reformed blogging.

The White Horse Inn: How are we to think of remaining sin?

“You can still hold to eternal security and yet hold people in fear of never having been Christians, which amounts to the same thing… It’s not between whether you commit a sin once or eight-million times in your Christian life, the difference is whether you think you have a right to commit sins or not commit sins…”
- Michael Horton

Listen here.

Speaking very generally, I think most Christians can fall into either of two extremes. One side overemphasizes the love of God to the neglect of God’s holiness, while the other emphasizes holiness to the neglect of love. I’ll be honest and just say from the start that, more often than not, I fall into the latter category. In this day and age when the name of God is so often profaned, and holiness abandoned because of its lack of appeal to the masses, it seems natural that those who recoil would jump to the other side and do away with any sort of love or anything even slightly “emotional.” There certainly is fault in this and it is a misrepresentation of God only to portray His holiness without portraying His love.

I do not believe, however, that both sides err equally. Those who emphasize the love of God while neglecting His holiness are in greater error and completely misrepresent God. The God of the Bible is in no way a compromising God, He does not allow sin to go unpunished. Proverbs 17:15 says, “He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous, Both of them alike are an abomination to the LORD.” I daresay that anyone who downplays the holiness of God creates an idol and does not worship God at all. Without condemnation of sin there is no need of salvation, and if there is no need of salvation then there is no need for the gospel. God never ceases to be holy and even in His greatest act of love we see His greatest act of holiness.

Having said that much, I do believe that those who downplay the love of God seriously err. There is, however, an order in our approaching God. We cannot understand the love of God without first understanding His holiness. Where the holiness-type people often fail is that they stop at holiness while leaving out love for fear of becoming like the love-type people. This results in many despairing Christians who squirm before a holy and just God rather than approach the throne of grace with confidence. I’ve been there, fearful of God’s holy wrath, the same that came down upon Nadab and Abihu for burning strange fire before God rather than having that love that casts out fear. This is very serious because it deals with assurance of salvation. A high view of God’s holiness is always good, but without a proper view of His love things tend towards despair and despondency. It is here that one wonders whether God can really forgive every single sin, or if enough has been done to show repentance. Just from that you can see how dangerous it is to lack or have an improper view of the love of God. This is all necessary in order for the gospel to do its work. Everyone must come to a point of hopelessness in his own righteousness before the righteousness of Christ is all that we hope in and cling to. Yet, having been justified by faith alone, we are not to remain in this state of hopelessness.

The solution seems to be in rightly “balancing” God’s love and holiness. The love-type people seem to ignore God’s holiness and are falsely assured that all is well with God when it is not, and the holiness-type people give heed to it rightly, but see nothing of the love of God so that there is no hope.

I suggest that it is not a matter of balance, but a matter of perspective. For God’s holiness is not in competition with His love, both are essential attributes of God, and God does not contradict Himself. How do we fix our perspective? Well, in Pierced for Our Transgressions the authors confront this very issue. It is vital that we confront our sin head on without ignoring God’s absolute hatred towards it, but there is only one way to do this without succumbing to despair. Our solution lies in the atonement of Christ, or what is called penal substitution:

that God gave himself in the person of his Son to suffer instead of us the death, punishment and curse due to fallen humanity as the penalty for sin. - Pierced for Our Transgressions, 21.

Thus, the cross of Christ does two things, first it “stands as a memorial to the inexpressible horror of sin; it will not allow us to escape into self-deceiving optimism” but “…at the same time, the cross banishes our despair by declaring God’s comprehensive solution to our plight” (159). At the cross the love and holiness of God meet. There is no greater act of love than Christ, the righteous, dying for His enemies, the ungodly and wicked, who in no wise deserve such mercy and grace. Herein does the Christian stand: on an uncompromising, holy love of God. In this we see His faithfulness to do all that He says, He will maintain His righteousness and punish every sin becoming just and justifier, and we also see very clearly His love for us, that He would send His Son to bear our sin, and become sin for us.

