Reformed Theology and the Doctrines of Grace — Unit 8: The Perseverance of the Saints

Key Verse

"And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand." (John 10:28, NKJV)

Learning Objectives

When you finish this unit, you should be able to:

1. State the doctrine of perseverance and explain why it is better described as God's preserving of His people than as human strength.

2. Give the main biblical grounds for the doctrine: the Father's purpose, the Son's intercession and the Spirit's seal.

3. Explain the difference between a serious fall and a total and final fall, using the examples of David and Peter.

4. Explain the Reformed readings of the warning passages, especially Hebrews 6, and the lesson of 1 John 2:19.

5. State the Arminian and Wesleyan objection fairly and give the Reformed answer.

The Voice of This Course

This course is written from inside the Reformed and Presbyterian tradition, for students who belong to it. It is conservative and confessional. We hold the Bible to be the inspired and inerrant Word of God, and we confess the Belgic Confession, the Heidelberg Catechism, the Canons of Dort, or the Westminster Standards. Other Christians read some of these passages differently. We state their views fairly and then give our answer, because Scripture tells us to "test all things; hold fast what is good" (1 Thessalonians 5:21). We do not question the faith of those who disagree with us. Many of them are faithful servants of Christ.

The Doctrine Stated

The last of the five points of Dort is usually called the perseverance of the saints. The Westminster Confession of Faith, chapter 17, teaches that those whom God has accepted in His Beloved, effectually called and sanctified by His Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere to the end and be eternally saved. The Canons of Dort teach the same in their Fifth Head of Doctrine.

Notice first that the word "saints" in Scripture means all believers, set apart to God. It does not mean only specially holy persons. Notice second that "perseverance" has two sides. Believers do persevere: they continue in faith and repentance. But they persevere because God preserves them. Because of this, many Reformed teachers also call the doctrine the "preservation of the saints." The first side is our duty, and the second is our hope. If it depended on us alone, no one would endure.

The Biblical Grounds

Why do we believe that true believers will be kept? Our confession gives three grounds. They are the unchangeable choice of God, the merit and intercession of Christ, and the abiding of the Spirit in the believer. Scripture teaches each of them.

The Father's purpose. The same chain in Romans 8:30 that we studied in Unit 6, ending in "glorified," shows that God finishes what He starts. Paul adds that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ (Romans 8:38-39). Paul also writes, "being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6). Jesus said, "This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day" (John 6:39). The Father's will is that none of those given to the Son be lost.

The Son's work and intercession. In John 10:27-29, Jesus says that His sheep hear His voice, that He gives them eternal life, that they will never perish, and that no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. The promise is made twice: they are in the Son's hand and in the Father's hand. The writer to the Hebrews says of Christ, "He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them" (Hebrews 7:25). Because Christ lives and prays for His people, they are kept. Jesus prayed for Peter that his faith would not fail (Luke 22:32), and Peter was restored.

The Spirit's sealing. Paul teaches that believers were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance (Ephesians 1:13-14). A seal marks ownership and protects. The Spirit who gives the new birth does not leave the one He has made alive.

God's power through faith. Peter writes that believers "are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time" (1 Peter 1:5). Notice both parts: the power of God, and faith. God keeps us by means of our faith. He does not keep us in spite of it. Paul also says that "the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable" (Romans 11:29), and Jude ends his letter by praising the One who is able to keep us from stumbling (Jude 24).

A Serious Fall Is Not a Final Fall

The Reformed doctrine does not say that believers never sin or never stumble. The Westminster Confession, chapter 17, says that through the temptations of Satan and the world, the prevalence of corruption in them, and neglect of the means of their preservation, believers may fall into grievous sins and for a time continue in them. This brings God's displeasure, grieves the Spirit and wounds the conscience. But they are renewed again to repentance and are preserved through faith to salvation.

The Bible shows this in its pages. David committed adultery and murder, and for a time he did not confess. Psalm 51 records his repentance, and the Lord restored him. Peter denied Christ three times, yet Jesus had prayed for him, and after the resurrection He restored him (John 21:15-17). These are serious falls, but not total and final ones. The Canons of Dort say the same: believers can fall into great sins, but God, in His mercy, does not take His Spirit from them, and He renews them to repentance.

This is why the doctrine is a comfort and not a license. A believer who falls does not need to ask whether he has lost his salvation, but whether he will run to the Lord in repentance. The gospel call after a fall is always the same: return.

The Warning Passages

The hardest question is why the Bible contains severe warnings if believers are certain to persevere. Hebrews 6:4-6 speaks of those who were enlightened, tasted the heavenly gift and then fell away, for whom it is impossible to be renewed again to repentance. Hebrews 10:26-31 warns of a fearful judgment on those who sin willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth. Jesus warns in John 15:1-6 that branches in Him that bear no fruit are taken away and burned. These are serious words, and an honest teacher does not hurry past them.

Reformed students have understood these passages in two main ways, and both are faithful to the confessions.

First, some teach that the warnings are addressed to a mixed group. In every church there are some who share in the outward blessings of the community, such as hearing the Word, joining in worship and even sharing in spiritual gifts, but who have never been truly born again. Their falling away shows that their faith was not real. Jesus' parable of the sower speaks of seed that springs up quickly in rocky ground and withers when trouble comes (Matthew 13:20-21). The apostle John says about people who left the church: "They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that none of them were of us" (1 John 2:19). Those who permanently fall away show by their leaving that they were never joined to Christ.

