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Some of the best Conditional “IF” Statements in the NT


ZacharyB

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John 14:23IF anyone loves Me, he will keep (obey) My word;

and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.

John 15:14 • You are My friends, IF you do whatever I command you.

Does anyone get into heaven who does not love Jesus, is not His friend, does not obey Him?

 

Romans 8:13-14 • For IF you live according to the flesh you will die;

but IF by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

For as many as are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

 

Romans 11:21-22 • For if God did not spare the natural branches (the Israelites),

He may not spare you either. Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God:

on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, IF you continue in His goodness.

Otherwise, you also will be cut off.

 

1 Corinthians 15:2the gospel which I preached to you … by which also you are saved,

IF you hold fast that word which I preached to you — unless you believed in vain.

 

Galatians 5:18 • But IF you are being led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 

 

Colossians 1:21-23 • He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death,

to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight

IF indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast,

and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel

 

Hebrews 3:6,14 • Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are

IF we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end.

… For we have become partakers of Christ IF we hold the beginning

of our confidence steadfast to the end

 

Hebrews 10:36-39 • For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done

the will of God, you may receive the promise: “… Now the just shall live by faith;

but IF anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.”

But we are not of those who draw back to perdition …

So, the writer is a seer who knows who will do what in the future?

No, this is wishful thinking … he does not say that God told him they would not fall back!

 

1 John 1:7-9 • But IF we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship

with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

IF we confess our sins (to Him), He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins

and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

 

1 John 2:3Now by this we know that we know Him, IF we keep His commandments. 

 

The Greek in these passages do, in fact, mean "IF". In the Greek, there are sentence constructions

that indicate whether or not something is conditional. The Greek word "ean" can mean since,

or therefore, but when it is used in a construction that has "de" at the beginning of the sentence,

it is making a conditional statement. Therefore, the author really is saying what the "IF" implies.  

(de) Condition #1 is true, "IF" (ean) condition #2 is met. 

 

Mercifully, I have left out a couple of the most troubling/condemning passages!

 

Many other verses are conditional, even though they don’t have an “IF” in them, for example:

Revelation 21:7-8 He who overcomes shall inherit all things … and he shall be My son. 

This is the same as saying …

IF you overcome, you shall inherit all things … and you shall be My son. 

Note: This is Jesus’ definition of who is an overcomer:

Revelation 3:21  To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, 
as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.

 

Some of the passages above are members of the category of verses which teach us:

Believers must endure in their faith until the end of their lives to receive eternal life!

Yes, both sanctification and salvation are life-long processes.

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I do not think anyone will disagree that we are faced with decisions.  Am I correct n saying that your OP states that we are not saved until we die, when the books on our lives are closed, and we await His decision if we made it or not?

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Guest shiloh357
1 hour ago, ZacharyB said:

 

John 14:23IF anyone loves Me, he will keep (obey) My word;

and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.

John 15:14 • You are My friends, IF you do whatever I command you.

Does anyone get into heaven who does not love Jesus, is not His friend, does not obey Him?

 

Romans 8:13-14 • For IF you live according to the flesh you will die;

but IF by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

For as many as are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

 

Romans 11:21-22 • For if God did not spare the natural branches (the Israelites),

He may not spare you either. Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God:

on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, IF you continue in His goodness.

Otherwise, you also will be cut off.

 

1 Corinthians 15:2the gospel which I preached to you … by which also you are saved,

IF you hold fast that word which I preached to you — unless you believed in vain.

 

Galatians 5:18 • But IF you are being led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 

 

Colossians 1:21-23 • He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death,

to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight

IF indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast,

and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel

 

Hebrews 3:6,14 • Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are

IF we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end.

… For we have become partakers of Christ IF we hold the beginning

of our confidence steadfast to the end

 

Hebrews 10:36-39 • For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done

the will of God, you may receive the promise: “… Now the just shall live by faith;

but IF anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him.”

But we are not of those who draw back to perdition …

So, the writer is a seer who knows who will do what in the future?

No, this is wishful thinking … he does not say that God told him they would not fall back!

 

1 John 1:7-9 • But IF we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship

with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

IF we confess our sins (to Him), He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins

and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

 

1 John 2:3Now by this we know that we know Him, IF we keep His commandments. 

 

The Greek in these passages do, in fact, mean "IF". In the Greek, there are sentence constructions

that indicate whether or not something is conditional. The Greek word "ean" can mean since,

or therefore, but when it is used in a construction that has "de" at the beginning of the sentence,

it is making a conditional statement. Therefore, the author really is saying what the "IF" implies.  

