ETERNAL SECURITY — GOD’S PROMISE
ETERNAL LIFE IS GOD’S UNCONDITIONAL PROMISE. HE SWORE BY HIMSELF AND THERE IS NO GREATER.
CONSIDER THIS: ARE YOU POSSIBLY CALLING HIM A LIAR? (1 John 5:9-13)
TO ALL WHO BELIEVE YOU CAN LOSE YOUR SALVATION;
I am one who previously qualifies as one who didn’t continue in faith regarding the simple gospel — that ETERNAL LIFE IS the free gift to that lasts forever. In life, we get confused by those who preach things we must DO in order to be saved, or to prove we are saved, or to keep our salvation. These are the lies of the enemy.
I do want you all to understand up front, that I am a believer in what some identify as Once Saved Always Saved (OSAS). Please don’t mischaracterize me as suggesting others should live in or stay in sin. But this is the way of those in confusion, they categorize you as wanting to sin like the devil.
I most definitely am not a Calvinist, nor an Arminian (as my statement of Faith says).
I want you to be clearly informed on my stand. I do not believe the God of the Bible is the god of TULIP (Calvinist), DAISY (Arminian), nor of ROSES (middle knowledge or Molinism. GOD is not, “He loves me, He loves me not, He loves me, He loves me not”.
There is no plucking of petals with our God to figure out if we are His beloved or not. His Word should be good enough for us.
I don’t believe there is ‘middle knowledge’ between error. I don’t think you can ever take two wrongs, makes it right, and somehow becomes truth.
God does not work that way. His way is truth, His Word is truth, we do not need men systemizing what they believe to be true and teaching us instead tradition of men (leaven). We who are His, have the Holy Spirit and HE is able to teach and guide us into all truth with His Word. Don’t listen to those who commend themselves by how long they’ve been a Christian and that ‘their study’ has led them to the truth. If they understand the truth, they will manifest it in the sight of all men. They will be ready with an answer.
GOD PROMISES THAT THE GIFT OF ETERNAL LIFE IS FOREVER
Therefore let that abide in you which you heard from the beginning. If what you heard from the beginning abides in you, you also will abide in the Son and in the Father. And this is the promise that He has promised us—ETERNAL LIFE.
These things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you. But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him. 1 John 2:24-27
We all know those who say they believe and may behave just abominably, or maybe not as well as we would wish (including ourselves). That is not to encourage licentiousness, it is just a fact we see in His Word.
Here is a list of some of those bad things believers can do.
Tom Stegall mentions this in his book, “Must Faith Endure for Salvation to be sure“. (Please look up each one of these Scriptures – prove all things and hold fast to that which is good – 1 Thess 5:21)
“The Bible actually teaches that it is possible for one who is eternally saved by God’s grace to:
1) Commit idolatry and apostasy (1 Kgs. 11:1-10)
2) Believe only for a while (Luke 8:13)
3) Not continue in the Word of Christ (Jn. 8:31)
4) Not abide in Christ (John 15:1-8)
5) Become disqualified in the race of the Christian life (1 Cor. 9:24-27)
6) Resist God’s chastening and correcting to the point of physical death (1 Cor. 11:30-32)
7) Stray from the faith (1 Timothy 1:5-6)
8) Shipwreck faith (1 Timothy 1:18-20)
9) Fall away from the faith (1 Timothy 4:1-3)
10) Deny the faith (1 Timothy 5:8)
11) Cast off initial faith and follow Satan (1 Timothy 5:12-15)
12) Stray from the faith by loving money (1 Timothy 6:9-10)
13) Stray from the faith by professing false doctrine (1 Timothy 6:20-21)
14) Deny Christ and be faithless (2 Timothy 2:11-13)
15) Have faith overthrown (2 Timothy 2:14-18)
We need to cooperate to both abide in the vine AND abide in His Word, in order to be effective and to grow as students/disciples. Don’t let the words of men (who use excellency of speech and wisdom of their own words to seduce you regarding the gospel) to abide in you (1 Cor 2:1-5). Don’t bear long with them, because they WILL corrupt your minds from the simplicity that is in Christ (2 Cor 11:3-4).
Jesus loves the bride He gave Himself for, in spite of themselves. In our eyes, we think God is a respecter of persons based on how good they are (He is not!). We cannot finish in the flesh, that which He began in the Spirit(Gal 3). We do need to submit to God so that we are not being resisted (1 Pet 5:5-7). We need His Word to give us wisdom, which points out our weaknesses that we can confess them to Him (agree with or ‘see’ our sins we may not have previously recognized). Keeping short accounts with Him will keep us in good fellowship with Him and other believers, and will also help our joy will remain full (1 John 1-2:2). This reminds us of the advocate we have with the Father, and also reminds us of His death not only for us, but of the whole world.
