Some
of the following scriptures are included to enhance the context or flow of the
following passages, and are not necessarily intended to establish the above
doctrine. However, even a plain reading
of the 75 passages below support the doctrine
of the Believer’s Conditional Security.
That is why I feel like there is no commentary needed to support this
view.
I will however, give a brief
introduction to clarify terms. To clarify terms, Conditional Security is
contrasted to Unconditional Security
view. Some say that a believer’s Eternal
Security is conditional; others say that it is not. Adherents to Conditional Security view can
also have assurance of their salvation. In this sense, they have “Eternal
Security”. However, the phrase “Eternal
Security” is used as a buzzword to express a view that is classified as “Unconditional
Eternal Security”. Therefore, we don’t bother saying that we
have “Eternal Security” anymore, because that term has been redefined
lately. Now we just that we have
“Salvation assurance”. Pentecostals,
While various forms of the
Unconditional Security view are held by most American Christians today, this
view was not adhered to among any professing Christian group until a Catholic
Monk named Augustine introduced it in the Middle
ages. Dan Corner’s research into the
roots and manifestations of this idea are presented in his e-book, which you
can order from his website, http://www.evangelicaloutreach.org/. You could also order a paper copy, but Robert
Shank’s “Life in the Son” might be a better starter on the issue. I got the scripture references below from its
appendix. If you would like these
scriptures nicely explained from the conditional security perspective, then
Roberts’s book will do that.
Dan and Robert’s books also
explain the “anomaly scriptures” that many understand to imply that the
believer’s security is unconditional.
Explaining these passages is not the purpose of this document. This document merely presents passages that
establish the doctrine of the Believer’s
Conditional Security. I have highlighted some of the conditional words and
ideas in bold, for clarity. If you read
this entire document, you will have read a large portion of the New
Testament. Here are the scriptures:
Matt
18:21-35
21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked,
"Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?"
22 Jesus answered, "I tell you, not
seven times, but seventy-seven times.
23 "Therefore, the kingdom of heaven
is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.
24 As he began the settlement, a man who
owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him.
25 Since he was not able to pay, the
master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be
sold to repay the debt.
26 "The servant fell on his knees
before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I
will pay back everything.'
27 The servant's master took pity on him,
canceled the debt and let him go.
28 "But when that servant went out,
he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii.
He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded.
29 "His
fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I
will pay you back.'
30 "But he refused. Instead, he went off
and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt.
31 When the other servants saw what had
happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master
everything that had happened.
32 "Then the master called the
servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled
all that debt of yours because you begged me to.
33 Shouldn't you have had mercy on your
fellow servant just as I had on you?'
34 In anger his master turned him over to
the jailers to be tortured, until he
should pay back all he owed.
35 "This is how my heavenly Father
will treat each of you unless you
forgive your brother from your heart."
(NIV)
Matt
24:4-14
4 Jesus answered: "Watch out that
no one deceives you.
5 For many will come in my name,
claiming, 'I am the Christ,' and will deceive many.
6 You will hear of wars and rumors of
wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the
end is still to come.
7 Nation will rise against nation, and
kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various
places.
8 All these are the beginning of birth
pains.
9 "Then you will be handed over to
be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of
me.
10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each
other,
11 and many false prophets will appear and
deceive many people.
12 Because of the increase of wickedness,
the love of most will grow cold,
13 but he who stands firm to the end will
be saved.
14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be
preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end
will come. (NIV)
Luke
8:11-15
11 "This is the meaning of the
parable: The seed is the word of God.
12 Those along the path are the ones who
hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so
that they may not believe and be saved.
13 Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they
hear it, but they have no root. They believe
for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away.
14 The seed that fell among thorns stands
for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life's
worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature.
15 But the seed on good soil stands for those
with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop. (NIV)
The initial receiving and believing done in verse 13
was apparently not enough to “keep” those on the rock. Here’s an extra passage where Christ clarifies
what else should follow hearing:
Luke 11:23-30
23 "He who is not with me is against
me, and he who does not gather with me, scatters.
24 "When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes
through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, 'I will
return to the house I left.'
25 When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in
order.
26 Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the
final condition of that man is worse than the first."
27 As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd
called out, "Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed
you."
28 He replied, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it."
29 As the crowds increased, Jesus said, "This is a wicked
generation. It asks for a miraculous sign, but none will be given it except the
sign of Jonah.
