What is the difference between eternal security, once saved always saved, and perseverance of the saints?

[Hosanna]

The three different terms (eternal security, once saved always saved, and perseverance of the saints) are often used interchangeably. However, there are subtle differences between them even though they basically mean the same thing – that a person cannot lose his salvation. Critics of eternal security in Christ often assert various challenges to the position, including misrepresentations and incomplete representation of the position. Nevertheless, though I cannot find any “official” definition for each of the three terms, by looking through theological dictionaries, various websites, writings, etc., I’ve come up with the following information.

1. Eternal Security is the teaching that all who are Christians and are truly regenerated are eternally secure in their salvation and will never fall away because their salvation is dependent on Christ’s faithfulness and work. It was Jesus who completely redeemed them of all their sins and their actions, and goodness does not maintain their salvation. It is God who secures the believer. But, this does not mean those thus saved will not fall into sin. Instead, though they may backslide, they will never fully turn from God and fall out of the state of his grace. Furthermore, it means God will work in the conviction and discipline of the believer who backslides.
2. Perseverance of the Saints is often equated with eternal security. It means that once a person is truly born again, God will work through the person so that the person will persevere throughout his life and not lose his salvation. It emphasizes God’s work and ability to perfect the Christian (Philippians 1:6) and that Christians are sealed permanently with Him (Ephesians 1:13-14).
3. Once Saved Always Saved (OSAS) is the position that no matter what a person does he will remain saved. He is always saved once he is saved. This position also includes the reality of regeneration since anyone who is truly saved is also truly regenerated. Regeneration produces in the person a desire to serve God and avoid sin (Romans 7:18-25). However, like eternal security, those who adhere to once saved always saved acknowledge that Christians can backslide.

Critics of eternal security often cite various verses in an attempt to show that a Christian can lose his salvation. The logic is that a Christian can turn his back on God and stop believing, or do enough bad things to disqualify him from being saved. These verses are addressed in the CARM section dealing with eternal security. Furthermore, these same critics often state that if a person believes he cannot lose his salvation, then it is a license to sin. This is not the position of those who hold to eternal security. We are regenerated; and because of regeneration from God, we war against our sin (Romans 7:18-25). We do not consider it a license to sin because we are new creatures (2 Cor. 5:17). Furthermore, anyone who claims to be a Christian and purposely uses God’s grace in order to sin is demonstrating that he is not regenerate because he is acting in a manner that contradicts regeneration (1 John 2:4).

Matt Slick

 

[Duane]

Yes, there is a difference between the doctrine of Eternal Security and Perseverance of the Saints, though they share some similarities. These terms often reflect distinct theological frameworks, and their differences become clearer when considered within their respective doctrinal contexts. While both doctrines affirm the ultimate salvation of believers, they emphasize different aspects of how that salvation is secured and maintained.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7QuzLx2BUo

 

[atpollard]

There is a difference between the doctrine of Eternal Security and Perseverance of the Saints, though they share some similarities.

[

Why not just summarize that difference for us?
(I hate having to watch/listen to a video from an unknown source.)

 

[Duane]

Why not just summarize that difference for us?
(I hate having to watch/listen to a video from an unknown source.)

Eternal Security​

Eternal Security, often associated with dispensational theology and popularized within certain evangelical circles, is the belief that once a person has truly believed in Jesus Christ and been saved, they cannot lose their salvation under any circumstances. This doctrine is sometimes summarized as “once saved, always saved.” Key characteristics include:

Focus on the Act of Salvation​

Eternal security emphasizes the permanence of salvation once it has been received by faith. It stresses that salvation is entirely a work of God, based on Christ’s finished work, and cannot be undone by human actions, even by the believer’s subsequent sin or failure.

Minimal Emphasis on Sanctification​

While advocates of eternal security may affirm the importance of spiritual growth, the doctrine does not always stress the necessity of ongoing sanctification as evidence of salvation. In some interpretations, even if a person falls into serious sin or shows no fruit of faith, they are still considered eternally secure if they once believed.

