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Can I Loose My Salvation?
If you believe in Jesus, then you have eternal life. You have it NOW:
- Jesus said, "Most certainly I tell you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life, and doesn't come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life' (John 5:24).
The phrase "has eternal life" is in the present tense. In other words, believers have the life which is eternal. This is life which lasts forever. Eternal means never ending. In other words, this is the life which can never end. It can't end because it is eternal. Do you hear?
If you currently possess eternal life... but could lose that eternal life... it wouldn't be eternal.. would it?
So, you can't lose eternal life.
Here is another passage to consider:
- Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will not be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty" (John 6:35).
The word believes is in the present tense. If you believe in Jesus, in the now... you will never be thirsty. You will never thirst again. Never. You will never, never, never thirst again. That is a long time. For as long as eternity lasts, you will never thirst again. Never!
Neeeeeeeeeever.
Neeeeeeeeeever.
Neeeeeeeeeever.
So, there is no such thing as one who truly receives eternal life and then loses that life. A person without eternal life would certainly be thirsty.
Here is still another passage which shows us that eternal life can not be lost:
- "35 Jesus said to them, 'I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will not be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. ... 51 I am the living bread which came down out of heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. ... 57 As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father; so he who feeds on me, he will also live because of me. 58 This is the bread which came down out of heaven—not as our fathers ate the manna, and died. He who eats this bread will live forever'" (John 6:35-58).
So, those who have fed on Jesus (6:58), will live forever!
So, there is no such thing as one who has fed on Jesus, to receive life (6:57) and then loses that life. If one could feed on Jesus and not have eternal life, then 6:58 would not be true. 6:58 says,
"He who eats this bread (Jesus) will live forever" (John 6:58).
In this page you will see scriptures which clearly show that believers enter into eternal life at conversion... and that eternal life can not be lost. You will also see explanations of scriptures which some believe indicate that eternal life can be lost.
But first we must talk a little about predestination. Please continue reading and please read prayerfully. You have probably never heard what I am about to say.
Predestined at Conversion
At the time of our conversion, God predestined us to adoption as sons. So, at the time of our conversion our destiny was fixed, unchangeable, predetermined by God himself. This predestination occurred with each of us individually, at the time of our conversion. This is different from our predestination as a group, which occurred before the foundation of the world. Please prayerfully read the scriptures in this page and you will see.
“For whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers” (Romans 8:29).
To foreknow is to know before. Much has been added to this scripture, which is not in this scripture. I want to make sure that you have heard...
To foreknow is to know before.
Now, please prayerfully meditate on the passage from Romans:
"For whom he foreknew (knew before), he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers" (Romans 8:29).
The words in the parenthesis are not in the scripture. I added them to amplify the meaning of the word "foreknew".
To foreknow is to know before.
It’s as simple as this statement from the earthly realm:
"Whom I foreknew, I also married." In other words... whom I knew before, I also married.
This just means that I knew my wife before I married her.
Now, compare the two statements:
Whom I foreknew, I also married.
Whom he foreknew, he also predestined
The first statement just means that I knew my wife before I married her. So, when the scripture said “whom he foreknew, he also predestined”, it is only saying that He knew us before he predestined us.
Here is the passage again:
"For whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers" (Romans 8:29).
As I said before, to foreknow is to know before. So God knew us before He predestined us to be conformed to the image of His Son.
And when did God come to know us?
According to scripture, God came to know us at conversion. The following scripture proves this:
“8 However at that time, not knowing God, you were in bondage to those who by nature are not gods. 9 But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God..." (Galatians 4:8-9).
Verse 8 speaks of a time in their past when they didn't know God. But verse 9 says that "now" they have come to know God and to be known by God. So, they were physically alive before they came to be known by God. Coming to know God (conversion) is the same event as coming to be known by God ("have come to know God, or rather to be known by God"). And according to John 17:3, knowing God is the same thing as eternal life, which we receive when we first believe. I will explain this in the section below titled, "Eternal Life is Now".
I will repeat the verse from Galatians:
"8 However at that time, not knowing God, you were in bondage to those who by nature are not gods. 9 But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God..." (Galatians 4:8-9).
This verse tells us that God came to know us after our physical birth... He came to know us when we first believed... at our spiritual birth... at conversion. And the previous verse from Romans tells us that God predestined us at conversion to be conformed to Christ’s image… to adoption as sons. I will repeat the scripture from Romans again:
“For whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers" (Romans 8:29).
God knew us before He predestined us. So we were converted before He predestined us to be conformed to the image of His son. Nothing can thwart what God has predestined.
Nothing
Nothing
NOTHING
NOTHING can thwart what God has predestined!
Many of you are uncomfortable with the word "predestination". You need not be. Much has been added to that word which is not in that word. The word does not mean that God made a pre-birth arbitrary choice to create certain individuals with the certain destination of Heaven and to create all other individuals with the certain destination of Hell. To read more, go to “Odds and Ends” in the appendix and click "What Does Ephesians 1:4 mean? Chose Us Before the Foundation of the World". Or, you may simply click here.
Can We be Born Again, Again?
During the first forty years after my conversion I seldom had a firm opinion about this issue of "once saved, always saved". I really didn't see that scripture made a clear case for either side of this debate. Sometimes I thought that possibly God had not chosen to reveal this truth in scripture. Other times I wondered if I didn't clearly understand passages which appeared to support both sides.