30 For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites,
so also will the Son of Man be to this
generation. (NIV)
Luke 12:42-48
42 The Lord answered, "Who then is the faithful and wise
manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food
allowance at the proper time?
43 It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing
so when he returns.
44 I tell you the truth, he will put
him in charge of all his possessions.
45 But suppose the
servant says to himself, 'My master is taking a long time in coming,' and he
then begins to beat the menservants and maidservants and to eat and drink and
get drunk.
46 The master of that servant will come on a day when he does
not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and
assign him a place with the unbelievers.
47 "That servant who knows his master's will and does not
get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows.
48 But the one who does not know and does things deserving
punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given
much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much,
much more will be asked. (NIV)
John 6:62-71
63 The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The
words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.
64 Yet there are some of you who do not believe." For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not
believe and who would betray him.
65 He went on to say, "This is why I told you that no one
can come to me unless the Father has enabled him."
66 From this time many
of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.
67 "You do not want to leave too, do you?" Jesus
asked the Twelve.
68 Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.
69 We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God."
70 Then Jesus replied, "Have I not chosen you, the Twelve?
Yet one of you is a devil!"
71 (He meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, who, though one
of the Twelve, was later to betray him.)
(NIV)
John 8:31-32
31 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are
really my disciples.
32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you
free." (NIV)
John 8:51
51 I tell you the truth, if
anyone keeps my word, he will never see death." (NIV)
John 13:7-8
7 Jesus replied, "You do not realize now what I am
doing, but later you will understand."
8 "No," said Peter, "you shall never wash my
feet." Jesus answered, "Unless
I wash you, you have no part with me."
(NIV)
John 15:1-14
1 "I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.
2 He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while
every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more
fruitful.
3 You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to
you.
4 Remain in me, and I
will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in
the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless
you remain in me.
5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do
nothing.
6 If anyone does
not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such
branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.
7 If you remain in
me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.
8 This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit,
showing yourselves to be my disciples.
9 "As the Father has loved me, so
have I loved you. Now remain in
my love.
10 If you obey my
commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's
commands and remain in his love.
11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that
your joy may be complete.
12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.
13 Greater love has no one than this, that
he lay down his life for his friends.
14 You are my friends if
you do what I command. (NIV)
Acts 11:21-23
21 The Lord's hand was with them, and a great number of people
believed and turned to the Lord.
22 News of this reached the ears of the church at
23 When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he
was glad and encouraged them all to remain
true to the Lord with all their hearts.
(NIV)
Heb 10:25-39
25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the
habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-- and all the more as you see
the Day approaching.
26 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.
28 Anyone who rejected the law of
Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
29 How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be
punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an
unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has
insulted the Spirit of grace?
30 For we know him who said, "It is mine to avenge; I will
repay," and again, "The Lord will judge his people."
31 It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living
God.
32 Remember those earlier days after you had received the
light, when you stood your ground in
a great contest in the face of suffering.
33 Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and
persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so
treated.
34 You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted
the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had
better and lasting possessions.
35 So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly
rewarded.
36 You need to persevere
so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has
promised.
37 For in just a very little while, "He who is coming will
come and will not delay.
38 But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be
pleased with him."
39 But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed,
but of those who believe and are saved.
(NIV)
Jude 1:3-12
3 Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you
about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for
the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.
4 For certain men whose condemnation was written about long
ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license
for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign
and Lord.
5 Though you already know all this, I want to remind you that
the Lord delivered his people out of
6 And the angels who did not keep their positions of
authority but abandoned their own home-- these he has kept in darkness, bound
with everlasting chains for judgment on the great Day.
7 In a similar way,
8 In the very same way, these dreamers pollute their own
bodies, reject authority and slander celestial beings.
9 But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with
the devil about the body of Moses, did not dare to bring a slanderous
accusation against him, but said, "The Lord rebuke you!"
10 Yet these men speak abusively against whatever they do not
understand; and what things they do understand by instinct, like unreasoning
animals-- these are the very things that destroy them.
11 Woe to them! They have taken the way of Cain; they have
rushed for profit into Balaam's error; they have been destroyed in Korah's rebellion.
12 These men are blemishes at your love feasts, eating with you
without the slightest qualm-- shepherds who feed only themselves. They are
clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted--
twice dead. (NIV)
Acts 11:21-23
21 The Lord's hand was with them, and a great number of people
believed and turned to the Lord.