Trembling sinner, look to Jesus, and thou art saved. Dost thou say, ‘My sins are many’? His atonement is wondrous. Dost thou cry, ‘My heart is hard’? Jesus can soften it. Dost thou exclaim, ‘Alas, I am so unworthy’? Jesus loves the unworthy. Dost thou feel, ‘I am so vile’? It is the vile Jesus came to save. Down with thee, sinner; down, down with thyself, and up with Christ, who hath suffered for thy sins upon Calvary’s cross. Turn thine eye thither; see Jesus only. He suffers. He bleeds. He dies. He is buried. He rises again. he ascends on high. Trust Him, and thou art safe. Give up all other trusts , and rely on Jesus alone, alone on Jesus, and thou halt pass from death unto life. This is the sure sign, the certain evidence of the Spirit’s indwelling, of the Father’s election, of the Son’s redemption, when the soul is brought simply and wholly to rest and trust in Jesus Christ, who ‘hath once suffered for sins, the Just of the unjust, that He might bring us to God.’” - C.H. Spurgeon, Our Suffering Substitute: A Sermon on 1 Peter 3:18.

The cross keeps us from ignoring the holiness of God thus downplaying sin, or from ignoring God’s love and becoming despondent or Pharisaical. Our boast is nothing but the cross.

On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand,
All other ground is sinking sand.

When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having cancelled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. - Colossians 2:13-14

In the quoted passage Paul speaks to the Church in Colossae, reminding them of their pre-Christian state. He writes so that the believers might not be taken captive through worldly philosophy or empty deception but rather that they might be taken captive by Christ. To this end Paul speaks of the gospel, namely, that they were dead in transgressions and uncircumcision, that they were utterly hopeless, for what can a dead man do? But while in such a state of spiritual deadness God made them alive together with Him. We, as Christians, share in this work of God’s grace. For all apart from Christ are dead in sin. Yet, while in such a sad and pathetic state He made us “alive together with Him.”

And how could a just God do such a thing to those who were in transgressions, those who were defiled, impure, who are described as uncircumcised in the flesh? For God to give life to one undeserving would be unjust if there is no forgiveness. But God made us alive, “having forgiven us all our transgressions.” Thus, as Paul says in Romans, God, through Christ, is both “just and justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

The next question arises: how did God forgive us all our transgressions, for such is no small feat. Paul responds: “having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us.” Those decrees against us, which condemned us for our transgressions, God canceled so that we no longer are indebted to Him. For these decrees were “hostile to us” and showed us to be, by nature, “children of wrath.” And here I would like to dwell for a short while. It is difficult to imagine that which is taking place in the mentioned passage: namely, that God cancels out our debt. To anyone who understands the holiness of God as well as the sinfulness of sin, it is a hard thing to believe that our sins, which are many, can be removed at all. And God has not only forgiven us of our wrong-doing towards Him, but He has completely put aside that which was owed to Him by us. Thus, what was once a dividing wall between us and God has been removed and no longer stands. What, then, exists that will keep us from God but repentance and faith? And once God has forgiven us, what do we owe but praise? For our debt has been canceled. It is not as though Christ has simply paid a debt which we can again fall into, but through Christ our debt has been put aside! Therefore those who are in Christ Jesus have every right to come before God with confidence.

