To the Reader

I urge you to evaluate this paper on the merits of the Scriptures I have given you, and not on tradition or on the teachings of men. I have given you a lot of scripture, all in context--evaluate what the Bible says, not what men want it to say. Also, do not be intimidated by men or their opinions.

There is no doubt in my mind, that salvation is by Grace alone through faith in Christ alone, and that Water Baptism is a sign and declaration of that relationship with Christ and is a first step of obedience in the Christian life. Being baptized in water does not add one iota to your salvation, and missing baptism in water for a valid reason will not detract from your salvation. However, if someone is willful and will not be water baptized in spite of understanding the scriptural instruction to do so, then that person is giving evidence of a heart still bound by sin--in all probability, such a person was never a believer. However, if someone thinks that an act of a human being, be it water baptism or any other act, contributes in any way to salvation, that person is stealing the glory and honor which go to God alone, and is destroying grace--if you think a work contributed to your salvation, you need to examine yourself to see whether or not you are indeed saved This paper, which may someday become a book, is written to examine an important theological question: “Is Baptism Necessary for Salvation?” There are several different viewpoints on this question.

Soli Deo Gloria--To God Alone Be the Glory

Baptismal Regeneration--This is the viewpoint of the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, some Pentecostal sects (notably the anti-trinitarian United Pentecostal Church and other “Jesus Only” groups), and pseudo-christian cult groups such as the Mormons. Baptismal Regeneration is also the doctrinal stance of many teachers and preachers within the Restoration Movement, sometimes called Campbellism (from its founder, Alexander Campbell), whose members are mainly found in churches called Churches of Christ or Independent Christian Churches. People who hold to baptismal regeneration would argue that water baptism is an essential part of salvation because, in their view, it is in the act or ceremony of water baptism that we are born again.

Necessary Obedience--In this view, baptism is a part of a process necessary for salvation. The several steps of this process are: repentance, faith, confession, baptism, and perpetual obedience in life. Some “Campbellites,” some Baptists, and some independent evangelicals hold to this viewpoint.

Ultra-Dispensationalists and Quakers--deny that water baptism is appropriate in this age. In their viewpoint, the Baptism of the Spirit replaced water baptism, which was a transitory ordinance.

The Covenant View--Held by conservative Lutherans, Presbyterians, Congregationalists, and Methodists, is that baptism is the New Testament equivalent to circumcision, and should be performed on new converts and on the infant children of believers as a sign of the covenant.

The Common Evangelical View--This view, held by the overwhelming majority of Bible-believing Christians, Baptists in particular, is that baptism and the Lord’s Supper are ceremonies, or ordinances, given by Christ as signs and memorials to indicate inward realities. As the Lord’s Supper is a remembrance and proclamation of the death of Christ on the Cross and is an expression of the unity of the Body of Christ, Water Baptism is a confession and declaration of the inward reality of salvation in the life of a new convert.

As I examine this question, I will confine the discussion to the common evangelical view of baptism in contrast to any view which makes water baptism a necessary part of salvation. Rather than spend much time examining the counterfeit views or quoting their teachers, I will concentrate on demonstrating the teaching of Scripture. The discussion, however, is only partly about Water Baptism--the real question is “What is the Nature of Salvation?” Once we have answered that question, we can understand the place of Water Baptism. This paper is organized into the following chapters:

1. Proper Biblical Interpretation

2. Sola Gratia (Grace Alone)

3. Sola Fide (Faith Alone)

4. The Perseverance of the Saints

5. Holy Spirit Baptism

6. Water Baptism--The Form and Practice of the Early Church

Chapter 1
Proper Biblical Interpretation

One of the great difficulties in this or any doctrinal discussion is the issue of proper Biblical interpretation. If we are discussing the Bible, we have to understand how to interpret it. It is easy to make a proud declaration, “I let the Bible speak for itself.,” or “I let the Bible interpret itself,” but all who interpret the Bible say something like that, yet differ on many issues. All students of the Bible, no matter how pristine they claim to be, use interpretative methods.

1. The first issue in Biblical interpretation is, “What is your authority?”

There are several answers to this question. This is really one of the most important questions, for if I have a different authority base than another man, we are very unlikely to ever come to agreement on anything. There are various answers to this question:

a. The Whole Bible, in the context of the fully revealed “Faith Once Delivered,” and in view of the appropriate interrelation between the Old and New Covenants, as revealed in the New Testament.

