Misbelief

"WELL, I can't believe a man is saved forever," said a friend to us, recently.
"How so?”
"Because there is my old companion lying upon his dying bed, cursing God, and he said he was once turned, and now that he does not believe a word about it.”
“But was he ever really turned to God, think you?
"Oh, that I can't say," was the reply.
“So then, because a poor sinner, who once heard the truth of God, lies blaspheming, you say, you don't believe God's good word as the eternal salvation of His people." On plumbing into our friend's soul, we found the bottom of his unbelief was this, he could not say for himself he was saved forever. And because of this unbelief in his heart, he had brought up a poor deceiver's lying words to support himself in his own lack of faith in the gracious truth of God.
This is a not unusual way of reasoning, dear reader.