INTRODUCTION
A. Over the past few weeks, we’ve been looking at some Bible passages that support the doctrine of eternal security, which has given rise to the phrase “once saved, always saved” — the idea being that once a person has been saved, he/she cannot lose that salvation.
B. Last week, we looked at two posts from gotquestions.org which gave answers that support that belief in “once saved, always saved”.
C. In this session, I want to continue our look at the topic by giving some answers to frequently asked questions. We’ll begin by reviewing the two posts we looked last week …
Eternal security – is it biblical?
When people come to know Christ as their Savior, they are brought into a relationship with God that guarantees their eternal security. Jude 24 declares, “To Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy.” God’s power is able to keep the believer from falling. It is up to Him, not us, to present us before His glorious presence. Our eternal security is a result of God keeping us, not us maintaining our own salvation.
The Lord Jesus Christ proclaimed, “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand” (John 10:28-29b). Both Jesus and the Father have us firmly grasped in their hand. Who could possibly separate us from the grip of both the Father and the Son?
Ephesians 4:30 tells us that believers are “sealed for the day of redemption.” If believers did not have eternal security, the sealing could not truly be unto the day of redemption, but only to the day of sinning, apostasy, or disbelief. John 3:15-16 tells us that whoever believes in Jesus Christ will “have eternal life.” If a person were to be promised eternal life, but then have it taken away, it was never “eternal” to begin with. If eternal security is not true, the promises of eternal life in the Bible would be in error.
The most powerful argument for eternal security is Romans 8:38-39, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Our eternal security is based on God’s love for those whom He has redeemed. Our eternal security is purchased by Christ, promised by the Father, and sealed by the Holy Spirit.
Is “once saved, always saved” biblical?
Once a person is saved, are they always saved? Yes, when people come to know Christ as their Savior, they are brought into a relationship with God that guarantees their salvation as eternally secure. To be clear, salvation is more than saying a prayer or “making a decision” for Christ; salvation is a sovereign act of God whereby an unregenerate sinner is washed, renewed, and born again by the Holy Spirit (John 3:3; Titus 3:5). When salvation occurs, God gives the forgiven sinner a new heart and puts a new spirit within him (Ezekiel 36:26). The Spirit will cause the saved person to walk in obedience to God’s Word (Ezekiel 36:26–27; James 2:26). Numerous passages of Scripture declare the fact that, as an act of God, salvation is secure:
(b) Paul asks two crucial questions in Romans 8:33-34 “Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died — more than that, who was raised to life — is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.” Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? No one will, because Christ is our advocate. Who will condemn us? No one will, because Christ, the One who died for us, is the one who condemns. We have both the advocate and judge as our Savior.
(c) Believers are born again (regenerated) when they believe (John 3:3; Titus 3:5). For a Christian to lose his salvation, he would have to be un-regenerated. The Bible gives no evidence that the new birth can be taken away.
(d) The Holy Spirit indwells all believers (John 14:17; Romans 8:9) and baptizes all believers into the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13). For a believer to become unsaved, he would have to be “un-indwelt” and detached from the Body of Christ.
(e) John 3:15 states that whoever believes in Jesus Christ will “have eternal life.” If you believe in Christ today and have eternal life, but lose it tomorrow, then it was never “eternal” at all. Hence, if you lose your salvation, the promises of eternal life in the Bible would be in error.
(f) In a conclusive argument, Scripture says, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38–39). Remember: the same God who saved you is the same God who will keep you. Once we are saved, we are always saved. Our salvation is most definitely eternally secure!
Now that we’ve reviewed the answer to those two questions, let’s look at another question and answer …
Can a Christian lose salvation?
First, the term Christian must be defined. A “Christian” is not a person who has said a prayer or walked down an aisle or been raised in a Christian family. While each of these things can be a part of the Christian experience, they are not what makes a Christian. A Christian is a person who has fully trusted in Jesus Christ as the only Savior and therefore possesses the Holy Spirit (John 3:16; Acts 16:31; Ephesians 2:8–9).
So, with this definition in mind, can a Christian lose salvation? It’s a crucially important question. Perhaps the best way to answer it is to examine what the Bible says occurs at salvation and to study what losing salvation would entail:
A Christian is a new creation. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17, NKJV). A Christian is not simply an “improved” version of a person; a Christian is an entirely new creature. He is “in Christ.” For a Christian to lose salvation, the new creation would have to be destroyed.
A Christian is redeemed. “For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect” (1 Peter 1:18–19). The word redeemed refers to a purchase being made, a price being paid. We were purchased at the cost of Christ’s death. For a Christian to lose salvation, God Himself would have to revoke His purchase of the individual for whom He paid with the precious blood of Christ (but that’s not possible — Romans 11:29).