This is the normal authority base for conservative evangelicals, because we recognize that this is really the authority base authorized by Jesus and used by the Apostles. Several facts stand out in this regard:

(1) Jesus made it plain that no part of the law was to be done away with until fulfilled (Mat 5:17-19).

(2) The ceremonial and sacrificial aspects of the Old Covenant temple worship were removed in the Cross (the Book of Hebrews explains this).

(3) Circumcision and the dietary laws are not ceremonial requirements for Christians. The dietary laws were removed by Christ Himself in His vision to Peter, and this vision was confirmed by the church council in Acts 15 and emphasized in Galatians and other epistles.

(4) Some of the prophecies of the Old Covenant prophets were fulfilled in the ministry of Christ, but not all of them, for many Old Testament prophecies refer to the second coming of Christ.

(5) The normal day of worship was changed to Sunday by the apostles (Acts 20:7).

(6) The cross removed the barriers which had kept most gentiles (all but a very few proselytes) out of the covenant (Eph 2:11 and following).

(7) However, much of the Old Testament remains authoritative. In fact, many of the most vital doctrines of the faith are ONLY fully explained in the Old Testament.

(a) In the Old Testament alone do we learn the full teaching of the attributes of God, in such passages as Job 42:1-6, Isaiah 40, and many of the Psalms.

(b) In the Old Testament, we learn much about the nature of sin itself--Paul, in his summary on the nature and effects of sin in Romans 3:9-20 quotes the O.T. profusely.

(c) In the Old Testament, we have some of the most vital verses for understanding the nature of the Trinity and of the Deity of Christ. The writer to the Hebrews, in his masterful exclamation of the glories of Christ in Chapter 1, again, quotes the O.T. from several places.

(d) The gospel can be preached from many places in the Old Testament. Jesus preached the gospel from the O.T. AFTER His resurrection (Luk 24:25-27). The apostles and prophets in the preached from the Old Testament. In his declaration to Timothy about the Bible (quoted below) Paul was speaking of the Old Testament, for the New was not even completed yet.

2 Tim 3:14 But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them,

2 Tim 3:15 and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

2 Tim 3:16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,

2 Tim 3:17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

b. The New Testament only.

This is the normal authority base for those in the Restoration Movement, known variously as Campbellites (for their founder, Alexander Campbell), Church of Christ, Independent Christian Churches, etc. They actually claim to recognize the entire Bible, but they really will accept no scriptures from the Old Testament as having any authority in any discussion, no matter what the context. In this viewpoint, they resemble the teachings of the ancient gnostic heretic, Marcion, who subtracted from the Bible in much the same manner as they.

c. The whole Bible, plus the prophetic revelations of modern-day prophets.

Many cults and isms, and some Pentecostal and Charismatic groups would be in this camp. Most evangelicals, however, agree that the prohibition against adding to the last book of the Bible written (Revelation) means that the canon (list of scriptural books) is closed, and no divine revelation, spoken or written, may be added to the Bible we have.

Rev 22:18 For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book;

d. The Bible, plus some extra books, plus the declarations of the church councils, plus the determinations of the “doctors of the church,” plus the ex cathedra declarations of the Pope.

This, of course, is the Roman Catholic position.

e. The Bible, minus those things which are no longer “culturally relevant.”

This is the position of many evangelicals who are giving in to the first inroads of liberalism.

Rev 22:19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.

f. The Bible, minus anything I don’t like--this is the common position of many people in pews.

2. There are several rules which I would suggest for interpreting the Bible.

These rules are mainly derived from the common rules of language, and are not themselves of any particular authority, but I believe you will find they hold true.

a. Context--context is a very important concept.

You cannot rip a verse from its immediate surroundings and make it say something it doesn’t mean. In any language, words, phrases, and sentences mean what they mean in relation to the words, phrases and sentences around them.

(1) The most important context is the historical-grammatical context of a verse or passage. To whom was it written? What is the internal context of the book or chapter? What is the topic under discussion? What is the common linguistic meaning of the actual words said?

