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In the first post of this series, I mentioned the classic conundrum of Calvinism vs. Arminianism as regards whether Christians can fall from grace. It’s a long-standing argument, and both sides are quite insistent on the subject.

The Churches of Christ are staunchly Arminian, as are Methodists. We believe that Christians can fall from grace. Presbyterians are Calvinists. Baptists are some of both, but most are Calvinists when it comes to once saved, always saved — known as the “perseverance of the saints” in theological circles. (By the way, “Arminian” is named for the theologian Jacobus (or James) Arminius, not the nation of Armenia.)

Both sides have their verses. Let’s look as some of the Calvinists’ favorites –

John 6:37-40: “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

John 10:28-29: “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”

Romans 8:31-39: “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died–more than that, who was raised–who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, ‘For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.’ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

The Calvinist view is thus that we cannot fall away. Most concede that some who seem to have been saved will show themselves to have never been saved, which looks a lot like falling away but isn’t.

The traditional Church of Christ view is Arminian, and is extremely so. The most conservative Church of Christ teachers hold that we fall away whenever we sin, and we’re restored when we repent, confess, and ask for forgiveness. Consider this from Phil Sanders,

That we are all imperfect, having imperfect knowledge and living imperfect lives, is not under question. What is under question is if ignorance is a license to self-made religion. Are we to assume that we can (because the water is presumably muddy) act on our own initiative? Do we really think that ignorance grants us the right to presume upon the grace of God?

The same teachers teach salvation by grace and deny that they teach a works salvation. However, when they are discussing a hot-button issue, such as instrumental music, they deny that grace is available until those sinning with the instrument actually stop their sin and so repent.

Some in the Churches of Christ, deeply offended by this teaching, leave and seek comfort in the Calvinist view of things. This is not surprising. They’ve not been taught a third option. It’s either legalism or once saved, always saved.

My own view is that there must be a Third Way. Both the Baptist and the Church of Christ verses must be true. I refuse to pick.

We Arminians point to such verses as –

(Gal 5:4) You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.

(Heb 10:26-27) If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.

(2 Pet 3:17) Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position.

(Rev 2:5) Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.

Plainly, the scriptures teach that our salvation is secure. We can’t fall from a “secure position” (2 Pet 3:17 quoted above) unless we had a secure position! Thus, it’s both possible to be secure and to lose that security. How can we be secure and insecure at once?

Some Calvinists interpret these (and many similar) verses as speaking to hypothetical situations that can never really happen. I call it the “Bogeyman theory.” It’s like telling your 2-year old to stay in bed or the Bogeyman will get him! Well, there’s no Bogeyman, and doing this to your child makes you a liar. God cannot lie. Therefore, the threats are real, not invented to scare us into good behavior.

But the conservative Church of Christ position is also false — and much more dangerous. It makes nonsense of the verses promising a secure salvation –

(Heb 4:14-16) Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are–yet was without sin. 16 Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

(Eph 3:12) In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

Clearly, all these verses are true. None explains away the other. All teach precious truths. And I think the solution is found in the scripture, not the metaphysical musings of Reformation preachers.

In the next post, we’ll seek the answer in Hebrews and maybe a few other places.