In the weekly Update No. 146 on June 6th 2004, we printed an editorial, entitled “The Third Commandment”. Last week, we printed a Q&A, entitled “How do we need to apply the 3rd Commandment about not using the LORD’S name in vain?”. Also, on May 24, 2008, in a StandingWatch program, Evangelist Norbert Link presented a program titled, “Corrupt Communication–Why Not?” It is appropriate to emphasise this matter as it now seems that blasphemy is used by the youngest to the oldest in our nations, with virtually no consideration given at all to how serious a matter this is.

In Exodus 20:7 and Deuteronomy 5:11, we read “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.”

It is best to define what “taking the name of the LORD your God in vain” (or blasphemy as it can also be defined) really means. We could look at many definitions, but the bottom line is that we simply should not, and must not, use the name of God in any irreverent way because that would be disrespectful. When we look at God’s creative power and the awesome size, beauty and majesty of His creation, it really is something wonderful to behold, and to denigrate the name of the Creator of it all is simply unacceptable.

Wikipedia gives this definition: “Blasphemy is the act of insulting or showing contempt or lack of reverence to a deity, or sacred things, or toward something considered sacred or inviolable.”

It is interesting to read the following in Leviticus 24:16: “And whoever blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall certainly stone him, the stranger as well as him who is born in the land. When he blasphemes the name of the LORD, he shall be put to death.” It was certainly something to be taken very seriously in those times, unlike today.

But why would God, the greatest Being in the universe, be so concerned about His Name? Isn’t He, as some have observed, able to look after Himself? For anyone to make such an observation shows that they have no understanding at all about what is involved.

Some may think that they can hurt God by taking His Name in vain or rejecting Him. God can certainly be very disappointed when this happens but we have to remember that He is the Creator of all things, He sustains life, He has provided salvation for us through Jesus Christ. God is a Family, consisting of God the Father and Jesus Christ , the Son of God, and they are both God… the only true God Beings. Therefore, God deserves our worship and we are hurting ourselves when we go contrary to His way. It is not about ego and the feeling of importance but God knows that we lose out when we don’t honour His precious Name. By so dishonouring Him, we are also showing disrespect and that doesn’t have any rewards attached to it, quite the reverse. Revelation 4:10-11 is instructive in this regard: “… the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying: ‘You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.’” Honouring God’s Name as per the third Commandment is truly one way of showing our love for the One who will always be the greatest Being of all.

In a well-ordered, God-obeying family, the relationship that children have with their parents is the same relationship that a begotten son or daughter of God has with his or her heavenly Father. In the human family, there are rules, regulations and behaviour that children are expected to act upon and the same applies to God the Father who gives His begotten children commandments and standards that must be part of a true Christian’s way of life. We read in Colossians 3:8: “But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth.”

We also have to make sure that by our actions, God’s Name is not disrespected outside the true Church of God, and Romans 2:21-24 is instructive in this regard: “You, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that a man should not steal, do you steal?  You who say, ‘Do not commit adultery,’ do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who make your boast in the law, do you dishonor God through breaking the law?  For ‘the name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you, as it is written.’”

We are to set an example as expressed in Matthew 5:14-16: “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” If we blasphemed God’s great name, we wouldn’t be setting the example that we are commanded to so do.

It is interesting to note that, whilst God’s Name is taken in vain by so many people around the world, other “deities” don’t seem to suffer in the same way and we know how Muslims revere “the prophet Mohammed” who was just a human being anyway. None of these names are used as an expression of surprise, frustration or anger as the name of the true God so often is.  Satan is doing everything he can to upset true Christians as he knows that he has but a short time left.

An interesting and, it seems, not a very well-known fact, is that the blasphemy law in some parts of the UK was abolished a few years ago. Wikipedia notes that in the UK “on 5th March 2008, an amendment was passed to the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 which abolished the common law offences of blasphemy and blasphemous libel in England and Wales. The peers also voted for the laws to be abandoned during March. The Act received royal assent on 8 May 2008, and the relevant section came into force on 8 July 2008.”

On the Humanists UK website, they state the following: “Outdated and discriminatory blasphemy laws are still far too common all around the world. But the English and Welsh blasphemy laws were abolished in May 2008. The offences of blasphemy and blasphemous libel were common law offences which were contrary to the principle of free speech and probably contrary to human rights laws adopted by the UK, which protect freedom of expression. The law fundamentally protected certain, Christian, beliefs and made it illegal to question them or deny them.”

In 2016, a Pew Research Center analysis found out that, as of 2014, about a quarter of the world’s countries and territories (26%) had anti-blasphemy laws or policies.