There are, however, those who yet remain wondering how a just God can simply let sin go. Wouldn’t this be akin to pardoning a serial killer? How has our debt been canceled? How has it been taken away? God canceled it “having nailed it to the cross.” Here, every mouth is stopped. For it is not as though God simply forgot about our sins and swept them under the rug, for anything resulting from that would be no grace at all but unrighteousness, and God cannot be unjust. But we see here that God nailed them to the cross. What does that mean? How can sin, something intangible, be nailed to a cross? We would be left in darkness unless we saw through Scripture what this means. For in the Gospels we see Christ, the Son of God nailed to a cross. The only way that any man has a right standing before God is through Christ, our substitute. Because Christ was nailed to the cross, and He did so as our sin are our transgressions justly forgiven. Here we see the complete atonement of Christ, that all was accomplished on the cross. For it was not merely as an example that Christ died, but He accomplished something on the cross, through which we have forgiveness, and righteousness before God. It was because our transgressions were nailed to the cross that we are set free and forgiven and not only that, but made alive together with God. And on this truth do we as Christians stand, and on this truth do we gain full assurance of our salvation, that Christ paid our penalty.

For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. - Romans 5:6

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” - Ephesians 2:10

How Ephesians 2:10 reveals God’s sovereignty in salvation:

1. We are His workmanship - in this is implicit that man is not playing any active role, but that God is the one who is doing the working. To be God’s workmanship literally means to be made by Him. Now, in this context the reference is not to physical creation alone, but (as is evidenced by the passage) spiritual rebirth. This is evident in the next fragment of the sentence, namely, “created in Christ Jesus.” The synergistic view, that man participates with God, or cooperates with God in order to be saved is debunked here. The idea of the regenerate man as God’s workmanship means that he is God’s creation. Just as Adam and Eve were created without their prior consent (for that is in itself an impossibility) and just as newborn babies are not born because of their own agreement to be born, so the regenerate Christian is changed in heart because he is God’s workmanship. Salvation by God’s monergistic work alone presupposes total depravity, that man, on his own, will never seek God, being dead in sins and separate from the life of God. And if our spiritual rebirth is not according to our own righteousness but according to God, then His election must be unconditional, not based on any merit in us, but based solely on His good pleasure.

2. We are created in Christ Jesus - This specifies how God has made us. In what sense are we God’s workmanship? In that we are created in Christ Jesus. A thing created is completely subjected to its Creator. Thus if God desires to create us, we will be created. “So then, it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy” (Rom 9:16). The necessity of God’s monergistic work, that is, His work in us without our prior consent is evidenced here. The necessity of Christ Jesus as our mediator is also seen. If it were not for the atoning work of Christ, reconciling sinful man to God we could have no hope of being reborn. For God, in his holiness, is both just and justifier of those who have faith in Christ. We cannot be God’s workmanship unless we are created in Christ Jesus. Thus, we see here that it is absolutely necessary for Christ’s atonement to be for the elect and completely saving, not simply making salvation available.

3. We are created in Christ Jesus for good works - The fact that we are created for good works displays God’s sovereignty not only in regeneration (the changing of our hearts to love Him) and justification (our right standing before God through Christ) but also in our sanctification. God is sovereign over the end, that is salvation to Himself, and also the path that we take to get there. This is one reason why historic Protestant Christianity holds the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints. For those who were called and chosen by God were called and chosen to good works, to perseverance and will not fall away. Therefore, God’s absolute sovereignty in delivering sinful man from condemnation as well as from the bondage of sin is herein seen. And it is also evidenced that God could not have chosen us based on works since He created us for good works. Thus, good works are the result, not the cause of God’s election. The Arminian notion of foreseen faith is then also debunked.

4. Good works are a result of grace, not our own efforts -Now God prepared the good works that we would perform in Christ beforehand. That is, we are God’s workmanship as are our good works. Thus, it is the case that no one can boast. And He prepared these so that we “would” walk in them. Not that we “could,” but there is an inevitable obedience that is shown in the life of the elect of God. Had God not prepared such good works, it would be utterly impossible for us to walk in them. For we, in ourselves, are absolutely helpless. Paul describes us as “dead” in transgressions, but now in Christ we have life.

“For by grace you have been saved, through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.” - Ephesians 2:8-9

Here are a few passages that seem to be ignored by many professing Christians. When I say ignored, I do not necessarily mean that no mention is made of these passages or that they are verbally rejected, but that understanding of the doctrines herein expounded are nowhere evident in many lives of those who think themselves Christian. How few there are who truly examine themselves to see if they are of the faith! Many, it seems, are content with a superficial examination, perhaps in fear of finding that they do not truly know Christ.

Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it. (Matthew 7:13-14)

The gospel as preached today in many Churches does not at all resemble the above quoted passage. Many shudder at such passages thinking that it is far too negative, yet these must not be ignored for they are in the Bible. Make no mistake, these are the words of Christ. Here He preaches the narrow gate as well as the narrow way that leads to life. It is important to note here, that it is not simply entering through a gate by a single action, repeating a prayer once, or having an experience at a certain point in time (though these are not negated) that one is said to find life, but it is a continual lifestyle, walking the narrow way that leads to life. Many comfort themselves thinking they have entered the narrow gate, and so can now live at ease, yet the narrow way implies difficulty that will continue until we die. If all those who have walked the wide path and are now in hell were to be polled, very many would respond that they never expected to be found in hell, that they thought themselves safe, having entered through that “narrow gate” yet they were wrong. No one thinks that God will punish them. All men seem to wrongly suppose that God will show special favors to them alone. God is faithful to His word. He is not like the threatening parent who does not carry through with punishment. Many have grown used to empty threats and thus wrongly suppose hell to be among them. Yet God will not dishonor His name for the sake of an unrepentant sinner. If you are not walking on that narrow way, taking up your cross daily, it is likely that you are on the broad path to destruction, and are self-deceived.

In the same sermon, Christ goes on to speak of two types of hearers:

Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against the house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell and great was its fall. (Matthew 7:24-27)

Here is another message likely to make many church-goers uncomfortable, namely, that merely hearing the Word being preached is not adequate. It is necessary, but not sufficient. Here Christ shows that two things are necessary: first, hearing, but secondly acting. The two men contrasted here are both hearers of the Word. This is not about a Christian and an atheist, but rather, two people who sit in Church every Sunday listening to the sermon. Yet there are two responses to the word. One hears and acts, the other hears and does not act. It is very simple and straightforward. Those who do not act or obey what Christ has spoken, will fall, while those who obey will be founded on the rock. It is obvious from this passage then, that mere exposure to biblical preaching/teaching is not sufficient. One needs to act upon it. And those who do not act upon it are those who are now traveling the broad path that leads to destruction. This comes as no surprise, for Jesus Himself taught that there would be many who enter through it, this in no way exempts pastors, elders, deacons, praise leaders, or committed members of any church. If there is no obedience to the word, then there is no reason to believe that regeneration of the heart has taken place.

If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. (Luke 9:23)

Here is a rather obvious teaching of Christ. Namely, that those who come after Him must deny themselves and take up their crosses daily. The key word here is daily, it is to be a daily activity. Now this goes against the view that once someone “prays a prayer” they have no need for anything else since they have, once and for all, denied themselves. Yet what Christ is describing is a continual self-denial. And only in this can we properly claim to follow Christ. He also says that “No one, after putting his hand on the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62). Serious consideration must be given as to what Christ means when He speaks of taking up one’s cross. No doubt this entails all those very small decisions we make to be kind to others, to crucify our desires, yet it is not limited to those small things only, but applies to every aspect of our life. To die, is to become unresponsive to all those things that once held our hearts captive. And only until we do that can we follow Christ. You who cling to worldly treasures, no matter how “good” a person you may be, cannot follow Christ. Thus it was with the rich young ruler, who could not part with all his possessions. Now I am not saying that we all need to sell everything, but what I am saying is that we should have no problem with such a demand. For anyone who has truly committed to Christ has, in a very real sense, already forsaken everything.

“For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.” - Hebrews 6:4-6

The above passage is disturbing. To many, it suggests that Christians can lose their salvation. Yet Christ says those who have received eternal life “will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of [His] hand” (John 10 28).  Similarly, Paul speaks of being “convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39). The whole letter of 1 John was written so that the believers would know their sins have been forgiven. Thus, it is a grave error to think that the Bible gives no ground for assurance of an eternal salvation. The very fact that it is called “eternal life” suggests that those who have it will have it forever.

