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Once Saved Always Saved

Writer's picture: Trish MunasqueTrish Munasque

Updated: Oct 29, 2024

Am I a Christian? Have I lost my salvation? Can I lose my salvation?

These questions are either met with confidence by faith or can be crippling to the believer. In this article, I am going to make the case that once a person is truly saved by Jesus, once a person is in Christ, once someone is a part of the family of God as a believer, they are always in Christ, forever saved; they always belong to the family of God, the church. A true believer cannot and will not lose their salvation—it's impossible!


Contributing Factors:


Let’s begin by addressing some of the contributing factors that lead to some questioning whether a person’s salvation is eternal or not:


  1. One contributing factor is what we see in the lives of others. We observe people who profess to be Christians, have prayed a prayer, but there is no evidence of their salvation. No fruit of the Holy Spirit. No following of Jesus.

    Let me give you a quick warning here—be careful that what you see, hear, or experience does not make you forget what God has said.


  2. Another contributing factor comes when a believer struggles with seasons of sin. Perhaps you have personally gone through seasons of sin, struggle, or straying and felt as if you are no longer saved, which has filled you with worry and anxiety. Sometimes sin can lead to questioning one’s salvation.


  3. Still another contributing factor comes in the form of a question: Where is the spiritual discipline? The more and more we neglect the Word of God, the work of repentance, the more and more we neglect prayer and walking with Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit, the more and more the promises of God become unfamiliar to us, even distant.


  4. Another contributing factor is what some scriptures seem to say. Maybe you have run across some passages that say people can fall from grace, fall away from their faith in Jesus. These seem to advocate losing salvation.


Let me give you a good, sound Bible study tip as we approach challenging texts:

Don’t let the obscure crowd out the obvious. By obscure, I mean a passage of scripture that is difficult to interpret in and of itself, isolated from the rest of the Bible—by the way, these are few and far between in Scripture. Also, we recognize that no passage exists in a vacuum; we must let the whole of Scripture help us interpret challenging verses. We must let scripture interpret scripture. Ask of the text who the author is addressing specifically and if salvation is the topic he is writing about explicitly. If there is a challenge, head to the obvious teachings of Scripture to shed light on the obscure.

But one question I have for those who hold to the position that a believer can lose their salvation: Where is the line in this passage, in any passage of scripture that says you have sinned too much? You have strayed too far? Your struggle has gone on too long? Where is the line where the believer becomes unsaved, lost again, kicked out of the family of God? At one point does God tell us to pack our bags? One sin? James 2:10: “For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.” Two sins? Three sins? What sin? How many times with the same sin?


John wrote to the church in 1 John 5:13 and said, “These things I have written to you who believe in the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life.” Not a hope-so faith, or maybe-so faith, but a know-so faith! Without definitive passages or a defining line in Scripture, how can you know you have eternal life in Christ if you can’t really know, be certain whether you are saved or not?


Martin Luther, the great Protestant Reformer, once said, “When I look at myself, I do not see how I can be saved; but when I look at Christ, I do not see how I can be lost.”

Let me share with you why, biblically, once we are in Christ, we are always in Christ. That once we are saved, we are always saved. Here it is…


The Unconditional Promises of God:


Consider Jesus’ promise in John 10:27-29: “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.”


Notice, there are no conditions on this promise. The text doesn’t say, “No one can snatch them out of my hand unless they sin, struggle, or stray.” You might ask, What if I take myself out of his hands? I would argue that that is an impossibility for a true believer. No one, including you, can snatch you out of His hand. Unless, that is, you are greater than God. Let’s face it; we know we are not.


Another promise of God for the believer… Paul writes to the Philippian church in Philippians 1:6: “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”


Notice what it doesn’t say. It doesn’t say he will carry it on to completion unless you sin, struggle, or stray. Again, no conditions are put on this promise; rather, it is an unconditional promise for those in Christ. Ultimately, our salvation is on God; it is on Him to complete the good work He began in us. And He will!


Look at this in Romans 8:35: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?”

…vs. 38-39: “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.”


Again, no conditional clause in sight: “Nothing can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus,” except your sin, struggle, or straying. Where is the condition? None—unconditional promise to the believer.


We cannot take the unconditional promises of God for the believer and put conditions on them.


The Struggle is Real, But Why:


  1. Sin Confuses: When we walk in disobedience to the truth we know, sin and its workings can cloud our minds and confuse our hearts concerning the promises of God.


    Josh Howerton addressed a room full of pastors. He talked about the charge all pastors hear a lot: “I’m not being fed, or I wish my church would go deeper.” He said to his class: “The vast majority of Christians are educated past their level of obedience.” We know more than we are willing to live out. Don’t let sin cloud or confuse—walk in obedience to Christ and know that you are His forever! How to combat the confusion of sin: through spiritual discipline—repentance, prayer, studying God’s Word, sharing the Gospel.


  2. Feelings Mislead: Hear me; feelings are a wonderful gift from God; they help us experience life, but they are a terrible guide. We must remember we are people of FAITH, not FEELINGS.


    What if I am a true believer and I don’t feel saved? Then you allow your faith to inform your feelings, not the other way around. Remember, you didn’t save you; you can’t save yourself. Jesus did; therefore, your salvation depends on His promises, not your performance.


    Remember what Paul said of our salvation in Ephesians 2:8-9: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” This reminds us that if we cannot good our way into heaven, we cannot bad our way out of heaven.


  3. Our Humanity Limits Our Ability to grasp the unconditional love of God in Christ Jesus because we experience conditional love on earth so much of the time.

    Conditional love is that I will love you if you love me, good to you if good to me. Ephesians 3:17-19: “And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” We need His power to grasp His love!


Because our humanity limits us… So when sin confuses, feelings mislead, and humanity limits, how can I know I am saved?


How Do I Know That I Am Saved:


  1. First, there must be a Critical, Crucial Moment of Believing in Jesus: “…believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved,” Acts 16:31.

    The word believe means putting one’s faith and trust fully in Jesus and following Him! Has there been that moment in your life? Where God saved you? Has there been that critical, crucial moment of believing in Jesus for you?


  2. Second of all, there is a Continuing in Your Faith: 1 Corinthians 1:8-9: “He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”


    The idea of continuing is also wrapped in the beautiful understanding that our faith was meant to be shared. We must continue our faith, but it is more than our faith in isolation. It is living in fellowship with one another, the family of God.


  3. Third of all, is the Character of Your Life: Look for fruit in your life. Are you growing in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control?


  4. Here’s the deal; these things should not come from our own effort, but from the Holy Spirit. A true believer will bear fruit. Galatians 5:22-23 shows us what the fruit of the Spirit is.


Conclusion:

So, can you lose your salvation? NO! If you are in Christ, you are eternally secure in Him! Rest in that today and walk in His grace!

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