God the Father loves the world, but the moment they die having rejected His Son, then they will face the Judgment — His Wrath and eternal damnation. God takes no pleasure in even the death of the wicked.
I do NOT believe the Bible in any way teaches that your salvation can be lost… If you teach others otherwise, knowingly or otherwise, sadly you preach another gospel that will not save and that you are following after doctrines of men instead of the truth of God’s Word.
Please, for your sake, and your loved ones — prayerfully consider the Scriptures against what you have been taught (Acts 17:11). See if those few verses that seem to suggest losing eternal life really mean that. Gather up the Scriptures and determine to study with His approval in mind asking questions, and looking in context.
Below is a short list of what we CAN lose or suffer by allowing sin to reign in our lives. (There is much more)
- Loss of Fellowship with God (1 John 1:3, 6,9)
- Loss of Fellowship with others (1 John 1:3, 7)
- Loss of Fullness of joy in our walk (1 John 1:4)
- Loss of Rewards at the judgment seat of Christ (1 Cor 3:10-16)
- Bring judgment upon ourselves in this lifetime (1 Cor 11:29)
- Loss of our physical life (1 Cor 5:5; Acts 5:1-11, 1 Cor 11:30)
- Loss of our health, be weak or sickly (1 Cor 11:30)
- Loss of our testimony or justification before men (James 2, Titus 3:8)
- We can shame the name of Christ for sins named among us (Eph 5:3).
- Face chastening (1 Cor 11:32; Heb 12:5-6)
- Face consequences for our actions (Gal 6:7-9)
- Others face things because of us, including loss of knowing Christ. (Gal 6:9)
- We can stray from the truth, and be dishonorable – (2 Tim 2:18-20)
- Being ashamed at His appearing – (1 John 2:28)
- We can lose the joy of our salvation (Ps 51:12)
- We can cause others to stumble (1 John 2:10)
- We may not walk freely in this lifetime (Jn 8:31-32) because of lack of knowledge.
- Loss of growth in Christ (practical sanctification – Jn 17:17; Eph 5:25-26; Ps 119:9)
- Saved from deception (1 Tim 4:16; Eph 4:11-16)
- Loss of edifying others in the body (Eph 4:11-16).
- Loss of assurance or security in His love for us (we become fearful – Heb 10:26-27).
- Fall from grace (Gal 5:4)
- Loss of spiritual growth (Eph 4:13-15).
- Suffer from lack of discernment (Heb 5:12-14).
- Can be deceived by another gospel (2 Cor 11:3-4).
- Shame in not showing our Savior love by our unworthy walk (Eph 4:11; John 14:15).
When we read His Word, always consider context. Ask who is spoken to and whether the word ‘saved‘, ‘salvation‘ or ‘deliverance‘ speaks to a physical saving from something or something else.
Come, let’s reason together…
DO YOU BELIEVE GOD’S TESTIMONY OR NOT?
Will God take away something that is ETERNAL? Do we have Eternal Security or not? Or is it a temporal gift of ETERNAL LIFE? What kind of sense does that make? It is the age-old lie of the enemy, ‘Did God really say that‘ (Gen 3:1)?
CAN IT BE UNDONE?
Is it Finished or not?
- CAN WE BECOME UN-RECONCILED? 2 Cor 5:18-20; Col 2:14-17
- CAN WE BE UN-BORN AGAIN? Jn 3:3,6; 1 Pet 1:23
- UN-BEGAT BY HIS WORD? James 1:18; 1 Pet 1:23
- UN-SAVED ONCE WE ARE SAVED? * Saved to the uttermost: Heb 7:25
- UN-MEMBERS OF THE BODY? 1 Cor 12:20-25
- UN-FINISHED BY THE AUTHOR OF OUR FAITH? Heb 12:2
- UN-CONFIRMED BLAMELESS TO THE END? 1 Cor 1:8
- MADE UN-NECESSARY? 1 Cor 12:20-22
- HOW CAN WE BE MADE UN-RIGHTEOUS, WHEN CHRIST IS OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS? Rom 10:4, Rom 3:22; Rom 5:19; 2 Cor 5:21;
- UN-GIFTED TO JESUS? We are given to the Son as a gift. And if you believe again after losing your salvation, is that the same thing as being RE-GIFTED to the Son? John 6:39-40; John 10:29; John 17:11, 24
- HOW DO YOU BECOME UN-SONS OF GOD? Jn 1:12-13 Those of us who were born again of His will, think on this for a moment — God who foreknows all things decided to make us His Son knowing we would lose our sonship? I don’t believe so…
- ARE WE MADE UN-ALIVE? Eph 2:1; 1 Pet 3:18
- UN-KEPT BY HIS POWER? 1 Pet 1:5
- HOW DO WE BECOME UN-ESTABLISHED or UN-GUARANTEED? We lose that too? 2 Corinthians 1:21-22, Eph 1:13
- UN-HEALED BY HIS STRIPES? 1 Pet 2:24
- BECOME UN-INHERITED? Acts 20:32; Eph 1:14 (Yes, I know the word is disinherited 🙂 This is play on words regarding being UNDONE.