In August 2018 the BBC website had this very unusual story about an Italian footballer (soccer player):

“Former Juventus midfielder Rolando Mandragora has been suspended for one Serie A game after he was caught on television cameras shouting “Porca Madonna, Vaffanculo, Dio Cane”, an insult to the Virgin Mary, while also referring to God as a dog. The outburst from the Italy international came after Sampdoria goalkeeper Emil Eudero saved his shot in a game which Mandragora’s side, Udinese, won 1-0.

“‘After acquiring and examining the relevant television images, the player, while cursing without referring to anybody around him, was nevertheless clearly seen by the television images to make blasphemous remarks, visibly identifiable from reading his lips without any margin for reasonable doubt,’ a disciplinary report from the Lega Serie A said. There is a strict ban on taking God’s name in vain in Italy, and since 2010, the country’s football association has disciplined players and coaches heard doing so.”

“Taking the name of the LORD your God in vain” is all a part of the erosion of biblical standards that there are organisations which exist in their bid to remove, if it were possible, all traces of the way of God from society. Of course, we understand that Satan, the arch-deceiver is behind all of this and his time is now very limited but, in the meantime, much damage can be done to decent standards that served communities well for a very long period of time. It involved the historical position that Christianity has had within the establishment – the monarchy, Parliament and the law.

It would appear that freedom of speech trumps just about everything else and that penalties for blasphemy, however that is defined, would be in contravention to the right of free speech. Along the same lines is the fact that quoting the Bible about the sin of homosexuality can be viewed as hate speech and therefore punishable in law which means that the legal provisions and requirements of man trump the Word of God.

In short, the third of God’s Ten Commandments is seen as an anachronism in today’s “more enlightened” society!!

In a newspaper article in 2018, details about social media speech were given showing that there are 60 new abbreviations that are dominating the way young people communicate with one another and the second most common one is “OMG,” and we all know that this is an abbreviation for “Oh my God.” It is now a marketing tool as the advertising industry, it seems, will do anything they can to promote products or services at any cost. The fact that God’s name is used irreverently doesn’t seem to matter one iota to those who use such language.

We should realise that the names of God the Father and Jesus Christ are so important. We know that in the model prayer in Matthew 6:9 Jesus told His disciples to pray: “Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.” We also read in Philippians 2:10 “that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow…” No one should use the great name of God in a harsh and irreverent way today, but so many do. The name of Jesus Christ is so important: “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12), and this is another reason why the 3rd Commandment must be taken very seriously.

In our weekly Update, Number 77, on 23rd January 2003, we had a Question and Answer, entitled “Is it Wrong to Use Slang such as ‘gosh’ or ‘gee’?,” and this clearly showed that such euphemisms were also clearly wrong. You may wish to review this Q&A.

King David was a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22), and he had great respect for God’s name. In Psalm 145:1-2 we read: “I will extol You, my God, O King; And I will bless Your name forever and ever. Every day I will bless You, And I will praise Your name forever and ever.” We would do well to emulate this example.

One internet commentator made these observations:

“We are not to use God’s name as a curse word. We are not to use His name lightly. If we study who God is, we understand a bit more why this is such a grave sin. God is holy, sovereign, unchangeable, omnipotent, omniscient, faithful, patient, and merciful. This is just a short list of the adjectives that could be used to describe God, the One who made a way for us to be reconciled to Him through His Son, Jesus Christ. If He is so awesome and so wonderful (and He is!), then we can understand why it is so important for us not to use His name when we are angry or surprised.”

Another writer summed it up well and succinctly when he wrote:

“The name of the Lord is holy, as He is holy. The name of the Lord is a representation of His glory, His majesty, and His supreme deity. We are to esteem and honour His name as we revere and glorify God Himself. To do any less is to take His name in vain.”

It was interesting to read what a teaching assistant with no religious views wrote about the use of the phrase “Oh my God”:

“I work as a teaching assistant with kids aged 8-10 and so many of them say this whenever they are frustrated, stroppy or feeling argumentative. I’m not religious but I certainly consider it an inappropriate phrase for children to use. I had a chat with a couple of the girls today after one of them said it. Neither of them had any concept that this was anything other than normal, as it’s a phrase used by all the family. I suggested that they might like to think of other things to say that won’t sound so offensive or rude.”

A prominent American preacher was interviewed on British television during 2018. He was asked how he felt after receiving an invitation to a particular function in the UK and he said, slowly, deliberately and with feeling “Oh my God” three times consecutively in order to express his surprise. If those in mainstream Christianity don’t find it necessary to keep the 3rd Commandment, what example does that send out to those who are members of those churches? This example was appalling and showed a complete lack of understanding how important it is to revere God’s Holy Name.

