REJOICING FIRM UNTO THE END

Excerpt from the book Lie of the Ages

“But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.” Hebrews 3:6

In stark contrast to the deadly myth many in the modern church perpetrate, soul-saving faith is never conveyed as a one -time event on the pages of the 27 books which comprise the canon of New Testament Scripture. The Old Testament is the same – Ezekiel 33:12-13. In Holy Writ, we observe that the faith that pleases God begins with the born again experience and then is an ongoing believing, overcoming, and enduring experience and not just a one-time event. The individual’s salvation begins with a one-time experience upon repentance and faith in Christ and that same volitional trust is to be maintained by the believer and is left up to his own volitional will. The saint is enabled by the influencing and enabling grace of God.

Everything in God’s kingdom economy works through His mercy, grace and man’s faith-filled obedience. Salvation is undeserved not unconditional. The LORD requires initial saving faith and that the recipient of His salvation continue in that saving faith until the end of his life.

Concerning King Uzziah, in 2 Chronicles 26:4-5 we read:

“And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah did. And he sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God: and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him to prosper.”

It was only as long as King Uzziah “sought the LORD” that

“God made him to prosper.”

Those who teach the heretical “once saved always saved” (OSAS) doctrine, consequently do not teach what Christ and His apostles taught concerning continuing in the grace of God during and to the end of one’s life. Unfortunately, many have bought into this myth not realizing that their eternal soul could be in jeopardy. Those who believe and teach this doctrine of men and devils divorce themselves from the full-counsel of God’s Word and make a god in their own image. One of the biblical doctrines ignored, neglected and rejected, is the absolute necessity of enduring or continuing in faith to the end of one’s life (Matt. 10:22; 24:10-13; Acts 14:22-23; Col. 1:23; Heb. 3:6, 12-15; Rev. 2-3).

Didn’t Jesus forewarn us that “the love of many shall wax cold”?

“And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” Matthew 24:10-13

The only way for love to wax cold is for it to first exist. A love that does not first exist cannot possibly wax cold.

His joy is one of the dimensions of the “fruit of the Spirit” and the strength of His people (Neh. 8:10; Gal. 5:22-23). The LORD would have His people to be overcomers – those who victoriously come over all trials and temptations through divine grace and saving faith (1 Jn. 5:4-5).

“For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?” 1 John 5:4-5

Those who do not stay in close relationship with Christ, will inevitably leave the faith for sin and will perish eternally if they do not repent before it is too late.

“But God shall wound the head of his enemies, and the hairy scalp of such an one as goeth on still in his trespasses.” Psalms 68:21

“For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish: thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee.” Psalms 73:27

“And the destruction of the transgressors and of the sinners shall be together, and they that forsake the LORD shall be consumed.” Isaiah 1:28

“But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And did all eat the same spiritual meat; And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness. Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted. Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play. Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand. Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” 1 Corinthians 9:27-10:12

Here the Holy Spirit of God tells us that “all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition.” He reminds believers of the entire New Testament era to behold the historical record of how His covenant people defied Him, thinking He would automatically forgive them without their personal repentance and trust in Him. Beloved, heed this warning. Not only did the LORD not forgive or overlook their blatant and sinful rebellion, He judged them harshly, sending 2,500 of His own covenant people directly and literally into the fires of eternal damnation. Check out this vivid and horrifying account in Numbers 16:

“And it came to pass, as he had made an end of speaking all these words, that the ground clave asunder that was under them: And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men that appertained unto Korah, and all their goods. They, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them: and they perished from among the congregation. And all Israel that were round about them fled at the cry of them: for they said, Lest the earth swallow us up also. And there came out a fire from the LORD, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense.” Numbers 16:31-35

Jeff Marshall writes:

“We need to look into the perfect law of liberty (God’s Word), see ourselves in truth (as God sees us, as we really are), and repent and call on Him to wash our filth away (just as He told Peter that if He didn’t wash his feet, he could have no part in Him. Peter said ‘wash all of me then’, and Christ explained that he was already clean, but his feet were dirty. In other words, you may already be saved and ‘baptized in the name of Jesus, for the remission of sins’, but if you walk through this world in these bodies of flesh, then you will pick up some filth along the way. If you don’t come to Christ, humbly, and have Him wash it away, then you ‘have no part in Him’ either.

