Does the Bible Really Say That?: Discovering Catholic Teaching in Scripture (8 page)

CHAPTER 19

Do Christians Have an Absolute Assurance of Salvation?

Many Protestants understand being “saved” as a once-in-a-lifetime moment—an act of repentance and acceptance of Jesus Christ as one’s “personal Lord and savior” (a phrase that appears nowhere in the Bible, by the way). This irrevocable step eliminates the penalties of past sins, and it guarantees, no matter what might happen from that point forward, that nothing can undo or rescind one’s salvation. In a life-changing moment of transformation, the lost sinner has become a saved child of God.

“Once saved always saved” is a slogan many Protestants use to describe their belief in a Christian’s absolute assurance of salvation. And though not all Protestants accept the once-saved-always-saved formula, many do (Southern Baptists and the myriad of “non-denominational” denominations, for example). Two Bible passages commonly cited in support of this view are:

1 John 5:13
 “I write this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.”

John 10:27–29
  “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me; and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”

Saint John’s assurance that “you
have
eternal life” is a proclamation of every Christian’s
moral
(not absolute) assurance of salvation. Christ offers us the gift of salvation, and he will not go back on his word. But you and I are entirely capable of going back on
our
word by abandoning Christ and thereby forfeiting his gift of salvation.

Saint Paul speaks about this in 2 Timothy 2:11–13: “If we have died with him,  we shall also live with him; / if we endure, we shall also reign with him; / if we deny him, he also will deny us;  / if we are faithless, he remains faithful— / for he cannot deny himself.”

Yes, it’s true that we “have” salvation, but whether or not we keep our grasp on it is another matter, as we will see Saint Paul demonstrate in a moment.

But first, let’s consider Saint John’s other statement: No one can snatch out of Christ’s hand those whom the Father has given him. No external power is capable of wresting us out of Christ’s loving embrace (Romans 8:28–29); but
you
can do it, if you decide to willfully rebel against God through mortal sin (1 John 5:16–17).

If you die unrepentant in that state, you will have lost your salvation because you will have, in effect, snatched
yourself
out of Christ’s hand. This is demonstrated by the following verses:

Romans 11:20–22
  “They [i.e., those who lost their salvation by rejecting Christ] were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast only through faith. So do not become proud, but stand in awe. For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness; otherwise you too will be cut off.”

Hebrews 10:26–31
  “For if we sin deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful prospect of judgment, and a fury of fire which will consume the adversaries.... How much worse punishment do you think will be deserved by the man who has spurned the Son of God, and profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and outraged the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay.’ And again, ‘The Lord will judge his people.’ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

2 Peter 2:20–21
  “For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overpowered, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them.”

Is there some way to “escape the defilements of the world” other than by being “saved”? No. So this means that some who have been saved fall back into grievous sin, thereby losing their salvation.

And recall the unforgiving servant in Matthew 18:21–35. Although the merciful king forgave him and wiped out his debt, the unforgiving servant proceeded to mistreat a fellow servant. When the king discovered this, he reinstated his debt and threw him into prison!

Christians can indeed lose their salvation by sinful rebellion against God, for as Christ promised,
“So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart”
(Matthew 18:35, emphasis added). Ask yourself: Why would Christ warn Christians about this, if there was no danger that it could happen to them?

Further Reading:
Matthew 7:21–23; 10:22; John 5:29; Romans 2:5–11; 8:24–25; 1 Corinthians 9:27; 10:12; Hebrews 6:11; Philippians 2:12–13; 1 John 3:21–24; 4:20–21

CHAPTER 20

Is It a Sin to Vote for Pro-Abortion Candidates?

Not since the Civil War crisis over slavery has a controversial moral issue so divided Americans and roiled society as has abortion. The deliberate killing of an unborn child through an abortion, though currently enjoying the “legitimacy” of legality in this country (slavery was also once legal), is, nonetheless, a grave evil that must be opposed.

But how, exactly, can one properly oppose something that is already permitted by law?

There are many peaceful, legal and constructive ways to oppose abortion and work for the overturn and elimination of the existing laws that allow for this hideous crime against children. The most direct and far-reaching method, certainly, is to vote for pro-life candidates running for political office. Or, at the very least, to
not
vote for candidates who are avowedly anti-life (that is, pro-abortion).

Regardless of political affiliations and inclinations, we should all reflect carefully on what Scripture says about how our votes will promote or prevent the continued legalization of the crime of abortion.

