Can You Lose Your Salvation Not If Its All From God
The Bible makes it clear that you cant lose your salvation because its all from God. We are not saved because of anything good in us. Rather, when we are dead in our transgressions and sins, God causes us to become alive to him. God chooses us to be saved even though we would never choose him.
As Ephesians 2:4-5 puts it:
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christby grace you have been saved
Being chosen in Christ and made alive together with Christ is the first link in the unbreakable chain of salvation. From start to finish, salvation is ALL of God. It starts with him choosing us in Christ to be saved.
Can you lose your salvation? Not if salvation is all from God.
Question: Is A Person Once Saved Always Saved Or Can They Lose Their Salvation
Bible Answers
In reviewing the New Testament, there are eight primary scriptures that a person may use to support the idea of Once Saved Always Saved and over 72 scriptures that support the idea that a Person Can Lose Their Salvation. God is not looking for an excuse to send a person to hell. He sent His son to the cross to save, but if a sinner is cleansed by the blood of Christ and then returns to sinning with no desire to seek repentance, we must seek Godâs Word to learn if that personâs unconfessed sins separated him from Godâs salvation just as much as his original sins separated him from God?
Why is this question important
Most theological differences have minor effect on our Christian live. However, that is not true with the question, can a person lose their salvation. This is probable one of the most important theological question regarding our Christian life.
Why is this question so important? If a person believes Once Saved Always Saved, they have little incentive to live a Godly life. Rather they may feel free to live as the world – why not, they cannot lose their salvation. However, God states, donât you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? . If their belief is correct, Once Saved Always Saved, then there is no harm, they are still saved, but if their belief is wrong and their sins again separate them from God, then they will go to hell because they believed a lie. Letâs see what the Word of God says about always saved or not.
God Said Salvation Was Eternal
14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,15 that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:14-16
30 And those he predestined, he also called those he called, he also justified those he justified, he also glorified. Romans 8:30
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Bible Passages On The Impermanence Of Salvation:
The Bible contains some passages which appear to say clearly and unambiguously that once a person gains salvation, they can lose it. Examples are from the King James Version of the Bible unless the language is so archaic that it is difficult to understand more modern translations are then used.
Matthew 10:22: “…he that endureth to the end shall be saved.” The implication is that someone who does not stands firm to the end will not be saved. Some theologians dismiss this interpretation they believe that a person who does not stand firm never was saved in the first place thus all that are truly saved will continue in that state. John 15:6: “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.” A person who “does not remain” in Jesus is apparently a saved person whose behavior or thoughts have become unacceptable. Throwing the formerly saved person into the fire and burning them is an obvious reference to Hell.
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God Is Strong Enough To Both Save You And Keep You
28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all no one can snatch them out of my Fathers hand. 30 I and the Father are one. John 10:28-30
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 28:37-39
37 All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. 38 For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. 40 For my Fathers will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. John 6:37-40
24 To Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy
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What About The Warnings In Hebrews 6 Regarding Losing Your Salvation
Of course, this does raise a rather sticky question: what about the passages of scripture that seem to warn against falling away?
For example, Hebrews 6:4-6 says:
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
That sure makes it seems like I can fall away from Christ after being saved. It sounds like I can lose my salvation. So what am I supposed to make of these passages?
First, I have to acknowledge that there is a real tension between these warnings and the promises noted above. I need to avoid the common mistake of rounding off the sharp edges of the passage and I need to feel the full weight of its meaning.
So how am I to interpret these passages?
They are passages of severe warning meant to push me to persevere in Christ.
This is where the mystery of Gods providence and my responsibility collide. Does God promise that he will keep me to the end? Yes. Does he assure me that nothing can separate me from the love of God in Christ? Absolutely. Does he ease my fears when it comes to losing my salvation? Yes.
But also
Does God also call me to put aside every sin and to run hard after him? Yes. Does he warn me against the danger of rejecting Christ and embracing sin? Absolutely.