We should only use God’s name in a reverential way, showing Him the respect that He deserves, and anything less is not acceptable to Him.

Let us remember that Jesus never took His Father’s name in vain. So many people today use God’s Name in vain when they have trials, difficulties and pain and we must remember that even when Jesus was crucified, in His final hours on the stake, suffering with agonising pain and distress, He never resorted to such an approach. His approach to the third Commandment was perfect, and we are to follow Him in every way and that includes honouring, not disrespecting His Father’s Name.

God’s Name should not be blasphemed today and the third Commandment makes this quite clear. But what about the future? We read in Ezekiel 39:7: “So I will make My holy name known in the midst of My people Israel, and I will not let them profane My holy name anymore. Then the nations shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel.” During the Millennium, taking God’s Name in vain will not be tolerated, nor will it be tolerated for eternity after that time.

Yes, we really should take the third Commandment very seriously today!

Lead Writer: Brian Gale (United Kingdom)

It is interesting to note that, particularly in the last two decades, “independent” Feast of Tabernacles sites have been established. We read in Deuteronomy 16:13-16: “You shall observe the Feast of Tabernacles seven days, when you have gathered from your threshing floor and from your winepress. And you shall rejoice in your feast, you and your son and your daughter, your male servant and your female servant and the Levite, the stranger and the fatherless and the widow, who are within your gates. Seven days you shall keep a sacred feast to the LORD your God in the place which the LORD chooses, because the LORD your God will bless you in all your produce and in all the work of your hands, so that you surely rejoice. Three times a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God in the place which He chooses: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Tabernacles; and they shall not appear before the LORD empty-handed.”

God is very clear when He instructs His people to keep the annual Feasts “in the place which He chooses.” How does He do that? The question is about who decides where a Feast of Tabernacles site should be and the same principle applies to the other Feast days.

Originally, God placed His Name in Jerusalem when the Feasts were revealed to the ancient nation of Israel.  At that time, the Truth of God was given to Israel but as the Word of God spread, particularly after the inception of the New Testament church at Pentecost in 31 AD, it became obvious that the Feast of Tabernacles would have to be kept in other parts of the world.  In recent times, there have been the people of God in most nations around the world who had to be accommodated by Feast sites within reasonable distance for them to be able to attend.

How is this achieved, and by whom?

We read in Ephesians 4:11-16 the following:  “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.”

Unfortunately, these verses don’t appear to sit well at all with some who seem to reject the authority of the ministry.

The Bible clearly reveals that in God’s plan for mankind, the Father is in charge, that Christ is the Head of every church organization and congregation, and under Christ are God-appointed leaders, as we read in Ephesians 4:11-16.  We read in Hebrews 13:17 that we are to “Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.” Church members are to be subject to God’s delegated authorities in the church which comprise the ministry.

In 1 Peter 5:1-3, we read about how the ministry are to act:  “The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed: Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.”

Those who are in authority in the church are not to lord it over members but are to serve them and to be examples, and they are given responsibilities to fulfil, one of which is to organise Feast sites.

In the past, God gave responsibilities to man directly – for example, Adam was instructed to name the animals (Genesis 2:19); Moses was spoken to at the burning bush (Exodus 3) and on other occasions; the prophet Samuel was told to anoint Saul as king (1 Samuel 9) and David as king (1 Samuel 16); the word of the LORD came to Jehu against king Baasha (1 Kings 16:1); the word of the LORD came to Elijah to present himself to Ahab (1 Kings 18:1): the word of the LORD came to Ezekiel (Ezekiel 12) and Haggai (Haggai 1 and 2).   These are just some of the examples of God instructing some of His servants.

We read in Matthew 16:16-19: “Simon Peter answered and said, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’  Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.  And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.’” (We read this same principle in Matthew 18:18.)

In our Q&A “Could you explain the extent of the power that Christ gave in Matthew 16:19, to ‘bind and loose’?” we state: “Christ empowered the leadership of the Church, throughout the Church’s history and existence, to discern God’s Will regarding binding Church decisions as to what God permits and prohibits, based on His law, and who is to be excommunicated and reinstated, based on the Church leadership’s discernment of the person’s repentance and God’s forgiveness. This is not to say that Church decisions are to be considered infallible. God does not bind in heaven a Church decision which is against His Will and His Law. We are told that all of us have to GROW in the KNOWLEDGE OF CHRIST (2 Peter 3:18; Ephesians 4:13). Therefore, when God, through the power and wisdom of His Holy Spirit, clearly reveals to the Church leadership that a wrong decision was made in the past, perhaps by not fully submitting to, or understanding the Will of God, such a wrong decision must be corrected immediately.”