Dispensational Context​

Dispensational theology often emphasizes the unconditional nature of God’s promises, viewing salvation primarily as a legal or positional reality. This framework tends to separate justification (being declared righteous before God) from sanctification (growth in holiness), with less focus on the believer’s perseverance in faith and holiness.

---

Perseverance of the Saints​

Perseverance of the Saints, a doctrine rooted in Reformed theology and a key element of the “five points of Calvinism,” affirms that all those whom God has elected, called, and justified will persevere in faith and holiness to the end of their lives. It is not merely about eternal security but also about the ongoing work of God in the believer’s life. Key characteristics include:

Focus on the Whole of Salvation​

Perseverance of the saints emphasizes that salvation involves not only justification but also sanctification and glorification. True believers are not only saved but are also preserved by God’s grace and will persevere in faith and obedience.

Necessity of Sanctification​

Perseverance is evidenced by the believer’s continuing trust in Christ, growth in holiness, and endurance through trials. While believers may stumble and sin, they will not fall away entirely or permanently because God preserves them. This doctrine highlights the interconnectedness of justification and sanctification.

Reformed Context​

Rooted in the sovereignty of God, perseverance of the saints teaches that salvation is God’s work from beginning to end. The believer’s perseverance is the result of God’s sustaining grace, not their own strength, ensuring that the elect will remain faithful. It reflects passages like Philippians 1:6, which states, “He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”

Biblical Basis for Each View​

Eternal Security​

• John 10:28-29: “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.”
• Romans 8:38-39: “For I am sure that neither death nor life… will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Perseverance of the Saints​

• Philippians 1:6: “He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”
• 1 Peter 1:5: “Who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”
• Hebrews 3:14: “For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end.”

---

Practical Implications​

Eternal Security’s Weaknesses​

Some critics argue that eternal security, especially in its more extreme forms, can lead to complacency or antinomianism, where individuals may presume upon God’s grace without seeking to live in obedience to Him.

Perseverance of the Saints’ Strengths​

Perseverance highlights the transformative power of salvation, ensuring that true faith leads to a changed life. It provides assurance of salvation while avoiding presumption by tying security to God’s preserving work and the evidence of fruit in the believer’s life.

---

Conclusion​

While both Eternal Security and Perseverance of the Saints affirm the security of believers, they approach the doctrine from different theological perspectives. Eternal Security focuses on the irrevocability of salvation, sometimes to the neglect of sanctification. Perseverance of the Saints, in contrast, emphasizes the entirety of salvation, underscoring that those who are truly saved will persevere in faith and holiness by God’s preserving grace. Reformed theology’s doctrine of perseverance provides a more robust and biblically grounded understanding of salvation, encompassing both God’s sovereignty and the believer’s responsibility.

From ExplainingTheBook

 

[Dizerner]

Why not just summarize that difference for us?
(I hate having to watch/listen to a video from an unknown source.)

ES is a more generic term.

OSAS is fairly generic too.

POTS and similar argues that you must have fruit to evidence you were OSAS'ed.

I call it Lordship OSAS. trying to combine the ideas.

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

The episode of Peter walking over waters can cast some light on the issue.

Think in salvation as "the state in which you are not drowning in the lake of Galilee"

Did Peter come off the boat trusting Jesus call? Yes.
Did Peter remain motionless, awaiting Jesus to do all the work? No.
Was Peter expected to have any skill in moving his feet or in keeping balance so that he could walk over the waters? No.
Was Peter the author of his floating motion? No.
Did Peter start to sink at some point? Yes
Did Peter remain silent when he noticed he was sinking? No.
Did Peter ask Jesus to be rescued when he noticed he was sinking? Yes
Did Jesus rescue Peter? Yes

• Peter was guaranteed to be safe over the waters if he just trusted Jesus enough as to do what He asked him to do
• Peter realized he could lose that trust at some point.
• Peter realized Jesus would be there for him, even if he lost that trust for a moment, if he cried for help.
• Peter trust was not trust in his own abilities to float, but in Christ's ability to keep him afloat.

 

[Dizerner]

Amen.

And Jesus taught me not to trust in myself that I am righteous.

Very helpful that.