‘Once saved, always saved’, Calvinism, and cheap grace are just not found in Scripture. There are tons of Scripture to show that truth, not just the one or two, taken out of full context to try to prove the opposite. This isn’t some minor ‘point of doctrine’ that is inconsequential and trivial/divisive, but this is truth that is missing and is deceiving masses of people into religion without relationship to Christ. The lie we hear today is: ‘Just say this little prayer and you’ll get your ‘get out of hell free card’, and nothing you do or don’t do after that can change it.’ When Christ Himself said, ‘Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord, shall enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only he who DOES THE WILL OF MY FATHER in Heaven.’ (Matt. 7:21) Also, read Jude 4-7; ‘turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ’, etc.)

Is that adding works to salvation? No, that is what Jesus said, so who cares what that preacher on TV tells you? Was he there when the earth was formed? Did he write the Bible? Does he hold the keys to death and hell? Did he die for your sin? Then you better listen to Jesus and quit listening to his ‘easy believism’, ‘we are all going to heaven’ type preaching before it’s too late. The final end of that is to cry out, ‘Lord, Lord….’ and hear ‘Depart from me, you who practice lawlessness, I never knew you.’  Nothing is more important than this.”

Being prepared to meet Christ at all times should be a central concern of every saint. “Strong delusion” has already been released into the hearts of many “because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.” This is also done “That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” (2 Thess. 2:10-12) The wrath of God will be soon poured out upon all who suppress or hold His truth in unrighteousness (the disobedient). See Romans 1:18.

“Gather yourselves together, yea, gather together, O nation not desired; Before the decree bring forth, before the day pass as the chaff, before the fierce anger of the LORD come upon you, before the day of the LORD’S anger come upon you. Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD’S anger.” Zephaniah 2:1-3

God’s promises to man are conditional. Here in this Zephaniah passage, the promise of being “hid in the day of the LORD’s anger” has requirements:

1. “Gather yourselves”
2. “Seek ye the LORD”
3. “Seek righteousness”

God’s covenant people are told they must meet these requirements in order to avert divine wrath. Here is the impending threat: “the fierce anger of the LORD come upon you, before the day of the LORD’S anger come upon you.” (Zeph. 2:2)

Below is another exhortation for us to “Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.” (Isa. 55:6)    

“Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.” Psalms 2:11-12

We are here instructed to place our full trust in the LORD and “Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little.” (Ps. 2:11)

Must a Christian Continue in Obedient Faith to the End of His Life to be Eternally Saved?

To His very own disciples, Jesus stated: “And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth TO THE END shall be saved.” (Matt. 10:22) If you really want to know exactly who the Savior was speaking to here, read Matthew 10:1-22. Hint: He was speaking to His very own disciples. See Matthew 10:1.

We must ask: Why would the Master warn His very own disciples about something that wasn’t possible? Dare one who claims to know Christ impugn or call the very Son of God a lunatic and liar?

Let’s break down the conditional promise made by the LORD Jesus to His own 12 in Matthew 10:22:

• “Ye shall be hated…for my name’s sake” – persecution
• “He that endureth to the end shall be saved” – promise
• “Endureth to the end” – condition

Christ said told His twelve “ye shall be hated” and not “ye shall be honored.” He never promised His people financial prosperity but rather persecution (Matt. 10:25; Jn. 15:20). Jesus also never guaranteed that one once saved was eternally secure no matter how he lives but rather that “He (that has once been saved) that endureth to the end shall be saved.” The Son of God had all the opportunity in the world here to tell His very twelve that they were unconditionally, eternally secure and didn’t. No, instead He told them they would be hated of all men and persecuted and that only those of them who endured to the end of their lives would be ultimately saved. At the time He spoke these words to them, all twelve were in right standing with Him and yet one of the twelve ended up in hell (Acts 1:25). Since we know He was speaking to His very own disciples, we know that Jesus was speaking of the necessity of all who have been made right with God to remain in fellowship with Him or lose out. There is no legitimate, honest way to explain away the fact that Jesus was talking specifically to His very disciples in this passage. The LORD was not speaking to the lost or the Jews and we know this because the first verse in this passage reveals who Christ was addressing:

“And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease…And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.” Matthew 10:1, 22

Another view of this text:

“…he had called unto him his twelve disciples…he (among you) that endureth to the end shall be saved.” Matthew 10:1, 22 

What was Jesus getting at here when He stated “he that endureth to the end shall be saved”?

If enduring to the end were automatic and didn’t involve the individual’s personal will and obedience, why would Christ ever have bothered to make this statement?

What was Jesus saying here if there were no possibility of His disciples forfeiting their place in His eternal kingdom if they didn’t “endure to the end”? Was He simply filling space on the pages of the New Testament Scriptures? Was He violating the words He previously spoke in the Sermon He spoke from the mountain?

