"Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the
doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he
hath both the Father and the Son." - 2 John 9
If someone must abide in the doctrine of Christ in order to be
saved, this presupposes that he must have heard it in the first place, for how
can one abide in that to which he has never been exposed? But in order to have the Father and Son, initial
exposure is not enough. One must then
abide in that teaching. And if he abides in it, he obviously receives it and
believes it. Further, to “abide” conveys the notion of an ongoing state or process. Thus, salvation is a marathon to final
salvation, and not simply a sprint to regeneration, as my Hardshell brethren tend
to imply by deeming the life after regeneration as unnecessary for eternal
salvation.
And let us be clear also on that in which we must abide. It is
the doctrine of Christ, and not another. Now unless we can imagine a regenerated man abiding subconsciously in the doctrine of Christ,
or that there are two kinds of having the
Father and the Son, one necessary and another not necessary, both of which I would
not put past my PB friends to propose, the text is clear. Salvation is for believers only! One must be
a Christian to be saved! Nor can my Hardshell friends assert the idea that only
having God is necessary for salvation, while having Christ is optional and uncertain
to the elect, as they sometimes do from John 14:1! One must abide in the
doctrine of Christ in order to have not only the Son but the Father as well!
2 John 9 teaches the following points, each of which is
destructive of Hardshellism.
1)
Initial expose to the gospel is necessary for
salvation (i.e. gospel regeneration/conversion).
2)
Abiding in that gospel in necessary for
salvation (i.e. perseverance).
3)
One must have both the Father and the Son for
salvation.
4)
Salvation is for believers only.
5)
Salvation is for Christians only.
6)
Having the Father and the Son are concomitants.
7) Eternal salvation involves the present life after regeneration.
7) Eternal salvation involves the present life after regeneration.
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