SCRIPTURE 1 Thessalonians 5:23 “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

COMMENTARY This passage, while seeming to support guaranteed, unconditional eternal security, does just the opposite.  Preserved (Greek tēreō) means to keep one in a state in which he/she is in.  However, what catches our attention about this verb is that it is in the optative mood.  What is the optative mood? It is a verb used to convey a wish or hope.  What this clearly tells us, is that for those that Paul considered Christian it was his hope or desire they remain preserved.  Clearly Paul did not understand that just because they were Christian, they were guaranteed an unconditional salvation.  If he did there would be no reason to hope for it, nor pray for it.