Who are His?
2Tim 2:19 Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: "The Lord knows those who are his," and, "Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness."
These were not quotes from scripture, but rather here Paul endorses a couple of expressions which encapsulate a couple of ideas foundational to the faith. But it's interesting to consider the implication of him bringing up these two ideas in this context of godless chatter.
"This Lord knows those who are His" implies that it might not be obvious from the standpoint of one's institutional allegiance. In other words, there are those who claim to be Christians, but their mere claim does not make one a child of God. There are those among the Christian community - the visible Church - who are His, namely the invisible Church - those who have actually been born of God - the genuine believers. Korah and his followers were Israelites, yet Moses said to them, "In the morning the LORD will show who belongs to him". Nu 16:5 What happened? "The ground under them split apart and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, with their households and all Korah’s men and all their possessions. They went down alive into the grave, with everything they owned; the earth closed over them, and they perished and were gone from the community." Nu 16:31-33 Yet such also will be the fate of nominal Christians.
"Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness." And indeed, "No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother." 1John 3:9,10 So departing from iniquity is not a condition for salvation, but rather a characteristic of those who have been saved. Those who characteristically don't depart from iniquity show they don't belong to God.
"Free Grace Theology" or Antinomianism or Keswickian theology, however one refers to it, is the idea that departing from wickedness is optional. "Chaferism", for example, a form of Kewsickian theology to which Campus Crusade for Christ, or CRU as it's known now, has historically advocated the idea that one only need accept Christ as Savior to be be saved, accepting Christ's Lordship being optional, though they have since changed their position since the 90's. Yet in fact there is no such category among the saved who continue to live a lifestyle of sin, according to Paul's writings and John writings in 1John, and elsewhere. Consequently such theologies may be likened to godless chatter.
2Tim 2:19 Nevertheless, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: "The Lord knows those who are his," and, "Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness."
These were not quotes from scripture, but rather here Paul endorses a couple of expressions which encapsulate a couple of ideas foundational to the faith. But it's interesting to consider the implication of him bringing up these two ideas in this context of godless chatter.
"This Lord knows those who are His" implies that it might not be obvious from the standpoint of one's institutional allegiance. In other words, there are those who claim to be Christians, but their mere claim does not make one a child of God. There are those among the Christian community - the visible Church - who are His, namely the invisible Church - those who have actually been born of God - the genuine believers. Korah and his followers were Israelites, yet Moses said to them, "In the morning the LORD will show who belongs to him". Nu 16:5 What happened? "The ground under them split apart and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, with their households and all Korah’s men and all their possessions. They went down alive into the grave, with everything they owned; the earth closed over them, and they perished and were gone from the community." Nu 16:31-33 Yet such also will be the fate of nominal Christians.
"Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness." And indeed, "No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother." 1John 3:9,10 So departing from iniquity is not a condition for salvation, but rather a characteristic of those who have been saved. Those who characteristically don't depart from iniquity show they don't belong to God.
"Free Grace Theology" or Antinomianism or Keswickian theology, however one refers to it, is the idea that departing from wickedness is optional. "Chaferism", for example, a form of Kewsickian theology to which Campus Crusade for Christ, or CRU as it's known now, has historically advocated the idea that one only need accept Christ as Savior to be be saved, accepting Christ's Lordship being optional, though they have since changed their position since the 90's. Yet in fact there is no such category among the saved who continue to live a lifestyle of sin, according to Paul's writings and John writings in 1John, and elsewhere. Consequently such theologies may be likened to godless chatter.
