a woman named Sally in favor of “eternal security” followed by Ben’s answer:
Comment:
2 Corinthians 1:21-22
21 Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, 22 set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.,
God makes us to stand firm – we don’t do it on our own. If His seal of ownership is on us – are we not His own? If we have received the spirit as a guarantee….are we not guaranteed to receive what the deposit promises?
Answer:
But this assumes that the promises and provisions of God are unconditional, which this text does not say (and there is no text that does). The Spirit is a guarantee, but only for those who continue in the faith, for those who do not have faith do not have the Spirit. For more on that, see here: https://arminianperspectives.wordpress.com/2010/02/16/some-further-reflections-on-the-nature-of-the-sealing-of-the-holy-spirit-in-eph-113-and-430/
Furthermore, for Paul to say that it is God who makes us stand does not imply that God makes us stand irresistibly, only that it is only through His empowering and enabling that we can stand, without which we could not. Likewise, Paul tells the Gentiles in Romans 11:18 that the “root” supports them (makes them able to stand- by faith cf. Rom. 11:20). However, this support and their standing is not unconditional nor irresistible, since they can yet be broken off if they do not “continue” in God’s kindness (vss. 21-22).
Addendum:
Sally appealed to 10 different passages in favor of “eternal security” in one post, and we are devoting one post to each passage to share Ben’s concise, compelling replies. At the end of his reply to Sally responding to all her comments, Ben made some final comments that we are including in each of these posts that gives one of Ben’s answers:
Personally, it is not a big deal for me if you want to hold to eternal security, so long as that belief does not cause you to take your faith and relationship with Christ less seriously. I am only addressing your comments because I want you to see why such verses are not very convincing to those who reject eternal security, especially in light of the numerous warnings in Scripture to remain, continue, and endure, etc. If God causes our faith to endure irresistibly, then it would be nonsense for God to also call on His people to remain, continue, endure, etc. It would be like telling someone hooked to a respirator to “keep breathing.”
I would love to believe that God will never let believers fall away. Who wouldn’t want to believe that? The only reason I reject it is because I am convinced the Bible does not teach it.
