We as believers in Jesus Christ can know that we believe, and are secure in our savior. We also know that we are not perfect. We still make mistakes, and sin. "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us" (1 John 1:8). Sin is not the problem for believers. As soon as John tells his fellow disciples that all of us have some sin in our lives, he immediately gives the perfect solution in the very next verse. "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). John had pointed out the obvious, that even though we believe in Jesus, even though we love him, we are not perfect, and we sin. But John also points out that through faith in Christ, confession to God with request to be forgiven brings
This explanation by Jesus should be a sincere warning to individuals, or families who have wayward sons, daughters, or grandchildren, who at one time in their life accepted Jesus as their savior. Maybe they were also baptized, and read the Bible, and for a while seemed to be
One of the examples of the "falling away" of a believer is given by Jesus when he explains the parable of the sower. "The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away" (Matthew 13:20, 21). The reference Jesus is making here, is a person who hears the gospel, the good news of eternal life through belief and obedience to Jesus Christ, they understand it, they believe it, and accept it in faith for themselves. But in time, they find they have opposition. Other acquaintances of theirs might laugh at them, or worse. This is possible for new believers of any age, but the very young might be the more vulnerable. Family and Christian friends should be very supportive of new believers. We should be encouraging them in their faith. The possibility of falling away from
"Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position" (2 Peter 3:17).
Jacob Arminius taught that a Christian could lose their salvation by leaving Christ, which is a loss of the promise of heaven, the salvation brought through faith.
John Calvin is known for his statement "A Christian can never lose their salvation". However, most Christians do not seem to know what he meant by that statement. If a Christian (meaning someone who has made a confession of Jesus as their savior, has been baptized, and lived a life honoring the Lord), ever leaves Jesus, for a life of godlessness, John Calvin says that person is lost, unsaved, and headed for the fires of Hell. John Calvin stresses that such a person does not lose their salvation, but that they never had salvation. To be true Christian, John Calvin insists that the person must persevere and be faithful to Jesus Christ until the end. If they ever fall away, then they never were a true Christian. So actually, John Calvin, and Jacob Arminius are in agreement about the terrible end of a person that we would call a Christian, if they should ever leave Christ.
It is obvious in scripture that believers in Christ can, and do fall away from him, and from their faith. "The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons" (1 Timothy 4:1). This is a scripture stating that believers in Christ, can and will abandon their faith, and believe lies.
"If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them" (2 Peter 2:21).
In this verse, Peter is in agreement with Jacob Arminius, who believed that a Christian could lose their salvation, and in agreement with John Calvin who taught that if a person was not faithful to the end, they were lost.
People sometimes refer to their "spirit". If they are referring to the "life" that the Lord God has breathed into them, then that is an acceptable term. It would be a mistake to think that we have a body, a soul, and a spirit. We don't have all three. We, like Adam, have only two parts. "Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being" (Genesis 2:7). Some versions of the Bible say "a living soul". Either way, Adam had only two parts, he had a physical body made of the chemical compounds that are indigenous to the earth, and he had life, that was God breathed into his nostrils. This is the one thing that modern science cannot do. They cannot give life. We are the same as Adam, we only have two parts, a physical body, and life. That life can be referred to as our soul, or as our spirit. We sometimes speak of a person's spirit, meaning their attitude. They might have the spirit of adventure.
"For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart" (Hebrews 4:12). Since we only have two parts, body and soul, this scripture must be speaking of a person's soul, being separated from the Holy Spirit of God. Some believe that could never happen, but I
It seems that many Christians believe that as soon as we believe in Jesus Christ, and receive the Holy Spirit, that we receive eternal life at that time. However, Paul makes it clear that we do not receive eternal life until the rapture, which is the first resurrection, 1 Corinthians 15:50-58.
Many times throughout the Bible, the term sleep has been used for death. "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt" (Daniel 12:2). And also this: "Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out - those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned" (John 5:28, 29) The term "sleep" is used again when Jesus referred to the death of Lazarus: "After he had said all this, he went on to tell them, 'Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.'
His disciples replied, 'Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better.' Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep.