22 News of this reached the ears of the church at
23 When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all
to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. (NIV)
Acts 14:21-22
21 They preached the good news in that city and won a large
number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and
22 strengthening the disciples and
encouraging them to remain true to
the faith. "We must go through many hardships to
enter the kingdom of God," they said.
(NIV)
Rom 6:11-23
11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to
God in Christ Jesus.
12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that
you obey its evil desires.
13 Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments
of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been
brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as
instruments of righteousness.
14 For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under
law, but under grace.
15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but
under grace? By no means!
16 Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to
obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey-- whether you are
slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to
righteousness?
17 But thanks be to God that, though
you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to
which you were entrusted.
18 You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to
righteousness.
19 I put this in human terms because you are weak in your
natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to
impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to
righteousness leading to holiness.
20 When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control
of righteousness.
21 What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you
are now ashamed of? Those things result in death!
22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you
reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life.
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is
eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
(NIV)
Rom 8:12-17
12 Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation-- but it is not to
the sinful nature, to live according to it.
13 For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will
die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will
live,
14 because those who are led by the Spirit
of God are sons of God.
15 For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave
again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship.
And by him we cry, "Abba, Father."
16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are
God's children.
17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs-- heirs of God and
co-heirs with Christ, if indeed
we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his
glory. (NIV)
Rom 11:17-22
17 If some of the branches have been broken off, and you,
though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share
in the nourishing sap from the olive root,
18 do not boast over those branches. If you do, consider this:
You do not support the root, but the root supports you.
19 You will say then, "Branches were broken off so that I
could be grafted in."
20 Granted. But they were broken off because of unbelief, and
you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but be afraid.
21 For if God did not spare the natural
branches, he will not spare you either.
22 Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God:
sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also
will be cut off. (NIV)
Rom 14:15-23
15 If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are
no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy your brother for whom
Christ died.
16 Do not allow what you consider good to be spoken of as evil.
17 For the
18 because anyone who serves Christ in
this way is pleasing to God and approved by men.
19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace
and to mutual edification.
20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All
food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat anything that causes someone
else to stumble.
21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything
else that will cause your brother to fall.
22
So whatever you
believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the man
who does not condemn himself by what he approves.
23 But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because
his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is
sin. (NIV)
1 Cor
23 I do all this for the sake of the gospel,
that I may share in its blessings.
24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only
one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.
25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict
training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a
crown that will last forever.
26 Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do
not fight like a man beating the air.
27 No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have
preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
(NIV)
1 Cor
29 For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body
of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself.
30 That is why many among you are weak and sick,
and a number of you have fallen asleep.
31 But if we judged ourselves, we would not come under
judgment.
32 When we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so
that we will not be condemned with the world.
33 So then, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait
for each other.
34 If anyone is hungry, he should eat at home, so that when you
meet together it may not result in judgment. And when I come I will give
further directions.
(NIV)
1 Cor
29 For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body
of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself.
30 That is why many among you are weak and sick,
and a number of you have fallen asleep.
31 But if we judged ourselves, we would not come under judgment.
32 When we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so
that we will not be condemned with the world.
33 So then, my brothers, when you come together to eat, wait
for each other.
34 If anyone is hungry, he should eat at home, so that when you
meet together it may not result in judgment. And when I come I will give
further directions.
(NIV)
1 Cor
15:1-2
1 Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I
preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand.
2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the
word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. (NIV)
2 Cor
24 Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you
for your joy, because it is by faith you stand firm. (NIV)
2 Cor
11:2-4
2 I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you
to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him.
3 But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the
serpent's cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and
pure devotion to Christ.
4 For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than
the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you
received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it
easily enough. (NIV)
2 Cor
21 I am afraid that when I come again my God will humble me
before you, and I will be grieved over many who have sinned earlier and have
not repented of the impurity, sexual sin and debauchery in which they have
indulged.
CHAPTER 13
1 This will be my third visit to you. "Every matter must
be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses."
2 I already gave you a warning when I was with you the second
time. I now repeat it while absent: On my return I will not spare those who
sinned earlier or any of the others,
3 since you are demanding proof that Christ is speaking
through me. He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you.
4 For to be sure, he was crucified in weakness, yet he lives
by God's power. Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God's power we will live
with him to serve you.