(2) The second most important context is “the analogy of the faith.” By that, I mean the sum total of Biblical comment on any topic. For example, a verse (such as Jn 14:10) may SEEM to teach, for instance, that Jesus the Messiah is (NOT “The Lord of me and The God of me” (literal translation of Jn 20:28), but the analogy of the faith teaches us that Jesus is “very God of very God.” In any passage that bears upon a doctrinal area, its apparent meaning must be submitted to the test of the analogy of the faith. We must, as Paul says, compare spiritual things with spiritual. (1 Cor 2:13). If I have forty verses that teach a particular thing, and there are two or three verses which SEEM on the surface to contradict the forty, then I really need to examine the two or three, not overthrow the forty.

b. The Linguistic Test --What do the words and phrases mean?

If the plain sense of a verse fits the test of context (including agreement with the general teaching of the Bible on that subject) and definition, the plain sense is the right sense.

(1) What do the words mean in the original? This is touchy, for a “little Greek or Hebrew is a dangerous thing.” An original language dictionary may help, or it may hinder. In general, our more conservative translations convey the literal meaning of the words very well, especially the King James, New King James, and New American Standard translations. Original language studies can clarify or amplify meaning, but they will rarely change the meaning of the phrase in the common English translations.

(2) In consideration of definition, a linguistic test that is usually far more meaningful than original language analysis is “how is a word used elsewhere in the Scriptures?”

c. One needs to distinguish between “is” and “ought” scriptures--

(1) An “is” scripture is a narrative, such as the historical accounts in the OT, or such as the historical accounts in the gospels and Acts. An “is” scripture may contain didactic elements, but is in the main an historical account. An “is” tells you what happened or what was said, but does not often explain the meaning of the events or statements.

(2) An “ought” scripture is didactic, declarative, and explanatory. An “ought” makes statements and explains the statements, often explaining prior events as well. Examples are the longer discourses of the Lord, the sermons in Acts, and the epistles. You never interpret an “ought” by an “is,” but rather, you explain the “is” by the “ought.”

(In addition, there are the “do what?” scriptures--”do what?” is an exclamatory expression in the Appalachian dialect, which expresses exasperation and puzzlement at the event or statement which generated the exclamatory reaction. “Do What?” scriptures would include the Apocalypse and the obscure prophetic passages in the OT. Hermeneutically, I am just very careful how I handle these passages, and tend not to make any sweeping conclusions from them.)

Chapter 2
Sola Gratia (Grace Alone)

Saved by Grace Eph 2:8-10

In all the vastness of our world, in all of the diversity of religious beliefs, there are only two essential types of belief, works and Grace. There seem to be many differences between the world’s religions, but they are all essentially the same--they all center around human works. All involve human beings accomplishing a task or set of tasks to achieve a goal and receive a reward. The tasks may be different, the goal may have differing names, and the reward may be called many things (Heaven Paradise, Nirvana), but the principle underlying all of them is the same--Quid Pro Quo, which is Latin for “this for that.” In the world’s religions, salvation (righteousness, oneness with the Infinite, perfect nothingness, or whatever is the term in a particular religion) is earned by what one does. Unfortunately, within this group of religions based on human effort are many species of religion that go by the name of Christianity.

True Bible Christianity, however, “the faith once delivered to the saints,” is totally distinct from the world’s religions in this area as in so many others. The thing that makes Christianity far different from all other religions is the concept of Grace. To help us understand the difference, we need to look at the at the two basic paradigms for all religions. (A Paradigm is a model, an outline, a form that something takes, that we can diagram to help us understand it.)

Paradigm #1: Works (Followed by most religions, including much of “Christianity.”)

Paradigm #2: Salvation by Grace

(1) Salvation is 100 percent a work of God--we are unable, because of our bondage to sin and rebellion, to do anything meriting God’s favor.

(2) God reaches down to save people--He conceived the plan, He sent His Son to accomplish the plan--He does 100% of the work.

(3) When we experience what the Bible calls the New Birth (Jn 3:3-8), we are then SAVED, we pass from death to life (Eph 2:1-6, Jn 5:24, 6:40, 6:47).

(4) As a part of the gift of Salvation, we become adopted children of God (Gal 3:26-4:7).

(5) When we sin, God deals with us as a Father to a child (Heb 12:4-8).