The Bible here clearly reveals that God works through the ministry.

God has delegated anointing (James 5:13-15) and baptism (see Acts 19:1-6) through the laying on of hands by elders in the Church of God, not by non-ordained church members, not even deacons.  Please read our Q&A on the concept of the laying on of hands which proves that God has given His ordained ministers the exclusive right to lay hands on anyone for the purpose of “sanctification,” including in areas of baptism, healing, marriage, blessing of little children and ordinations.

It should now be apparent that God works through His ministry and one of their responsibilities is to follow God’s lead in finding and deciding on suitable Feast of Tabernacles sites, and if any baptised members are unwilling to go to a Feast site where GOD has placed His name, then they are being self-willed by either not attending the Feast or by attending a site that has not been chosen, approved of and organised by the Church of God ministry.   In short, they are not willing to submit to God!  They are in effect showing that they are self-willed!

Of course, non-ordained members can be used to search for a site, and once a site has been chosen and approved of by the ministry, many non-ordained members may be used to help in the organisation and the effective running of the Feast.

It appears that, at times, a Feast site may be organised by non-ordained members for which no ministerial approval has been given, and the Feast is then being conducted without ministerial blessing. God is not going to bless and support such an approach and arrangement.  Matthew 7:21-23 is relevant to this situation: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.  Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’  And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’”

As we read earlier in Deuteronomy 16:13-16, the key words were “in the place which the LORD chooses” which is mentioned twice and so it must be important to God.  It is important to understand and realise that elders in the Church of God have been given God-ordained responsibilities and choosing and approving of a Feast of Tabernacles site is one of them, and such a site then will be “in the place which the LORD chooses” through their actions and any arrangement other than this will not be acceptable to God.

You might want to review a previous Q&A entitled “Why do we attend God’s annual Feast and Sabbath services in the place where God makes His Name to be known?” which was published in our Update 657 dated September 19th 2014.

Lead Writer: Brian Gale (United Kingdom)

Let us review a few more of the many Scriptures that disprove the concept of “once saved, always saved”; that confirm that our sins which we might commit in the future are not automatically forgiven in advance when we “accept” Jesus Christ; that teach that repentance is vital and necessary; and that answer such ridiculous assertions about not having to keep asking for forgiveness or repenting in order to have our sins forgiven.

2 Chronicles 7:14: “… if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

Matthew 4:17: “From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”

Luke 13:2-3: “And Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.’”

Acts 2:38: “Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.’”

Acts 3:19: “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord…”

Acts 17:30: “Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent…”

2 Peter 3:9: “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.”

There are many other references but the above should suffice to prove the point that repentance in Scripture is a key requirement for a true Christian.

In our booklet “Teach Us to Pray,” further information is given about the need for repentance. We quote as follows:

On Page 47, under the Subheading: “We Must Confess Our Sins to God”:

“1 John 1:8-9 says: ‘If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.’

“Psalm 32:5 adds: ‘I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I have not hidden. I said: “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” And You forgave the iniquity of my sin.’

On Pages 47-48, under the Subheading: “We Must ASK for Forgiveness”:

“When we confess our sins to God; that is, when we acknowledge our sins to God and admit our mistakes to Him, we need to ask God at the same time to forgive us our sins. Even though God is more than willing to forgive us, we still need to ask Him.

“In Psalm 25:18, David asked God for forgiveness, when he prayed: ‘Look on my affliction and my pain, And forgive all my sins.’ He stated in Psalm 86:5: ‘For You, LORD, are good, and ready to forgive, And abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You.’

On Page 48, under the Subheading: “We Must Ask in FAITH”:

“When we ask God for forgiveness, we must firmly believe that He WILL forgive us. We read that ‘through this Man [Jesus Christ] is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; and by Him everyone who believes is justified’ (Acts 13:38-39).”

On Page 48, under the Subheading: “We Must FORSAKE Our Sins”:

“Proverbs 28:13 says: ‘He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy.’

“When we forsake our sins, we actually turn away from them. We read in Jeremiah 36:3: ‘It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the adversities which I purpose to bring upon them, that everyone may turn from his evil way, that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin.’

On Pages 48-49, under the Subheading: “We Must REPENT or RETURN to God”:

“It is not enough to turn away from our sins. We must at the same time turn, or return to, God. This is another way of saying: We must REPENT of our sins. That is, we must forsake or turn from our sins—cease doing what is wrong—and we must turn to God by doing what is right.