A Christian is justified. “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). To justify is to declare righteous. All those who receive Jesus as Savior are “declared righteous” by God. For a Christian to lose salvation, God would have to go back on His Word and “un-declare” what He had previously declared. Those absolved of guilt would have to be tried again and found guilty. God would have to reverse the sentence handed down from the divine bench.
A Christian is promised eternal life. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Eternal life is the promise of spending forever in heaven with God. God promises that if you believe, you will have eternal life. For a Christian to lose salvation, eternal life would have to be redefined. The Christian is promised to live forever. Does eternal not mean “eternal”?
A Christian is marked by God and sealed by the Spirit. “You also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession — to the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:13–14). At the moment of faith, the new Christian is marked and sealed with the Spirit, who was promised to act as a deposit to guarantee the heavenly inheritance. The end result is that God’s glory is praised. For a Christian to lose salvation, God would have to erase the mark, withdraw the Spirit, cancel the deposit, break His promise, revoke the guarantee, keep the inheritance, forego the praise, and lessen His glory.
A Christian is guaranteed glorification. “Those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified” (Romans 8:30). According to Romans 5:1, justification is ours at the moment of faith. According to Romans 8:30, glorification comes with justification. All those whom God justifies are promised to be glorified. This promise will be fulfilled when Christians receive their perfect resurrection bodies in heaven. If a Christian can lose salvation, then Romans 8:30 is in error, because God could not guarantee glorification for all those whom He predestines, calls, and justifies.
A Christian cannot lose salvation. Most, if not all, of what the Bible says happens to us when we receive Christ would be invalidated if salvation could be lost. Salvation is the gift of God, and God’s gifts are “irrevocable” (Romans 11:29). A Christian cannot be un-newly created. The redeemed cannot be unpurchased. Eternal life cannot be temporary. God cannot renege on His Word. Scripture says that God cannot lie (Titus 1:2).
Two common objections to the belief that a Christian cannot lose salvation concern these experiential issues:
The problem with these objections is the assumption that everyone who calls himself a “Christian” has actually been born again. The Bible declares that a true Christian will not live a state of continual, unrepentant sin (1 John 3:6). The Bible also says that anyone who departs the faith is demonstrating that he was never truly a Christian (1 John 2:19). He may have been religious, he may have put on a good show, but he was never born again by the power of God. “By their fruit you will recognize them” (Matthew 7:16). The redeemed of God belong “to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God” (Romans 7:4).
Nothing can separate a child of God from the Father’s love (Romans 8:38–39). Nothing can remove a Christian from God’s hand (John 10:28–29). God guarantees eternal life and maintains the salvation He has given us. The Good Shepherd searches for the lost sheep, and, “when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home” (Luke 15:5–6). The lamb is found, and the Shepherd gladly bears the burden; our Lord takes full responsibility for bringing the lost one safely home.
Jude 1:24–25 further emphasizes the goodness and faithfulness of our Savior: “To him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy — to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.”
Bonus article … from a related website (gotquestions.blog) …
Once saved always saved?
For some, once saved always saved is one of the most powerful and meaningful doctrines of the Christian faith. For others, once saved always saved is a damnable heresy, straight from the lips of Satan. Why is there such a great divide?
For starters, there are biblical texts that seem to argue for once saved always saved (John 10:28-29; Romans 8:38-39; Ephesians 4:3), and there are biblical texts that seem to argue against once saved always saved (Galatians 5:4; Hebrews 6:4-6; 10:26). So, biblical interpretation is definitely part of the debate. Secondly, there are the theological systems of Calvinism and Arminianism, with “perseverance of the saints” being a core truth within Calvinism and “conditional security” being a core belief of most Arminians. Firmly held biblical and theological beliefs are a major part of the once saved always saved debate.
In my experience answering questions for GotQuestions.org, though, the biblical and theological arguments are not the reason once saved always saved is usually opposed. It always seems to come back to the issue of: “If once saved always saved is true, we can live our lives any way we want to.” So, in reality, most who reject once saved always saved do so for a practical reason: how can we teach people to stop sinning if they remain saved no matter what they do? According to this line of thought, hellfire and eternal damnation are the only threats powerful enough to get people to stop sinning.
To answer the question, “If once saved always saved is true, does that mean we can live our lives any way we want to?”, my answer is a qualified “yes.” The sacrifice of Jesus Christ is so absolutely perfect and sufficient that it did indeed pay the penalty for all of our sins. Christ’s death paid for the sins we committed before we received Him as Savior, and Christ’s death equally pays for the sins we commit after we receive Him as Savior.
However, I would also say that a person who has truly received Jesus Christ as Savior will not live his/her life any way he/she wants. When you understand the depravity of your sin, the eternal penalty you have earned, and the tremendous price Jesus paid, it is a transformational experience. When you receive salvation, you are a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17), all things have become new. Once saved always saved is not a license to sin. Rather, it is an understanding that we could not earn salvation on our own merit, and therefore, nothing we can do will cause us to lose the salvation God has purchased with the blood of Christ.
