Salvation is not temporal nor are we personally and individually guaranteed salvation while we run the race. We are promised a crown of life, we are not guaranteed one. You want this to be true but the flow and form of the scriptures do not support such a notion. If the churches/bodies of Christ had to be warned of losing their place, how much more the individuals who make up the body of Christ.
2 Corinthians 1:21 - Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ. He anointed us, 22 set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit,
guaranteeing what is to come.
2 Corinthians 5:5 - Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit,
guaranteeing what is to come.
Ephesians 1:13 - In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the
gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having
believed, you were
sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the
guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.
Ephesians 4:30 - And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were
sealed unto/for the day of redemption.
Do not be fooled, even the most sincere faith can be lost.
Do not be fooled. Faith in "water and works" instead of faith in "Christ alone" for salvation is not sincere faith.
There are no guaranteed winners in a race, this is the very purpose Paul uses the analogy. Many will start the race but not all will finish. Not finishing does not mean they were never runners.
1 Corinthians 9:24, Paul said - Do you not know that
in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? (Paul did not say many will start the race but not all will finish.
That is your personal commentary).
Run in such a way as to get the prize. (Is eternal life/salvation a prize or a
gift? - Romans 5:15-18; 6:23; Ephesians 2:8). 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to
get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26 Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be
disqualified for the prize.
That sounds like an Olympic race where
all the runners run, but only one receives the gold medal. So all believers run the race, but
only one receives
eternal life? So what happens to the runners that receive the silver medal or bronze medal or finish the race with no medal? Are they disqualified from the Olympics or from the prize, receiving the gold medal? A prize is something that you work for and earn where a gift is something that you freely accept without merit:
Prize (brabeion) - the prize awarded to a victor, the
reward (recognition) that follows triumph. That doesn't sound like a
free gift (Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8). 1 Corinthians 3:14-15 mentions - If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a
reward. If anyone's
work is burned up, he will suffer loss, (of reward) though he himself will be saved.
Without faith there can be no appeal for salvation. We are not allowed to claim the faith of others or of times past. God is not mocked, dieing faithless will spell doom for most. Only those who enter the day of judgement in faith will be granted the crown of life. Those who die without that faith will not be allowed to partake of the banquet. The five virgins who left to find oil were barred from entering the wedding, this did not make them non-virgins, just virgins who missed the wedding.
The wording of the five foolish virgins in our text is all too familiar to the reader of Matthew’s Gospel:
Matthew 25:11 - "Later, the other virgins came too, saying,
‘Lord, Lord! Let us in!’ 12 But he replied, ‘I tell you the truth,
I do not know you!"
Matthew 7:21 - "Not everyone who says to me,
‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the kingdom of heaven" but only the one who
does the will of my Father in heaven - (See John 6:40). 22 On that day, many will say to me,
‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name, and in your name cast out demons and do many powerful works?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly,
'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ (Matthew 7:21-23)
Taking Matthew’s words literally, I read that the difference between the foolish virgins and the wise virgins: The wise virgins had oil for their lamps, while the foolish virgins did not. The wise virgins had the opportunity to obtain oil, and did so. The foolish virgins had plenty of opportunity to procure oil, but did not.
It is possible to be in close contact with Christ, and with Christians, and yet not be saved. I am reminded of a similar passage in the Gospel of Luke:
Luke 13:23 Someone asked him, "Lord, will only a few be saved?" So he said to them, 24 "Exert every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. 25 Once the head of the house gets up and shuts the door, then you will stand outside and start to knock on the door and beg him,
‘Lord, let us in!’ But he will answer you, ‘I don’t know where you come from.’ 26 Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 But he will reply,
‘I don’t know where you come from! Go away from me, all you evildoers!’ 28 There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves thrown out. 29 Then people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and take their places at the banquet table in the kingdom of God. 30 But indeed, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last."
Jesus is warning us in this parable that there will be a number of people who look like Christians, who associate with Christians, and who even think they are Christians, yet they are trusting in works for salvation and will be shocked to learn that they are not saved at the return of our Lord. What a sobering thought!
OSAS is a mockery and attack on the cornerstone of salvation, faith unto death.
"Eternal security" of the believer or "preservation of the saints" is not a mockery or an attack on the cornerstone of salvation. Psalm 37:28 - For the Lord loves justice, And
does not forsake His saints; They are
preserved forever, But the descendants of the wicked shall be cut off. Jude 1:1 - Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, To those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and
preserved in Jesus Christ.
Salvation "obtained" and "maintained" by works is a mockery and attack on the cornerstone of salvation.