Let’s ponder Exodus 20:13, where God commanded Moses, “Thou shalt not kill.” The literal meaning of this command is “thou shalt not
murder
”—the intentional killing of an innocent life. (Someone who is guilty of a crime that is punishable by death is not being murdered when executed. [see
CCC
, 2261, 2263]).

Genesis 9:5–7
  “For your lifeblood I will surely require a reckoning; of every beast I will require it and of man; of every man’s brother I will require the life of man. Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed; for God made man in his own image. And you, be fruitful and multiply, bring forth abundantly on the earth and multiply in it.” It’s worth noting that in this passage the truth that humans are made in God’s image is linked to the command to “be fruitful and multiply,” alluding to procreation.

The unborn child is a human being made in God’s image and likeness (Genesis 1:26). The unborn child is utterly innocent of having committed any evil act and, therefore, cannot under any circumstances be intentionally murdered through abortion or any other means.

And it is a fact that those who intentionally promote and perpetuate the crime of abortion through their political actions or their voting, are complicit in the sin of murder.

The Catholic Church’s “Declaration on Procured Abortion” explains: “It must in any case be clearly understood that whatever may be laid down by civil law in this matter, man can never obey a law which is in itself immoral, and such is the case of a law which would admit in principle the liceity [legalization] of abortion.
Nor can he take part in a propaganda campaign in favor of such a law, or vote for it.
”
¹

Look at what God says about those who don’t have the courage to stand up and speak out against this crime (and the way we vote is surely a way to do just that).

Jeremiah 7:1, 8–10
  “The word that came to Jeremiah from the
Lord:...
‘Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail. Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Ba’al, and go after other gods that you have not known, and then come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, “We are delivered!”—only to go on doing all these abominations?’” The Lord’s words here apply well to Catholics today who countenance abortion and even promote it.

Wisdom of Solomon 12:1–6
  “For thy immortal spirit is in all things. / Therefore thou dost correct little by little those who trespass, / and dost remind and warn them of the things wherein they sin, / that they may be freed from wickedness and put their trust in thee, O Lord. / Those who dwelt of old in thy holy land / thou didst hate for their detestable practices, / their works of sorcery and unholy rites, / their merciless slaughter of children, / and their sacrificial feasting on human flesh and blood. / These initiates from the midst of a heathen cult, / these parents who murder helpless lives, / thou didst will to destroy by the hands of our fathers.”

Catholics—indeed, all Christians—have a duty before God to speak out about this great evil, to warn those who are involved in the perpetuation of legalized abortion whether by their own political actions within government or by intentionally supporting and voting for avowedly pro-abortion candidates (see Ezekiel 3:18–21).

Pro-abortion politicians and their supporters frequently attempt to cloak the objective evil of abortion with the language of righteousness and goodness, often referring to their cause as “protecting a woman’s right to choose.” This is simply euphemistic chicanery. It is nothing more than calling evil good.

Isaiah 5:18–21
  “Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of falsehood, / who draw sin as with cart ropes.... / Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, / who put darkness for light and light for darkness, / who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! / Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, / and shrewd in their own sight!”

When you vote in elections, consider carefully the following passage from Scripture and what it means, both for those evildoers in public office who promote abortion and for those citizens who knowingly and intentionally assist with their vote.

Isaiah 10:1–3
  “Woe to those who decree iniquitous decrees, / and the writers who keep writing oppression, / to turn aside the needy from justice / and to rob the poor of my people of their right, / that widows may be their spoil, / and that they may make the fatherless their prey! / What will you do on the day of punishment, / in the storm which will come from afar? / To whom will you flee for help, / and where will you leave your wealth?”

This haunting image of those who “make the fatherless their prey” corresponds with hideous perfection to those in this country who, by promoting legalized abortion, performing abortions, and intentionally voting for pro-abortion candidates for political office, have turned the unborn child into their prey.

The aborted children who are being killed by the millions in the United States are truly, in their final extremity, fatherless and motherless. Abandoned to the abortionist’s scalpel and vacuum, they have indeed become prey for the abortion industry, which grows ever richer with the blood money it receives from each unborn child it liquidates through abortion.

God creates each human soul and infuses it, at the moment of conception, in the unborn baby’s body. To intentionally destroy that unborn life through abortion is murder—a grave sin—no matter what it may be called in polite society. And to be com-plicit in the perpetuation of the legalized murder of unborn babies through abortion is to be complicit in that sin.

Further Reading:
Hosea 4:1–4; Isaiah 33:1; 45:10–12; Romans 1:28–32

CCC
, 312, 1756, 2268–2272, 2322, 2260–2277, 2320–2321