Is Once Saved Always Saved Biblical?

21 And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, 22 yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach— 23 if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister.

Colossians 1:23-25 (NASB95)

This passage raises one of the most controversial questions in all of Christian theology, and I am referring to verse 23 and the question of whether a Christian can lose his/her salvation. 

Verse 23 states that Christians have been reconciled so Jesus may present us to God “holy and blameless and beyond reproach.” Then, as if to make sure we don’t miss what is about to come next, there is a hyphen, followed by an “if”: “—if indeed you continue in the faith.”

To Protestants who have been raised on sermons filled with declarations of God’s grace and great love for us, that hyphen and “if” can seem like a turd in the theological punchbowl. It has caused TULIPS to become TULIS and Dietrich Bonhoeffer to write about “cheap grace.” Debate over the “if” has caused Presbyterians to become Baptists, and Baptists to become backslidden. It inevitably leads to a question: “If one must continue in the faith to be saved, does that mean one can lose one’s salvation?”

The answer to that question is, “Why are you asking?” 

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How to Host a Kingdom (Adult) Birthday Party

Last Friday we celebrated my friends 60th birthday. He asked if we would host at our home because our home is large and well-designed for parties. He said he would take care of the rest.

He invited 30 people. Almost everyone he invited came, even those who came from out of state. Because of his background the invite list included a former NFL player, a former NHL player, a pastor, coworkers, his pastors, and his immediate family. It was the most interesting mix of exceptional individuals I had ever seen collected in one place.

He catered food from his favorite restaurants and cooked us tomahawk steaks. He served us. Then, once we were all seated, he went around the room, and for each person present, he said honored them with his word, explaining what they had meant to him. Then he gave them a present. That’s right he gave them a present.

When one of the guests stood up to honor him he said thank you but quickly shut him down and told him this was his party and this was what he wanted to do. He continued going around the room honoring each person and then giving them a gift. I had never seen anything like it.

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Jack Burke, Jr. Dies at 100

Yesterday was a sad day.

Jack Burke, Jr, legendary professional golfer, instructor, Ryder Cup captain, and founder of Champions Golf Club, died at the age of 100 years.

His death is big news, being picked up by USA today, the Golf Channel and other local and national news outlets. His life though is the story.

As a member at Champions golf club, I had the honor of knowing Mr. Burke. Over the years, I would talk with him when I saw him in the dinning room, coming out of his office at the club, or on the driving range. He was a friendly man, and was generous with his time.

Over the last year, I saw him more often, usually on Sunday mornings. He would eat a late breakfast the same time each Sunday in the bar area adjoining the dinning room. I would go there for breakfast after our early church service. He was always there.

There are not many golf clubs around the country with a multiple major golf champion walking the halls daily and who will freely answer your questions about the golf swing, his career, or just life in general. But that was Mr. Burke, and it was only one of the many reasons so many loved him.

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How Christians Get Deceived into Divorce

Touchy subject I know.

But the Wife and I were watching a documentary not long ago of an incredibly talented man we both admire, and one of the sound bites of him was talking about how he, now in the latter part of his career, wanted to contribute to world peace.

The Wife, always the fount of common sense, said, “How about start by learning to get along with your wife?” You see, this man, we had learned in the documentary, had been married and divorced three times.

Look, I get it. It takes two to tango, and you can’t control what your spouse does. My best friend’s wife backslid and divorced him; not much he could have done about that and he tried everything. But I don’t think this is the norm. The typical divorce is more consensual, or it is made that way through infidelity.

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A Reason for Christians Not to Vote

It’s election season again in the USA, and while anything can happen, it certainly appears it will be Trump v. Biden, round 2.

If you bump around on the internet, it’s easy to find blogs by well-meaning Christians telling Christians why they must vote, many even quoting Scripture, as if Moses came down from Mount Sinai with ballots instead of tablets.

But what do you do if you can’t stomach Donald Trump’s narcissism, name-calling, or have a general objection to your Commander in Chief bragging about grabbing women “by the p****y”? But on the other hand you cannot in good conscience vote for Joe Biden, who continues to support a woman’s right to kill her unborn baby or a man’s right to use the same restroom as your wife or daughter? What do you do?

Some people will tell you that sometimes you have to choose between the lesser of two evils. If someone tells you that, ask them for a Bible verse. I don’t know when the Bible ever says we must choose evil. In fact, the Bible says just the opposite, promising the Lord will provide you “a way out” so you do not have to choose evil. I Corinthians 10:13.

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