“But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.” Matthew 5:37

Why would Jesus say “He that endureth to the end shall be saved” if there were no possibility of one not enduring to the end and therefore not being ultimately saved from eternal damnation in the “end”?

If you are still supposing that the Lord is speaking to lost people here, there is a question that begs to be answered: What is it that a lost person should “endure to the end” about or in? If he is not right with God in the first place, what is he going to “endure” to the “end” of or in? If a person does not already possess saving faith, how can he possibly be expected to endure in that faith? Can you see the ridiculous nature of such a notion? Would it not be dishonest, ridiculous, and groundless at best to attempt to pawn Christ’s statement off on a group that is not God’s people? Not only was Christ speaking to His own people, these are the very twelve He prayed to select and serve Him and have a special place in His eternal kingdom (Matt. 19:28).

“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 7:21

Are you beginning to see why only people who are taught OSAS (by misled men) embrace the unconditional eternal security teaching? I have yet to meet a person who studies the Bible for themselves, with no preconceived notions or taught doctrines of men, who believes such a foreign doctrine. Paul never taught such. Our LORD never taught such. John never taught such. Peter never taught such. Jude never taught OSAS. Not one of the prophets, apostles or Gospel writers taught an unconditional eternal security, but rather that those saved by His grace must endure in faithful obedience to the end of their lives to be eternally saved. Either the Bible is final authority or it’s not.

Here’s God’s promise to those who endure to the end:

“And he that overcometh (essential), and keepeth my works UNTO THE END, to him will I give power over the nations.” Revelation 2:26  

Who’s going to be with Jesus when He defeats the rebellious?

“These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.” Revelation 17:14

Those who will be in eternity with Christ are those whom He has “called, and chosen” and who were in their earthly life “FAITHFUL.” (Rev. 17:14) God does the calling and choosing and men must be “faithful” to receive His eternal reward. We see everywhere in Scripture, the initiating grace of God and the condition given to men – to be “faithful” to God to the end of this earthly life. Any person seeking to eliminate or deny the involvement of the personal will of men is not dealing honestly with the LORD and His Word.

Jesus Christ promised that only those who know and obey Him will be with Him eternally (Matt. 7:21; Mk. 8:34-38; Lk. 6:46; Rev. 2-3).

Power to Overcome

The divinely-given promise is to strengthen and bless each and every believer with His Spirit in their inner man, empowering them to be blessed and a blessing. Paul prayed:

“That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.” Ephesians 3:16-21

“But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” Acts 1:8

According to the biblical record of the early Church, receiving the baptism in the Holy Ghost is the single most important experience after being born again. Jesus instructed His very own disciples to “tarry (wait) ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.” (Lk. 24:49) Christ said His followers would “receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon” them. Notice that the Son of God said it would be “after” and not before the Holy Ghost came upon His disciples that they would “receive power” and “be witnesses” of His at home and abroad.

The apostle Peter went from wavering to witnessing. After being baptized in the Holy Spirit, just days after he had denied even knowing Christ, Peter was bold and powerful in the LORD. Peter, empowered now by the Spirit, preached and 3,000 then 5,000 people got saved. This same baptism in the Spirit of God is promised and available to all believers.

“I (John the Baptist) indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire.” Matthew 3:11

My own life was dramatically transformed after being baptized in the Holy Spirit. The LORD saved me and I began to walk with Him and was experiencing inconsistency in my walk, so I cried out to Him to help me. Jesus heard this cry in Heaven.

Shortly thereafter I met a godly pastor who began to take me through the Scriptures concerning this New Testament experience of being baptized in the Holy Ghost. That beloved pastor invited me to pray to receive the infilling of the Holy Spirit. We prayed. I went home and began to commune with the LORD in a way I hadn’t previously know or experienced. He filled me and His witness from then on emanated and the power of God was there. The increase in boldness was tremendous and so was the kingdom fruit that began to be produced. There is a complete topical study on this ministry site on the STUDY GUIDES page. See the Holy Ghost Baptism study guide.

“For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink (outward religion); but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.” Romans 14:17

PRAYER: Father, cause my heart to be cleansed of all iniquity and filled with Your Holy Spirit! Change my life Jesus! Thank You for shedding Your precious blood for my many sins. This very moment, I ask You to baptize me in the Holy Ghost and take over my life completely. Embolden me to declare Your Word in this late hour and to rejoice firm to the end. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Fruitfulness is Found in Abiding in Christ [podcast]

Eternal Security / OSAS DEVILS Slammed! 1 John 2:19

Upholding Jesus, the Only Head of His Body [podcast]