The Dynamics of Perseverance

https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/preserved-god

Leaving aside the misguided (though not unexpected) use of a Winston Churchill quote, the problem with Parsons' argument is that he doesn't define what saving faith is. And interestingly if you get a half-dozen Confessional theologians into a room and ask this question, you'll likely end up with a heated debate and a lack of consensus.

1995-1996: A Year of Change

On the morning of 19 April 1995 I was sitting in my apartment in Alaska. I was a miserable wretch, lost and in despair. Just a few weeks earlier, to the astonishment of my friends and co-workers, I had enlisted in the US Air Force and was due to depart for basic training in mid-May.
I was watching the news as the story broke. Alaska is of course a few hours behind Oklahoma City. I was still in my Rush Limbaugh days and I immediately assumed Islamic terrorists were behind it and that we would be going to war. I was convinced it was all Clinton's fault. He had played a weak hand in Somalia and they'd probably gotten together with the Iraqis and come to get us.

Scripturalism vs. Systematics

He would probably be distressed to know I'm linking to his post from my website, but I wanted to share this little gem. This is a great little example of resisting the urge to systematize and seek coherence. This is letting the text speak and letting your doctrine be formed by the text. This is the right way to read Scripture. When we try to create systems what we end up with is reductionist frameworks that in some way diminish the fullness of the text and because we reduce its scope, we ultimately distort it.