- UNFORGIVEN? (Isn’t that a movie?) Will He UNFORGIVE you in the reverse of ALL OF YOUR SINS? Col 2:13; Titus 2:14; Heb 10:10, 14
- UN-TRANSLATED FROM THE KINGDOM OF HIS DEAR SON? Col 1:13
- UN-ACCEPTED IN THE BELOVED? Eph 1:6
The God of the Bible who HATES divorce, will divorce the Bride He loved and gave Himself for? At what point?
Does the blood of Christ somehow get made UNclean because we were washed in it? So once again, do we then become UNsaved? Eph 1:7
- ARE WE MADE UN-NIGH BY HIS BLOOD? Eph 2:13
- IS OUR CONSCIENCE UN-PURGED?
- DO WE BECOME UN-CLEANSED? 1 John 1:7
- UN-WASHED BY HIS BLOOD? Rev 1:5
By now, you are possibly thinking, how much more ridiculous sounding is this list?
I agree. Maybe for a different reason than you might think.
I believe it is speaking against Christ’s finished work to say a believer is not kept saved until the day of redemption. Please consider carefully what you are saying about the truth of all these verses that are applied to believers.a believer is not kept saved until the day of redemption. Please look carefully at what you are saying about the truth of all these verses that are applied to believers.
Please, I ask you in all fear and trembling at God’s Word, and by Christ and Him Crucified for us, don’t just skim these things, but look them up, one by one, then thank God for each thing, He as done for you. You will not be sorry.
These are provided for you to look up and see if these things are so…
- WHO WILL UN-REDEEM YOU WHEN CHRIST HAS DONE IT? Rom 3:24; Gal 3:13; Titus 2:14; 1 Pet 1:18-19
- HOW DO WE BECOME UN-DELIVERED? 2 Tim 4:18; Col 1:13
- WILL HE UN-CIRCUMCISE YOUR HEART? Col 2:11
- NEXT, WILL GOD UN-ADOPT YOU WHEN BELIEVERS WERE PREDESTINED TO THAT ADOPTION? Eph 1:5, Rom 8:15, Gal 4:5
- THEN WILL GOD UN-BLESS YOU? Eph 1:3
- HOW DO WE GET UN-SANCTIFIED BY HIS BLOOD? Heb 10:10, 14, 1 Cor 6:11; 2 Thess 2:13; Heb 10:14; Heb 13:12-13
- HOW DO WE BECOME UN-PERFECTED FOREVER? How does forever become temporary? If we become un-perfected, is it eternally or temporary, so he can perfect us eternally all over again? Listen, eternal, everlasting, forever regarding salvation, does mean forever…. Heb 10:14
- CAN WE BE UN-JUSTIFIED? Rom 3:26-30; Rom 5:1, 16-18; Gal 2:16, Titus 3:7
- HOW DOES ONE BECOME UN-GLORIFIED? Rom 8:30
- WHO WILL MAKE US UN-ANOINTED? 2 Cor 1:21; 1 John 2:26-27
- WHO CAN UN-SEAL US? A SEAL GOD HAS PUT UPON US? 2 Cor 1:21-22, Eph 1:13; Eph 4:30
- UN-CREATED OR UN-CREATURE? Do we become an old creature again? 2 Cor 5:17
- UN-BAPTIZED FROM THE BODY? 1 Cor 12:13; Eph 4:4-6
- CAN YOU BE UN-QUICKENED? Eph 2:1,5; Col 2:13, 1 Pet 3:18
- ARE WE UN-SEATED FROM HEAVENLY PLACES? Eph 2:6
- ARE WE MADE UN-CITIZENS IN HEAVEN? Phil 3:20
- DID THE LOST BECOME UN-FOUND AND LOST AGAIN? Matt 18:11; John 10:28-30, 17:12; 18:9
- WHO UN-PRESERVES US? 2 Tim 4:18; 1 Thess 5:23; Jude 1:1
- WILL JESUS UN-PREPARE THAT PLACE FOR US? John 14
- WHO WILL UN-DECLARE OUR NAME TO THE FATHER? John 17
- WHO WILL UN-CONFORM US TO HIS IMAGE WHEN ALL BELIEVERS ARE
- PREDESTINED TO THIS? Did God get the predestination part wrong? Rom 8:29
These are but a few of the things that happen when we are born again, please really pray and study regarding what you are telling others.