Second, some teach that the warnings are real warnings to real believers, and that they are the means God uses to keep His people. A road may have a warning sign beside a cliff: the sign does not suggest that the traveler will fall, but it is one of the reasons he does not. In the same way, God uses the warnings of Scripture to keep His elect watchful and faithful. Paul says to the Philippians that they should work out their salvation, "for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure" (Philippians 2:12-13). The warning and the promise go together.

In both readings, one conclusion is shared: there is no case in Scripture of a true child of God finally lost. Both also carry a pastoral duty: we must preach the warnings and the promises together.

Objection: Believers Can Fall Away and Be Lost

The Arminian and Wesleyan objection should be stated as its holders would state it. The Remonstrants were cautious about this point at first, and in the generations since, most Arminians and Wesleyans have taught that a true believer can, by his own continued choice, fall from grace and be lost. John Wesley held that salvation is entirely by grace but that continuing in it requires continuing faith. These Christians say the warnings are addressed to genuine believers; otherwise they make no sense. If a person could not truly fall, the warnings would be empty. They point to Galatians 5:4, to Hebrews 6 and 10, to 2 Peter 2:20-22, and to Jesus' words that "he who endures to the end shall be saved" (Matthew 24:13). They also say that to deny the possibility of apostasy takes away human freedom and may encourage carelessness. Most also affirm that no outside power can snatch the believer from Christ's hand, but that the believer can himself walk away. Their motive is a sincere love for holiness and a desire to preach the gospel with urgency.

Our answer has five parts.

First, Christ's promises are unconditional in form. "They shall never perish" does not say "unless they choose to." If a believer could leave, then the sheep would in the end be holding on to Christ, and not Christ holding the sheep. The Father's will in John 6:39 is that nothing of what He has given the Son be lost, and Jesus does not fail to do the Father's will.

Second, we agree that the warnings are real. Our view of them does not empty them. Whether we read them as aimed at professing members or as means of keeping, they remain sincere, and every preacher should use them.

Third, "he who endures to the end shall be saved" is not a threat but a description. Endurance is the mark of the saved, and it is the gift of God. We do not teach that anyone is saved who does not endure.

Fourth, 1 John 2:19 gives a clear answer about those who leave. John does not say that they were once of us and lost their place. He says that they were never of us.

Fifth, our view does not remove human freedom or encourage carelessness. God keeps His people by means of the very faith, prayer and watchfulness that Scripture commands. Someone who says, "I am secure, therefore I may live as I like," shows that he has not understood grace. Peter tells us to be diligent to make our calling and election sure (2 Peter 1:10).

A Note on What We Do Not Teach

We do not teach that a person who made a decision once, perhaps at a meeting, is saved forever whatever his later life may be. The popular phrase "once saved, always saved" can leave that impression, and we avoid it. We teach that those who are truly saved will be kept, and that the signs of true faith, such as repentance, love for Christ and the brothers, and growth in obedience, mark a person as one of them. Dort teaches that believers can have assurance of this, as Unit 10 will show, and also that they must use the means of grace to keep it.

Lutheran churches, and Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches, also teach that a believer can fall away. Baptist churches, many of them in agreement with us, hold to this doctrine strongly. We speak of these differences with respect.

An Honest Note on Historians' Debates

Historians have discussed how the question developed. The Remonstrants of 1610 stated that they were not yet sure whether a believer could fall away, and the Synod of Dort in 1619 answered with a clear affirmation of perseverance. Later Arminian writers largely taught that falling away is possible. Historians also differ about how much the Puritans and the Westminster Assembly stressed the difficulty of assurance in light of this doctrine. A specialist can follow this discussion in the sources listed below. For a pastor, the important thing is that the confessions teach perseverance as a comfort for the weak, not as a weapon against them.

Pastoral Application

A deacon in your congregation asks you about his brother. Twenty years ago, at a youth meeting, his brother "gave his life to Christ." Today he lives openly without any interest in the church, and he drinks heavily. The deacon says, "He was saved once, so he must be safe. Right?"

First, do not give false comfort. A memory of a decision is not the evidence of new life that Scripture looks for.

Second, do not pronounce a final judgment either. Only God knows the heart, and the Lord has brought back many who wandered far.

Third, tell the deacon what the Bible says plainly: that the brother needs to repent and return, and that the church should call him to it with love. The warnings of Scripture are a means God may use.

Fourth, pray with the deacon, and encourage him to keep in contact with his brother, because God keeps His people through His Word and through other believers.

Summary

The Reformed churches teach that those whom God has called and made alive will certainly persevere to the end. They persevere because God preserves them: the Father's unchanging purpose, the Son's work and intercession, and the Spirit's seal. A believer may fall into grievous sin, as David and Peter did, but not totally and finally. The warning passages, such as Hebrews 6, are read either as addressed to a mixed company, so that those who fall away show they were never truly joined to Christ, or as means God uses to keep His people watchful. Arminian and Wesleyan Christians reply that the warnings are addressed to true believers who can fall away; we answer from Christ's promises, from 1 John 2:19 and from the nature of God's keeping. We do not teach that a past decision saves a person regardless of later life.

Further Reading

• Canons of Dort (1619), Fifth Head of Doctrine.

• Westminster Confession of Faith (1646-47), chapters 17 and 18; Larger Catechism on the perseverance of the saints.

• Heidelberg Catechism (1563), question 1, on our only comfort.

• John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion (Beveridge translation, 1845), Book III.

• Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology (1872-73), the section on perseverance.

• Zacharias Ursinus, Commentary on the Heidelberg Catechism.

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