In this world of anxiety and fear, it is a radical thing to proclaim the eternal security of the believer: One with the Lord, your future is the same as his. No one can snatch you from his hand; nothing can separate you from his love. Yet every time I say things like this, someone will point to 2 Peter 2 as though this one chapter could undo the many promises of God and make Christ’s saving work of no effect. “Peter describes Christians who forsook the Lord and were condemned,” they say. “So much for once saved, always saved.” Hardly a month goes by when I don’t have occasion to talk about 2 Peter 2. In this chapter, Peter warns about false teachers who deny the Lord and teach heresy. Let there be no doubt he is not referring to Christians. These people are slaves of depravity (v.19) who never stop sinning (v.14). They are not saints but brute beasts who are condemned to perish (v.12). But were these sinners once saints? Were they Christians who lost the way, and fell beyond the reach of grace? This is an important question, because if they were once saved, then you [...]