I like how Ardel Caneday says it:
Salvation Must First Be Possessed In Order For Losing It To Be Possible
The only way I could lose something is if I already possessed it in the first place. For example, I cannot lose my keys if I never had keys within my possession to begin with. In the same way, the only way man could lose his salvation is if it was already in his possession to begin with.
In order for the question Can I lose your salvation to be valid, it must first be determined if man can even possess salvation.
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The Danger Of Thinking You Can Lose Your Salvation
In a previous post, we discussed one of the biggest questions we may have as Christians: Can we lose our salvation? We saw the clear and definite assurance the Bible gives us that once we believe in Christ and receive Him as our Savior, were saved eternally. We cant lose our salvation.
But heres another question: Does it make any difference whether we know we cant lose our salvation?
The answer is yes, and in this post well discuss why this is so important.
Once Saved Always Saved: True Or Not
The question is not can I lose my salvation, but can salvation lose me? No, it cant.
Once Im saved, can I become unsaved? Is it possible to lose my salvation? Ive heard various answers from various churches. And the Bible, in some verses, seems to say Yes, and in other verses seems to say No. So is once saved, always saved true or not?–Mike
The Bible teaches two truths:1) Once you are a believer in Christ, your salvation is forever secure in him.2) Once you are a believer in Christ, you can later reject his salvation.
To us these may appear to be mutually exclusive. Either #1 is true or #2 is true, but they cant both be true.
But Scripture teaches both. The tension between them is the tension of Gods two words to us: the word of warning and the word of promise.
Perhaps the best way to answer your question is by asking another question: why do you want to know?
The Heavenly Life Insurance Policy
Why do you want to know? Maybe you view salvation as a heavenly life insurance policy.
If you pay your premiums, then youre good to go. Upon your death, the benefits will accrue to you. Heavens gates will swing wide to welcome you in.
According to this view, it doesnt matter how you live or what you believe. Since you are baptized and once believed in Jesus, your eternity is secure. You can murder, steal, commit adultery, gossip, slander, hate. Theres no need to pray, help others, be kind or generous or loving.
The Heavenly Bank Account
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Is There A Point Where God Will No Longer Grant Forgiveness
With it now said that a person can fall from grace and turn their back on God another question must be answered. How many times will God forgive?
The reason many do not want to believe the idea that salvation can be lost may be because they fear reaching the limit with God. The verse already mentioned above says something that makes that fear even stronger.
Hebrews 10:26-27
26For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, 27But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.
What sin is not willfully? If we know the law and we still sin then does this mean the blood of Jesus is not going to be enough for us anymore? God forbid such a thought!
To say that the Holy blood of Jesus isnt enough is blasphemy. Look back in Hebrews 10 again. Take note that he says those who were under the law of Moses were worthy of death. That law was about sins needing judgment. But he was only using it to compare with the blood of the new covenant.
As Christians we are no longer under the law of sin and death. We are under the new covenantone of faith. In the old law the way to be righteous was to not do anything wrong. Under the new law of faith the only way you can break the law is by not having faith anymore.
Romans 4:4-8
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Specific Sins That Could Keep You Out Of Heaven
If some of the above verses are possibly implying that you can lose your salvation then what are some of the specific sins that could cause you to lose your salvation? These next two verses will give you some of those specific sins.
Are these next two verses talking about Christians or nonbelievers? If you match these two verses up with the ones listed above, then I believe that some of these sins, if being committed by Christians on a regular and frequent basis, could get them into major trouble with the Lord and possibly be endangering their salvation with Him. Here they are:
- Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.
- Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, uncleanness, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
Notice the sin of adultery is specifically mentioned in both verses. Does this mean any Christian who regularly cheats on their spouse may be in danger of losing their salvation?
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Sinning Willfully After Receiving The Knowledge Of The Truth
This next verse is another real scary verse. The above verse talks about a falling away that could cause you to lose your salvation.
