Can I Lose My Salvation? - Part Five
So far in this series on salvation, we’ve come to the following conclusions:
• Everlasting life is without end.
• Once one is born again, he cannot then be unborn.
• We are saved and kept by faith, not works.
• Certain aspects of salvation take place the moment we accept Christ as Lord and cannot be reversed.
I pray, by this point, you have a clear idea of what takes place during salvation and now have full assurance that once saved, you will always be saved. But, before we move on to other topics, I want to discuss one more argument some use to disprove eternal security, and that’s the idea that one can be pulled away from God’s grip. In two words, not happening! But, let’s see what the Bible has to say about the matter.
“All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day. ”
I love this passage because it covers nearly all the bases concerning salvation. Notice, Jesus said those who come to Him, He will not cast out. He continues in the next verse by saying of all He has been given, He will lose nothing. And lastly, Jesus confirms salvation’s plan: he who believes will have everlasting life. In this one passage, we see God will not cast us out nor can we slip from His grasp because then He would “lose” us. God cannot take salvation from us; neither can we walk away from it. But, to drive the point home, let’s look at a few more verses.
“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.”
This is another comforting passage because it reminds us no one can pluck us from our Father’s hand. Notice the phrases: eternal life, never perish. And then, not once but twice Jesus declares no one can cause us to become unsaved—not even ourselves. Now, some may argue, “It doesn’t say that. It says no man can pluck me away, but it doesn’t say I can’t walk away if I want to.” Actually, it says exactly that. The phrase “no man” includes the believer himself. No one from outside of God’s grasp is getting in, and no one within God’s grasp is getting out. Why? Because God is greater than all, including the believer. Not only that but He’s also faithful to His promises.
“He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. ”
According to I John 5:4, whoever believes in Christ for salvation is an overcomer. Therefore, God promises believers will not have their names blotted out of the book of life. What is written there regarding the believer cannot be unwritten. There is a verse in Revelation 22 which speaks of God taking away a part out of the book of life for those who add to and subtract from the Word of God, but to whom is this verse speaking? Would true believers try to change the Word of God? I think not because when we accept Christ as Lord, we are accepting Him as the Living Word; therefore, it would go against our new nature (the Holy Spirit) to alter God’s inspired Word. Additionally, it does not say God will take his name out, but instead, he will take away a part. If a believer were to fall into this category of altering the Scriptures, perhaps the part that is taken away is a portion of his rewards. I cannot be sure, but Revelation 3:5 speaks clearly, and as we discussed at the beginning of this study, we must focus on the clear passages and base our doctrine around those rather than a few scattered verses that are obscure and could mean many things.
“For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day. ”
Did you catch that? God can keep that which we’ve committed to Him. Well, what did we commit to Him? Our lives. Our salvation. When we accepted Christ as Lord, we turned our lives and souls over to Him for safekeeping, and God doesn’t take that lightly. He is able to keep them. If He weren’t, He wouldn’t be God, would He? God is all-powerful and is not willing that any should perish (II Peter 3:9), so let’s put two and two together.
“Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: ”
God has begun a good work in us, and He has promised to perform it until Christ returns to rule and reign. He won’t give up on us even when we give up on Him. The Bible is clear on this.
If you are struggling with your assurance of salvation, I encourage you to go back and study out the verses discussed in this study, and if you’re still uncertain, please contact me. I’d love to help you get it settled. Typically, those who struggle with the issue fall into one of two categories: (1) They’re saved, and Satan is fighting against them and causing them to doubt Christ’s saving power; (2) They once made a profession of faith but never accepted Christ as Lord. I will be the first to tell you that a believer doesn’t always “feel” saved, but if you have never experienced the peace and joy Christ offers, I urge you to check up on yourself. You don’t have to remember what day of the week it was or what time of the day it was when you called on God to save you, but you should be able to see some of the fruit of the Spirit in your life. Again, if you would like help in this area, I encourage you to contact me or someone else you trust in spiritual matters. Let us help you establish your assurance once and for all.
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