Let me ask a question that I don't know the answer to. Is Charles Templeton saved? In the late 1940s, two evangelists left for Europe to start a great Christian crusade. The leader of the two was Charles Templeton, the second man was Billy Graham. Shortly after they started preaching, Charles Templeton left, explaining that he had lost his faith in God. Some years later, he wrote the book Farewell to God: My Reasons for Rejecting the Christian Faith. Where is he now? I'm sure I don't know, it is not for me to say, but my opinion is that his faith in God was genuine. For years he had been a faithful Christian, whose faithful service placed him in this elevated position of being a world evangelist. He was a brilliant graduate of Princeton University who had amazing debating skills be-cause of his impressive knowledge of the Bible. Over time, he found that he could not accept the idea of an almighty and loving God who would allow the existence of an eternal Hell, he doubted the Genesis account of creation. By the time he wrote his book, he had experienced a serious decline of his mental faculties. His later decision to say farewell to God, was a choice that each of us have the freedom to make for ourselves. It is the grace of God that assures us of our eternal security through our continuing faith in Jesus Christ. Where is Charles Templeton today? It is sufficient for us that our Almighty God knows.
Starting in 1975, I had four dreams. Although I dream a great deal, these four dreams have always been special, and they have always been connected for me.
Those four dreams are with me today, but they did not change my life at that time. Some time, months later on, my sister told me she had just bought a Bible that was in plain English and easy to understand. I had always thought the King James Version was too old-style in its language to be understood. I don't feel that way today. Then, a few weeks later, a radio station I had been listening to in my car, had stopped playing Classical music, and had gone to a gospel program where they were talking about Job. Possibly the oldest book in the Bible. About 3000 years old. And Job said that God has spread out the north over empty space, and hung the earth on nothing. That irritated me. I changed the station. But for days and weeks, I could not get that idea out of my head. It was my opinion that early civilizations did not know this. I thought they believed the earth was held up by an elephant, or by Atlas, or Roman pillars or something. For some reason, I felt offended that they would say something about the Bible that was not true. They had done it to me. They had planted a seed that would not stop growing. I had to know. Then, remembering my sister's comment about a Bible in plain English, called the Living Bible, I went to the store and bought one. Being a very poor reader, I could not find it by scanning through. I decided that no matter how long it took, I was going to start reading the book of Job at chapter
Some time later, I recalled that a friend in high school had told me that no one could understand the book of Revelation. This was because it was so mystical. The thought occurred to me, now I have a Bible in plain English. I think I'll read it, since it would obviously be understandable, in plain English. I read about half of it, then set the Bible down. It wasn't what I expected, and I did not want to read any more of it. I went to bed.
The next night, brave or not, I had to know what the rest of it said. Astounding. It was awesome. It was frightening. It was convicting. I was in the midst of an eternal battle, God was going to win, and I was on the wrong side.
For the first time in 25 years, I knelt on the floor to pray. "Now I lay me down to sleep. . ." That was all I knew. When I finished, I said Lord, that’s not going to cut it. We need to talk. I poured out my soul, my sin, my failures, to the depth of my heart. That started my prayer life, and started the practice of reading the Bible for hours every morning and every evening without fail. I started going to
But now back to the reason I told you all this. Had I lost my salvation? Was I on the verge of losing my salvation? Many will say I had not lost it. I believe that the Lord gave me those four dreams, and the radio aggravation about Job, and my sister's information about a new Bible, and the curiosity about Revelation, all for the purpose of calling me back from my bad choices, which may have eternally separated me from the love of God. Since I don't know the absolute answer on this subject, I will just give you my opinion. Don't preach "once saved, always saved" because it might give confidence to the apostate. Apostasy is when a believer in Jesus Christ, willfully and continually denies their faith in Christ. It might give confidence to some who might have the opinion, I prayed the prayer when I was young, and therefore I am eternally secure. Or I was baptized, or christened, or confirmed, or I think I believed when I was younger, or, I know about God, therefore I'm sure he loves me. This could be the loss of everything. Salvation is not through some superficial action taken because of the coercion of others, but through living faith in Jesus Christ. Obeying is believing, disobeying is unbelief. But if salvation is by the grace of God to all who believe in Jesus, what happens if a person loses their faith. Do they also lose their salvation? Can faith in Jesus be lost? Is that possible? I believe is possible by drifting away, and I give my own life as an example. I believe I was at the crossroads and God in his mercy was getting my attention, and
When Satan was created, he was a powerful servant of God. When he rebelled against God, he was cast out of heaven, and the lake of fire was created for him. If Satan, who truly knew God, can choose to leave God, then I suspect we can make the same choice. Still, always remember. We do not decide who is righteous in their faith, God does. Whew! That's a relief.
The doctrine of the security of the believer has never saved anyone. It is not a doctrine of salvation. What it has done, when it has been expanded to be "once saved, always saved" has given confidence to those who are in need of repentance. We do not have the ability to know when someone else is saved. We only have the outside evidence. Only God knows the heart, and it is God who decides their disposition.