5 Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith;
test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you-- unless, of
course, you fail the test?
6 And I trust that you will discover that we have not failed
the test.
7 Now we pray to God that you will not do anything wrong. Not
that people will see that we have stood the test but that you will do what is
right even though we may seem to have failed.
(NIV)
Gal 5:1-4
1 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm,
then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
2 Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves
be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all.
3 Again I declare to every man who lets himself be
circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.
4 You who are trying to be justified by law have been
alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.
(NIV)
Gal 6:7-9
7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what
he sows.
8 The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that
nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the
Spirit will reap eternal life.
9 Let us not become weary in doing good,
for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
(NIV)
Eph 3:17
17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I
pray that you, being rooted and established in love,
(NIV)
Phil 2:12-16
12 Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed-- not
only in my presence, but now much more in my absence-- continue to work out
your salvation with fear and trembling,
13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act according
to his good purpose.
14 Do everything without complaining or arguing,
15 so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God
without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like
stars in the universe
16 as you hold out the word of life-- in order that I may boast
on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor for nothing.
(NIV)
Phil 3:4-4:1
4 though I myself have reasons for such confidence. If anyone
else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more:
5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of
6 as for zeal, persecuting the church;
as for legalistic righteousness, faultless.
7 But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the
sake of Christ.
8 What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the
surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have
lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may
gain Christ
9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own
that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ-- the
righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.
11 and
so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.
12 Not that I have already
obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take
hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
13 Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of
it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is
ahead,
14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has
called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
15 All of us who are mature should take such a view of things.
And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to
you.
16 Only let us live up to what we have already attained.
17 Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take
note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you.
18 For, as I have often told you before and now say again even
with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ.
19 Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach,
and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.
20 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a
Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ,
21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under
his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his
glorious body.
CHAPTER 4
1 Therefore, my brothers, you whom I love and long for, my
joy and crown, that is how you should stand firm in
the Lord, dear friends! (NIV)
21 Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your
minds because of your evil behavior.
22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body
through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation--
23 if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not
moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard
and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I,
Paul, have become a servant. (NIV)
4 I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by
fine-sounding arguments.
5 For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with
you in spirit and delight to see how orderly you are and how firm your faith in
Christ is.
6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord,
continue to live in him,
7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as
you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
8 See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and
deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles
of this world rather than on Christ.
(NIV)
18 Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the
worship of angels disqualify you for the prize. Such a person goes into great
detail about what he has seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle
notions.
19 He has lost connection with the Head, from whom the whole
body, supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God
causes it to grow.
(NIV)
1Thes 3:1-8
1 So when we could stand it no longer, we thought it best to
be left by ourselves in
2 We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God's fellow worker
in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your
faith,
3 so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know
quite well that we were destined for them.
4 In fact, when we were with you, we kept telling you that we
would be persecuted. And it turned out that way, as you well know.
5 For this reason, when I could stand it no longer, I sent to
find out about your faith. I was afraid that in some way the tempter might have
tempted you and our efforts might have been useless.
6 But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has
brought good news about your faith and love. He has told us that you always
have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long
to see you.
7 Therefore, brothers, in all our distress and persecution we
were encouraged about you because of your faith.
8 For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the
Lord.
(NIV)
1 Tim 1:3-7
3 As I urged you when I went into
4 nor to devote themselves to myths and
endless genealogies. These
promote controversies rather than God's work-- which is by faith.
5 The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure
heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.
6 Some have wandered away from these and turned to
meaningless talk.
7 They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know
what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm. (NIV)
1 Tim 1:18-20
18 Timothy, my son, I give you this instruction in keeping with
the prophecies once made about you, so that by following them you may fight the
good fight,
19 holding on to faith and a good
conscience. Some have rejected
these and so have shipwrecked their faith.
20 Among them are Hymenaeus and
Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught not to blaspheme. (NIV)
1 Tim 2:11-15
11 A woman should learn in quietness and full submission.
12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a
man; she must be silent.
13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve.
14 And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was
deceived and became a sinner.
15 But women will be saved through childbearing-- if they continue in faith, love and
holiness with propriety. (NIV)
1 Tim 4:1-16
1 The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will
abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.
2 Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose
consciences have been seared as with a hot iron.
3 They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from
certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who
believe and who know the truth.
4 For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be
rejected if it is received with thanksgiving,
5 because it is consecrated by the word
of God and prayer.