PLEASE REALLY PONDER THESE THINGS….
- IS OUR BURIED PERSON DUG UP? (After being baptized by His Spirit?) Rom 6:4, Col s:12
- ARE WE DEAD AGAIN? Passed from death unto life, and then back unto death? John 5:24; 1 John 3:14
- MADE A SLAVE AGAIN? Gal 4:6-7
- WE ARE ONE FLESH, DO WE BECOME TWO? Eph 5
- WILL WE OR ANYONE REMOVE US FROM CHRIST’S BODY, HIS FLESH, HIS BONES? Eph 1:23, 5:30; 1 Cor 12:27
- ARE WE APPOINTED BACK TO WRATH? 1 Thess 5:8
- BROUGHT BACK FROM THE DEAD? Do we give CPR to to resurrect the old things that were PASSED AWAY? 2 Cor 5:17
- DOES GOD PASS US BACK FROM THE LIGHT INTO THE DARKNESS? John 12:46; Eph 5:8; 1 Thess 5:5; Luke 1:76-79
- WHO WILL TEAR JESUS OUT OF OUR HEART? Eph 3:17, Rom 8:9-11, Gal 4:6
- WHO WILL SNATCH US OUT OF HIS HAND? US?… John 6:28-30
- WHO WILL SEPARATE US FROM HIS LOVE? Rom 8:38-39
- WHO WILL STAND AGAINST OUR RULER AND DELIVERER? 1 Thess 1:10, Acts 7:35, Rom 11:26
- CAN THE PRAYER OF JESUS IN GOD’S WILL GO UNANSWERED? (For His Disciples and those who will believe — John 17)
- That Jesus is glorified in us
- That we will be kept
- That we won’t be lost
- That will we be kept from ‘the evil’
- That will be sanctified through His Word of truth
- That His joy will be fulfilled in us
- That we all will be one in the Father and the Son
- That we may be made perfect in one
- That we may behold His Glory
- HE DECLARED OUR NAME TO HIS FATHER ALREADY
When we believe…
- HE GIVES US ETERNAL LIFE – Rom 6:23
- We HATH/HAVE (echo: possess, held in the hand, to have to hold) ETERNAL LIFE. (I John 5:9-14; John 5:24; John 6:28-29, 35,36,40,47)
IS GOD ABLE OR NOT?
If God, foreknowing we would lose salvation, do you think He would take all that effort to do all these things, just to let us walk away? Just pray on these things.
ETERNAL? EVERLASTING? OR PROBATIONARY AND TEMPORARY?
We have either believed God’s testimony of His Son, OR we have made Him a liar.
If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son. He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. I John 5:9-13
God bless those who read here.
Amen!
I understand your position. I don’t subscribe to OSAS, but I do believe truly saved is truly saved. Some may say it’s semantics. The problem I have with this phrase is that people who have repeated a prayer one Sunday morning are told they were forever saved. These same people continue to practice sin (as if they never heard the gospel) but see no need to change because someone told them “once saved… always saved.” True salvation cannot be lost. But this “phrase” seems to do more harm than good.
Here is a scenario: Someone in the word of faith says there were saved when they were 8 yrs old. They admire Creflo Dollar and believe he teaches the truth. You show how they are under false teaching. They continue to follow and promote the teaching. They grew up on this teaching. They claimed salvation before fully understanding the gospel. Now, they don’t really care about what their pastor teaches because they were saved as a child. They were told once saved always saved.
This is an example of why I don’t subscribe to OSAS. I do believe truly saved is truly saved and thereby always saved. A play on words? Maybe. But that’s what happened when definitions are changed.
So…amen…Great article!!
I am Once Saved Always Saved. Just because someone uses a term wrongly and applies it to themselves, i.e. Christian, I still know that Once I am saved, I am sealed eternally.
