“Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘There He is,’ do not believe him. For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect. Behold, I have told you in advance. So if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out, or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them. For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be” (Matt. 24:23-27).
How liberating it is to read the Bible honestly. When we do, we can just believe what it plainly says without having to twist it to fit our predetermined theology or make it mean something it doesn’t say.
Take Matthew 24:23-27, for example. It is a section of Jesus’ Olivet Discourse, which He spoke, not to the multitudes, but to a small group of four of His closest disciples, namely, Peter, James, John and Andrew (see Mark 13:3). When Jesus used the word “you” in the above-quoted passage, He was referring to them. His words were relevant to them, obviously. And He was warning them against being misled during a time when many people would be misled. Just seconds earlier He said to them, “See to it that no one misleads you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will mislead many” (Matt. 24:4-5, emphasis added).
So, indisputably, Jesus believed that Peter, James, John and Andrew could be misled—just as others will be misled—into following a false Christ. If Jesus didn’t believe that, He misled those four men into thinking He believed it, which would make Him a liar. Jesus isn’t a liar. For that reason, no one can intelligently argue that there was no possibility that Peter, James, John and Andrew could be misled to follow a false Christ.
In the passage under consideration, Jesus repeated that same possibility twice more: “If anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘There He is,’ do not believe him …. if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out, or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them.” It could not be clearer. Peter, James, John and Andrew potentially could be misled to follow a false Christ.
What will happen to people who are misled to follow a false Christ? Will they be saved? Of course not, because they will not meet the condition Jesus gave for salvation (see John 3:16).
All of this being so, why would we ever think that, if Peter, James, Andrew and John followed a future false Christ that they would be saved and inherit God’s kingdom?
This is just one of scores of scripture passages that indisputably prove that people who believe in Jesus can stop believing in Jesus and suffer the consequences that everyone else will who does not believe in Jesus.
This becomes even more obvious when we consider Jesus’ words in this passage, “False Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect” (24:24). That is often interpreted to mean, “so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect (but, of course, that is impossible, since they are the elect).”
That, however, is an illogical interpretation that forces the exact opposite meaning into the text, as revealed by the context of Jesus’ warnings before and after to Peter, James, John and Andrew that they not be misled. So, what Jesus clearly meant was that the antichrist is going to mislead, by his great signs and wonders, everybody he can, including even the elect—if they allow themselves to be misled. And they certainly can allow themselves to be misled—as proven by Jesus’ warnings to Peter, James, Andrew and John.
All of this, if we are honest, is irrefutable.
And how interesting it is that Jesus used the word “elect” to describe people who can indeed be misled by the future false Christ. Obviously, Jesus did not mean “elect” the way Calvinists use it, as to mean, “those who are sovereignly chosen/elected for salvation by God, and whose salvation status thus can’t possibly ever be changed.” No, Jesus believed that the salvation status of the “elect” could change, as they could switch from following Jesus to following the antichrist. Peter, James, John, and Andrew were all, at that time, among the “elect” who could potentially be misled by the antichrist.
And so we see that Jesus used the word “elect” to describe a group of people who were conditionally, rather than an unconditionally, elected. We elect politicians, for example, who meet our conditions. They become “the elect.” Similarly, everyone who believes in Jesus meets God’s condition for salvation and becomes part of His “elect.” And people who once believed in Jesus but who no longer believe in Him no longer meet His conditions and are no longer among “the elect.” Which is why Paul so many times told his readers to “continue in the faith.”
So when you read about the “elect” in other places in the New Testament, do not allow any Calvinist to tell you that it means “the unconditionally elected.” The noun “elect” in the English language never denotes those who are unconditionally elected. It always denotes those who are conditionally elected. Again, if you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, you are among God’s elect because you meet His condition. So keep believing! Remain among the elect!
If you believe in “Unconditional Eternal Security” also known as “Once-Saved-Always-Saved,” you have to grossly twist Matthew 24:23-27, as well as hundreds of other plain scriptures, to protect your doctrine. Please don’t send me your proof-texts…I am familiar with all of them. You need to find a way to harmonize them with the other 31,000 verses of the Bible.
Finally, why did Jesus warn Peter, James, Andrew and John of something that actually never occurred in their lifetimes? The reason is because the possibility existed, when Jesus said it, that it could happen in their lifetimes. Remember, Jesus said in the Olivet Discourse, “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone” (Matt. 24:36). Not knowing when it would happen, Jesus wanted to prepare His disciples in case it did happen to them. And if it could have happened in their lifetimes, it could happen in yours! Remain ready!
