Eternal Security
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About this ebook
Do you ever find yourself wondering . . .
- Is it actually possible to know, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that I am going to heaven?
- If you say that my salvation is "eternally secure" and that I can never lose it, does that mean that I can commit any sin and still go to heaven?
- How can an understanding of "eternal security" make a difference in my Christian life?
With the wisdom and skill of a man who has personally wrestled with these questions, internationally-known pastor and bestselling author Charles Stanley addresses the age-old issue of grace vs. works in this compassionate, straight-forward book.
With questions at the end of each chapter, Eternally Secure is an excellent choice for individual or group study.
"I know from experience that until you settle once and for all the question of whether or not you are eternally secure, joy will elude you. Therefore, it is my prayer that God will use this book in your life and that in the very near future you will be able to face life with the confidence that comes through knowing you are eternally secure. ?Charles Stanley
Previously published in hardcover (0840790953).
Charles F. Stanley
Dr. Charles F. Stanley was the founder of In Touch Ministries and pastor emeritus of First Baptist Church Atlanta, Georgia, where he served more than fifty years. He was also a New York Times bestselling author of more than seventy books. Until his death in 2023, Dr. Stanley’s mission was to get the gospel to “as many people as possible, as quickly as possible, as clearly as possible, as irresistibly as possible, through the power of the Holy Spirit to the glory of God.” This is a calling that In Touch Ministries continues to pursue by transmitting his teachings as widely and effectively as possible. Dr. Stanley’s messages can be heard daily on In Touch with Dr. Charles Stanley broadcasts on television, radio, and satellite networks and stations around the world; on the internet at intouch.org and through In Touch+; and via the In Touch Messenger Lab. Excerpts from Dr. Stanley’s inspiring messages are also published in the award-winning In Touch devotional magazine.
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Eternal Security - Charles F. Stanley
Preface
The life-changing biblical principles outlined in Eternal Security made it an undisputed candidate for the newly revised Charles Stanley Discipleship Series. This special series was created to support the building of a biblical foundation of faith and to lead to greater spiritual maturity. Other books in the series include How to Handle Adversity, The Gift of Forgiveness, Winning the War Within, and How to Listen to God. We encourage you to use these books as Bible study and witnessing tools.
When you have completed the Discipleship Series, we have more good news for you. In Touch Ministries has more ongoing study for you on-line. We would like to invite you to explore our Web site at www.intouch.org. The pages of our site are filled with inspiration and exciting Bible study tools for the whole family. Take time today to browse the pages of our topical Scripture index, to learn more about the heroes of the Bible in our Mighty in Spirit
feature, or to begin your quiet time with our daily on-line devotions. Also visit our Prayer Touch
pages, containing quick reference tips on prayer, quiet time aids for praying the Scriptures, and our monthly prayer-focused newsletter.
Children of all ages can grow in godliness with the tools in Generation Next
—an area containing Kids Corner
Bible lessons and printable activity pages, and Teen Connection,
which offers age-specific Bible studies and encouraging daily devotions. This portion of the site also hosts Parents Café,
a priceless resource of godly inspiration for moms and dads.
May God bless you as you seek to grow in the disciplines of His Word and to pursue the goal of Christlike character.
—In Touch Ministries
In Touch Ministries is the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles F. Stanley, pastor of the 15,000-member First Baptist Church of Atlanta, Georgia. In Touch currently has a staff of more than 200 people in the United States and numerous affiliate staff throughout its international offices.
The real story of In Touch, however, is not statistical. It is the story of penetrating the human soul with the Word of God so that all who view or listen can grow to spiritual maturity and make a godly impact on the world in which they live.
Introduction
I have not always believed in eternal security. I was raised in the Pentecostal Holiness Church, a denomination that did not believe in eternal security and frequently preached against it. As a child, I was not threatened by such preaching. I always loved church. I would arrive early to claim my second-row aisle seat—right in front of the pastor.
There were two reasons I chose to attend a Pentecostal Holiness church. First, my grandfather was a Pentecostal pastor. Second, it was my mother’s preference. I can remember as a young boy getting up on Sunday morning, eating breakfast, and walking to church. Even when my mother was unable to go, I would be there.