(de) Condition #1 is true, "IF" (ean) condition #2 is met. 

 

Mercifully, I have left out a couple of the most troubling/condemning passages!

 

Many other verses are conditional, even though they don’t have an “IF” in them, for example:

Revelation 21:7-8 He who overcomes shall inherit all things … and he shall be My son. 

This is the same as saying …

IF you overcome, you shall inherit all things … and you shall be My son. 

Note: This is Jesus’ definition of who is an overcomer:

Revelation 3:21  To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, 
as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.

 

Some of the passages above are members of the category of verses which teach us:

Believers must endure in their faith until the end of their lives to receive eternal life!

Yes, both sanctification and salvation are life-long processes.

The problem is that in Greek you have different kinds of conditional statements.  This nuance doesn't really show up in English.   In Greek there are 1st class, 2nd class and 3rd class conditional statements.  So your little list doesn't really support what you're trying to argue.  Anyone can grab a bunch of unrelated passages and string them together like lights on a Christmas tree and make the Bible appear to say anything they want it to.

Most false doctrine, like what you are trying to impose on others, stems from a poor understanding  of the original languages and really sloppy hermeneutics/theology.

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1 hour ago, OneLight said:

Am I correct n saying that your OP states that we are not saved until we die,

when the books on our lives are closed, and we await His decision if we made it or not?

Well, there are at least 10 NT verses which reveal that ...

one must endure in the faith until death to receive eternal life.

BTW, the most obvious one of all concerns taking the mark of the beast.

Be happy to put them in a new thread, if so requested.

Edited by ZacharyB
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31 minutes ago, shiloh357 said:

Most false doctrine, like what you are trying to impose on others,

stems from a poor understanding  of the original languages and really sloppy hermeneutics/theology.

Great, start explaining to us why these verses do not mean what they are saying.

You're saying warnings are not warnings at all.

They're just there to take up empty space.

Thanks.

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Here is what I have found with a quick search as to what Shiloh is talking about.  The title is a link to the site I took this from.

Shiloh, if this is incorrect, please supply a link to a site you approve of.

Greek Conditional Sentences

    Conditional sentences are "If ..., then ..." statements. They make a statement that if something happens, then something else will happen. 
     The 'if' clause is referred to as the 'protasis' by grammarians. It comes from the Greek words 'pro' (meaning before) and 'stasis' (meaning 'stand'). So the 'protasis' means 'what stands before' or 'comes first' as far as these two clauses are concerned. The 'then' clause is termed the 'apodosis'; it is what 'comes after' the protasis.

Logical Relationship between Protasis and Apodasis
    There are a number of different relationships that can exist between the protasis and apodosis. It is important that you try to distinguish between these relationships for sake of more clearly understanding the text. Please also note that there can be some overlap between these three relationships.
    They could represent a Cause-Effect relationship, where the action in the protasis will cause the effect in the apodosis. For example Romans 8:13b, "...but if by the spirit you put to death the practices of the body, you will live."
    They could show a Evidence-Inference type relationship, where the apodosis is inferred to be true based upon the evidence presented in the protasis. This will often be semantically the converse of the ‘Cause-Effect’ relationship. For example 1 Cor. 15:44, "If there is a soulish body, there is also a spiritual one."
    Or, the relationship could be one showing Equivalence between the protasis and apodosis, which is actually a subset of the Evidence-Inference relationship. For example Gal. 2:18, "...if I build up again those things which I destroyed, I prove myself a transgressor."

Classification of Greek Conditional Sentences
    Greek has more ability than English in describing the kind of relationship between the protasis, and the apodosis. It is possible for the writer/speaker to indicate whether the protasis is true or not. Actually they can indicate if they are presenting the protasis as 'assumed true (or false) for the sake of argument'. In order to indicate this kind of relationship between the protasis and apodosis, Classical Greek traditional had four kinds of conditional sentences, based upon what tense and mood the verb occurs in and upon some helping words. These are much the same in Koine (Biblical) Greek, with slight variations. 
(Please see link to the PDF chart below for a detailed description of formation and examples of conditional sentence.)
    First Class Condition - Is considered the 'Simple Condition' and assumes that the premise (protasis) is true for the sake of argument. The protasis is formed with the helping word ei ('if') with the main verb in the indicative mood, in any tense; with any mood and tense in the apodosis. 
    Second Class Condition - Is known as the 'Contrary-to-Fact Condition' and assumes the premise as false for the sake of argument. The protasis is again formed with the helping word ei ('if') and the main verb in the indicative mood. The tense of the verb (in the protasis) must also be in a past-time tense (aorist or imperfect). The apodosis will usually have the particle an as a marking word, showing some contingency.
    Third Class Condition - Traditionally known as the 'More Probable Future Condition', the third class condition should actually be split into two different categories, the 'Future More Probable Condition' (indicating either a probable future action or a hypothetical situation) and the 'Present General Condition' (indicating a generic situation or universal truth at the present time). It is formed in the protasis using the word ean (ei plus an = 'if') and a verb in the subjunctive mood. The main verb of the protasis can be in any tense, but if the condition is a 'Present General', the verb must be in the present tense
    Fourth Class Condition - Is usually called the 'Less Probable Future Condition' and does not have a complete example in the New Testament. The fulfillment of this condition was considered even more remote than the Third Class Condition. It was formed with the helping word ei and the optative mood in the protasis. The apodosis had the helping word an and its verb was also in the optative mood.