6 If you point these things out to the brothers, you will be
a good minister of Christ Jesus, brought up in the truths of the faith and of
the good teaching that you have followed.
7 Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales;
rather, train yourself to be godly.
8 For physical training is of some
value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the
present life and the life to come.
9 This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance
10 (and for this we labor and strive), that we have put our
hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of those
who believe.
11 Command and teach these things.
12 Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but
set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in
purity.
13 Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of
Scripture, to preaching and to teaching.
14 Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a
prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you.
15 Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them,
so that everyone may see your progress.
16 Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them,
because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers. (NIV)
1 Tim 5:8
8 If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and
especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than
an unbeliever. (NIV)
1 Tim 5:11-15
11 As for younger widows, do not put them on such a list. For
when their sensual desires overcome their dedication to Christ, they want to
marry.
12 Thus they bring judgment on themselves, because they have
broken their first pledge.
13 Besides, they get into the habit of being idle and going
about from house to house. And not only do they become idlers, but also gossips
and busybodies, saying things they ought not to.
14 So I counsel younger widows to marry, to have children, to
manage their homes and to give the enemy no opportunity for slander.
15 Some have in fact already
turned away to follow Satan. (NIV)
1 Tim 5:5-6
5 The widow who is really in need and left all alone puts her
hope in God and continues night and day to pray and to ask God for help.
6 But the widow who lives for pleasure is dead even while she
lives. (NIV)
1 Tim 6:9-12
9 People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap
and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and
destruction.
10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some
people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves
with many griefs.
11 But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue
righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.
12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal
life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the
presence of many witnesses. (NIV)
1 Tim 6:17-21
17 Command those who are rich in this present world not to be
arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put
their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.
18 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be
generous and willing to share.
19 In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a
firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that
is truly life.
20 Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn
away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called
knowledge,
21 which some have professed and in so doing have wandered from the faith. Grace be with you.
(NIV)
2 Tim 2:11-18
11 Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will
also live with him;
12 if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him,
he will also disown us;
13 if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot
disown himself.
14 Keep reminding them of these things. Warn them before God
against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who
listen.
15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a
workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of
truth.
16 Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will
become more and more ungodly.
17 Their teaching will spread like gangrene. Among them are Hymenaeus and Philetus,
18 who have wandered
away from the truth.
They say that the resurrection has already taken place, and they destroy the
faith of some. (NIV)
2 Tim 2:22-26
22 Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness,
faith, love and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure
heart.
23 Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments,
because you know they produce quarrels.
24 And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be
kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.
25 Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope
that God will grant them repentance leading them to a
knowledge of the truth,
26 and that they will come to their senses and escape from the
trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will. (NIV)
2 Tim 3:12-15
12 In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ
Jesus will be persecuted,
13 while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse,
deceiving and being deceived.
14 But as for you, continue
in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know
those from whom you learned it,
15 and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures,
which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ
Jesus. (NIV)
Heb 2:1-3
1 We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we
have heard, so that we do not drift
away.
2 For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every
violation and disobedience received its just punishment,
3 how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?
This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by
those who heard him. (NIV)
Heb 3:6-4:16
6 But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we
are his house, if we hold on to our
courage and the hope of which we boast.
7 So, as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you hear his
voice,
8 do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion,
during the time of testing in the desert,
9 where your fathers tested and tried me
and for forty years saw what I did.
10 That is why I was angry with that generation, and I said,
'Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways.'
11 So I declared on oath in my anger, 'They shall never enter
my rest.'"
12 See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful,
unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.
13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's
deceitfulness.
14 We have come to share
in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first.
15 As has just been said: "Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion."
16 Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all
those Moses led out of
17 And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with
those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the desert?
18 And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his
rest if not to those who disobeyed?
19 So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their
unbelief.
CHAPTER 4
1 Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still
stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it.
2 For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as
they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who
heard did not combine it with faith.
3 Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has
said, "So I declared on oath in my anger, 'They shall never enter my
rest.'" And yet his work has been finished since the creation of the
world.
4 For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these
words: "And on the seventh day God rested from all his work."
5 And again in the passage above he says, "They shall
never enter my rest."
6 It still remains that some will enter that rest, and those
who formerly had the gospel preached to them did not go in, because of their
disobedience.
7 Therefore God again set a certain day, calling it Today, when a long time later he spoke through David, as was
said before: "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your
hearts."