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

Amen.

And Jesus taught me not to trust in myself that I am righteous.

Very helpful that.

Are you walking over the waters or not?
If you are, you are. I hope you can answer that question. Do you feel like you are drowning? They you are not.
Do you feel like sinking from time to time? Do you feel like being rescued from time to time? Well, they you are following Christ's call, walking on water, sinking sometimes for a while, but not drowning.

So, you are walking over the waters... and this is not because your wonderful skills, but because you trust in He who can give you the power to do it.

Then, are you a righteous man or a wicked man, Dizerner?
A righteous man, according to the Bible, is he who practices righteousness (1 John 3:7)
Christ is righteous. Christ lives in you. Christ makes you practice righteousness. So, you are righteous.

"Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous." (1 John 3:7)

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

Nobody, therefore, should be ashamed or wary about recognizing that his deeds are righteous, provided we recognize that this is the work of God in us. If we visualize ourselves among the saved, we must visualize ourselves as doing righteous deeds.
Otherwise, why did we take our cross, followed Jesus to the Calvary, got crucified with Him and resurrected with Him? It was to have a new life where we could do righteous deeds !!

Let's listen how the Book of Revelation (19:7,8) describes the church of Christ, his wife:

"Let us be glad and rejoice
and give Him glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
and His wife has made herself ready.
It was granted her to be arrayed in fine linen,
clean and white.”
Fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints"


The Qur'an speaks of faith and deeds as companions to paradise, as long as they are accompanied by a third one: humbleness, submission to God. Islam itself means "submission" and there is no salvation in neither beliefs nor deeds, if made in a spirit of self-righteousness.

"Indeed, they who have believed and done righteous deeds and humbled themselves to their Lord - those are the companions of Paradise; they will abide eternally therein." (Surah Hud Ayat 23)

 

[Eternally-Grateful]

Eternal security - The believe that a persons salvation is secure. they are secure in christ for all eternality. the knowledge that the moment a person has been adopted into Gods family (saved) they will remain saved - Another term would be Eternal Life

Perseverance of the saints - It asserts that a child of God will persevere and because of this, in the end, they will be saved (hence they can not lose salvation)

OSAS - An acronym for the term once saved always saved. Used by believers alike wither they believe in eternal security (non Calvinists) or perseverance of the saints (Calvinists)

 

[atpollard]

I come at my theology from a more humanistic philosophy background [I was a practicing NIHILIST that set rival gang members on fire until God intervened]. Therefore I see many of these classic debates as "horses for courses".

Take "Classic Arminianism" as an example, no real Classic Arminian would deny the centrality of God and Christ's great atonement in their salvation (justification, sanctification and glorification), however the Arminian "filling in the blanks" and ordo salutis agree with their empirical reality (as they remember their salvation). Which is affirmed in scriptures like "all who seek me will find me".

In contrast, there are people like myself that were busy preparing suicide bombs when God quite literally claimed us "Road to Damascus" style and informed me that effective immediately, I belonged to Him ... period, end of discussion. So "Arminianism" does not fit with MY empirical reality, but Reformed theology's ordo salutis does. It just is what it is ... different horses for different courses.

I see most of what is presented above (Eternal Security vs OSAS vs Perseverance of the Saints) as semantic hair-splitting. In the "Autism Sensitivity Training" they have a program called "more alike than different" that explains how the miscommunication and perceived differences are 90% imaginary based on a tiny (10%) difference in sensory perception. Here we have the THEOLOGICAL equivalent in over-blowing a 10% difference in focus as an excuse to ignore the 90% commonality.

For some people, their experiences and needs require them to focus on the importance of sanctification (Peter MUST step out of the boat in obedience) while for other people, the events in their lives make it more urgent for them to focus on the importance of TRUSTING CHRIST (so they cling to Jesus with all their might, needing that reassurance that He will NEVER let go). Horses for courses!

YMMV.

 

[Dizerner]

Just because God sovereignly called you doesn't mean he removed your free will.

Remember Jonah.

