I was thinking about something. It's about justification and perseverance. In my reading of reformed theology I often find an emphasis on justification as a one time thing. The moment we first believe, we are justified. Together with the belief in perseverance I guess one could say that we are eternally justified.
Personally, I don't really emphasise it in that way and I think I am confessionally sound but I wanted your opinions. I also don't like the term "once saved always saved" because I believe it does not reflect the Biblical teaching on eternal security at all..
I believe that we are justified by faith, because by faith we lay hold of Christ. Therefore to stop believing is to be no longer justified, because we lose Christ. Now before I sound to arminian and someone might get me the wrong way. I also believe that the elect will persevere by the power of God. But I see perseverance not as something once saved always saved, but rather that God's elect will persevere in the faith. Persevere in believing etc. Is it biblical and confessional to see it this way? It seems a sort of silly to emphasis "to be justified" is something that signifies only the moment that we first believed.
I hope you people understand what I mean (and forgive my possible spelling mistakes)
Greetings.
Personally, I don't really emphasise it in that way and I think I am confessionally sound but I wanted your opinions. I also don't like the term "once saved always saved" because I believe it does not reflect the Biblical teaching on eternal security at all..
I believe that we are justified by faith, because by faith we lay hold of Christ. Therefore to stop believing is to be no longer justified, because we lose Christ. Now before I sound to arminian and someone might get me the wrong way. I also believe that the elect will persevere by the power of God. But I see perseverance not as something once saved always saved, but rather that God's elect will persevere in the faith. Persevere in believing etc. Is it biblical and confessional to see it this way? It seems a sort of silly to emphasis "to be justified" is something that signifies only the moment that we first believed.
I hope you people understand what I mean (and forgive my possible spelling mistakes)
Greetings.
Last edited: