For a PDF file of this article, see the very end.
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BEFORE WE BEGIN:
Most of the subjects in this ‘Did God Really Say?’ section have to do with lies and deception. This one does not! This is about error, not evil! I want to emphasize this, because some of the greatest preachers in this country would disagree with me on this point. They would say: ‘Once saved, always saved; a Christian can never become un-saved.’ (They would agree with me on every other important point on this website.)
As you read through this article, you will notice three things: (1) Scripture is ‘abundantly’ provided to support all that is being said. (2) A Christian has a relationship with God as long as a Christian wants a relationship with God. (3) This is intended to keep Christians from walking away from God, not to cause doubt about eternal security. Eternal security is readily available to any Christian who desires it. (As Charles Spurgeon put it, “I am so sure of my salvation, that I could grab on to a corn stalk and swing out over the fires of Hell, look into the face of the devil and sing, ‘Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!’) Maintaining this security and enjoying the peace which comes from it, requires knowing and doing what God says in the Bible.
I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. 1 John 5:13
ETERNAL SECURITY – GOD’S LOVE AND GOD’S SOVEREIGNTY:
Before examining the Scriptures regarding this subject, consider two things. First: Would an Omniscient, Omnipresent, Almighty, Sovereign Father—who loves His children enough to die for them, to obtain a loving eternal relationship with them—allow this relationship to end against their will?
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
Second: Would this Father, on the other hand, force them to stay in this relationship—turn them into puppets or robots, or imprison them somehow—if they didn’t want to remain His children?
HOW ARE WE SAVED?
When God offers us salvation—when He has the gospel delivered to us and we are invited to become His children—all we have to offer in return is – a repentant and humble “Yes!” We have nothing else! We are sinful people who have broken God’s laws—lived in rebellion against His authority—and are, therefore, guilty and deserving of eternal punishment in Hell. There is no amount of ‘good’ that we can do to un-break the laws we have broken. We are, therefore, totally dependent upon His mercy and grace to be forgiven and to become His children.
All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; Isaiah 64:6
When He calls us—if it is our desire to make Him our Father, Lord and Savior—we tell Him, “Yes!” (Yes, I repent of being my own god and accept you as my authority, and I trust ‘fully in’ and ‘only in’ Your death on the cross as the payment for my sins.) At this point we are saved—forgiven for past, present and future sin—by the grace of God, through putting faith in what He has done for us on the cross.
. . . he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. Titus 3:5
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. Ephesians 2:8-9
Before continuing, it is important to understand that, once we get saved, this doesn’t mean that we will never sin again. (Evidently—speaking from personal experience—this won’t happen until we are in Heaven). It does, however, mean that we have a new life, a new Lord, an ever present Helper—Who is opposed to sin and gives us the ability to resist it—and are headed in a new direction. Christians should, therefore, sin less and less over time.
If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever–the Spirit of truth. John 14:15-17
You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. Romans 8:9
CAN A CHRISTIAN BECOME ‘UN-SAVED?’
Now, since it is ‘by grace through faith that we have been saved’—when we said ‘Yes,’ to God’s offer of salvation—then it is ‘by grace through faith that we stay saved’. A Christian is not saved by faith, and then preserved by works (by obeying God and doing good things).
You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort? Have you suffered so much for nothing–if it really was for nothing? Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard? Galatians 3:1-5
Good works will be evident in a Christian’s life, but they are the result of salvation; not the cause of it, and not what sustains it.
What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. James 2:14-18
A Christian cannot, therefore, lose their salvation by committing a sin.
God has forgiven His children for sins as horrible as adultery and murder [See the story of King David – 2 Samuel, Chapters 11 and 12] and for fearfully claiming that they don’t even know Him [See the story of Peter’s denial – Matthew 26:69‑75]
In addition to this aspect of our security, we also have God’s promise that neither Satan—nor anyone else—can remove one of us from His family.
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. John 10:28
There is, however, a very grave danger in non‑repentance—in not being sorry for our sins and not fighting against temptation (with the power that God provides).
Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, 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
Life is a battle! Christians, like everyone else, will face temptation throughout our lives, but Christians have the ability to win the war. If a Christian, though, decides to quit fighting—he willingly walks deeper and deeper into some area of sin—he may ultimately decide that he no longer wants Jesus to be his Lord. Sin has the very horrible effect of turning our hearts away from God—away from loving, trusting, and obeying Him.
See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first. Hebrews 3:12-14
But this is the only way it could ever happen—the only way a person could ever become ‘un‑saved.’ He or she would have to willingly do it. Think of it this way: No one begins a relationship with God ‘against their will’ and no one ends a relationship with God ‘against their will.’ A Christian has a secure relationship with God as long as they want it.
So, for a person’s relationship with God to end, they would have to:
Deliberately keep on sinning,
If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” and again, “The Lord will judge his people.” It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Hebrews 10:26-31
Wander from the truth,
My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins. James 5:19
Wander from the faith,
Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, which some have professed and in so doing have wandered from the faith. 1 Timothy 6:20-21
Abandon the faith,
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. 1TI 4:1
Let go of the gospel message,
By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. 1 Corinthians 15:2
Disown Him.
Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us; if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself. Keep reminding them of these things. 2 Timothy 2:11‑14
CAN A CHRISTIAN GET ‘RE-SAVED?’
In case anyone takes this danger lightly, (we have forgiveness and freedom in Christ, so we can sin without consequence; God’s grace will cover it), God offers a very frightening warning:
You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. . . . I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. Galatians 5:13 & 21
If a Christian ever decides to go down this path and ultimately disowns God, that ‘ex-Christian’ will spend eternity burning in Hell.
Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. John 15:4‑6
God will not call them a second time.
It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace. Hebrews 6:4‑6
CHRISTIANS WHO WILL END THEIR RELATIONSHIPS WITH GOD.
Frighteningly, the Bible not only teaches that Christians can disown God, it speaks of some who will—and who will spend eternity burning in Hell. These are false teachers (formerly Christians), who—for reasons of greed—once again turn against God, exploit the church and delight in their sin.
But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them–bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping. . . . . . . . Bold and arrogant, these men are not afraid to slander celestial beings; yet even angels, although they are stronger and more powerful, do not bring slanderous accusations against such beings in the presence of the Lord. But these men blaspheme in matters they do not understand. They are like brute beasts, creatures of instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like beasts they too will perish. They will be paid back with harm for the harm they have done. Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their pleasures while they feast with you. With eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning; they seduce the unstable; they are experts in greed–an accursed brood! They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Beor, who loved the wages of wickedness. But he was rebuked for his wrongdoing by a donkey–a beast without speech–who spoke with a man’s voice and restrained the prophet’s madness. These men are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them. For they mouth empty, boastful words and, by appealing to the lustful desires of sinful human nature, they entice people who are just escaping from those who live in error. They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity–for a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him. 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. Of them the proverbs are true: “A dog returns to its vomit,” and, “A sow that is washed goes back to her wallowing in the mud.” 2 Peter 2:1-3, 10-22
In addition to ‘greed,’ there are, of course, other sinful enticements which can turn Christians away from God – such as ‘idolatry’ (making ourselves or anything else more important than God), ‘indulging our sinful natures,’
You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. . . . The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. Galatians 5:13 & 19-21
‘pride’
If anyone sets his heart on being an overseer . . . He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil. 1 Timothy 3:1,6
a ‘desire for power over other people,’
I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. Acts 20:29-30
etcetera.
ETERNAL SECURITY – HOW TO KEEP IT:
Remember, as stated at the beginning of this article, ‘eternal security’ is readily available—totally sustainable—for any Christian who desires it. Here are the steps that Christians need to take in order to sustain it – to ensure that we never make the eternally damning and irrevocable choice—through decision or lifestyle—of kicking God back out of our lives.
