tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31147681.post5915596084770165316..comments2024-03-22T08:15:52.097-04:00Comments on BaptistGadfly: The Half-Hearted BelieverStephen Garretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10866698322854892197noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31147681.post-4506817645906356042009-09-30T15:42:14.798-04:002009-09-30T15:42:14.798-04:00I believe your view of the passage is wrong.
Firs...I believe your view of the passage is wrong.<br /><br />First, Person A in Luke 8:12 is lost because he does not believe. But Person B in Luke 8:13 is said to believe. Jesus is clearly showing that Person B is saved. The Greek word for believe is the same used for Luke 8:12. <br /><br />Second, if the person falls away you are arguing that they were never saved to begin with. How do you deal with the Apostles who all fell away (Mark 14:50)? <br /><br />Third, Person B fell away after testing. This comes only to believers (James 1:12). Only true believers are tested for their faith since unbelievers do not have faith (Rev. 2:10). God uses test to teach us perseverance which keeps us saved by trusting in Him (2 Peter 1:5-11). When we persevere through trails and testing, we assure our salvation (Acts 14:22; 2 Peter 3:17-18; 1 John 2:24-25; Rev. 17:14). Jesus' words to overcomers in Rev. 2-3 are important on this.<br /><br />Fourth, only God sees the heart (Hebrews 4:13). While He sees when a heart turns from Him (Hebrews 3:12-13), we do not. Our duty should be to preach perseverance in faith in Christ (Acts 11:23; 1 Cor. 15:1-2; 2 Cor. 1:24; 12:21-13:5; Romans 6:1-23; 8:12-13; 11:20-22; Gal. 5:1-4; Eph. 3:17; Php. 2:12-15; 2 Peter 2:1-22; Jude 21).The Seeking Disciplehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10850752852586928341noreply@blogger.com