Does Hebrews 3:14 teach "perserverence of the saints"?

[Youngone88]

“We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first.” Hebrews 3:14

What makes me wonder is the term “we have come”, indicating that the sharing has already happened, and that we will know that we have already come if we perservere. This sounds like those who already share in Christ will perservere to the end.

What is the non-reformed reading of this text?

 

[tobinatorstark]

Consider this from the Haydock Bible Commentary

Ver. 14. You have already been made partakers of the benefits of Christ, at your conversion and baptism, to the beginning of his substance,[2] by which seems to be understood the faith of Christ. (Witham) — If to subsist in Jesus Christ, to be washed in his blood, to be animated with his spirit, to be nourished with his flesh, is but a sketch, a seed of that union with him which on a future day is to be effected, how comes it that we are so attached to this earth, how can we hazard for such a mere trifle such immense felicity?

 

[golfjack]

Heb. 3:12-19 speaks of those who wandered forty years in the wildrerness and, because of their lack of faith, never entered God’s rest in Canaan. Similary, after the Jerusalem religious leaders rejected Christ, God gavee them forty years of apostolic preaching to change their minds and accept Him. When the majority did not believe, app forty years after the Crucifixion, the Romans destroyed the City ( a.d. 70). Thus, Jesus told the women of Jerusalem who were weeping as He went to the cross, Do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves ( Luke 23:28, 29). He went on to speak of the suffering which was ahead for this city, because it was cutting itself offr from God’s help by cricifying God the Son. :sad_yes::crying:
Peace, Golfjack

 

[Youngone88]

I appreciate both comments, but my question still remains. This verse seems to teach that all who partake of Christ persevere to the end, because it says that the way we know if we have (perfect tense) already partaken of Christ is whether we persevere or not.

It seems contrary to Catholic teaching to agree with Reformed Christianity. Can someone explain a Catholic reading of this passage to me?

 

[GJx86]

First, a disclaimer: I’m not a Greek scholar, so if there are subtleties of tense here that don’t show up in the English, my answer isn’t likely to be helpful. Nevertheless, the NASB renders this verse as follows:
Hebrews 3:14:

For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end…

Rewording slightly, we might say that if someone perseveres to the end, then he previously partook in Christ.

The problem is that perseverance of the saints tries to teach the converse, saying, “If someone previously partook in Christ, then he will persevere to the end”–and it doesn’t take much work to show that a statement and its converse aren’t equivalent: “If something is a cat, then it is a mammal” is true; “if something is a mammal, then it is a cat” is not.

This verse thus leaves open the possibility that people will partake in Christ, but then fail to persevere to the end, thus forfeiting their share in Him. This is presumably why the author warns his readers only two verses prior to “take care … that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God.”

Hope that helps.

 

[SHW]

“We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first.” Hebrews 3:14

What makes me wonder is the term “we have come”, indicating that the sharing has already happened, and that we will know that we have already come if we perservere. This sounds like those who already share in Christ will perservere to the end.

What is the non-reformed reading of this text?

Notice it states “if,” so “if we hold firmly till the end” (of our lives) living the faith (“the confidence we had at first”), then indeed “we have come to share in Christ” for eternity. Eternity is ever-present. There is no “time” in eternity so it is written in present tense. Salvation is conditional and that is why it states “if.”

Pax,
SHW