(6) God’s Grace and actions are the determining factors in our salvation, even to include His working in our lives to develop a lifestyle consistent with salvation. (Eph 2:8-10, Phil. 2:12-13)

You might ask, “If this is all a work of God, where do I fit in the process?” The answer is you must believe, you must exercise faith in Christ for salvation. (Rom 10:9-13, Acts 16:30-31). This exercise is not a work, however, because is involves no ability on our part and no effort on our part. That is the hard thing to understand about faith--it is not an action, it is a surrender, a throwing up of the hands and saying, “I can do nothing in myself.”

1. Undeserved Grace--Eph 2:1-3

The Grace of God is so simple, yet so profound that it is beyond the greatest minds to fully understand. It stands in opposition to the ideas that most of us have about earning our way in the world, about people getting what they deserve, about “fairness,” and about the independence of human beings. The best simple definition this writer has ever heard for Grace is God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. The meaning of Grace behind that simple explanation is one of the most hated teachings in the world because it so totally undermines and removes all traces of human pride. The Doctrine of Grace teaches that we are totally unable to save ourselves, to help in our salvation, to do anything to merit all or any part of our salvation, or to keep our salvation. We are saved totally as an act of God’s will, and we do not deserve it in any way. Indeed, those that are saved are equally (if not more) deserving of Hell as those who actually go there! This is the most important first principle in understanding Grace--no one in the entire human race deserves any consideration from God, we are all rebels and sinners, and we all deserve Hell. Except for His own redemption plan, God could rightfully have sent the entire human race to eternal punishment long ago! The description Paul gives of believers before salvation fits the entire human race if they are without Christ.

a. What is Grace?

(1) God’s unmerited favor?

As A.W. Pink said, it is not just unmerited favor that constitutes Grace--it is favor shown where there is positive demerit. To show kindness to a stranger is not Grace, but to show kindness to an enemy, that is Grace.

(2) G-R-A-C-E

God’s
Riches
At
Christ’s
Expense

b. The objects of His Grace

(1) Spiritually dead sinners--

Eph 2:1 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins,

(2) Servants of the enemy--

Eph 2:2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience,

(3) Enemies of God by nature--1 Cor 2:14,

Romans 8:6-8 For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so; and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

Eph 2:3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.

2. God’s Grace--Unsought

Eph 2:4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

Eph 2:5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),

Eph 2:6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

Eph 2:7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

Isaiah 64:6-7 For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. And there is no one who calls on Thy name, Who arouses himself to take hold of Thee; For Thou hast hidden Thy face from us, And hast delivered us into the power of our iniquities.

Romans 3:9-11 What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin; as it is written, “There is none righteous, not even one; There is none who understands, There is none who seeks for God;

3. God’s Grace--His Work What is the meaning of Grace?

• We were dead spiritually; we were fit for nothing but wrath; we were rebels and in bondage to sin and Satan.
• In the midst of that condition, God saved us.
• We exercised faith, which is itself a gift of God (Jn 6:44-47), and God blessed us with the greatest possible gift--eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord! (Jn 5:24, 6:37-40).
• What is more, we can add nothing to Grace. Before we were saved, we had nothing to contribute to the process ( Rom 3:10-11, 1 Cor 2:14, Job 14:4, Jer. 13:23), and During the New Birth experience, we add nothing to it. Indeed, to try to add any human works to grace destroys grace.

Rom 11:5 Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace.

Rom 11:6 And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work.

Eph 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,

Eph 2:9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.

Eph 2:10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

Other Grace Verses

Acts 15:11 “But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved in the same manner as they.”

Acts 18:27 And when he desired to cross to Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him; and when he arrived, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace;

Acts 20:24 “But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

Acts 20:32 “So now, brethren, I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

Rom 1:5 Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name,

Rom 1:7 To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Rom 3:24 being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,

Rom 4:4 Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.

Rom 4:16 Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all

Rom 5:2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Rom 5:15 But the free gift is not like the offense. For if by the one man’s offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many.

Rom 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.

Rom 6:15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not!

1 Cor 1:4 I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus,

1 Cor 3:10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it.

1 Cor 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.

2 Cor 1:12 For our boasting is this: the testimony of our conscience that we conducted ourselves in the world in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom but by the grace of God, and more abundantly toward you.

Gal 1:6 I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel,

Gal 1:15 But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace,

Gal 2:9 and when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that had been given to me, they gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised.

Gal 2:21 “I do not set aside the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain.”

Eph 1:6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved.

Eph 1:7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace

Eph 3:2 if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you,

Eph 3:7 of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective working of His power.