    Conditional Sentences - Please see this PDF document for a detailed description (and handy summary) of the formation of conditional sentences and examples of each. (Please note that you need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer in order to read this PDF format. Download it free if you don't already have it).

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Guest shiloh357
1 hour ago, ZacharyB said:

Great, start explaining to us why these verses do not mean what they are saying.

You're saying warnings are not warnings at all.

They're just there to take up empty space.

Thanks.

I am not saying that they don't mean what they are saying. I  am saying that they don't mean what YOU say they mean. 

I don't have time to go through them all, but let's take one that is used quite often.

Col. 1: 23 is an example of a first class condition.  A first class condition carries the idea of "If this is true (and I am assuming it is), then this will be the result."

In Col. 1:23, Paul is assuming that this is a reality:

He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight —IF indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel

Anyone who is presented to God as holy and has been reconciled to God will continue in the faith.   Because that's what Christians do.  That's the kind of condition Paul is using, here.  Paul is using the word "if" as a 1st class condition:  "IF you you continue in the faith, and I know you will..."  A person who has shown true evidence of salvation will continue in the faith.  They will not walk away from God. 

 

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3 hours ago, ZacharyB said:

Well, there are at least 10 NT verses which reveal that ... one must endure in the faith until death to receive eternal life.

Eternal life is either a gift or a reward. According to plain Scripture, it is a GIFT.

For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Rom 6:23).

For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. (Eph 2:8.9).

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Guest shiloh357
3 hours ago, ZacharyB said:

Well, there are at least 10 NT verses which reveal that ...

one must endure in the faith until death to receive eternal life.

 

There are no verses that say that.  All the verses that refer to enduring to the end refer to persecution and the Tribulation and have nothing to do with eternal life.   They are talking about being preserved through tribulation and persecution, not salvation of the soul.

I John 5:11-13 says this:

And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
(1Jn 5:11-13)

These verses tell me that I can KNOW (present tense) that I have eternal life right now.   I am not waiting on eternal life; it is not in the future it is now.

Jesus said:

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
(Joh 5:24)


Again, Jesus says that since I have eternal life right now.  The tense is present, not future.  Notice He says, "hath (has) everlasting life/eternal life.   And even more, it says that I am passed from death unto life.  Again, the tense is present, not future.

So for me to be like you, I would have to go backwards, because YOU don't know if you're saved.    You don't know if you have "endured" good enough.   You don't know if you you're saved.    Based on these two passages alone, and there are more, I KNOW that I am saved.

If you don't know whether or not you're saved, your not.   If you are still waiting on eternal life, hoping you did good enough, I can tell you right now, that you will not have eternal life and you will not have any place in the Kingdom of God.   You're faith is in yourself hoping you will be able to deserve salvation.

Zachary, you're an unregenerate sinner and you're sliding down a greased pole straight into hell because you are trusting your efforts and your own personal merit to get to heaven.   You have no faith in Jesus for salvation and as such, have no part in Christ and no place in the Kingdom.   You need to believe the Gospel and reject your works-based system of salvation.   It will only be your undoing if you continue down this path.

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i agree with the two posts above

I admit that there was a time when I would have agreed with you Zachary

WHat I Learned in church and from people I hung around was at times skewed and at other times 

how I saw things wasn't quite right.   So I went around for years mixed up,some of us are thick headed and become stuck in a rut.  

Recently I have talked to a number of church going people and only ran across one who saw things Clearly that understood that Jesus did it for us .without add ons

Eternal life is a free gift 

 

By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

11 And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:

12 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;

13 From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.

14 For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.

 

Edited by Guest
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