Jumpstarter 7 of 10

Ideas to help restart your discussion

Question 7

Finny calls 1 Corinthians 8:11 (“the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died”) and especially 2 Peter 2:1 (“denying the Lord who bought them”) “slam dunk” texts for Christ dying for people who are not saved; how do these verses challenge common evangelical instincts about assurance and “once saved always saved,” even before you get to Calvinism vs Arminianism?

Another way to ask: How do 1 Cor. 8:11 and 2 Pet. 2:1 suggest Christ died for people who still aren’t saved? How does that challenge common ideas about assurance and “once saved always saved,” even before debating Calvinism vs Arminianism?

Direct Answer Finny uses these verses to show that the New Testament can speak of people for whom Christ died (or whom the Lord “bought”) and yet describe them as perishing or headed for destruction. That challenges an instinctive assumption that “Christ died for you” automatically equals “you will certainly be saved,” and it raises hard questions about assurance that go beyond the Calvinism/Arminianism label.

Support from Transcript:

Finny cites 1 Corinthians 8:11: “shall the weak brother perish for whom Christ died,” and calls it “really interesting.”
He notes it’s one of “two places… [that] clearly describes… people who are not saved for whom Christ died.”
He emphasizes 2 Peter 2:1 is even clearer: false teachers “bring on themselves swift destruction.”
Yet it says they are “denying the Lord who bought them,” which Finny calls “a slam dunk… totally clear.”
He concludes this shows Christ “buying and dying for the sins of the non-elect” (i.e., those not ultimately saved).
He repeatedly separates extent from application: provision can be broad while benefit is not automatic.

Discussion Follow-ups If someone can be “bought” yet destroyed, what does that suggest about how we should talk about warning passages and perseverance?

Jumpstarter 7 of 10

Add your phone number?

Thank you!

Jumpstarter 7 of 10