Eph 3:8 To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,

Eph 4:7 But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.

2 Th 1:12 that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Tim 1:9 who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,

2 Tim 2:1 You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

Titus 2:11 For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men,

Titus 3:7 that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Heb 2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.

Heb 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Heb 12:15 looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled;

Heb 12:28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.

Heb 13:9 Do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines. For it is good that the heart be established by grace, not with foods which have not profited those who have been occupied with them.

1 Pet 1:10 Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you,

1 Pet 1:13 Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

Chapter 3
Sola Fide (Faith Alone)

What does the term “Justified” mean? The Bible meaning of the word is to be totally blameless and totally guiltless--to be able to stand before God clean and pure in every way. A play on the word helps us to understand its meaning. If I am Justified, it is Just-as-if-I’d never sinned, and Just-as-if-I’d always been holy and done the right things. Remember our helpless position before God--as “children of Wrath,” we are unable to satisfy God--all His lovely and perfect Law can do is condemn us.

Rom 3:19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.

Rom 3:20 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

Our Father, however, has devised a plan and made a way for us to stand righteous before Him. He has sent His own Son as a Sacrifice on our behalf, (chapter 5) and those who believe in Him shall have everlasting life, and shall be seen as righteous in God’s sight.

Rom 3:21 But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets,

Rom 3:22 even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference;

Rom 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Rom 3:24 being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,

Rom 3:25 whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed,

Rom 3:26 to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Rom 3:27 Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the law of faith.

Rom 3:28 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law.

This righteousness we receive is imputed righteousness--that is a theological term which means righteousness is put to our account, just like a deposit put in our bank account by someone else. God legally declares us to be righteous, and puts that on our record in Heaven.

Rom 4:1 What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh?

Rom 4:2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.

Rom 4:3 For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

Rom 4:4 Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.

Rom 4:5 But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness,

Rom 4:6 just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works:

Rom 4:7 “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, And whose sins are covered;

Rom 4:8 Blessed is the man to whom the LORD shall not impute sin.”

The illustration on the next page shows a ledger, an account book. In order for you to understand the principle, do the following things:

(1) Write your name by the words “Account Holder.”

(2) Using a black or blue pen, under the column labeled “Sins on Account,” write some of your known sins--don’t be bashful, put several in. Then imagine how many pages the real account is!

(3) You can’t put anything in the column that says “Good Works Done,” because you have none (Is 64:6).

(4) Now take a different pen--a bright RED one, and across the “Sins on Account” column, write in large letters, “Paid for by Christ’s Blood!”

(5) Under the “Good Works Done” column, write again in RED, “Supplied by the Righteousness of Christ.”

And how does one come to this faith? it happens when the lost person hears the preaching of the word and places his or her faith in Christ, and confesses that faith before others.

Rom 10:8 But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach):

Rom 10:9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

Rom 10:10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Rom 10:11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”

Rom 10:12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him.

Rom 10:13 For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”

Rom 10:14 How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?

Rom 10:15 And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things!”

Rom 10:16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our report?”

Rom 10:17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

This is Justification, to stand before God with all accounts paid, and clothed in the righteousness of His only Son, Jesus Christ. To be able know that you have “peace with God”--there is no more war between you and the Almighty. (Rom 5:1). Taken together, the concepts of Grace and Justification by Faith show the uniqueness of the Christian doctrine of Salvation. It is like the exclamation of Jonah--”Salvation is of the LORD!” (Jonah 2:9, KJV). The message of Grace is God Saves Sinners. It is His Plan, it was His Son who died and rose again, it is His Spirit who enlivens the preaching and witness of believers to awaken sinners to their need of salvation and lead them to faith in Christ. Three of the watchwords of the revival of Biblical preaching known as the Reformation were: Sola Fide (Faith alone), Sola Gratia (Grace alone), and Sola Christi (Christ alone). These Latin terms describe God’s salvation plan in a nutshell--He has done it all, and we can claim no credit for ourselves. The result of this wonderful outpouring of His love is our salvation, and that results further in the fourth watchword: Soli Deo Gloria (The Glory to God alone).

There are many other verses which help us understand more about faith and salvation. Some are listed below.

John 1:12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:

John 1:13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

John 3:14 “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,

John 3:15 “that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

John 3:18 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

John 3:36 “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

John 5:24 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.

