Apostasy and Assurance - Sociology - Lecture Slides, Slides of Sociology

Download Apostasy and Assurance - Sociology - Lecture Slides and more Slides Sociology in PDF only on Docsity!

Apostasy and Assurance

Apostasy & Assurance

• Can believers in Jesus lose their salvation?
  • Calvinist Christians say no.
  • Arminian Christians say yes.
• Both agree that people who think they are saved can fall away, and many do.
• We are not going to answer the whole question, but look at one important passage, which many think teaches believers can lose their salvation.

The Fearful Nature of Apostasy

Hebrews 6:4 (NIV) It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, 6 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 Fearful Nature of Apostasy

• These verses form a major area of dispute between those who believe saved people can never be lost (Calvinists) and those who believe saved people can be lost (Arminians).
• The verses picture people who show characteristics we usually associate with the saved, yet they finally fall away.
• For such people, this passage says there is no possibility of return.

An Illustration

• This illustrates the previous remarks.
• Here we see two types of ground:
  • Both receive rain.
  • One yields good fruit, the other thorns & thistles.
• Like these two types of ground, so there are two types of people. - Both receive heavenly gifts. - One yields faithfulness, the other falls away.
• Some internal difference in both cases produces different external results, even though both receive the same benefits.
• What is this internal difference?

The Things That

Accompany Salvation

Hebrews 6:9 (NIV) Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are confident of better things in your case n things that accompany

salvation. 10 God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. 11 We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. 12 We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.

The Example of Abraham

• The writer of Hebrews urges his readers to be imitators of those who through faith and endurance inherited the promises. - Like Abraham
• Let’s look at what the writer has to say about Abraham.

The Example of Abraham

Hebrews 6:13 (NIV) When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself, 14 saying, "I will surely bless you and give you many descendants." [Gen. 22:17] 15 And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.

God’s Oath

Genesis 22:15 (NIV) The angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, "I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me."

The Significance of God’s Oath

Let’s look here at two things:

• The Significance of an Oath in General
• The Purpose of God in Taking this Oath

Sworn by Someone Greater

• Genesis 31:53: Jacob & Laban swear:
  • “May God judge”
• 2 Kings 2:2: God & Elijah swear:
  • “As ___ lives”
• 1 Kings 19:2: Jezebel swearing by her gods:
  • “May they do to me & more also”

Puts an End to Argument

• Exodus 22:10-11:
  • In matter of a lost deposit
• 1 Kings 8:31-32:
  • Passing on the case to a higher court

The Purpose of God

Hebrews 6:17 (NIV) Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. 18 God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged.

The Purpose of God

• His purpose in making this oath to Abraham was to demonstrate to believers even more surely the unchangeableness of His promise to them.
• What are the two unchangeable things?
  • The promise itself, resting on God’s mercy
  • The oath, resting on law, God’s justice
  • This explains the remark “God is not unjust”