MY FAVORITE SCRIPTURE PASSAGE, AND WHY I'M 100% SURE IT TEACHES SECURITY OF THE BELIEVER

From Live Nativity, Castleton United Methodist Church, Indianapolis, Dec. 5, 2016

"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand." John 10:27-28, NKJV

What was the first Bible passage I memorized? Good question, but sometime between when I moved to the booming metropolis of Skull Valley, Arizona (15 people in my classroom: that was 4th, 5th, AND 6th grade) and a little over a year and a half later when we moved to Prescott I memorized John 10:27-28, quoted above.

This verse is regularly used to defend "Eternal Security," which some term "OSAS" (Once Saved Always Saved), usually to insult their brothers and sisters in Christ (Boo! Hiss!) True, there are some who disagree, but there are others who despise this teaching with an attitude that makes me think there could be hatred of Christians who hold this view (see 1 John 3:14-15).

Let's look at why people oppose "eternal security." First, we need to realize that people who don't believe in eternal security come to that conclusion from diligent Bible study, just like those who do believe in eternal security.

Second, there is the free will/Sovereignty debate. If free will is involved in us believing on Christ getting saved, why would God forbid us the free will to stop believing and renounce our salvation. For the record, there are those who believe in free will who also believe in eternal security.

Third, there's the righteous indignation of those who claim to be Christ's and willfully live like an unbeliever. They feel God's grace in muddied by a life of sin, an attitude that they can do what they want and still be saved.

Let me start by the most frequent argument I've heard against eternal security in looking at this verse: "No one can snatch us from Christ's hand, but that doesn't mean we can't crawl out." Actually, that's the only real argument. The only other objection is "This verse doesn't deal with security of the believer," with the reason why being "Because I said it doesn't." Sorry, but that latter one is a cop out. 

So why do I consider this verse definitely teaches eternal security? I'm glad you asked!

The first word is "My." What kind of word is "My?" A possessive pronoun. Who's speaking? Jesus. Thus, He's talking about His sheep, that is, the sheep that belong to Him. What can make one of His sheep become not one of His sheep? Theft? No, legal ownership is the same. Can His sheep decide to change owners? We're not talking about cats! No, the sheep have no voice in who owns them. Thus, we're talking about those who are Jesus' possession.

His sheep hear His voice. In the context of John 10, Jesus was telling the Pharisees they did not believe because they weren't Jesus' sheep (vv. 25-26). In 1 John 4:6, the Apostle states those who were of God heard them, and those who weren't did not hear them.

His sheep follow Him. This answers the complaint of those who are worried about ungodly Christians - true Christians follow Christ. It also counters the objection to eternal security mentioned above - if we're following Christ, we're not simultaneously trying to crawl out of His hand.

Let's define three words. 1) Perish - means dying, and in context it obviously isn't saying we won't physically die, so it must mean spiritually. 2) Eternal. Means everlasting, neverending, but also refers to a character of life. But eternal life does not end. 3) Never. Is it possible never means never? If we lose our salvation, we perish, and that means Christ's words are false.  That is not an option.

No, this is not the only verse that teaches eternal security. There is a strong Biblical base for it, which is the reason many believe it. But this blog is long enough - not enough space to go through others.

I do want to end with this blog with two questions: 1) Is God ABLE to keep us saved? 2) Is God WILLING to keep us saved? Am I wrong for thinking that believing we can lose our salvation requires God to either be unable or unwilling to keep us, both options contrary to Scripture and God's character?