John 6:29 Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”

John 6:35 And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.

John 6:36 “But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe.

John 6:37 “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.

John 6:38 “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.

John 6:39 “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 6:40 “And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”

John 6:41 The Jews then complained about Him, because He said, “I am the bread which came down from heaven.”

John 6:42 And they said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”

John 6:43 Jesus therefore answered and said to them, “Do not murmur among yourselves.

John 6:44 “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.

John 6:45 “It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.

John 6:46 “Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God; He has seen the Father.

John 6:47 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.

John 7:38 “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”

John 9:35 Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, “Do you believe in the Son of God?”

John 11:25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.

John 11:26 “And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

John 12:36 “While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.

John 12:44 Then Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in Me, believes not in Me but in Him who sent Me.

John 12:46 “I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness.

John 14:1 “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.

John 14:12 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.

John 20:29 Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

John 20:31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.

Acts 10:43 “To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins.”

Acts 15:9 “and made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.

Acts 16:31 So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

Acts 20:21 “testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

Rom 9:33 As it is written: “Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense, And whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”

Rom 10:4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

Gal 2:16 “knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.

Gal 3:1 O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified?

Gal 3:2 This only I want to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?

Gal 3:3 Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?

Gal 3:4 Have you suffered so many things in vain; if indeed it was in vain?

Gal 3:5 Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?;

Gal 3:6 just as Abraham “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

Gal 3:7 Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham.

Gal 3:8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, “In you all the nations shall be blessed.”

Gal 3:9 So then those who are of faith are blessed with believing Abraham.

Gal 3:10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.”

Gal 3:11 But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for “the just shall live by faith.”

Gal 3:12 Yet the law is not of faith, but “the man who does them shall live by them.”

Gal 3:13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”),

Gal 3:14 that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Gal 3:15 Brethren, I speak in the manner of men: Though it is only a man’s covenant, yet if it is confirmed, no one annuls or adds to it.

Gal 3:16 Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as of many, but as of one, “And to your Seed,” who is Christ.

Gal 3:17 And this I say, that the law, which was four hundred and thirty years later, cannot annul the covenant that was confirmed before by God in Christ, that it should make the promise of no effect.

Gal 3:18 For if the inheritance is of the law, it is no longer of promise; but God gave it to Abraham by promise.

Gal 3:19 What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator.

Gal 3:20 Now a mediator does not mediate for one only, but God is one.

Gal 3:21 Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law.

Gal 3:22 But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.

Gal 3:23 But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed.

Gal 3:24 Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.

Gal 3:25 But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.

Gal 3:26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

Gal 3:27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Gal 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Gal 3:29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Eph 1:12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.

Eph 1:13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,

Eph 1:14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.

Eph 3:17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love,

Phil 3:9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith;

1 Tim 1:16 However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life.

2 Tim 3:15 and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

1 Pet 2:6 Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture, “Behold, I lay in Zion A chief cornerstone, elect, precious, And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.”

1 Pet 2:7 Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, “The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone,”

2 Pet 1:1 Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:

1 John 3:23 And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment.

1 John 5:4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world; our faith.

1 John 5:5 Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

1 John 5:10 He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son.

1 John 5:13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.

Chapter 4
The Perseverance of the Saints
John 10:26-30

Introductory Thoughts

The doctrinal area we now enter is too often one of “sound bite” slogans--”Once Saved, Always Saved,” and “Falling From Grace.” It is also an area where extreme viewpoints tend to dominate, and where sober exegesis and doctrinal study are often subject to party theological lines rather than to what the Word of God really says. The real question we examine here is this: “Is it possible for a person who has been truly saved to lose their salvation?” I will tell you up front that the resounding Biblical answer is “NO!” The problem is, that this real question is lost in a fog of doctrinal misunderstandings, misrepresentations, and deviations from the subject, and both “sides” of this debate are guilty of these theological errata.

This doctrinal area is one where great care must be used to avoid giving false security, while at the same time giving encouragement to the weak brother or sister.

Much of what has been written, preached, and taught in favor of Perseverance (Eternal Security) is dangerous, because it is incomplete, and can lead to a false sense of security.

This false sense of security, combined with what is often in our day a very shallow and incomplete presentation of the gospel, leads to apostasy on a grand scale by those who were never truly saved. These false believers don’t understand salvation, they don’t have salvation, but they have made a profession of faith, and probably have identified with a local congregation.

