Eternal Security
Jan 25, 2017 10:52:47 GMT -6
Post by Todd on Jan 25, 2017 10:52:47 GMT -6
I came across a site this morning that was taking a well known Christian to task for espousing the doctrine of “once saved, always saved,” or the eternal security of the believer. Such arguments abound, and some of them represent genuine differences, not merely semantics. That is, they have their roots in actual hermeneutic problems. Uncover such arguments and the “proof-texts” are always the same, and the concomitant righteous indignation and dogmatism always follow in lock-step.
But here’s the thing. Many of these arguments are not yet capable of being hermeneutic disagreements, because they have not gotten past semantics. The antagonists are talking about slightly different things. Perhaps a subtle nuance has crept into the argument unknown to either party. The zeal is there, but not the eye trained to discern such subtleties. This is often the case when a doctrine can be reduced to a slogan (once saved, always saved) or, worse yet, to initials (OSAS).
Quickly, I would like to demonstrate how these dogmatic antagonists could improve their understanding of the issues, and maybe, even come away agreeing with one another. First, what do we mean by salvation? There are lots of Biblical statements and theological interpretations. We need to incorporate the statements and be careful about how we use the interpretations in our understanding.
So what does salvation mean? What does it do? What is accomplished by it? What does it look like in practice? How does it show its reality? (This is a task made easier by use of Plato's Mantle.) Only when we answer these questions can we properly deal with whether or not it can “be lost.” For surely no one can lose what he does not have in the first place. So what does it mean to have salvation? How does it become visible? Is salvation a thing that is capable of being lost", and if so, in what sense and how? What do we mean by "lose?” Do we mean that we can be involved in a circumstance in which salvation is accidentally removed from us? Do we mean that some other entity can take it away from us? Do we mean that God may take his gift away from us after having once given it? Do we mean that we cannot renounce, or deliberately forfeit our gift?
If we spend more time in the Bible and less time on arguments (although these should not be ignored, either) we will be less likely to confuse our categories and more likely to reach Biblical answers.
Todd
But here’s the thing. Many of these arguments are not yet capable of being hermeneutic disagreements, because they have not gotten past semantics. The antagonists are talking about slightly different things. Perhaps a subtle nuance has crept into the argument unknown to either party. The zeal is there, but not the eye trained to discern such subtleties. This is often the case when a doctrine can be reduced to a slogan (once saved, always saved) or, worse yet, to initials (OSAS).
Quickly, I would like to demonstrate how these dogmatic antagonists could improve their understanding of the issues, and maybe, even come away agreeing with one another. First, what do we mean by salvation? There are lots of Biblical statements and theological interpretations. We need to incorporate the statements and be careful about how we use the interpretations in our understanding.
So what does salvation mean? What does it do? What is accomplished by it? What does it look like in practice? How does it show its reality? (This is a task made easier by use of Plato's Mantle.) Only when we answer these questions can we properly deal with whether or not it can “be lost.” For surely no one can lose what he does not have in the first place. So what does it mean to have salvation? How does it become visible? Is salvation a thing that is capable of being lost", and if so, in what sense and how? What do we mean by "lose?” Do we mean that we can be involved in a circumstance in which salvation is accidentally removed from us? Do we mean that some other entity can take it away from us? Do we mean that God may take his gift away from us after having once given it? Do we mean that we cannot renounce, or deliberately forfeit our gift?
If we spend more time in the Bible and less time on arguments (although these should not be ignored, either) we will be less likely to confuse our categories and more likely to reach Biblical answers.
Todd