In light of this, then, how do we view the above passage? After all, it is not the only one like it, in Matthew 24:10 Christ speaks of a great apostasy, that “many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another.” Later on in Hebrews, the writer says that there is no longer a sacrifice for sins for those who “go on sinning willfully.” Now, Arminians as well as Roman Catholics have taken these verses to indicate that men must work for their salvation, and that those who are saved now, may lose their salvation at a later time. As mentioned earlier, this is unbiblical and, I believe, an improper way to interpret Scripture. How then do we interpret such passages? Well, we do not deny the doctrine of assurance of salvation, nor do we deny the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints. The one who places his faith in Christ alone as righteousness, relinquishing hope in any other means to salvation, not trusting in his own work or merit, but believing that Christ’s work has finished and accomplished redemption, ought to trust that he is already righteous in God’s sight. So what does the passage mean? It’s meaning ought to be obvious to any reader, namely, that the person described does not necessarily constitute a Christian. One can be “enlightened,” can “taste the heavenly gift,” be made “partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,” but these things do not mean that the person is a Christian. Anyone who thinks that they are saved based on the fact that they had a particular experience, or because they understand the gospel are not Christians. Anyone who thinks that because they enjoy reading the Bible and that they have desired to go to paradise, that they are Christians, these people are severely deceived. These things by no means constitute a Christian. Though, it is true that a Christian will not be lacking in any of these things, it is possible to never know Christ but to experience all this. God rebuked Balaam through an ass, and Saul, for a time, prophesied. Judas, was one of the twelve sent out to perform miracles, cast out demons. 1 Corinthians says that one can even be burned by fire and still not know Christ. According to the same passage one can have faith to move mountains and still be just a noisy gong.

None should be surprised at this. Christ tells us that “the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matthew 7:14), but the gate that leads to destruction is wide and the way is broad, and many will enter through it. “Many,” says Christ, “will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness’” (Matthew 7:21-23). Clearly, Christ intends to convey that many will deceive themselves thinking that they are Christians, that because they have done such and such a thing, or felt a certain way, or had certain experiences, that they are saved, yet these will be denied on that day of judgment. And these are not a few people, but many. Thus does Paul rightly exhort the Corinthians to examine themselves, to test themselves whether they are of the faith.

Who then can be assured? We have seen that the Bible does encourage the true Christian to have confidence of his standing before God, but on what grounds do we find such assurance? Negatively, we do not find it in any of the things mentioned in Hebrews 6. Rather, we find it in Christ alone. We trust that “whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved.” True assurance of salvation does not look to experience, no matter how supernatural or amazing, the devil often comes as an angel of light, does not look to discipline, no matter how strict and consistent, nor emotions, for our emotions are so fickle and often betray us. Yes, these things ought to be present in the believer’s life, but they are no sure signs that grace has been wrought in that persons life. True assurance of salvation consists of trust in Christ alone. Those who do not trust in Christ’s work completely, who have not forsaken their own righteousness, have no reason to be assured. However, those who have given up on their own righteousness, who cling only to the cross, these have every right to look upon Christ as their surety, as their substitute and ransom.

“Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you–unless indeed you fail the test?” - 2 Corinthians 13:5

We must not content ourselves with a false assurance, but must endeavor to relinquish all trust in anything but Christ. If we fail to do so, we deceive ourselves.

