I myself was raised Baptist and fully believed the once saved always saved doctrines. I believed the church when they told me that the only difference between a Christian and it's sinner is that the Christian has been forgiven, but they're…
I myself was raised Baptist and fully believed the once saved always saved doctrines. I believed the church when they told me that the only difference between a Christian and it's sinner is that the Christian has been forgiven, but they're both still sinners. I believe that. My personal proof text for this belief was found in Revelation chapter 20 verse 11 through 15, I'm going to read it for you. "Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heavens fled away. And there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead small and great standing before God and books were opened. And another book was opened which is The Book of Life, and the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it and death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them, and they were judged each according to his works. Then death and Hades were cast into the Lake of Fire, this is the second death, and anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the Lake of Fire." See, I believe I was safe because I believed the once saved always saved doctrine. I thought that anyone who had put their faith in Jesus and believed the once saved always saved doctrine would not be judged by the "books". I thought the first books that were opened were to judge the world, those who did not believe in the once saved always saved doctrine. But I thought if you came to believe in the once saved always saved doctrine then you would be excluded from being judged by the books, but your name would be in the Book of Life and you wouldn't be judged at all. But what I didn't realize is that Jesus sees us as we are. He doesn't just purify us from all unrighteousness without cleansing us actually and literally. See, I was under the impression by this doctrine, that we never actually repent of our sins, we just slowly as a byproduct of our belief in God sin less. I didn't understand that Jesus actually required of us to quit on sin. I was convinced that if I fell out of prayer every now and then, if I sinned every now and then I would still be safe and secure and on my way to heaven. It wasn't till much later that Jesus woke me up. One passage that has really stood out to me is the words of Jesus in John chapter 8. There Jesus makes it extremely clear that anyone who sins, (including Christians obviously), are slaves of sin, and that slaves will not abide in His house forever, they will be cast out. Those who endure to the end with Jesus will be the ones who are saved. Jesus says that anyone He sets free, (obviously from sin), will be free indeed, meaning they will sin no longer. It is true that as Christians we stumble, we make mistakes, it is true that none of us are perfect.