June was typically revival month back in those days. In June of 1944 our evangelist for the week was a Mrs. Wilson. Women evangelists were not uncommon in the Pentecostal Holiness Church. As was my habit, I was there attending each night that week. After the choir finished their song, Mrs. Wilson walked to the pulpit and preached a stirring salvation message. I don’t remember feeling a strong desire to respond. When the invitation began, I rose from my seat and went forward. Before I reached the altar, I began weeping. I knelt down and started asking Jesus to save me. Several members of my Sunday school class gathered around me and began praying for me as well.
When the altar call ended, the pastor of the church asked me to step up to the pulpit and share with the congregation what Christ had done for me. Still crying, I stood behind the pulpit and said, I don’t know all Jesus has done for me, but I know He saved me.
The pastor put his hand on my shoulder, looked me square in the eye, and said, Charles, grow up and be a good boy. And when you die, you will go to heaven.
EASIER SAID THAN DONE
It didn’t take me long to realize that being good wasn’t easy. To compound the problem, just about everything a twelve-year-old boy considered fun was a sin according to the Pentecostal Holiness Church. I was continually confessing my sins, begging for forgiveness, and hoping I wouldn’t die before I had time to repent!
During that time I began sensing God’s call in my life. That meant one of two things in those days, becoming a preacher or a missionary. The awareness of God’s call in my life only darkened the cloud of guilt under which I lived. How could I ever help anybody else when I’m constantly wavering? I would wonder. What if I stood to preach and wasn’t even saved?
At age fourteen I joined a Baptist church. My decision was purely a social one. The Baptist church had a larger youth group than the Pentecostal church, and that meant more girls! That was when I discovered not everybody believed as I did. I first heard the phrase eternal security
in that little Baptist church. Even as a teenager I was a diligent student of God’s Word. Armed with my list of verses, I was prepared and even eager to present my side of the issue. No one made a dent in my theology. And I never expected anyone to, because I knew the Scripture was clearly on my side.
When I left home for college, I was still a staunch believer in the doctrine that one could lose his salvation. Often in our dorm the conversation would turn to religion. Over and over I would pull out my arsenal of verses and present my case. Frequently, I found myself standing alone. But my view was strengthened by the carnal lifestyles of many with whom I debated, men who claimed to be saved and yet whose actions gave no indication of their having a relationship with Christ. Intellectually, I was more persuaded than ever. But deep inside a battle was raging.
Despite my strong defense and quiver of verses, I couldn’t make it all fit. The events of that Sunday morning in 1944 were fixed in my memory. I remember for the first time feeling that I was at peace with God. I knew I had been born again. The possibility that I could lose all I had gained that Sunday morning seemed a little far-fetched. And the idea that I could lose it and regain it repeatedly was difficult to comprehend.
Although I was troubled by my internal struggles, I never felt alienated from God. I had an inner peace even at my lowest times. Somehow I knew He still loved me and accepted me. My repeated requests for salvation were more a ritual than a heartfelt sense of need. I never felt lost. Yet the Scripture seemed to be so clear on that point. Consequently, I remained resolute in my defense.
SEMINARY DAYS
In the fall of 1954 I entered Southwestern Theological Seminary. Once again I found myself in heated discussions concerning the issue of eternal security. I continued my study of what I considered the pertinent passages of Scripture. For a long time I did not understand how anybody could think the Bible taught that the believer was eternally secure. But slowly that began to change.
Strangely enough, it was my intense study of the Scriptures that caused me to begin doubting my position. This was not a sudden change. It took time. Nobody convinced me. On the contrary, after a while nobody even wanted to talk to me about it; I had pretty much run the issue into the ground by that point. But as convincing as I was, I had no peace about the subject. So I continued to study.
Verse by verse I picked my way through the passages used to support each view. Through this process two things became apparent. First, I was guilty of ignoring the context of many verses I quoted to defend my view. As I began digging deeper into the events and discussions surrounding these passages, they took on a different meaning.