Step 1 – Ceaselessly contemplate God’s love: God created mankind in His image—so we could understand and relate to Him. He made the earth beautiful, bountiful, pleasing, and (before Adam sinned) perfect, and gave us the senses to enjoy it. He created the family so we could understand the love of a Father for his children. (Sadly, mankind’s sin distorts and destroys this model). He loved us first and gave us ‘free-wills,’ so loving Him ‘back’ could be a choice. He then stepped into His creation (becoming a man)—to be ridiculed, scorned, spit upon, slapped, punched in the face, to have His beard ripped out, to be pierced with thorns, beat with a staff, shredded with a whip, and to be physically nailed to a cross—where He hung until He died—to take the justly-required punishment for all that we have done wrong. He did this so He could forgive us (and still remain ‘just’), make us His children and love and care for us for all of eternity in Paradise. (He also did this for our loved ones.)
For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. 1 Peter 3:18
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! 1 John 3:1
Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.” Luke 23:43
Step 2 – Think logically, thus, obey: If God did all this; created the earth–with all of its’ resources and all of its’ beauty—and gave mankind the senses to enjoy it; If He created people with the desire to be loved, happy and fulfilled, and put eternity in our hearts; If His greatest commands are to love Him and each-other; If His plan is to make us His children and to love and care for us forever in Heaven; And if He suffered the most horrible death imaginable to make this possible; Do we really think that He is currently ruling over us – seeking to keep us from having fun. (How stupid?) God’s love is immeasurable, His laws—which are fulfilled through love—are for our benefit, and His lordship is a magnificent blessing!
Jesus replied: “`Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: `Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:37-40
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God–this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is–his good, pleasing and perfect will. Romans 12:1-2
Think also: What our world would be like if everybody obeyed God. If we worshiped Him above all else and could never lose our reason for living, how would that affect us? How many suicides would there be? If we honored the Sabbath—reserved a day to rest and worship God (to rejuvenate us and to remind us of what is important and what is not)—how much less stress would we be under? How many fewer heart attacks would there be? If we honored our parents, how much more love would there be in families? How much heartache would be prevented by children following rules and obeying authority? How much better would we know how to honor our Heavenly Father? If we adhered to God’s sexual standards, how many people would be dying from AIDS or have any of the twenty-plus sexually transmitted diseases ravaging people today? How many unmarried pregnancies would there be? How many abortions? How many people would be devastated by incest or rape? If nobody ever got drunk or high, how many addicts would there be? How many people would be killed or injured because of people driving under the influence? How many people would get drunk and abuse their loved ones? If nobody got divorced, how many people would be suffering because of it and how many children’s worlds would be shattered? If people were honest (they didn’t steal, cheat, lie, or deceive), how many human and material resources could be freed-up for the betterment of our world, rather than being spent monitoring, guarding, and fighting against each other? If we truly loved God and loved people, how much crime would there be? How many conflicts? How many wars?
Step 3 – Draw near to God and get to know Him better: The better you know God and the greater you understand Him, the more you will love Him. So, immerse yourself in the things of God: Read the Bible, listen to Christian radio, spend time on this website, join a God honoring, Bible believing church, and get involved in some good Christian fellowship. (F.Y.I. – There are no perfect churches or perfect Christians this side of Heaven; and this includes you.)
Come near to God and he will come near to you. James 4:8
Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Psalm 34:8
Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another–and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10:25
Step 4 – Ask God for help with all of this – continually: Ask God to help you to desire Him more, to grow ever deeper in love with Him, and to live each moment ‘in light of eternity’ (to continually make the most important thing in life—your relationship with the One who gave you life—the most important thing in your life). And ask Him for the wisdom and the strength to turn away from sin, and away from anything and everything which would turn you away from Him (lifestyle, friends, family, certain schools or careers, etc.).
What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Matthew 16:26
If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault,and it will be given to him. James 1:5
I can do everything through him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:13
Christians need to understand that we are in a war! Our world is under the control of our enemy (to the degree to that God allows), and it’s multitude of religions and philosophies—which conflict with the Bible—are not simply alternative views. They are cleverly designed demonic attacks—channeled through people—which are intended to turn people away from God.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Ephesians 6:12
We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. 1 John 5:19
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. 1 Timothy 4:1-2
(F.Y.I. Very often, the people whom the enemy are using, know exactly what they are doing. Look at the following two excerpts from articles written by atheists; one about the Theory of Evolution and one about ‘public education’ in the United States.)
