Does a Christian have to persevere unto the end to be saved?

Hi Lynn,

Yes, Hebrews was written to Jews and the background context was that some were leaving the faith and returning to Judaism. Hence it has several warnings about persevering such as the two you mentioned. We shouldn't think however that this is for Jews only. It applies to all. Other similar verses are given in the letters to predominantly Gentile Churches such as Colossians:

Col 1:22-23 yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach-- (23) if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister.

Let me add a comment from the Believers Bible Commentary on this passage, and I'll highlight some parts, as it applies to Heb 3:6 & 14 as well:

"Now the Apostle Paul adds one of those if passages which have proved very disconcerting to many children of God. On the surface, the verse seems to teach that our continued salvation depends on our continuing in the faith. If this is so, how can this verse be reconciled with other portions of the word of God, such as Joh_10:28-29, which declare that no sheep of Christ can ever perish?In seeking to answer this question, we would like to state at the outset that the eternal security of the believer is a blessed truth which is set forth clearly in the pages of the NT. However, the Scriptures also teach, as in this verse, that true faith always has the quality of permanence, and that one who has really been born of God will go on faithfully to the end. Continuance is a proof of reality. Of course there is always the danger of backsliding, but a Christian falls only to rise again (Pro_24:16). He does not forsake the faith. The Spirit of God has seen fit to put many of these so-called “if” passages in the word of God in order to challenge all who profess the name of Christ as to the reality of their profession. We would not want to say anything that might dull the sharp edge of these passages. As someone has said: “These ‘ifs’ in Scripture look on professing Christians here in the world and they come as healthy tests to the soul.”

Pridham comments on these challenging verses as follows:The reader will find, on a careful study of the Word, that it is the habit of the Spirit to accompany the fullest and most absolute statements of grace by warnings which imply a ruinous failure on the part of some who nominally stand in faith. ... Warnings which grate harshly on the ears of insincere profession are drunk willingly as medicine by the godly soul. ... The aim of all such teaching as we have here is to encourage faith, and condemn, by anticipation, reckless and self-confident professors."

Mat 24:13 "But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved.

For Matt 24:13, I don't see this quite the same as the other passages. Context is important here which is the end time tribulation. Jesus is saying that deliverance (salvation) will come at the end, at His return, for those facing this time and standing steadfast in their faith. This would apply to all awaiting his return in that day and certainly includes the remnant Jews who follow the Lord's instruction to run and take shelter in the place God will provide for them. But it also obviously has the same thought of persevering and is contrasted with the verse before it where people's love will grow cold.

2Ti 2:13 If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.

2 Tim 2:13 - Some take this for the struggling believer saying that Jesus remains faithful to His character and promises given to them even in the midst of their doubts and unbelief. An example of this would be when Peter denied Jesus. Jesus still prayed for Peter that despite this time when he denied Jesus, his faith overall would not fail and He was faithful to Peter, restoring him and then using him mightily. And that is all true. It is true for Peter and any born again believers. I used to take this particular verse that way, but I now see it is a warning to those that do not believe - ie those that are not saved. It is a warning that God will remain true to His word and that means condemnation for those that do not believe. The Amplified Bible says:

2Ti 2:13  If we are faithless [do not believe and are untrue to Him], He remains true (faithful to His Word and His righteous character), for He cannot deny Himself.    

So this whole passage is a trustworthy statement for all of humanity. The 'we' in this passage is humanity. It contains the blessing of salvation for those that believe and the warnings of being denied salvation to those that do not believe. Hiebert writes: “The central truth of these pithy statements is that faith in Christ identifies the believer with Him in everything while unbelief just as surely separates men from Him.” So we could divide this general statement between faith and unbelief like this:

2Ti 2:11-13 Here is a trustworthy saying:

1. The positive side for those that believe: If we died with him, we will also live with him;

2. The positive side for those that believe: if we endure, we will also reign with him.

3. The negative side for those that do not believe: If we deny him, he will also deny us;

4. The negative side for those that do not believe: if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself.

And again - perseverance in faith is a sign that one has true faith to begin with. This is the same for all of these 'if passages' including Hebrews. True believers will endure even if there are temporary lapses because they have a wonderful Shepherd who holds them:

1Th 5:23-24 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. (24) Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass.

Hope this helps,
Iain.

Hi Lynn,

A Hebrews series is hopefully coming in 2025. The plan at the mo is to redo Daniel next then write a series on Hebrews - which I'm looking forward to. Looking forward to both actually. Hebrews 3 and 4 especially speak of the wilderness generation using them as a picture and type for us. But you'll note that the theme is 'rest' - entering the rest. And the emphasis is 'today'... everyday! Thus the Promised Land in the exodus isn't predominantly a picture of Heaven for the Christian. If it was then we'd have the issue that Moses, Aaron, Miriam etc didn't make the Promised land (Heaven) but died in the wilderness... And even when Joseph led the Israelites in, there were still battles with the enemy to be had (which isn't true in heaven) - so it isn't primarily a picture of heaven for the believer. It is a picture of the rest that comes from faith, which is everyday, when we allow the Lord to live through us. It is a picture of Christ in you, the hope of glory. It is a picture of when we trust the 'man with the sword in his hand' to lead us in victory through faith, not effort. And again, that rest is 'today'! : )

If you want to read an amazing book on the wilderness wanderings and what they really point to, see if you can find 'the saving life of Christ' by Major Ian Thomas. It is awesome. There is a shorter pdf version here.

Blessings,

Iain.