Costello:<br><br><blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr>[color:"blue"]What assurance do I have that I am not one of "those"? The heart is deceptive above all things and desperately wicked. Even if I have been a Christian for 30 years, it might be by shear blind tenacity on my part like so many following false religions and not a true Christian at all.</font><hr></blockquote><p> <br><br> I can understand that as an Arminian that you would have an enormous problem with the “assurance” of salvation. What you have today may slip away tomorrow by some wrong decision on your part. You can never be assured of your eternal destiny. Why.....because your salvation is dependent upon your “keeping” yourself saved. How can you do this? At what point in the process of backsliding and sinning have you lost this salvation? Is it after one sin....lying...two sins...add theft....three, at what point? Where is the doctrinal teaching on this so we can all know at what point we become “unborn again” so that we can become “born again, again”? Should we be baptized again after being born again, again? How long does this type of “eternal” life last? How can one base the assurance of their salvation on this “self confidence”?<br><br>In Matthew 7:22,23 Jesus said “Many will say to me in that day ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in your name cast out demons, and in your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you, depart from Me.....” According to Arminianism Jesus needs to amend this and say “ I knew you once, but there wasn’t enough time left for another trip down the aisle when the end came so.... depart from Me......”<br><br>One must come to the realization of Who it is that does the saving. It is God! “Salvation is of the Lord” Jonah 2:9 “No man can come to Me except the Father......draw him.” Jo 6:44 “Being confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it....” Phil 1:6 “ I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish....”<br>There are so many verses that speak of our eternal preservation, that salvation is by grace alone, in Christ alone that it could fill a book, and has!<br><br>Are there warnings in scripture against apostasy? Yes..! These warnings may be the very means that He intends to use to keep us from falling. I remember once while on vacation with the family we were sitting around the swimming pool and I warned my three year old about getting too close to the edge of the water for fear of falling in. I did warn him.....but do you think I’d let him fall in anyway....or if he did wouldn’t I go pull him out? Surely God is much better at this than I am, when I fall. He is surely much stronger than I. ‘Cause I’m like you...I don’t have much confidence in myself. But.......”Being confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in me will perfect it...”<br><br>Dave<br><br><br>“Open thou mine eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.” Ps 119:18<br>