I encourage you to look over this:

Thread 'The Mystery of Election from this Classical Arminian Point of View'

Jul 31, 2023

I generally follow the ideas of Classical Arminianism, which embraces God's love for all people, the necessity of preceding grace for all those born in sin, the remedy of faith in Christ's substitionary death and resurrection, and the possibility of real apostasy. But all of us who accept Christ as salvation, when we learn of God's salvific economy, we intuitively run the numbers—we factor the way the morality of it "feels" inside our heart—and it's almost impossible not to feel one way or the other. If God seems to allow or work in some way that seems unjust, immoral or puzzling, it's a...

• Dizerner
• Replies: 19
• Forum: Calvinism vs. Arminianism

• 
• 

 

[atpollard]

Just because God sovereignly called you doesn't mean he removed your free will.

Remember Jonah.

As I remember that story, God told Jonah to go to Nineveh. Jonah said “no” and sailed in the opposite direction. God caused Jonah to be swallowed by a fish (it is implied that he died) and vomited on shore where God then allowed Jonah to do as God said. Jonah then went to Nineveh and hated saving the people there.

So Jonah’s “FREE WILL” was to disobey God, flee, rebel against his commands, and comply only after God used extreme measures to compel (reluctant) service.

… that sounds about like MY free will. Paul called it a slave to sin.

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

As I remember that story, God told Jonah to go to Nineveh. Jonah said “no” and sailed in the opposite direction. God caused Jonah to be swallowed by a fish (it is implied that he died) and vomited on shore where God then allowed Jonah to do as God said. Jonah then went to Nineveh and hated saving the people there.

So Jonah’s “FREE WILL” was to disobey God, flee, rebel against his commands, and comply only after God used extreme measures to compel (reluctant) service.

… that sounds about like MY free will. Paul called it a slave to sin.

Beautiful posts, @atpollard
God set things so that we could seek for Him and find Him.
Let me share with you an extract from two prayers of Bahá’u’lláh

“My God, my Adored One, my King, my Desire! ​

What tongue can voice my thanks to Thee? ​

I was heedless, Thou didst awaken me. ​

I had turned back from Thee, Thou didst graciously aid me to turn towards Thee. ​

I was as one dead, Thou didst quicken me with the water of life. ​

I was withered, Thou didst revive me with the heavenly stream of Thine utterance…”​

And this second one

“Praise be to Thee, O my God! Thou didst call me, and I answered Thee.​

Thou didst summon me, and I hastened unto Thee, ​

entering beneath the shade of Thy mercy ​

and seeking shelter at the threshold of the door of Thy grace. ​

Thou hast nurtured me, O Lord, through Thy providence, ​

chosen me for Thee alone, created me for Thy service, ​

and appointed me to stand before Thee…”​

 

[Dizerner]

… that sounds about like MY free will. Paul called it a slave to sin.

If Jonah was a slave to sin in the way you were implying, he simply would have found another boat to Tarshish.

No, our repentance is our own decision.

 

[civic]

If Jonah was a slave to sin in the way you were implying, he simply would have found another boat to Tarshish.

No, our repentance is our own decision.

yes repentance and faith are mans responsibility.

 

[Red Baker]

What is the difference between eternal security, once saved always saved, and perseverance of the saints?​

They are nothing more than phrases men use to describe what they have come to believe concerning our great Salvation we have in Jesus Christ

Hebrews 2:3​

“How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;”

First, Jesus Christ is the author and finisher of my faith/salvation.

Hebrews 12:2​

“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Being the author of my faith means that he secured the faith I have in God for me! The very life I live as a believer is the very faith that Jesus Christ purchased for me during the days of his flesh.

Galatians 2:20​

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

This being so, I know that eternal life was secured for me, not by me! And if not by me, then it is not in my power to make sure I'm eternally secured. When Christ died on the cross, I died with him, and when he arose from the dead, so did I, and where he now sits at God's right hand, so do all of God's elect legally speaking! Since our (the very elect, true believers) sins have legally been paid for, God will never demand payment from us personally, never.

We are eternally secured by Jesus securing eternal life for us. In this sense we believe in eternal security.

