Out of fellowship but unable to loose my faith?

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The Bible teaches that as a believer in Jesus, I don’t have to worry about my own stick-to-it-ness. I can rest in the faith that Jesus will get me into glory, if he has to drag me himself!
Philippians 1:6 For I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Christ Jesus.

Yes, I am confident that I will get to Heaven, but it is not a confidence that rests on my experience, or my proven track record of always finishing what I start. It is an assurance based entirely on my knowledge of Jesus and his power to save.
2 Timothy 1:12 For I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me.

This is the doctrine of Perseverance of the Saints. Westminster Confession:
They whom God hath accepted in his beloved, effectually called and sanctified by his Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved.

Or put more simply: true believers can be sure they will get to Heaven, no matter what, because Jesus takes responsibility to get them there no matter what. This is the P in our Reformation on the doctrines of grace – or TULIP. And you will hopefully glean that it is not only a clear Scriptural proposition but also a logical necessity of all the petals of the TULIP, especially Election and Irresistible Grace. 

Loraine Boettner: This doctrine does not stand alone but is a necessary part of the Calvinistic system of theology. The doctrines of Election and Efficacious Grace logically imply the certain salvation of those who receive these blessings. If God has chosen men absolutely and unconditionally to eternal life, and if His Spirit effectively applies to them the benefits of redemption, the inescapable conclusion is that these persons shall be saved

But theological consistency is not our primary litmus test. Scripture is the touchstone. So see if any alternative interpretation could be attributed to these clear verses…
1 Thessalonians 5: 23 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.
1 Corinthians 1: 7-9 so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
John 10: 27-29 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will 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.
Jude 24-25 Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

What’s not to like, right?

So why do Arminians object? Because they think we are saying “Once saved always saved; I prayed a prayer when I was six, so even though I am now an atheist axe murderer, I will still go to Heaven.”

Yeah, I’d object to that too. But that is not what we are saying. We all agree that a believer must persevere to the end to be saved. But we would point out that a profession of faith is not the same as true faith.

We all know of that worship leader who ran off with the church secretary, or the pastor who is now a Buddhist monk. We know of people who were involved at every level of the church and cried when they prayed and raised their hands when they sang, and now are not walking with the Lord. Paul even experienced this…

1 Tim 1:19-20 holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme. Are we saying those who make a shipwreck of their faith and are handed over to Satan are nevertheless guaranteed to get to Heaven because of their former profession of faith? No. Please don’t make Calvin cry in his grave.

Unrepentant sin or lack of faith in Jesus is not an evidence of losing one’s salvation, but of not being a true believer, to begin with.

This is explicitly explained by Jesus in the parable of the soils, where some spring up initially, but are later choked out by riches and worries (Mark 4). And Jesus warned that there are some tares indistinguishable at times from the genuine wheat.

And the Apostle John says it as bluntly as any Calvinist:
1 John 2: 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.
It is a sad reality that some fall away from the faith. But the hard truth is that they were never children of God. He does not “unadopt” us, “unsave” us, or allow us to escape his love.

Romans 8: 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified… 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

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