8 For if
9 There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God;
10 for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own
work, just as God did from his.
11 Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so
that no one will fall by following
their example of disobedience.
12 For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged
sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it
judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him
to whom we must give account.
14 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. (NIV)
Heb 5:8-9
8 Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he
suffered
9 and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal
salvation for all who obey him (NIV)
Heb 6:4-9
4 It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened,
who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit,
5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the
powers of the coming age,
6 if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance,
because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and
subjecting him to public disgrace.
7 Land that drinks in the rain often falling on it and that
produces a crop useful to those for whom it is farmed receives the blessing of
God.
8 But land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless and
is in danger of being cursed. In the end it will be burned.
9 Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are
confident of better things in your case-- things that accompany salvation. (NIV)
Heb 6:4-12
4 It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who
have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit,
5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the
powers of the coming age,
6 if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance,
because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and
subjecting him to public disgrace.
7 Land that drinks in the rain often falling on it and that
produces a crop useful to those for whom it is farmed receives the blessing of
God.
8 But land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless and
is in danger of being cursed. In the end it will be burned.
9 Even though we speak like this, dear friends, we are
confident of better things in your case-- things that accompany salvation.
10 God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love
you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.
11 We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very
end, in order to make your hope sure.
12 We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who
through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.
Heb 10:19-39
19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the
20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain,
that is, his body,
21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God,
22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full
assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty
conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.
23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who
promised is faithful.
24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward
love and good deeds.
25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the
habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-- and all the more as you see
the Day approaching.
26 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.
28 Anyone who rejected the law of
Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
29 How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be
punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an
unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has
insulted the Spirit of grace?
30 For we know him who said, "It is mine to avenge; I will
repay," and again, "The Lord will judge his people."
31 It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living
God.
32 Remember those earlier days after you had received the
light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering.
33 Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and
persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so
treated.
34 You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted
the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had
better and lasting possessions.
35 So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly
rewarded.
36 You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of
God, you will receive what he has promised.
37 For in just a very little while, "He who is coming will
come and will not delay.
38 But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks
back, I will not be pleased with him."
39 But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed,
but of those who believe and are saved.
(NIV)
Heb 11:13-16
13 All these people were still living by faith when they died.
They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them
from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on
earth.
14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a
country of their own.
15 If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they
would have had opportunity to return.
16 Instead, they were longing for a better country-- a heavenly
one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a
city for them. (NIV)
Heb 12:1-29
1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of
witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily
entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.
2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him
endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the
throne of God.
3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men,
so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
4 In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to
the point of shedding your blood.
5 And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that
addresses you as sons: "My son, do not make light of the Lord's
discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
6 because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he
punishes everyone he accepts as a son."
7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons.
For what son is not disciplined by his father?
8 If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes
discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons.
9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us
and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of
our spirits and live!
10 Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they
thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his
holiness.
11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later
on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who
have been trained by it.
12 Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees.
13 "Make level paths for your feet," so that the lame
may not be disabled, but rather healed.
14 Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be
holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.
15 See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no
bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.
16 See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like
Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son.
17 Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this
blessing, he was rejected. He could bring about no change of mind, though he
sought the blessing with tears.
18 You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that
is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm;
19 to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that
those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them,
20 because they could not bear what was commanded: "If
even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned."
21 The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am
trembling with fear."
22 But you have come to
23 to the church of the firstborn, whose
names are written in heaven. You have
come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made
perfect,
24 to Jesus the mediator of a new
covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood
of Abel.
25 See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did
not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will
we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven?
26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has
promised, "Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the
heavens."
27 The words "once more" indicate the removing of
what can be shaken-- that is, created things-- so that what cannot be shaken
may remain.
28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be
shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and
awe,
29 for our "God is a consuming fire." (NIV)
Heb 13:7-17
7 Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you.
Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.
8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
9 Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings.
It is good for our hearts to be strengthened by grace, not by ceremonial foods,
which are of no value to those who eat them.
10 We have an altar from which those who minister at the
tabernacle have no right to eat.
11 The high priest carries the blood of animals into the
12 And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the
people holy through his own blood.
13 Let us, then, go to him outside the camp, bearing the
disgrace he bore.
14 For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking
for the city that is to come.
15 Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a
sacrifice of praise-- the fruit of lips that confess his name.