Systematic Theology, by Louis Berkhof - New Leaven

pause who glory in being saved by grace. The idea is that, after man is brought to a state
of grace by the operation of the Holy Spirit alone, or by the joint operation of the Holy
Spirit and the will of man, it rests solely with man to continue in faith or to forsake the
faith, just as he sees fit. This renders the cause of man very precarious and makes it
impossible for him to attain to the blessed assurance of faith. Consequently, it is of the
utmost importance to maintain the doctrine of perseverence. In the words of Hovey, “It
may be a source of great comfort and power, — an incentive to gratitude, a motive to
self-sacrifice, and a pillar of fire in the hour of danger.”
QUESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY: What is the real question concerning perseverance:
is it whether the elect, or whether the regenerate persevere? Do Augustine and the
Lutherans also teach that the elect may finally be lost? How does the analogy of the
natural life favor the doctrine of perseverance? Do not such passages as Heb. 6:4-6;
10:29; II Pet. 2:1 prove the possibility of falling away? How about John 15:1-6? Is the
grace of perseverance something innate, necessarily given with the new nature, or is it
the fruit of a special, gracious, and preserving activity of God? Does the doctrine imply
that one may be living in habitual and intentional sin, and yet be in a justified state?
Does it preclude the idea of lapses into sin?
LITERATURE: Bavinck, Geref. Dogm. IV, pp. 289-294; Vos, Geref. Dogm. IV., pp. 248-260;
Dabney, Syst. and Polem. Theol., pp. 687-698; Dick, Theology, Lect. LXXIX; Litton, Introd. to
Dogm. Theol., pp. 338-343; Finney, Syst. Theol., pp. 544-619; Hovey, Manual of Theology and
Ethics, pp. 295-299; Pieper, Christ. Dogm. III, pp. 107-120; Pope Chr. Theol. III, pp. 131-147;
Meijering, De Dordtsche Leerregels, pp. 256-354; Bos, De Dordtsche Leerregelen, pp. 199-255.
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