Moreover, much of what is written and taught against the doctrine of Perseverance does not address the Biblical doctrine of Perseverance, but those who oppose Perseverance build up a false “straw man” doctrine to tear down. Unfortunately, there are those who preach and teach doctrines too close to the “straw man” for comfort. There really is such a thing as a false doctrine of eternal security. There really is such a thing as “carnal security” or “hell insurance”

1. The Nature of Salvation

a. Salvation in general

(1) Salvation is 100 percent a work of God--we are unable, because of our bondage to sin and rebellion, to do anything meriting God’s favor.

(2) God reaches down to save people--He conceived the plan, He sent His Son to accomplish the plan--He does 100% of the work.

(3) When we experience what the Bible calls the New Birth (Jn 3:3-8), we are then SAVED, we pass from death to life (Eph 2:1-6, Jn 5:24, 6:40, 6:47).

John 5:24 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.

John 6:47 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.

(4) As a part of the gift of Salvation, we become adopted children of God (Gal 3:26-4:7).

5) When we sin, God deals with us as a Father to a child ((Heb 12:4-8).

(6) God’s Grace and actions are the determining factors in our salvation, even to include His working in our lives to develop a lifestyle consistent with salvation. (Eph 2:8-10, Phil. 2:12-13)

b. The New Birth--the Spiritual Experience of Salvation

(1) Its na

(a) God is the author of the New Birth

James 1:18 Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of first fruits of His creatures.

1 Pet 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

1 Pet 1:22 Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart,

1 Pet 1:23 having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever,

Titus 3:5 not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit,

Titus 3:6 whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior,

(b) The New Birth is totally out of our control, like the wind

John 1:13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

John 3:8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

• (c) The New Birth is a change of heart and a resurrection of our spirit

Eph 2:4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

Eph 2:5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),

Eph 2:6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

John 5:21 “For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will.

John 5:22 “For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son,

John 5:23 “that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.

John 5:24 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.

John 5:25 “Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live.

John 5:26 “For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself,

Ezek 36:26 “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

Ezek 36:27 “I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.

(2) Its effects

(a) Indwelling Spirit

Rom 8:9 But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.

Rom 8:10 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.

Rom 8:11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

(b) Adoption

Rom 8:15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.”

Rom 8:16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,

Gal 4:4 But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law,

Gal 4:5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.

Gal 4:6 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!”

Gal 4:7 Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

(c) Two natures

Gal 5:16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.

Gal 5:17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.

c. Justification by Faith--The legal transaction of salvation.

(1) The nature of Justification--Legal Transaction

(a) Our sin is overwhelming, and we can do nothing about it--Rom 3:9-20

(b) God has made a way of justification through faith in Christ’s blood--Rom 3:21-4:25

(2) The Author of Justification--God--Rom 3:21-26

(3) The effects of Justification

Isa 32:17 The work of righteousness will be peace, And the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever.

Rom 5:1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

Rom 5:2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

d. Salvation by Grace--the root cause of salvation

(1) Undeserved Grace--Eph 2:1-3

(2) Unsought Grace--”and That not of yourselves...”

Isaiah 64:6-7 For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. And there is no one who calls on Thy name, Who arouses himself to take hold of Thee; For Thou hast hidden Thy face from us, And hast delivered us into the power of our iniquities.

Romans 3:9-11 What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin; as it is written, “There is none righteous, not even one; There is none who understands, There is none who seeks for God;

(3) Amazing Grace--Eph 2:8-9

(4) Lasting Grace--Eph 2:10

e. Other Ideas related to the Saint’s Perseverance

(1) Sheep don’t become goats

(2) Children don’t become non-children

2. The evidences of salvation--growth, fruit, and perseverance

2 Pet 1:5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge,

2 Pet 1:6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness,

2 Pet 1:7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.

2 Pet 1:8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2 Pet 1:9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.

2 Pet 1:10 Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble;

2 Pet 1:11 for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

2 Pet 1:12 For this reason I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth.

a. Growth in Grace--

2 Pet 3:14 Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;

2 Pet 3:15 and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you,

2 Pet 3:16 as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.

2 Pet 3:17 You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked;

2 Pet 3:18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.

b. Spiritual