“John would not baptize people who had not shown in their lives ‘fruits worthy of repentance’ (Luke 3:8). Christ came to call sinners to repentance (Matthew 9:13). He also said that we will perish, if we don’t repent (Luke 13:3, 5). He said that Nineveh was spared, because they repented (Matthew 12:41). Paul said that he might have to mourn for many ‘in the church’ who did not repent of their sins (2 Corinthians 12:21)…

“Isaiah 55:7 tells us: ‘Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.’

“Jeremiah tells us in the Book of Lamentations: ‘Let us search out and examine our ways, And turn back to the LORD; Let us lift our hearts and hands To God in heaven’ (chapter 3, verse 40). Jeremiah goes on to explain that God did not pardon them for their transgression and rebellion (verse 42). Why not? Obviously, because they had not turned back to God—they had not yet repented of their sins. Solomon understood that God will forgive us our sins if we ‘pray… and confess… and turn from [our] sins… and return to [God] with all [our] heart and with all [our] soul’ (2 Chronicles 6:26, 38-39; compare 1 Kings 8:33-40). Notice, too, Daniel’s prayer, asking for forgiveness after repentance, in Daniel 9:1-20, especially verse 13.

“In Acts 26:18, Christ tells Paul that forgiveness is predicated on turning from darkness to light. Compare, too, Peter’s admonition to Simon Magus, in Acts 8:22: ‘Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you.’”

On Pages 49 and 51, under the Subheading: “God Does Not Forgive Without Repentance”:

“God does not forgive us if we REFUSE to repent—refusing to admit and confess our sins to God, refusing to ask for His forgiveness in faith, and refusing to forsake and turn from our evil ways by turning to God and living His Way…

“God does not forgive us our sins if we refuse to repent of them, but He is quick to forgive, once we realize our sin and truly repent of it. Since we are to pray, ‘Forgive US OUR debts,’ this prayer includes not only the forgiveness of our personal individual sins, but also a request to God to forgive the sins of others (compare Numbers 21:7; 1 Samuel 12:19, 23).”

On Page 51, under the Subheading: “Summary”:

“Because of Christ’s Sacrifice, we can ask God the Father to forgive us our sins. But we must acknowledge and confess our sins to God, and we must ask and pray in faith for His forgiveness while turning to Him and forsaking our evil ways. If we refuse to repent of our sins, we cannot expect that God will forgive us.

“But that’s not all. There is yet another condition that we must fulfill in order to obtain God’s forgiveness of our sins. This condition is taught in the next sentence of the prayer outline.”

These excerpts clearly show that we have to ask for forgiveness—not accepting the erroneous belief of the “once saved, always saved” concept where this “understanding” is that “when God justifies a sinner, He clears his guilt, past, present and future,” as one such proponent put it. Such a misleading approach can lead to “Christians” letting down their guard and not really having to concern themselves about their future behaviour, because whatever sins they commit have already been forgiven without them having to repent of them. Such an approach is very dangerous, and without true personal repentance, no one can be in the future Kingdom of God as a ruling member of the God Family, for eternity! It is just that serious!

One writer pondered the following:

“OSAS” (Once Saved, Always Saved) tries to make two types of the sexually immoral, drunkards, swindlers, greedy etc – one type being saved because of a past moment of faith and the other type being unsaved because he never had even one moment of faith!”

To complete this study, let us look at the book of Revelation. In chapters 2 and 3 are quite a number of references for the need to repent, be faithful until death, hold fast, persevere and overcome (these are underlined in the verses quoted below). These requirements are the very antithesis of the assertion, previously mentioned, that Christians “do not always need to be asking God for forgiveness” and “believers do not have to keep asking for forgiveness or [keep] repenting in order to have their sins forgiven.”

Following are passages from Revelation 2:

(Verse 5) Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.

(Verse 7) He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God…

(Verse 10) Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.

(Verse 11) He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.

(Verse 16) Repent, or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth.

(Verse 17) He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.

(Verse 22) Indeed I will cast her into a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of their deeds.

(Verse 25) But hold fast what you have till I come.

(Verse 26) And he who overcomes, and keeps My works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations…

(Verse 29) He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

We conclude with the following passages from Revelation 3:

(Verse 3) Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent. Therefore if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you.

(Verse 5) He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.

(Verse 10) Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.

(Verse 11) Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.

(Verse 12) He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on him the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name.

(Verse 19) As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.

(Verse 21) To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.

