Hi Grover,

Please read my article here as this will help me to avoid rewriting too many thoughts.

Many of the issues you raised are addressed there.

One can say, "Well these people who professed Christ but ended up serving sin were never really born again in the first place". It sounds good, but they were also probably the same people to whom 1 John 5:13 was quoted assuring them that they could never lose their salvation!

What are "these things" referred to in 1 John 5:13 that John writes in his first epistle by which people may KNOW that they have eternal life? Is it the verse itself, a few verses that precede it, or the whole letter? 1 John is really one of the most severe letters in the New Testament. It says that the one practicing righteousness is righteous, the one not practicing righteousness is of the devil (1 John 3). It says that if we say we know Him and do not obey His commandments we deceive ourselves (1 John 2). Many other strong things it says, things which could easily be used to DESTROY the false assurance of salvation that many have today.

Nothing can separate us from the love of God, except ourselves. Paul should have mentioned "ourselves" in that long list if he meant us to understand that, since it is by far the most critical issue. The passage is talking about some external thing acting on us to force us away from God. No such thing exists. We choose. If we don't want God and His ways, will He really force us to be with Him? If God is like that, why does He not just force everyone both to be with Him AND to be perfect? That is why the Bible continually warns us that Satan is prowling around seeking whom he may DEVOUR. The only SAFE place is a place of obedience to God. We are empowered to obey God through trust, through receiving His love, His Spirit, His Word and by being courageous in God. The fearful and unbelieving will end up in hell, according to Revelation 21:8.

Please read more on the site. Its only a recent abberation in modern theology which suggests that you can serve the world, the flesh and the devil as a born again Christian and still be right with God by faith.

Have a read of anything written before 1930 from evangelicals and I believe you will see that few would espouse any other thing.