The More We Know…

As the mission statement on my web site bears out and as I have said elsewhere, my passion is to lead Christians to a greater walk with God by imparting a greater knowledge of his word. “The word of God, more perfectly…” But why?

The more we know God’s word, the more we know him and the more he is glorified in us. Tragically, the Church is full of ignorant Christians. By ignorant, I do not mean ignorant in worldly knowledge. I don’t even mean ignorant about God’s word, but ignorant of God’s word. Ignorance of God's word is ignorance of him, and God wants us to know him intimately.

God created us to glorify him. That’s our purpose. But God is not and cannot be glorified in the ignorant Christian. The more we come to know God, the more glorified he is in us.

Once Saved, Always Saved? (Part 1)

There’s nothing new, exciting or late-breaking surrounding the debate about eternal security, or the related teaching called “perseverance of the saints,” or, “preservation of the saints.” For many, the debate is old-hat and most that have taken sides are unlikely to change sides.

The debate can be traced back hundreds of years, and is basically rooted in the two major theologies that sprung from the Reformation – Calvinism and Arminianism. Those Protestant churches that have historically been influenced by Calvinism (Presbyterians, Baptists, and others) generally affirm perseverance of the saints or the similar doctrine of eternal security. Those Protestant churches that are more rooted in the Arminian tradition, such as Churches of Christ, Methodists, Pentecostals and others, generally deny such teachings.

Is eternal security an important issue for Christians today? I think so. It’s an important because it influences the way we view God, ourselves, the Bible and our salvation and it impacts our day-to-day walk with God.

This will be the first installment in a series on why I believe all true Christians are eternally secure/preserved and address some of the challenges to this doctrine. If you are a Christian that does not believe you are eternally secure, I encourage you to hang around and consider what I have to say. I too once rejected this teaching, but then found myself quite surprised at how much biblical support there is for it.

Most who oppose eternal security do so based on one or more of the following objections:

·The belief in eternal security leads Christians to take their walk with God less seriously, feeling they can freely sin and still be saved.
· Eternal security violates the concept of “free will.” If eternal security were true, God would, in effect, cause people to remain saved, even if they later decided to reject their faith and/or choose to return to a life of sin.
· Certain passages in the Bible indicate that people can lose their faith/salvation (e.g. 1 Cor 9:25-27; Heb 3:12-14, 6:1-6; 2 Pet 2:20; Rev 3:3-5).

In my next post, I will deal with each of these issues before moving on to an examination and analysis of the scriptures that seem to teach that Christians are eternally secure.

Bitterness Towards the UPC?

Over the last few years since I began my web site (actseighteen.com), several have emailed me and/or discussed my site in various forums concluding that I have some sort of bitterness toward the United Pentecostal Church. I suppose it is only a natural reaction of some to conclude that if you stand against certain things, particularly things that are important to them, then you must be driven or motivated by some sort of anger or bitterness. In fairness, much of what one finds out there on the Internet about the UPC does often sound angry, bitter and personal. However, I have received many more emails from those who feel that my site is quite fair, balanced, objective and charitable.

The truth is, I have no axe to grind whatsoever. For the most part, my years in the UPC were wonderful. Some of the finest Christians I have ever known are devoted members of United Pentecostal churches. While I am no longer UPC, and in fact agree with them little on their distinctive teachings, I am grateful to God for my experience there, and there is no question in my mind that God used the UPC to shape me and mold me into the Christian I am today.

It was the UPC that taught me to seek and love truth, regardless of the price I must pay to receive it. It was the UPC that taught me to passionately pursue Jesus. It was the UPC that taught me that the Bible – God’s written Word – is to be treasured and understood as the final authority on all matters of faith and practice. It was the UPC that taught me that nothing in this world holds a candle to Jesus Christ. It was the UPC that taught me that personal holiness, modesty and self-denial are relevant today and an important part of true Christian living. Most importantly, though, it was in the UPC that Jesus found me, forgave me and gave me eternal life.

Simply put, I have a great fondness for the UPC. The purpose of my web site is not to bash the UPC – what purpose would that serve? My passion is to lead others to a deeper walk with our Lord. I firmly believe that the more Christians understand God’s word and learn to properly apply it, the deeper and more satisfying their walk with God will be. More importantly, the better understanding a Christian has of His word, the better equipped he will be to please God and bring glory to His name -- the very purpose for which He created and saved us.

Jason Young