We would all do well to heed the phrase which is used a number of times in these two chapters of Revelation: “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

Lead Writer: Brian Gale (United Kingdom)

In the first part of this three-part series, we discussed five Scriptures which have been used to “prove” the “once saved, always saved”-concept, and showed that these passages do not support this wrong assumption. The proponent who quoted those five passages went on to cite additional Scriptures which allegedly support his view point, stating the following:

“For further reading see also Hebrews 5:9, 10:14, 1 Peter 1:3-5, 1 John 5:11-13. The scriptural motivation for Christian service should not be fear of losing one’s salvation but rather love to Christ. How tragic that some attend church and read their Bibles driven by the fear that if they do not fulfil these duties they will be cast out. May the Lord graciously reveal the truth of eternal security and the believer’s new position in Christ, that bond-service to Him may become the most blessed freedom of all.”

Let us also address the Scriptures quoted above.

• Hebrews 5:9:

“And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him…”

It is somewhat surprising that this verse is used to try and prove the “once saved, always saved” belief. It clearly states that obedience is necessary, not someone who makes a pronouncement that he has accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, and then goes off the straight and narrow and sins as a matter of lifestyle. The proponents of this understanding believe that sins not yet committed will be automatically forgiven without repentance and asking God for forgiveness. Those who are committed to the Way of Life that God has called us to are obedient as an ongoing commitment and will repent of sins that they engage in and ask God for forgiveness which He will give to the truly repentant.

In 1 John 3:24 we read: “Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom [which] He has given us.” There is further proof in 1 John 2:3-4: “Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” These verses alone should be sufficient to answer the erroneous teaching under discussion.

• Hebrews 10:14:

“For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified.”

As is the case with all Scripture, we have to put all the relevant verses together and not just rely on one verse to prove a point. This passage talks about those who are being sanctified. We are not the finished article and that is why we have to endure to the end through testing and tribulation. In this regard, let us review Revelation 2:10-11:

“Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.”

We need to be faithful to God even to the point of death, and nothing less will do – and overcoming is again stressed.

There are other Scriptures that are relevant here.

Hebrews 3:12-14 says: “Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called ‘Today,’ lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end…”

Here Paul was talking to Church members, addressing them as brethren, saying that they could depart from God. If the “once saved, always saved” belief is applied in these cases, then those who were once saved but have departed from the faith will still have their future sins forgiven without any remorse or repentance whilst they are living a life not approved of by God. That is a ridiculous conclusion and one that is not endorsed by the Word of God.

2 Corinthians 13:9-11 says: “For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong. And this also we pray, that you may be made complete. Therefore I write these things being absent, lest being present I should use sharpness, according to the authority which the Lord has given me for edification and not for destruction. Finally, brethren, farewell. Become complete. Be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.”

Here, Paul prayed for those who had been saved from their past sins, to aim for perfection, not to veer off the Way that they had been called to. There must have been the possibility that this could happen; otherwise, he wouldn’t have made this urgent plea, but those who may not have heeded such a plea and fell away from the Truth would, according to the “once saved, always saved” proponents, still have their sins forgiven in the future without them repenting or coming back to the faith.

Galatians 6:7-10 says: “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.”

There are two types of sowing here: one to please man’s own sinful nature (the flesh), and one that produces everlasting life through sowing to the Spirit. Those who fall away even though they were saved from past sins at the time of conversion, cannot possibly have future sins forgiven because they will not repent of them and their wrong way of life.

Eternal life is something that will be reaped if true Christians don’t grow weary and give up. If they do give up, as many have over the last 6,000 years, and don’t repent and return to the Way of Life to which they were called, then their future sins will not automatically be forgiven.

• 1 Peter 1:3-5:

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”

True Christians have been begotten, not yet born again as that will occur at the first resurrection and the same principle of enduring to the end applies once again.

• 1 John 5:11-13:

“And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.  He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.”

The fact that God has given us eternal life doesn’t mean that this translates into a permanent situation irrespective of what happens after conversion. We must endure, and come through, all of the tests and trials that are set before us; otherwise, it would give us the opportunity to do what we liked and still make it into the Kingdom of God. The Bible nowhere teaches such a scenario; in fact, a few verses later in 1 John 5 we read: “If anyone sees his brother sinning a sin which does not lead to death, he will ask, and He will give him life for those who commit sin not leading to death. There is sin leading to death. I do not say that he should pray about that. All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin not leading to death” (verses 16-17). This is talking about sin not repented of. However, it doesn’t make any sense to think that sin not repented of would mean the end of physical life but such a person would still be fine with God spiritually speaking if you apply the “once saved, always saved” concept. This passage does not talk about physical death, but it talks about the eternal or second death which we earn when we commit the unpardonable sin. There is plain contradiction in such thinking!

