Shane,
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Yes, but there is this contradiction between Hebrews 6:4-6 and John 10:28 that I am trying to get someone to address.
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get your point bro, I've tried to explain them in my website. I've posted it here: Pls read and judge for yourself. Heb 6:4-6 is also covered. Hope it helps...
Matthew 7:21 -- "Not everyone who says to me, `Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
A rule of thumb in Bible study is to interpret difficult verses in the light of simple clear cut ones. We should not be building doctrines out of one or two difficult verses.
That said, many have taken the above verse to mean that Christians can lose their salvation if they do not do what God tells them to do. To them, the "will of my Father" means just about everything God tells them to do. But if that is the case, who can enter heaven? Who can do everything that God tells him to do? What about doing 80 per cent of it? Is that enough for a perfect God? It all boils down to salvation by works!
Obviously, the "will of my Father" here is not to be interpreted generally as "anything and everything that God tells us to do". So, what is it, specifically?
Note that the context in this verse is salvation -- "enter the kingdom of heaven". So, the Father's "will" should relate, specifically, to salvation, and it does!
* John 6:39 -- And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day.
* John 6:40 -- For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."
God's will in Matthew 7:21 is simply salvation for man. In fact, He is not willing that any should perish.
* Matthew 18:14 -- In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost.
* 2 Peter 3:9 -- The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
So, how do we fulfil the will of God in Matthew 7:21? What should we do? Actually, there's nothing we can do except to believe, since everything that needs to be done for man to be saved has already been done perfectly by Jesus. We cannot add to it. Our part is simply to believe!
* John 6:29Ê-- Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent."
So, in Matthew 7:21, Jesus is saying that only those who believe in Him will enter the kingdom of heaven!
Matthew 7:22,23 -- Many will say to me on that day, `Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, `I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!'
"On that day" refers to the Second Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. When He returns to earth in power and great glory (Matthew 24:30) to reign as King, the whole world will know that He is the Christ. At that time, many non-believers will call Him "Lord", out of fear or because it will be obvious to them that He is the Christ. But it will be too late then, because the time is up, the Master has returned! They should have believed earlier. They can't be saved then by calling Him "Lord", since faith will not be required as they will be able to see with their own eyes that Jesus is the Son of God!
Therefore, Jesus will tell these people that He never knew them and to depart. Afterall, they never had a personal relationship with Him, and calling Him "Lord" then will just be a vain attempt to start one!
But how can we be sure that these people in Matthew 7:22,23 are not Christians who have "lost their salvation"?
The key lies in the word "never", when Jesus says "I never knew you". Jesus would be lying if He used the word "never" because He would have known them at least once -- perhaps the first 10 years of their Christian life before they "renounced" Him and "lost their salvation", assuming that were possible.
So, who are these people who prophesied, drived out demons and performed miracles?
It must be noted that the "evildoers" themselves are making these claims, not Jesus. It sure sounds like they are saying those things in a desperate attempt to gain the Lord's recognition and get saved!
It could be Syed Baba, some Taoist spiritualist or a cult leader saying those things "on that day", perhaps with a misguided belief that they were doing it all in the name of God. Even today, such non-believers do have power (demonic in nature) to "heal" the sick, "tell" the future or have a demon speak through them, and "drive away" another demon if the demon that they serve holds a higher authority in Satan's kingdom.
Hebrews 6:4-6 -- It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.
The book of Hebrews was written to Jewish believers and non-believers, not so much to the Gentile church, although Gentile Christians can benefit greatly by reading the book. Contrast this book to Paul's epistles to the churches and the difference is quite clear.
The Jews were deeply entrenched in the laws, customs and sacrifices of Judaism. That is why Hebrews focuses on the fact that Jesus is the final sacrifice and the High Priest of high priests, and that He supercedes Moses, Abraham and all the other heroes of faith mentioned in the Old Testament (Hebrews 12:2).
Previously, mainly out of spiritual blindness, the Jews had failed to recognise Jesus as the Messiah, rejected His message of salvation by grace and crucified Him.
Now, after knowing better -- having "been enlightened", having had the gospel explained to them via the Apostles, having seen miracles by the power of the Holy Spirit in Acts -- if they continue to reject Christ, they are in a sense putting Jesus back on the cross -- "crucifying the Son of God all over again".
Is it possible that persons "who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age" can be non-believers?
Yes, Judas Iscariot was one such person. He had been with Jesus for about three years, sat under His teaching and even seen the power Jesus demonstrated through the Holy Spirit. Yet, Judas was not a believer. He never addressed Jesus as "Lord". You cannot find it in the Bible. Judas had only addressed Jesus as "Master" (Matthew 26:25).
Similarly, today, there are many people who have "tasted" Jesus and the gospel; seen miracles performed right in front of them or even on them, and yet turned away from God.
Note also that the verse only says "enlightened", "tasted" and "shared". These are not words the Bible associates with being saved. We know that salvation is by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8). We don't get saved by being "enlightened", by "tasting" or by "sharing"! All that is good but we must still believe in our hearts and confess Jesus as our Lord and righteousness (Romans 10:9).
2 Peter 2:20,21 -- If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them.
Who are "they" here? It becomes clear when we read the whole chapter. In fact, the first verse already tells us that "they" are the "false teachers" (and the like) who deny Christ. And people who deny Christ cannot be Christians!
* 2 Peter 2:1 -- But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them--bringing swift destruction on themselves.
The entire chapter talks about the terribly sinful lifestyles of these people and the punishment that awaits them. Besides introducing "destructive heresies", they are "not afraid to slander celestial beings", "blaspheme in matters they do not understand", behave like "brute beasts", "carouse in broad daylight", have "eyes full of adultery", "nevery stop sinning", are "experts in greed", "appeal to the lustful desires of sinful human nature" and so on. People who live like that are certainly not Christians.
In fact, Peter makes a distinction between such "ungodly" and "lawless" people, and "righteous" and "godly" Christians, when he talks about Noah's flood, and the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. In other words, there is a clear "they" (the lawless non-believers) and "you" (the Christian) differentiation.
* 2 Peter 2:5-9 -- if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men (for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)-- if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment.
The last verse in this chapter also shows us that Peter is not talking about Christians.
* 2 Peter 2:22 -- Of them the proverbs are true: "A dog returns to its vomit," and, "A sow that is washed goes back to her wallowing in the mud."
The Bible usually refers to believers as "sheep" and non-believers as "goats" or "wolves". Here, the terms "dog" and "sow" are used. Straightaway, we know that the verse is not refering to Christians. Also, it does not say "a sheep transforms into a dog again and returns to its vomit". Once you are born again and have become a "sheep" belonging to the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ, you cannot lose your salvation and turn back into a goat or dog again! You will never find such analogies in the Bible.
Finally, "knowing our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ" or having "known the way of righteousness" (verses 20 and 21) does not make one a Christian. There are Bible scholars who know Jesus Christ and the Gospel, and yet are not Christians. There are people who have attended church for many years who are not born again. My friend's mum was one such person. We both thought that she was a Christian, since she had been attending an Anglican church for many years. One Sunday morning, she attended our church service. When our Pastor gave the altar call, to our astonishment, she raised her hand, went to the front and prayed to receive Jesus Christ into her heart!
The KJV translation shows more clearly that verses 20 and 21 refer only to head knowledge of Jesus Christ and not genuine conversion:
* 2 Peter 2:20,21 [KJV] -- For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
In fact, in verse 21, it says that the "way of righteousness" was only "delivered" to them, to which they rejected it by turning their backs on it. A person who has been shown the way of righteousness -- Jesus Christ -- yet turn his back on the Saviour, is obviously not a Christian!
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