Mister Richardson’s
Bible Doctrine Class

Chapter 24: The Perseverance of the Saints

My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand. - John 10: 27-28

Definition: The Perseverance of the Saints means that all those who are truly born again will be kept by God's power and will persevere as Christians until the end of their lives, and that only those who persevere until the end have been truly born again.

A. All who are truly born again will persevere until the end.
  1. I should lose nothing of all that He has given me... - John 6:39.
  2. No one can snatch them out of the Father's hand. - John 10:28.
  3. He who believes in the Son has eternal life - John 3:36.
  4. No condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus - Romans 8:1.
  5. The guarantee of our inheritance - Ephesians 1:14.
  6. Who by God's power are guarded through faith - 1 Peter 1:5.
B. Only those who persevere to the end have been truly born again.
  1. If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciple - John 8:31.
  2. Provided that you continue in the faith - Colossians 1:23.
  3. If we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm to the end - Hebrews 3:14.
  4. The purpose [of the above quotations] is never to make those who are presently trusting in Christ worry that sometime in the future they might fall away. Rather, the purpose is always to warn those who are thinking of falling away, or have fallen away, that if they do this it is a strong indication that they were never saved in the first place. - Wayne Grudem
C. Those who finally fall away may give many external signs of conversion.
  1. Example of Judas and the other Disciples - Matthew 26:22; Mark 14:19; Luke 22:23; John 13:22.
  2. The danger of false brethren - Galatians 2:4; 2 Corinthians 11:26.
  3. I never knew you - Matthew 7:21-23.
  4. The Parable of the Seed and the Sower - Mark 4:1-17.
  5. The branches that do not bear fruit - John 15:1-7.
  6. What about Hebrews 6:4-6?
D. What can give a believer genuine assurance?
  1. Do I have a present trust in Christ alone for salvation?
  2. Is there evidence of a regenerating work of the Holy Spirit in my heart and mind?
  3. Do I see a long-term pattern of growth in my Christian life?
  4. The importance of this subject in pastoral care.

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. List three Bible verses that support the idea that true Christians will continue in the faith until death.
2. Is continuing in the Christian life a necessary evidence of genuine faith? Explain.
3. How is it possible for a person to give external signs of conversion and later to fall away from the Christian faith?
4. From an Arminian perspective, can a believer ever really have any assurance of salvation? Explain.
5. List three evidences that give assurance to a true believer.

PERSONAL APPLICATION QUESTIONS
1. What is your assurance of salvation?
2. Do you ever have doubts about your salvation? Why?
3. Is it possible that people can agree with every Christian doctrine and still not be born again?

TERMS
Assurance of salvation, eternal security, perseverance of the saints, temporary blessings.

WESTMINSTER SHORTER CATECHISM
Q36: What are the benefits which in this life do accompany or flow from justification, adoption, and sanctification?
A36: The benefits which in this life do accompany or flow from justification, adoption, and sanctification, are: assurance of God's love, peace of conscience, joy in the Holy Ghost, increase of grace, and perseverance therein to the end.

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