One website opined as follows:

“Salvation is not a matter of believers trying to confess and repent from every sin they commit before they die. Salvation is not based on whether a Christian has confessed and repented of every sin. Yes, we should confess our sins to God as soon as we are aware that we have sinned. However, we do not always need to be asking God for forgiveness. When we place our faith in Jesus Christ for salvation, all of our sins are forgiven. That includes past, present, and future, big or small. Believers do not have to keep asking for forgiveness or repenting in order to have their sins forgiven. Jesus died to pay the penalty for all of our sins, and when they are forgiven, they are all forgiven (Colossians 1:14; Acts 10:43)” (our emphasis by underlining).

What a contradiction we find here. It states: “Yes, we should confess our sins to God as soon as we are aware that we have sinned. However, we do not always need to be asking God for forgiveness.” In short, we need to confess our sins but we don’t always need to be asking for forgiveness!

It is amazing what some people will believe in order to convince themselves that obedience to God and His Commandments is unnecessary!

Keeping in mind the comments above that “we do not always need to be asking God for forgiveness” and “believers do not have to keep asking for forgiveness or repenting in order to have their sins forgiven,” let us consider what the online biblestudytools.com website has to say:

“Confession of sins is both commanded and frequently illustrated. When one is guilty of various sins, ‘he must confess in what way he has sinned’ in order to receive atonement and forgiveness. Thus, confession belongs to repentance, and is needed for divine forgiveness. A great prophecy/promise is given in the Book of Isaiah: ‘The Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who repent of their sins.’

“In the New Testament, the key term for repentance is metanoia – It has two usual senses: a ‘change of mind’ and ‘regret/remorse.’ In both books of Mark and Matthew Jesus began his public proclamation with the call ‘Repent.’ In addition, Paul is said to have preached to both Jews and Gentiles/Greeks to ‘turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.’

“True repentance leads a person to say, ‘I have sinned’ and prove it with a 180-degree change of their direction. Repentance requires true brokenness.”

Romans 3:21-25 states: “But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed…”

Being justified means to be lined up and made right with God by grace which is a gift of God. But that is just the start, the beginning of the Christian life which is a life of growing and overcoming—and enduring to the end.

In the Benson Commentary we read: “For the remission of sins that are past — All the sins antecedent to their believing,” and the Geneva Study Bible states: “Of those sins which we committed when we were his enemies.”

There is no mention here in Romans 3:21-25 of future sins being automatically forgiven and, as we have seen, we have to truly repent of all of our sins and then they will be forgiven. In Romans 2:4 we read: “Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?” God leads us to repentance and it is a very necessary part of the Christian life and we should not just expect our sins to be forgiven without repenting of them.

To clarify, we may die without having recognized all of our sins; and therefore, we would not have repented of them. But this does not mean that God would hold those unknown or unrealized sins against us. God looks at our heart and judges us based on what we know and what He has revealed to us. But once we recognize sin in our life, we must repent of it—God will not forgive those sins when we refuse to repent of them and leave them behind.

(To Be Continued)

Lead Writer: Brian Gale (United Kingdom)

This is clearly not our understanding. The erroneous concept that we do not have to repent of any sins that we may commit after conversion is part of the “once saved, always saved” (or eternal security) doctrine espoused by some, in mainstream Christianity. One such proponent gave the following five Scriptures and explanations and said that “they prove the glorious truth of scripture—‘once in Christ, in Christ forever.’” Let us review these:

• John 5:24:

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.”

The proponents of eternal security say that “this passage is a one-way street and carries no threat of reversal.” However, many other Scriptures state otherwise. Nothing can stop us from attaining this, except we ourselves!

This verse talks about the time when someone puts his trust in God and makes the decision to follow and obey Him and if he remains faithful to his calling for the rest of his life, he will make it, with the help of God, into the Kingdom of God.

There is the understanding by some that believers do not have to keep asking for forgiveness or repenting in order to have their sins forgiven. How wrong can they be? Of course, Jesus died for all of our sins, past, present and future, but the Bible is clear that repentance is necessary and that we must ask for forgiveness as we acknowledge our sins to God.

One writer stated that “the word ‘believes’ in John 5:24 is a present active participle in the Greek. Therefore, the Lord is saying here that we must continually be believing the Father, that is His testimony about Jesus.”

From the website “alphadictionary.com” they state the following: “The present active participle, like all present participles, is derived only from imperfect verbs, since it refers to an action that is currently taking place or which takes place repeatedly.”

• John 10:27-28:

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.”

The Pulpit Commentary observes the following in John 10:27 in respect of the sheep:

“‘My sheep hear my voice’ (their receptivity).

