Number 2 today. let's go. :P
"12. There is not a sliver of valid assurance of salvation for those who do not persevere in the faith: In the Bible, assurance of salvation is evidenced by faith, obedience and perseverance to the end: See the parable of the sower (Matt. 13:18-23); 1 John. If a Christian perseveres in faith and good works, he has hope of glory. In that case, his hope is not wishful thinking or baseless optimism. It is a hope based on the Word of God -- which is true -- as it applies to the facts in the ground.
However, if one turns away from the faith and starts practicing sin, there is no assurance of salvation. Any evidence of God's previous work or mercies is invalidated. If one does not persevere until the end, one cannot 'hope' that God began a work in us that he will perfect as per Philippians 1:6 (see Hebrews 3:14). If there is no perseverance, the unrepentant sinner is like the pilot of an airplane who knowingly attempts to take off with wings covered in a thin layer of ice. "These wings were very aerodynamic before, so maybe they will generate enough lift if there is ice on them," he thinks optimistically. But that hope is just wishful thinking; it has no actual basis in reality or experience. this hope actually defies what the pilot knows to be generally true. No matter how aerodynamic those wings once were, the ice on those wings will doom the plane to a fiery crash not far off the runway."
So, I feel like there's a couple things here. First, if our salvation is so rooted in faith that Paul even has to remind the Galatian church that they were saved by faith in the hearing of the good news of the gospel. It was not by their works that they were saved. If it is so rooted in faith, then obviously to turn from faith into practicing one's own righteousness, or even worse, to just completely give up faith in God and in Jesus and the cross, obviously there remains no salvation. Is there room for faith to save in ways that don't look exactly the same? Is there room for God's lavish grace to overcome some works of unrighteousness?
Secondly, and like here's the thing here. I'm not going back to that old plane. It never flew me where I was expecting to go anyways. It worked until I realized it wasn't working as intended. Is it possible that I'm gonna go try and fly a helicopter now? I'm gonna need to learn some new techniques and methods to fly this very different air craft, but maybe this one will fly me where I need to go.
I don't think all that time and effort before were completely wasted. I do think God started something in me. I don't know what's going to happen in the end, but there must have been a plan of sorts. What will I have learned through this new season?
An aside, that like I thought I was going to mention in a previous response and I guess I never did. Like, when I came to faith I hadn't even really considered what all this meant. I was most convicted and concerned over pornography use, regardless of the content. God's love expressed through the cross and extended to me through the love and acceptance of the church brought me to a place where I could meet Jesus and get to know Him. That's what began it all. That's where it started. I hadn't really figured out what same sex attraction meant at that time. I knew grace and forgiveness. Over the years I became convinced that I needed to be honest and open about where I was at and ended up more weighed down in guilt and shame despite being more open. So I started closing again. But with more guilt and shame. What was different back then? How could I feel so happy and joyful in God without having everything figured out? Can I just do that again? Can I live in grace and hope and just trust that God's goodness and grace are strong enough for me?
In a way I'm kinda starting over. I need to see how God's love and grace applies to all of me. I need a new way of approaching God. But I need to know Him. The same one who was and is and is to come. The I Am. Can I find new assurance as I find the gospel applied to all of me? Can I come back to a place where I'm motivated and driven forward because of love for a glorious and great God who loves and forgives and renews me daily?
D.Fa
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