This next verse goes another step further and specifically talks about sinning willfully after we have already received the knowledge of the truth from God. Here it is:
Anyone who has rejected Moses law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.
Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?
For we know Him who said, Vengeance is Mine I will repay, says the Lord. And again, The Lord will judge His people. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
Notice the first part of this verse says that if we sin willfully after having already received the knowledge of the truth. Again, I believe this wording could be implying that we are talking about Christians.
The second part of this verse seems to confirm that possibility when it talks about trampling Jesus underfoot and insulting the Spirit of grace, which is the Holy Spirit Himself.
Then notice it says that there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins in direct reference to the statement about sinning willfully after having already received the knowledge of the truth.
Four Reasons Why We Cant Lose Our Salvation
After believing into Christ, the first frustration to our Christian life is to doubt that were really saved. I addressed this in my post, How Can I be Sure Im Saved? A second frustration to our Christian life is the plaguing doubt that we can lose our salvation.
To address this problem, well consider four reasons why we can boldly say that we can never lose our salvation.
To base our understanding on the Bible, here are two key verses, John 10:28-29, that would be good to remember. Here the Lord Jesus said of His sheep,
And I give to them eternal life, and they shall by no means perish forever, and no one shall snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all, and no one can snatch them out of My Fathers hand.
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Salvation Is Dependent On The Presence Of Faith
In Eph 2:8, Paul writes the famous passage that reads: for by grace you have been saved through faith…. Not only does this tell us that salvation is an undeserved gift that cannot be earned, but it also tells us that this gift of salvation makes its way to us through the vehicle of FAITH. If salvation is the end destination, then faith is the road that leads to it.
Gal 2:16 also describes the role of faith when it states we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through FAITH in Jesus Christ Not only does this teach us that salvation doesnt come to us based on our performance, but it also teaches us that salvation can only come to us through faith in Christ. Faith is the vehicle that propels us toward salvation.
From verses like these, we can conclude that it is only through faith that the believer can be saved, or in other words, ones salvation is dependent on their FAITH.
To discard faith is to discard salvation
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Rom 11:23 And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again.
As long as someone has faith, they are being saved. As long as someone does not have faith, they are not being saved. If someone has faith when they are young, but comes to reject it or discard it when they are older, then they have then been disconnected from the promise of salvation. To embrace faith is to embrace the way of salvation, and to reject faith is to reject the way of salvation.
Reasons Why You Cannot Lose Your Salvation
ETERNAL LIFE IS ETERNAL. It is NOT life until you sin again. Jesus promised us eternal life and it is ridiculous to think that He didnt mean that He gives us life that would never end. Eternal life begins THE MOMENT when we believe.
The believer is passed from death unto life. SALVATION IS A BY BIRTH SITUATION. A birth cannot be undone or reversed. Once born, always born, Jesus did not teach a man must be born again and again and perhaps even yet again. We dont have a second opportunity to be bom again physically, nor do we have or even need a second opportunity to be born again spiritually once we have received our spiritual birth.
SALVATION IS A FREE GIFT. It is not something that is earned or can be deserved. Works earn rewards, not salvation. Romans 5:15-18, 6:23 Eph. 2:8,9 1 Cor. 3:11-15SALVATION IS BASED UPON HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, NOT OURS. Philippians 3:9 and 2 Corinthians 5:21 teach that it is Christs righteousness that is imputed to our account. If our salvation is based upon Christ righteousness and not our own, how could our own unrighteousness ever make His righteousness insufficient? When God declares us righteous, it is settled. Romans 8:33
WE ARE KEPT BY THE POWER OF GOD. 1 Peter 1:4,5 teaches this. If it is Gods power that keeps us, who is stronger or more powerful than God?JESUS IS HOLDING US IN HIS HAND. John 10:28. We are not holding onto God He is holding onto us! Even if we could let go, He cannot and will not.
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