Once saved always saved is the realization that God’s plan of salvation is absolutely perfect. A person whom God has chosen for salvation cannot be unsaved, unredeemed, unreconciled, unforgiven, lost, forsaken, abandoned, or cast out. Good works and obedience cannot earn salvation, and neither can a lack thereof result in the loss of salvation. The biblical truth of once saved always saved puts the focus of salvation where it should be — on the holy and omnipotent God who finishes what He starts (Jude 24).
S. Michael Houdmann
From the Milk To Meat Bible study by TSF …
Your Journey Sins Are Disciplined, But Not By Loss Of Salvation
Your eternal position in God’s family or your eternal security “in Christ” is based upon the fact that your unrepentant journey sins as a child of God are disciplined by the Father, but He never puts you out of the family.
The New Testament gives several illustrations of believers who committed journey sins and how the Father disciplined them when they would not repent, confess, and forsake those sinful acts, but they did not lose their salvation. We will look at only two of those examples so that you can see that the New Testament clearly confirms that they did not lose their salvation.
1 Corinthians 5:1‐5
1 It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles — that a man has his fatherʹs wife! 2 And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you. 3 For I indeed, as absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged (as though I were present) him who has so done this deed. 4 In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 5 deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
In this first example, we have a believer who was sexually involved with his father’s wife! Paul says in verse 1 that even the pagans “in Adam” in Corinth would not stoop that low. While Paul was physically absent from them, he condemned the sin of this believer, and told the local Church and its leaders that they were to exercise Church discipline by delivering him over to Satan for the destruction of his physical life or flesh, but not his spirit. Notice that the very same verse says that his spirit will be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus! This believer’s gross journey sin was disciplined by excommunication and (possible) loss of his physical life, but he did not suffer spiritual death and loss of his salvation! He was saved and secure until the day of the Lord Jesus.
1 Corinthians 11:29‐32
29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lordʹs body. 30 For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. 31 For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world.
In this second illustration, some of the believers in the same Corinthian church were partaking of the Lordʹs Supper in an unworthy manner. They were not approaching and participating in the Lord’s Supper with a right spirit or with godly behavior. Their disobedience or journey sin brought Godʹs discipline of weakness, sickness, and in some cases even premature death. But notice clearly that at no point did Paul threaten them with the loss of their salvation. Gross sins in a believerʹs life are dealt with through varying degrees of God’s discipline, but never with loss of salvation.
Did you notice in 1 Corinthians 11:32 that they were chastened or disciplined by the Lord so that they would not be condemned with the world or those still “in Adam”? The Lord disciplines our unrepentant journey sins so that we may not be condemned with the world.
As a believer with a sin nature and living in this present fallen world, you will commit journey sins. The Father will convict you and urge you through the indwelling Holy Spirit to repent and confess that sin to Him for forgiveness and restoration to fellowship. If you refuse, the Father begins to apply whatever amount of discipline is necessary to break your stubbornness, but He will never remove your salvation or position “in Christ.” When you commit journey sins and will not repent, you force the Father to discipline you as His child. Our Biblical illustrations clearly teach that in extreme cases the Father disciplines his child through physical weakness, sickness, and even premature physical death. But in both of our examples, the believer did not lose their salvation!
Discipline in your life during your journey proves that you are in God’s family because He only disciplines His children. If you continue in your sin after His repeated convictions and reprimands, your Father will reluctantly but firmly begin to discipline you. He values your relationship so much that He will not allow your sin to continue to break your fellowship with Him. His loving but firm discipline will be as severe as is necessary to break your stubbornness and bring you to repentance, confession and restoration. Unrepentant disobedience can bring you weakness, sickness, and premature physical death, but God’s discipline never includes loss of your eternal salvation!
QUESTIONS
1. Will you sin as a believer during your journey?
2. Why will you sin?
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- You will sin as a believer because of your sin nature, the world, and Satan.
3. What is your remedy when you sin?
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- God’s forgiveness
- … appropriated by confession, repentance and forsaking
4. When will your sin bring your Father’s discipline?
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- It can be sooner … or later … I believe it depends on God and His purpose.
5. How can and will God discipline in extreme cases?
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- Your unrepentant journey sins will bring your Father’s loving discipline.
- Your extreme stubbornness can bring weakness, sickness and physical death.
6. Why does your Father discipline you?
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- Your Father disciplines to restore you to fellowship.
7. What should you do when disciplined?
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- Try to make the connection between the discipline and the sin.
- Repent ASAP.
8. What does discipline prove?
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- Your Father’s discipline proves that you are one of His children.
9. What does God’s disciplines never include?
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- Your Father’s disciplines never involve loss of your salvation.
- Your journey sin severs fellowship not relationship with your Father.