“But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Jesus Christ my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.” - Philippians 3:7-11

The Reformers held to the doctrine of Sola Fide or justification by faith alone which means that God saves us, not on the basis of any deeds we have done, but on the basis of faith alone in Christ alone. We are properly saved through Christ’s mediating work on our behalf, that He died as our ransom and sacrifice. He was put in our stead and by faith our sins are placed on Him and His righteousness becomes our own. Yet they also believed in the absolute necessity of works. Not as grounds of justification but as a result of it. True faith will produce fruit. Or as Jonathan Edwards would put it, “God would have it deeply impressed on all, that good works are the only satisfying evidence that we are truly possessed of grace in the soul.”

The issue then arises, how do we rightly judge ourselves? For Scripture indicates that no one is sinless, and if anyone claims that he is, he is a liar. Yet, we are also told that “no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.” How do we reconcile these passages?

Some have gone to one extreme of ruling out the necessity of works, saying that verbal profession is enough, while others have gone to the other end of works-based righteousness. Neither extreme is scripturally warranted, nor glorifying to God. How, then, do we walk the fine line between antinomianism (lawlessness) and legalism? How do we gain assurance without ruling out good works and without depending on our works? We work, knowing that we have been saved by Christ’s righteousness. A.W. Pink rightly says that “the quickest road to full assurance is full obedience.” Yet, we do often fail in obedience and the Christian who understands that the Law is more than external but a matter of the heart will always find sin in himself.

To remedy this, Jonathan Edwards provides seven guidelines so that true Christians do not despair in self-examination:

1. Has your supposed grace such influence as to render those things in which you have failed of holy practice, loathsome, grievous, and humbling to you?

2. Do you carry about with you, habitually a dread of sin?

3. Are you sensible of the beauty and pleasantness of the ways of holy practice?

4. Do you find that you do particularly esteem and delight in those practices that may, by way of eminence, be called Christian practices, in distinction from mere worldly morality?

5. Do you hunger and thirst after a holy practice?

6. Do you make a business of endeavoring to live holily, and as God would have you, in all respects?

7. Do you greatly desire that you may know all that is your duty?

If you can honestly meet these tests, then you have the evidence that your grace is of the kind that tends to holy practice, and growth in it. And though you may fall, through God’s mercy you shall rise again. He that hath begun a good work in you will carry it on until the day of Jesus Christ. Though you may be at times faint, yet, if pursuing, you shall be borne on from strength to strength, and kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation. - Jonathan Edwards, Charity and Its Fruits, pp. 246-50

We ought strive for the full assurance of faith, without contenting ourselves with anything unbiblical. Crucify any notion in yourself that God will be had by anyone immoral or ungodly , as well as the notion that you, by your own works can meet the standards set by an infinitely holy God. Seek only to come to God by the mediation of Christ Jesus, knowing that a true faith in Him will produce a righteous and holy fruit.

“Unqualified obedience is required from us: not to furnish title to Heaven–that is found alone in the merits of Christ; not to fit us for Heaven–that is supplied alone by the supernatural work of the Spirit in the heart; but that God may be owned and honoured by us as we journey thither, that we may prove and manifest the sufficiency of His grace, that we may furnish evidences we are HIS children, that we may be preserved from those things which would otherwise destroy us–only in the path of obedience can we avoid those foes which are seeking to slay us… The path of obedience must be trod if ever you are to reach heaven.” - A.W. Pink, An Exposition of Hebrews, p.697

“The terrible thing is that in these degenerate times the consciences of thousands have been drugged by preachers (whom it is greatly to be feared are themselves spiritually dead, and helping forward the work of Satan) that have presented “the eternal security of the saints” in such an unscriptural way, as to convey to their poor hearers the impression that, provided they once “accepted Christ as their personal Saviour” Heaven is now their certain portion, that guilt can nevermore rest upon them, and that no matter what sins they may commit nothing can possibly jeopardize their eternal interests. The consequence has been — and this is no imaginary fear of ours, but a patent fact of observation on every side — that a carnal security has been imparted, so that in the midst of fleshly gratification and worldly living it is, humanly speaking, quite impossible to disturb their false peace or terrify their conscience.” - Arthur W. Pink, An Exposition of Hebrews, p.618