Second, I discovered through my study that the concept of salvation through faith alone cannot be reconciled with the belief that one can forfeit his or her salvation. If I must do or not do something to keep from losing my salvation, salvation would be by faith and works. I specifically remember the day this particular truth dawned on me. I found myself at a theological fork in the road. To maintain my position, I realized I would have to abandon my belief in salvation by faith alone.
It was as if a light came on. Suddenly I saw it. I wanted to shout. I felt like a man just freed from prison. I began to thank God that I had been wrong all those years. I thanked Him for the restlessness that had kept me searching and praying. Then I was struck with the most awesome thought of all. I had been eternally secure since that day as a twelve-year-old when I prayed, asking Jesus to save me.
That morning was a turning point in my life. It was far more than simply a shift in my theology. It introduced me to the true meaning of unconditional love. It was the beginning of my lifelong journey into the mystery of God’s truly amazing grace. Terms such as peace and joy took on a whole new meaning. They became part of my experience, not just my vocabulary.
I realized how little I had really trusted God. You see, it is difficult to trust someone when you are never really sure where you stand with that person. Security came to mean a great deal more than a guarantee of where I would spend eternity. It was the perfect word to describe the sense of intimacy I felt with Christ. I was secure. Secure in His love and acceptance of me. Secure in His daily will for my life. Secure in every promise He had made. And of course, secure in where I would spend eternity.
I’M NOT ALONE
I continually meet people who believe as I once believed. If it were simply a theological difference, I would be content to agree to disagree. It is far more than that. I know the bondage to which that kind of thinking leads. I have lived with the guilt and the fear fostered by that view. Jesus said, And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free
(John 8:32). Freedom comes from knowing the truth. Bondage results from missing it.
The following pages are written in hopes that you will be set free to enjoy the relationship God has paid so dearly to provide. It is a relationship from which fear and worry are absent. I know from experience that until you settle once and for all the question of whether or not you are eternally secure, this quality of joy will elude you. Therefore, it is my prayer that God will use this book in your life and that in the very near future you will be able to face life with the confidence that comes through knowing you are eternally secure!
One
WHAT IS AT STAKE?
Through the years I have enjoyed a unique privilege as the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Atlanta. Every time I deliver a message I know the truth is going out not only to my home congregation but to hundreds of other people as well. Through our In Touch
television and radio ministry, I am able to reach out beyond the four walls of our sanctuary into living rooms, bedrooms, dens, hotel rooms, prisons, and many other places across America and into some foreign countries.
Along with this great privilege comes an awesome responsibility to ensure that every time someone turns to In Touch,
the truth is being offered. I learned a long time ago that people are not interested in my opinion. Neither are they interested in listening to sermonettes, short speeches on how good everything and everybody is. Least of all, people do not want a rehash of the latest news.
People are starving for God’s truth to be made applicable to their situations. People want to know how to live, how to take the Bible and apply it to their daily lives. So every Monday morning I begin my week on my knees praying, "O Lord, what do You have for me this week? And second,
Father, how do I make this clear to others?"
One of the most encouraging things about our television ministry has been its interdenominational appeal. Every week we receive letters from members of many denominations, protestant and non-protestant alike.
This kind of response says two things to me. First, people do not feel threatened by the fact that our ministry is that of a Baptist church. I am obviously not trying to make Baptists out of everyone. Second, our viewers trust that we have no hidden agenda. That is, we do not have a creed or specialized doctrinal stance that we are trying to sneak in under the guise of biblical preaching. People know that when they watch In Touch,
they are going to receive a practical lesson right out of the Scriptures.
However, as much as I enjoy the trust and acceptance of so many believers from such diverse denominational backgrounds, I never want to be guilty of soft-pedaling any particular biblical doctrine for the sake of maintaining people’s approval. I have seen other ministries make that mistake. Their financial obligations grow to such magnitude that they literally cannot afford to lose any of their listening audience. This is one of the reasons we have chosen to grow slowly. Finances may determine the number of people we reach but never the message with which we reach them.
All of that is to say, I knew from the outset of this project that printing what I believe the Bible says about eternal security could possibly alienate some dear brothers and sisters in Christ. That is certainly not my intention. People who have listened to In Touch
for any length of time know this is not something new to me. My testimony bears witness that I have held this view since my seminary days. Yet I