Re: Public Education.
I am convinced that the battle for humankind’s future must be waged and won in the public school classroom by teachers who correctly perceive their role as the proselytizers of a new faith: a religion of humanity that recognizes and respects the spark of what theologians call divinity in every human being. These teachers must embody the same selfless dedication as the most rabid fundamentalist preachers, for they will be ministers of another sort, utilizing a classroom instead of a pulpit to convey humanist values in whatever subject they teach, regardless of the educational level—preschool daycare, or large state university. The classroom must and will become an arena of conflict between the old and the new—the rotting corpse of Christianity, together with all its adjacent evils and misery, and the new faith of humanism, resplendent with its promise of a world in which the never-realized Christian ideal of “love thy neighbor” will finally be achieved. [J. Dunphy, J.J., A Religion for a New Age, The Humanist, pp. 23, 26, January–February 1983]
Re: The Theory of Evolution.
It becomes clear now that the whole justification of Jesus’ life and death is predicated on the existence of Adam and the forbidden fruit he and Eve ate. Without the original sin, who needs to be redeemed? Without Adam’s fall into a life of constant sin terminated by death, what purpose is there to Christianity? None. . . . Christianity has fought, still fights, and will fight science to the desperate end over evolution, because evolution destroys utterly and finally the very reason Jesus’ earthly life was supposedly made necessary. Destroy Adam and Eve and the original sin, and in the rubble you will find the sorry remains of the son of god. Take away the meaning of his death. If Jesus was not the redeemer who died for our sins, and this is what evolution means, then Christianity is nothing! [ G. Richard Bozarth, American Atheist Magazine, Feb., 1978.]
Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, which some have professed and in so doing have wandered from the faith. 1 Timothy 6:20-21
Step 5 – Be terrified: If you’re currently headed in the wrong direction—if sin is becoming increasingly enjoyable and/or God is becoming decreasingly meaningful—be terrified for you – and for your children. (When God matters little to parents, He often means even less to their children.)
Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Deuteronomy 11:18-19
If you need help with this step—‘being terrified’—download the free book on his website and read the chapter, “What is Hell?” Read it for yourself, and then read it again, substituting your children’s names in place of yours.
“Then he will say to those on His left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.’ Matthew 25:41
And be terrified of self-deception. We cannot expect Jesus to be our Savior—forgiving our disobedience to His lordship—while refusing to live under His lordship.
Not everyone who says to me, `Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Matthew 7:21
Step 6 – Pray this prayer:
While young, I began saying a particular prayer, and still do. Understanding that God does not force His children to obey—and being terrified of my sinful nature—this was/is my prayer:
“My Heavenly Father, I love You so much! I know that you urge us to obey, but, that You do not overpower our wills. It is my will to obey you throughout my life! I ask, therefore, that You move ceaselessly in response to this prayer—for this is my will—and intervene every time I am tempted to sin. Please, do not take Your hand off of me for a minute. Thank You for Your amazing love and for the amazing grace of being my Lord.”
I cannot tell you the number of times or the number of ways that He has graciously answered this prayer. If you would like to see a small percentage of them, read through the section, “God Obvious” on this website.
Step 7 – Go for it! Don’t just get saved, and don’t just stay saved, jump into this relationship with all your heart, soul, strength and mind – and do it for the rest of your life. Live fully for the reason you exist: Receive and return the love of God – now and throughout eternity in Paradise! Do it for you; and do it for your children! You will never be sorry!
PRAYERS FOR OUR LOVED ONES:
I know of Christians, who—because of pain, difficulty and disappointment with God—wanted a separation from Him. I know of others, who—because of pride and the lure of sin—wanted a divorce from Him. They both got what they wanted. People in the first group have returned to Him and are serving mightily in His kingdom. People in the second group now despise Him. If you have a loved one who is somewhere in this mess, pray for them as long as you are both alive. Only God knows for sure.