Will the Old Canards Every Stop Repeating?
Philippians:
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
Probably every canard posted against trusting Christ as Savior & trying to demote Him to chance-giver, has already been posted here over & over. But here we go again (groan):
Hebrews 6:4-6 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
Notice that in Heb 6:4-6 (stop quitting at vs 6!) there is no mention of salvation; as is so typical, the chance-only people emphasize verses off topic.
The general rule is that you just keep reading a little further in such passages:
keep reading 7-9: For the land which hath drunk the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them for whose sake it is also tilled, receiveth blessing from God: but if it beareth thorns and thistles, it is rejected and nigh unto a curse; whose end is to be burned. But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak:"
The factors in 6:4-8 do not rise to the level of salvation. These are professors who apostatize. As 1 John 2 tells us, if they apostasize they prove they were never "of us," never part of the Body of Christ, ever saved."
Revelation 3:5 He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.
This is a major passage teaching eternal security, since the promise is "I will NOT blot out his name!" The overcomer is, as 1 John tells us, the believer! The believer is the overcomer who has the promise of eternal security!
Revelation 3:5
The one who overcomes will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father…
1 John 5:4-5 For whatsoever is begotten of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that has overcome the world,
even our faith. And
who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.
And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of the throne saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he shall dwell with them, and they shall be his peoples, and God himself shall be with them,
and be their God: and he shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and death shall be no more; neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain, any more: the first things are passed away. And he that sitteth on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he saith, Write: for these words are faithful and true. And he said unto me, They are come to pass. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
He who overcomes shall inherit these things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. But for the fearful, and unbelieving, and abominable, and murderers, and fornicators, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, their part shall be in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone; which is the second death.
As 1 Pet tells us, the inheritance is incorruptible, undefiled, reserved for those who guarded by God!
Revelation 2:5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.
Note again, salvation is not mentioned nor is it the topic. Salvation is about a loving Savior, paying for our sins, saving believers from our wretched state of sinfulness, making believers children of God with the gift of eternal life. Rev 2:5 is written to a local church (Ephesus). Churches fail all the time. Local churches are not given the gift of eternal life; believers are.
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.
"If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another. And the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin."
The passage says nothing about receiving the gift of eternal life. It says nothing about a man getting saved. The topic is fellowship, not salvation. As with the illustration with Peter using water, he who is cleanses is completely clean, except his feet do need cleansing from time to time. The topic doesn't say that the blood cleanses only those who walk in the light either. And beware of the logical fallacy called
"Denying the Antecedent."
Given: If John had a car, John would have transportation.
Fallacy: John has no car, therefore John has no transportation.
Galatians 5:16-23 This I say then, walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
The passage has nothing to do with salvation. In every Christian the Holy Spirit dwells. The Spirit has desires (lusts) for goodness. In every Christian the flesh also is around, the Old Man, ever expressing his evil opinion, ever lusting for evil. The Christian may follow the lusts of the Spirit or of the Flesh (be carnal). Salvation is not mentioned (typical canard).
Philippians 2:12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. Okay. Tally-ho and back to, "We don't need no stinking context!"
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
Context:
"So then, my beloved, even as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who worketh in you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure."
The context stinketh not. The Outworking of salvation is based upon God working in the believer. Works follow salvation, but cause it not.
And you did he make alive, when ye were dead through your trespasses and sins, 2 wherein ye once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the powers of the air, of the spirit that now worketh in the sons of disobedience; 3 among whom we also all once lived in the lusts of our flesh, doing the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest:— 4 but God, being rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5 even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace have ye been saved), 6 and raised us up with him, and made us to sit with him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus: 7 that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus:
8 for by grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not of works, that no man should glory. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God afore prepared that we should walk in them.
So Dear Reader-unbeliever, what will it be? Will you keep on dismissing the Savior as a mere chance-giver, or will you trust the Savior?
Thou shalt call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins.
Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ & you shall be saved.