"Once saved, always saved" ~ we firmly teach once loved, always loved! The words save/saved/salvation are used in different sense in the scriptures, so we are careful to not use saved with a wide brush to mean only saved from sin and condemnation. Our practical salvation through this world was not secured by Christ, we must do many things to make sure we neglect not so a great of salvation after we are born of God, we have many obligation to fulfilled in order for us to be fruitful in our Christian walk.

​

"Perseverance of the saints" ~all saints do not perseverance to the same degree in the faith. Abraham and Lot are perfect examples of this, yet both were loved of God and were righteous, not so much practically, but legally they were. Saints are preserved in Christ, more than they are known to perseverance to the standard of what men believe they must before God will accept them.

Jude 1:1​

“Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:”

 

[civic]

They are nothing more than phrases men use to describe what they have come to believe concerning our great Salvation we have in Jesus Christ

Hebrews 2:3​

“How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;”

First, Jesus Christ is the author and finisher of my faith/salvation.

Hebrews 12:2​

“Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Being the author of my faith means that he secured the faith I have in God for me! The very life I live as a believer is the very faith that Jesus Christ purchased for me during the days of his flesh.

Galatians 2:20​

“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.”

This being so, I know that eternal life was secured for me, not by me! And if not by me, then it is not in my power to make sure I'm eternally secured. When Christ died on the cross, I died with him, and when he arose from the dead, so did I, and where he now sits at God's right hand, so do all of God's elect legally speaking! Since our (the very elect, true believers) sins have legally been paid for, God will never demand payment from us personally, never.

We are eternally secured by Jesus securing eternal life for us. In this sense we believe in eternal security.

"Once saved, always saved" ~ we firmly teach once loved, always loved! The words save/saved/salvation are used in different sense in the scriptures, so we are careful to not use saved with a wide brush to mean only saved from sin and condemnation. Our practical salvation through this world was not secured by Christ, we must do many things to make sure we neglect not so a great of salvation after we are born of God, we have many obligation to fulfilled in order for us to be fruitful in our Christian walk.

​

"Perseverance of the saints" ~all saints do not perseverance to the same degree in the faith. Abraham and Lot are perfect examples of this, yet both were loved of God and were righteous, not so much practically, but legally they were. Saints are preserved in Christ, more than they are known to perseverance to the standard of what men believe they must before God will accept them.

Jude 1:1​

“Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:”

I'm with you except for this " I, and where he now sits at God's right hand, so do all of God's elect legally speaking! Since our (the very elect, true believers)"

if you substituted believers for elect I'm in agreement ( not that it matters . ). I just don't see elect through a calvinist theological perspective anymore.

Other than that we are on the same page and what you said is spot on brother.

 

[Pancho Frijoles]

If Jonah was a slave to sin in the way you were implying, he simply would have found another boat to Tarshish.

No, our repentance is our own decision.

Good morning, @atpollard and Dizerner

This is a kind of chicken-and-egg debate. Did Jonah repent, or did God make Jonah repent?

Jonah prayed from the belly of the fish, saying:
“I cried out to the Lord because of my affliction, And He answered me.
Out of the belly of Sheol I cried, And You heard my voice."

Jonah did seek God, out of his free will... But God had prepared the setting for that to happen. If God didn't send the storm and then the fish to swallow him, would Jonah have repented?

Neither Jonah nor any of us could flee from God's sovereignty and plans. So, ultimately, everything good in us, including our repentance, faith, and free will, comes from God and all praise should be to Him.

God's grace is irresistible. Calvin was right on this.
Unfortunately, Calving failed to realize that God's grace is of one kind: irresistible, and that encompass all humanity across all ages.
Calvin thought there was a kind of "resistible" grace ("common grace"), so to speak, and then a kind of "irresistible" grace. He resorted to this trying to explain why some people seem to have rejected the gospel of Christ.
However, splitting the grace of God in these two different categories is not biblical and makes no sense to me.

 

[Dizerner]

God's grace is irresistible. Calvin was right on this.

Absurd and ludicrous.

Scripture clearly teaches us free will from start to finish.

"Resisting" the grace of God is one of Scripture's most common themes.

And on this forum.