There are many different religious groups today that teach a doctrine called “the perseverance of the saints”; this teaching is commonly labeled as “once saved, always saved.” As we begin to think about what the Bible says about this topic, I want to show you a quote, from a website entitled allaboutGod.com, that articulates what “once saved, always saved” is all about:
The Bible teaches “once saved, always saved” — that we can be saved once and for all only through a repentant, saving faith in Jesus Christ. Once a person has accepted Christ as Savior, they may wonder if it is possible to lose that salvation. What if they commit a sin? What if they commit a lot of sins? What if they do something very, very wrong? Is it possible to be saved, and then lose that salvation? Fortunately, the answer is a resounding “no.” Once a person has accepted Jesus Christ as Savior, he/she is forever saved.
Thinking about the quote that was just cited, here is the question that we are concerned with: what does the Bible have to say about the teaching of “once saved, always saved”?
The Bible teaches that a Christian can fall away from God and once again be lost. Please consider the following passages. “Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God” (Hebrews 3:12). “Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it” (Hebrews 4:1). “For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt” (Hebrews 6:4-6). “For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. What the true proverb says has happened to them: ‘The dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire’” (2 Peter 2:20-22). “You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace” (Galatians 5:4).
Once saved, always saved is not what the Bible teaches. Christians are saved by the gospel of Jesus Christ conditionally. After becoming a Christian in the way that the Bible says, if you live the life that God wants you to live and remain faithful to Him, your salvation will be eternally secure. If not, there is a possibility that you are choosing to forfeit your salvation. We are saved by the gospel if we obey God’s word (1 Corinthians 15:1-2). We are cleansed by the blood of Jesus if we walk in the light (1 John 1:7). We will receive the crown of life if we are faithful to death (Revelation 2:10). We must think about the direction of our lives. We must ask ourselves, “Is my life going in the direction of God, or is my life going in the direction of Satan and the world?”
-Tyler Alverson
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