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NASB | John 15:6 "If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | John 15:6 "If anyone does not remain in Me, he is thrown out like a [broken off] branch, and withers and dies; and they gather such branches and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. |
Bible Question:
Once saved always saved? In Matthew 25:14-30, was the lazy slave a subject of the kingdom? If so, how would he have lost his salvation due to laziness since he already was a recipient of the daily protection and caring of his master? Did he not believe that his master was serious about the orders he had given him? Does effort matter to salvation? In John 15:6, are the branches which were thrown away and burned originally part of the vine? John 15:1 tells us that the vine is Christ. If those branches were part of the vine, how is someone part of Christ without being a Christian? Were these "false branches"? Is salvation like a freeze-dried fruitcake, lasting indefinitely without spoilage or must those who seek for eternal life with God constantly discipline themselves to ensure they are faithful until death? If they must discipline themselves, how do they do that by belief? Is there an expectation that they will be disciplined miraculously or must conscious decisions be made to control their own behavior? AO |
Bible Answer: Greetings AO! You said… “In Matthew 25:14-30, was the lazy slave a subject of the kingdom? If so, how would he have lost his salvation due to laziness since he already was a recipient of the daily protection and caring of his master? Did he not believe that his master was serious about the orders he had given him? Does effort matter to salvation?” I think what is being illustrated here is that the first two servants showed their true faith in the Lord because they trusted Him as an honest master. Notice that the rewards given were based on faith, not the results of the servants’ works. What the third servant showed was his hypocrisy. He first off he stated that he “knew you were a hard man”. This shows that the third servant really never knew his master, because if he did, he would have shown faith like the first two servants and known that the master was a fair man. With this, the master uses the mans own words to indict him as lazy and not a true servant, then casting him into out darkness. We know from the biblical record that Christ would never cast a true believer into hell. Therefore, I would argue that the third servant was never truly regenerate. ”In John 15:6, are the branches which were thrown away and burned originally part of the vine? John 15:1 tells us that the vine is Christ. If those branches were part of the vine, how is someone part of Christ without being a Christian? Were these "false branches"?” In this section, there are two types of branches, ones that bear fruit, and ones that do not bear fruit. Christ teaches that we must abide in Him, rest in Him, find safety in Him. Those who do this show their true faith, they show the fruits and prove they are of the elect, because they endure until the end. The other braches show that they are not really true because they do not bear fruit. In addition, they do not abide in Christ. If a person professes Christ, yet does not bear fruit and shows no sign of regeneration, I think it is prudent to conclude they never really believed in the first place, for if they did, according to other passages in the Word, they would have stayed in Christ. ”Is salvation like a freeze-dried fruitcake, lasting indefinitely without spoilage or must those who seek for eternal life with God constantly discipline themselves to ensure they are faithful until death? If they must discipline themselves, how do they do that by belief? Is there an expectation that they will be disciplined miraculously or must conscious decisions be made to control their own behavior?” 2 Pet 1:10-11: “Wherefore, brethren, give the more diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never stumble: for thus shall be richly supplied unto you the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” (NAS 1901) Fruitcake!? According to Peter, we must give due diligence to see if we are of the elect, to make our calling and election sure. True Christians discipline themselves out of obedience to Christ. Not out of a feeling that THEY must do something to “keep” their salvation. A true believer knows they are saved because of the many promises God makes to Christ throughout the Bible. Therefore, if we are found in Christ, those promises are for us, His chosen flock. I am not arguing though, that a person who once professed Christ, but then left the visible church, is not saved. Clearly Jesus taught about the prodigal son(Luke 15), so we must hope for the best and pray that folks who leave the visible church will come back in faith. I wrote more about persevering until the end at ID# 88279 if you want to check my comments out there. I think I am pushing the “character” limit in the Forum! ;-) I hope and pray this was of some help. I will pray that the Spirit will guide you into all truth. God be with you AO, have a blessed day! I’ll leave you with some passages from Scripture that I believe speak to the issue at hand… Is. 54:10; Jer. 32:40; Matt. 18:14; John 3:16, 3:36, 5:24, 6:35, 6:37, 6:40, 6:47, 10:27-29; Rom. 5:8-10, 8:1, 8:29, 8:34-39; 1 Cor. 1:8-9; 2 Cor. 4:14, 5:5, Eph. 1:5, 1:13-14, 4:30; 1 Thess. 5:23-24; 2 Tim 4:18; Heb. 7:25, 9:12, 9:15, 10:14; 1 Pet 1:5; 1 John 2:19, 2:25; 2 John 5:11-13; Jude 24-25 In Christ, Joe |