Healthy Questions

A couple of weeks ago a good friend asked me what I made of John 15, specifically these verses: "Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit." (John 15:2) "If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned." (John 15:6) Do these verses indicate that those who are "in Christ" may ultimately end up in hell? Allegory Alert Proposition: If "in Me" is to be born-again, and being "taken away" and "cast into the fire and burned" represents eternal punishment, then this passage clearly speaks to believers that become unsaved. Clearly, this view hinges on what Jesus means by being "in Me." Before we discuss that, however, a warning is needed: Allegory Alert! Yes, that's right, this is a symbolic representation, a visual aid. After le...

This question was raised by a friend who was reading Revelation 3:5: "‘He who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments; and I will not erase his name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels." He's done his own research, but I wanted to think it through for myself. What is the big deal about this verse? Well, if God erases peoples' names from the "book of life" then it can be said that salvation may be lost. This shatters the notion of "once saved, always saved" and makes salvation always at risk, always hinging on each man's actions. Therefore this is a critical question; it touches on a fundamental issue of the Christian faith. I won't deal with the larger context, but rather just focus on the book of life and possibility of being erased from it. (If you're unclear on the purpose of the book of life, take a look at Revelation 20.) So, starting with Revelation 3:5. A plain readin...