“‘And I know them’ (the Lord’s response to their faith).

“‘And they follow me’ (their active obedience).”

Following God obviously requires active and ongoing obedience. It would be ridiculous to think that a true Christian could wilfully be disobedient to God, and, without repentance and genuinely asking for forgiveness, have his sins forgiven before he even committed such acts. That erroneous thinking and “belief” will encourage a lack of care in necessary behaviour and lead to a person doing what he wants to do, thinking that it doesn’t matter as he has already been forgiven. It beggars or is beyond belief that there are those who read the Word of God and who come to such a conclusion.

One writer stated the following:

“Some people see salvation with ‘no strings attached’ that is, regarding how far one may stray doctrinally or sinfully, he will always be of the group that shall never perish. But the context of John 10:27-29 destroys this deadly interpretation of the most commonly cited proof for eternal security. Verse 27 describes the sheep and states that they follow Jesus. The Greek word is a continuous tense and describes the only people who will never perish and won’t get plucked out of God’s hand (see verses 28-29).”

The fact that following Jesus is a continuous action and doesn’t allow for wilful disobedience and turning one’s back on the Way of Life that He commands us to live is clearly shown in Matthew 10:22, which reads: “And you shall be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.” This same principle of enduring to the end is a theme within the Word of God.

Another writer, an on-line commentator, observed as follows:

“Notice first of all who His sheep are: They are those who hear His voice and follow Him. The idea that obedience is essential to salvation of the Lord Jesus Christ is claimed through God’s revelation. Jesus identifies those who belong to Him, having His blessing, protection, they are people who listen to His directions and carry them out! That is the only way one is really acting ‘by faith.’ One can look at the eleventh chapter of the book of Hebrews, where so many were successful ‘by faith,’ and if you are honest with yourself, you’ll see each one carefully followed the Lord’s directions.

“That is the way one can be SURE of his/her salvation. Truly, no one is wise or strong enough to overpower God and take you or me away IF we are loyal to Him. Yet, one can walk away, as we have seen many do in the centuries past, as they are recorded in the Bible for us to see. We are often referred to them as they did receive the wrath of God, because they failed to listen and perform as directed.

“Remember how the serpent beguiled Eve, in persuading her that she would not experience the consequences that God said she would when and if she failed to follow His teachings. Think about this: why would the Lord give so many warnings about being led astray and falling, IF IT WERE IMPOSSIBLE? Why are we told to make our calling and election sure, if there is no way it can be made unsure?”

The passage in 2 Peter 1:5-11 is very instructive:

“But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love. For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

It is clear from this passage of Scripture that the continuance of obedience to God’s instructions is essential.

• Ephesians 4:30:

“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom [which] you were sealed for the day of redemption.”

We read earlier in the book of Ephesians (chapter 1:13-14) about being “sealed”: “In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who [which] is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.”

In verse 14, the guarantee is a down payment or earnest (an old-fashioned description meaning a deposit), but has not yet come to full maturity and this will only occur at the resurrection to life at Christ’s return for all those who have died in the faith; and at the time of change to eternal life for those who are still alive in Christ when He returns and have endured unto the end.

In Strong’s Concordance #4972, we read that the Greek word for seal is sphragizo. One of the definitions is that which “signifies ownership and the full security carried by the backing (full authority) of the owner. ‘Sealing’ in the ancient world served as a ‘legal signature’ which guaranteed the promise (contents) of what was sealed.” However, in Matthew 27:66, the same word is used: “So they went and made the tomb secure sealing the stone and setting the guard.” Just two verses later in Matthew 28:2, we read: “And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door and sat on it.”

This shows that the seal could be broken in some circumstances. An instance of this is shown in 1 Timothy 1:18-20: “This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck, of whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I delivered to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.”

The verses quoted show that the understanding that the seal of the Holy Spirit is an unconditional guarantee of “once saved, always saved” is a flawed and erroneous concept.

• Philippians 1:6:

“… being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ…”

We read in many other Scriptures that a believer has to endure to the end to be saved and, therefore, this verse must be interpreted with that understanding. God will complete the good work that He has begun in us, subject to us playing our full part, and nothing less will do.

• 2 Timothy 1:12:

“For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.”

God does not call and choose us unless He is fully convinced that we will be able to live His Way of Life. He is not in the business of failure and He calls us, knowing that we have what it takes to stay close to Him until the end. However, we must make that concerted effort and not wander off the path to eternal life which some have done and more will do in the future.

(To Be Continued)

Lead Writer: Brian Gale (United Kingdom)