But I do understand your problem. Repeating a prayer will not save you (unless of course you have believed, and Jesus Christ and Him crucified is where your faith is placed). Repenting from your sin does not save you, nor is it part of the gospel, although those who are saved, can and should do that. Whether they see no need to change, ‘practice’ is not really quite right in the understanding of 1 John 3 if you are addressing those who ‘practice sin’. Instead, look at the word ‘poieo’ which is to do once. Even one time. Break one law, you break them all, so we have to be really careful as one sin is all it takes. That is the difference from being in sin, a child of disobedience, not having been justified, and being in Christ, forever sanctified (Heb 10:1-4). You may consider this video regarding that passage.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnIH_UTMrys&w=480&h=360%5D
Being under false teaching and even being a false teacher does not make one unsaved.
We see all throughout the epistles, those who were bewitched, deceived, not obeying the truth, going back into the world (Demas), all the way to the upper echelon in Peter and Barnabas, who were for a time deceivers, hypocrites, not straightforward about the truth of the gospel. Paul was concerned about the church at Corinth being deceived, all the way up to the end of his second epistle.
Would to God ye could bear with me a little in my folly: and indeed bear with me. For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him. 2 Cor 11:1-4
Think on this. Look at all the terms we may use to define ourselves; Christian, Born-again, evangelical, etc. They have each one been maligned and hijacked by the counterfeiters. It doesn’t mean Christian isn’t a true term, so I would rather state those who have indeed believed are saved forever and leave it at that.
I don’t exactly use the term OSAS either when someone asks, I usually reply, “all those who have believed upon Christ and His work on the cross are saved, given eternal life, which is everlasting, and will not be taken away. It is the will of the Father that we are not lost, and Jesus said He would lose none. And that includes all.”
It is not our job to figure out who is saved. We can know false prophets by their fruit-doctrine, seen in Matt 7:15-21. One thing I believe all in the church must to is defend the gospel, to contend for the faith once delivered, to be very sure we have not had our own minds corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ, because of all the voices out there, and traditions we have learned that may not be Biblical.
It is good to define what we believe the gospel to say. We see it declared in 1 Cor 15. But we don’t want to offend a little one in judging how someone may be practicing sin, or even easily deceived. It can be an easy fix. Find out if they truly understand the gospel, the free gift of salvation. See if they think that turning from sin, repenting from sin, praying, committing, surrendering, etc. was part of what they must do. If so, help them to understand that there is not one single work besides believe. See if they have misunderstood what ‘repent’ means. The Catholic church and Latin language has hindered that in the penance/penitence and making that into an English Word that was distinguished from Roman Catholicism. But we should have chosen a new word, somewhat like baptizo/baptize for metanoeo/metanoia. But we did not, so I also suggest anyone try this link for repentance, an excellent study.
If they did indeed understand the gospel, maybe the importance of His Word was not stressed to them, maybe life and circumstance has kept them from His Word. So if they are not in the strong meat of His Word, their senses are not exercised to discern between good and evil (Heb 5:12-14) thereby they can be fooled. If someone is not getting sanctified, we might want to remember Jesus in the garden, praying for us to be sanctified by the truth, His Word is truth (Jn 17:17). We can help by washing the feet of one already clean as the Master did. People are washed in the water by the Word (Eph 5:26), so we can use the Word, we can commend them to the Word of His grace, so they can be built up.
And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified. Acts 20:32
If we love Him we will tend His lambs/feed His sheep.
In Christ’s love to all who read.
If a person continues to live the same lifestyle as they did before they said a prayer of salvation then that person was not truly saved. Spurgeon said that after 6 months and that person was still living the same then he considered them not saved.
Bill, if a person believes in Christ as his Savior (please note that saying a “prayer of salvation” has nothing to do with whether or not one has believed in Jesus as his Savior), then he has eternal life that can never be lost or forfeited.
A person’s lifestyle may or may not change after he becomes a believer. We cannot assess whether a person (including ourselves) has eternal life based on his (our) behavior. The only evidence of eternal life is whether someone has believed in Jesus alone for eternal life.
What Spurgeon said is not biblical. Spurgeon was a Calvinist/Lordship “salvationist” and a false teacher, who deceived many in his lifetime, and whose heretical writing continues to deceive many people today.
If you would like to know more, please read the attached article.
http://standforthefaith.com/2013/12/07/the-gospel-according-to-spurgeon/
Bill, what if it’s six months and one day? What about if the short month (February) is in there? Those kinds of standards are not in the Word regarding whether one is saved. We can know we are saved by whether or not we have believed God’s testimony of His Son.
