Untitled Sermon (7)

Future Probation: Future probation is held by some evangelicals. Argue for or against the position.

I would argue against future probation based on a couple sets of Scripture. The first would be in Luke chapter 16. Here Jesus is teaching on hell and judgment and in the course of teaching on this Jesus tells a parable. The parable is about a man in hell and at the end of the parable he asks for mercy and Jesus taught that his judgment was fixed and would not be changed. This alone would teach that future probation is unbiblical but Jesus’ teaching didn’t end there. The man in hell asks that someone could be sent to his family to warn them of the judgment he is experiencing. The logical understanding of why one would want to warn their family would be that the consequences are fixed and there is no way out of the judgment once they die. That is the reason for the immanence of the warning.

Matthew 25:46 is very clear that the choices in this world are fixed in the next. In another teaching on hell Jesus says “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Revelation 20:10 speaks of being in torment day and night, forever and ever. 2 Thessalonians 1:9 also speaks of everlasting torment. In order for there to be a possibility of release from judgment there would need to be time left after the judgment for release. The use of “everlasting” leaves no time for release after the judgment.