Letters of Peter VS Once Saved Always Saved 

The Epistles of Peter have some interesting verses also proving the Once Saved Always Saved doctrine wrong. 

In this post, I am going to quickly show these verses for your convenience along with some of my personal comments. To OSAS brothers, if you find some good answers that can be used to argue against these verses, please don’t hesitate to comment below and if it is interesting, I will be glad to add the objection and my response to the article.

 

Judgment in the House of God

Starting with the first Epistle chapter 4, the apostle Peter says this at the end of the chapter:

1 Peter 4:17-18 (KJV)

¹⁷ For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and IF it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?

¹⁸ And if the righteous scarcely be saved, (the apostle Peter makes it clear and says that if the righteous is hardly saved, what will happen to the sinner?), where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?

 

If Peter says the righteous will scarcely be saved, what does that mean? It means that some righteous will not be saved. Who can really be righteous? Jesus said no one is good but God. A righteous person who is not a sinner is at least justified and born again. If some righteous person can lose salvation, it goes to say that they either fell back to sin or remained unfruitful and got cut off.  

Notice the similarity between what the apostle Peter says and what the Lord Jesus says: 

Luke 13:24 – Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.

 

Yes, brothers, it is very hard to enter. If it’s only a matter of believing “inside”, that is not hard. 

 

Making the Call and Election Sure

In his second Epistle chapter 1, the apostle Peter speaks about making our call and election sure. This passage gives some insight about the mindset we should have as Christians. It surely doesn’t align with the mindset most OSAS believers have when it comes to their attitude towards their election.

 

2 Peter 1:3-12 (KJV)

³ According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

⁴ Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these (these what? life, godliness, glory and virtue) ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world (saved believers partake in the divine nature and escape corruption of the world) through lust.

⁵ And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;

⁶ And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;

⁷ And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.

⁸ For IF these things be in you (what things? faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness and charity), and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful (Peter is exhorting born again believers to let these characteristics of true believers to abide in them) in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

⁹ But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. (true believers should remember they have repented and therefore god rid of their old sins).

¹⁰ Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure (why make their election sure? isn’t election fororedained? Isn’t election supposed to be sure already?): for IF ye do these things (what things? the same things we mentioned in verse 8), ye shall never fall: (fall from what? logic says that if they have to make their election sure, that means that if they were already elected, they might fall from that status if they don’t do these things):

¹¹ For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

¹² Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth. (The apostle Peter want to exhort them not to be negligent and remember these virtuous things so that they are established in the truth and therefore never fall from that Truth, Jesus says I AM THE TRUTH)

 

The apostle Peter is addressing brothers who have escaped the pollutions of the world and who are partaking in the divine nature (verse 4). Then he exhorts them to keep many virtues (verses 5 to 7) abiding in them so that:

1. they are fruitful
2. they can see afar off and remember they are PURGED from their OLD sins
3. they make their calling and election sure
4. they never fall
5. they are established in the present truth (notice that word established.. They are already in the present truth which means they are saved, now he wants them to remember these things so that they are established in that truth, which means achieve permanent acceptance or standing)

 

You see dear brothers, reading things in context explodes with meaningful truths. This is what I mean by reading out of the scriptures. This passage is clearly against Once Saved Always Saved. Why? Because Peter is exhorting believers to make their election sure so that they don’t fall. If believers have to make their election sure, that means they are already elected. That is simple logic. Now according to Calvinistic thinking, election is a done deal, we are secure forever when we are elected. So why make our election sure if it is already sure?

 

False Teachers who will DENY the Lord

In chapter 2 verse 1, the apostle Peter says this:

2 Peter 2:1 – But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be (notice the future tense; in chapter 1, Peter was exhorting believers to always remember the truth after his death, so he is warning them here about future teachers that will be among them) false teachers among you (who is this you? the same believers from chapter 1, check above), who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even (the word “even” shows that Peter wants to be clear he is singling out true believers) denying the Lord that bought them (denying the Lord that what? bought them, remember the Spirit is the deposit guaranteeing our purchase, we are not our own), and bring upon themselves swift destruction. (swift destruction = not saved)

 

Do you see my friend? By reading in context, it is clear that this passage contradicts the Once Saved Always Saved lie. 

 

OSAS Objection: these believers are not really born again, this is about false teachers

Most OSAS believers say this is not talking about true believers but about false teachers. These teachers look as if they are saved because they are gathering with true born-again believers but in reality, they were never really saved.

 

No one ever said that this passage is not talking about false teachers. But we have to understand that, in context, Peter is saying that there WILL BE false teachers AMONG YOU. So this “you” is important and we have to know who this “you” is. To know that we have to go back to chapter 1 (remember that a letter is not in chapters and verses which were added much later in church history). In chapter 1, Peter is talking to brethren, and he is exhorting them to be established in the present truth and to make their election sure so that they never fall. So this is the first hint about who this “you” is. It is the partakers of the divine nature verse 4 chapter 1.

Additionally, Peter says that these false teachers will DENY the Lord that BOUGHT THEM. If the fact that the Lord bought them doesn’t mean these false teachers were saved, can you tell me what “denying the Lord that bought them” means?

 

Beware lest you Fall from your Stedfastness

Here is another passage from the apostle Peter in chapter 3:

2 Peter 3:14-17 (KJV)

¹⁴ Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of Him in peace, without spot, and blameless (why do they need to be found of Him blameless if they are already saved?).

¹⁵ And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation (why longsuffering? I thought that we don’t need to suffer, we are already saved. here is a quick definition of that word: having or showing patience in spite of troubles); even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;

¹⁶ As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.

¹⁷ Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things (what things? that they have to be diligent to be found of Him blameless, that they have to endure through longsuffering) before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness. (Peter is calling these brothers beloved, and he considers that they know they have to be diligent to be found blameless, yet he still tells them to beware lest they also fall from their stedfastness, that is losing salvation)

 

Conclusion

My friend, I hope you see that the second letter of Peter is very effective in proving that the doctrine of “Once Saved Always Saved” is a big lie. If you don’t see that, or if you think my interpretation doesn’t make sense, you are welcome to add a comment down below. But please be careful to argue from the context of the same letters, this way, we don’t diverge with endless back and forth.

On the other hand, if this article convinced you, then praise the Lord Jesus! I am so happy for you, another soul that will be brought to the true gospel of Christ, a gospel of walking with the Lord in Holiness.

Keep going dear brothers, walk in the Spirit and stay strong in Christ, He will pull you through, He will keep you if you hold on to Him. He loves you and will never cast you out if you go to Him!