Please also consider this.
https://redeemingmoments.com/2016/01/14/dear-fruit-inspectors/
not to be too dis-respectful, But I couldn’t care less what Spurgeon says. I care what the KJV bible says.
Heb’s 5 – tells us that a babe in Christ can, over time, still be a babe in Christ.
2 tim 2 – tells us that one CAN have their faith overthrown, they are still saved.
Where’s the “change”????
ADDED NOTE – I don’t believe anyone here thinks that a prayer saves. Belief (faith) in who Jesus was and what HE did on the cross (the gospel) DOES save.
Good job Holly,
There is no such thing as eternal salvation if it can be lost. And if it can be lost then Christ is incapable of being the permanent covering for our sin… which of course is one the worst heresies.
Jim F
Thank you Jim.
I didn’t used to realize what a heresy it was to believe you could lose your salvation. But that is the whole point isn’t it? They don’t understand ‘eternal’, ‘sealed’, ‘perfected forever’, ‘permanent covering’ as you said…
I wrote this back in April, and old post which I added to over time, it just reminded me, it would be a good one to link to your recent article, thanks.
Holly,
Bill sounds like my mom. One of the issues I am struggling with is that she is literally denying people Salvation.
And she is getting worse.
Kate.
Kate. I will share encouraging news with you. A good friend of mine told me she resisted this and hated me for seven years because of my sharing of eternal security. She said she read everything I wrote just to prove me wrong. It was nothing of me, but His Word we know has the power and will not return void and because of His Word and her reading it, she now believes eternal life is the gift and is everlasting and cannot be lost.
Keep praying and sharing the Word. Oftentimes it looks darkest before the light of day 🙂 Praying with you for a breakthrough with your mom, be prepared, walk wisely, keep salt and grace flavoring your speech <3 Love in Christ, Holly
Holly bless you sister. You have indeed been heaven sent to me on this issue. I have a twin sister that was saved 23 years ago and a few months before i was. I believe you can’t lose your salvation but she does. It’s all because of the word ‘repent ‘ being misunderstood as you say. I’m praying for her to be shown this by the lord. God bless you and yours xxx
Joanne, I don’t know if you are friends with Preston Greene on FB, but if not, if you are my friend from FB, email me there. I’d love to help with some Scriptures, and happy to share a couple things with you too via email. If she would take this article and look it up, and then ask the questions, the difficult passages she might not have such trouble with. In fact, Johninnc from expreacherman has a page on difficult passages. You could find it at the link below. I had a friend who believed you could lose your salvation. She finally came to understand, and seven years later her sister. (Her sister hated me at one time and is now a friend, and so dear, so precious, just love her). There is Hope. We know how powerful the Word of God is. Ralph (Yankee) Arnold does a few on eternal security, you can find him at bibleline or youtube. Love in Christ to you, praying for the Lord to show you the truth in His Word, it is powerful. You could even post a verse a day with the question without using the article at all <3
https://expreacherman.com/2014/06/01/some-lordship-salvationists-pet-passages-explained/
Comment removed by administrator due to previously marking Stuart/Evan for the false doctrine of believers keeping their salvation by their works (Rom 16:17-18).
My short reply to you Evan/Stuart/Stu is that you are accursed as per Galatians 1:6-10. You are not one trying to understand something but teaching (for quite some time here and elsewhere) that eternally secure believers who have been sealed by the Holy Spirit until the day of redemption can lose that eternal life (a perfect gift given by the Father). You are teaching that gift is imperfect and that we can perish, directly in opposition to what the Word of God says over and over (Rom 6:23; John 6:47; John 3:14-16; John 10:27-29).
We are already passed from death unto life, into the Kingdom of His Son (John 5:24; Col 1:13). If you don’t understand that, you have not understood the gospel – the FREE GIFT is eternal life (Rom 5:18-Rom 6:23).
Comment removed by administrator.
This is a breath of fresh air. Thank you for reminding us that God never leaves us. The prodigal son was always a son. He was a son before he left the father and squandered everything and he was a son before he even said a word to his father when he came home. The father ran to him because he was his son and his son had come home. Some LS preachers say that the father took him back because he repented. That is not what this parable is about. The son may have been repentive but it was only after the father held him in his arms.
Brady, thanks! The Father came for the son not knowing why he came home, he was just so happy he was back. The son was hungry, tired, poor and broke and knew his father’s servants got treated better than he was. How much better is our heavenly Father.