I have worshiped in congregations on both sides of this question over the half century since I came to know Christ, or as scripture says... came to be known by God (Galatians 4:8-9).
"8 However at that time, not knowing God, you were in bondage to those who by nature are not gods. 9 But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God..." (Galatians 4:8-9).
We have already examined certain aspects of this passage. I will now focus on this passage again in a different way. This is the apostle Paul writing to the churches of Galatia (v 1:2). With respect to all of those people, Paul was saying that there was a time when they did not know God. We know this because he wrote "at that time, not knowing God" in verse 8. He didn't write "at one of those times". If Paul had written "at one of those times" he would have indicated that we convert, un-convert, convert, then un-convert, etc... in continuously alternating states. But no, Paul does not write as if we come to know God many times in our lives. Paul presumes that converts have one and only one conversion. We can not be born again, again.
Notice that God did not know us (4:9) before the foundation of the world, but that He came to know us after our physical birth (4:8)... after we did not know Him (4:8). I mention this so you will not think that Ephesians 1:4-5 which was mentioned earlier means that God knew us before the foundation of the world. Click here for more on Ephesians 1:4-5. Click here to see that our names are written "from" the foundation of the world, not "before" the foundation of the world.
Eternal Life is Now
I will repeat the passage again from Galatians:
"8 However at that time, not knowing God, you were in bondage to those who by nature are not gods. 9 But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God..." (Galatians 4:8-9).
What does "knowing God' (v 8) have to do with eternal life?
Knowing God IS eternal life:
- "This is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and him whom you sent, Jesus Christ' (John 17:3).
In this verse Jesus was speaking to God.
Do you see it? Knowing God and Jesus = eternal life.
He is defining eternal life:
- "This is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and him whom you sent, Jesus Christ" (John 17:3).
So, if you know God and Jesus, you have eternal life.
You have eternal life now, if you know God and Jesus:
- "Most certainly I tell you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life, and doesn't come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life' (John 5:24).
The phrase "has eternal life" is in the present tense. In other words, believers have the life which is eternal. This is life which lasts forever. Eternal means never ending. In other words, this is the life which can never end. It can't end because it is eternal. Do you hear?
If you currently posses eternal life... but could lose that eternal life... it wouldn't be eternal.. would it?
In other words, eternal life which you can lose is a contradiction in its-self. Can you have dry water? Can you have boiling ice? No. Neither can you receive an eternal life which is temporary.
God keeps you from stumbling:
"Now to him who is able to keep them from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory in great joy" (Jude 24).
Prayerful Observations:
Note that it is God who is able to keep you from stumbling. Jesus said "apart from Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5). He is able to present you faultless. These are things that God does. He keeps you from stumbling. He is able to present you faultless. So, if there were something you could do to lose eternal life, He is able to keep you from doing it.
God keeps you from the Great White Throne Judgement:
- "27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks the Lord's cup in a way unworthy of the Lord will be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread, and drink of the cup. 29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy way eats and drinks judgment to himself if he doesn't discern the Lord's body. 30 For this cause many among you are weak and sickly, and not a few sleep. 31 For if we discerned ourselves, we wouldn't be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are punished by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world" (1 Corinthians 11:27-32).
Prayerful Observations:
Some in the Corinthian church were getting drunk at communion on communion wine (1 Corinthians 11:21). God responded to this irreverence by believers by bringing sickness (v 30) and death (v30). The word Sleep in verse 30 is the word used for believers who have died and whose body's are waiting for the resurrection. God brings sickness or death so that the believers "may not be condemned with the world" (v 32). The illness is a discipline. Possibly God brings death for those whom He knows will not respond to discipline. Regardless, our loving God will take action to prevent you from being "condemned with the world". Death is not bad for the believer. For the believer, death is the portal to Heaven.
There are two judgments. One is the judgement seat of Christ, which is for believers (2 Corinthians 5:10). If you read verses 5:5-10 you will see that this judgement is for believers. This is not a judgement which may send a believer into Hell. The other judgement is the Great White Throne Judgement (Revelation 20:11), which is for unbelievers. Those whose names are not written in the Book of Life (unbelievers) are thrown into the Lake of Fire.
Let me repeat the passage:
"30 For this cause many among you are weak and sickly, and not a few sleep. 31 For if we discerned ourselves, we wouldn't be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are punished by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world" (1 Corinthians 11:27-32).
God will keep His children from being condemned with the world. He will keep us from the Lake of Fire even if He must take our physical life to save us from that eternal fire.
Falling Away and Severe Consequence of Sin
The above passages do not encourage believers to sin. Believers can "fall away" but God will not allow us to fall to the point of damnation, to be "condemned with the world" as the above passage plainly states. To the contrary, sin in the believer may result in sickness or death as indicated also in the previous section. Sickness may be a discipline to restore us to fellowship with God. Death could come when God discerns that one will not respond to discipline. God's discipline can be very severe... discipline which in the next section is figuratively described in scripture as burning, as with fire, to RESTORE the disobedient into fellowship. So, in God's gift of eternal life, which once received can not be lost, He does not encourage us to sin. To the contrary, we are to
- "present our bodies as a living sacrifice" (Romans 12:1)
- "bring every thought into the captivity of Christ" (2 Corinthians 10:5) Click here to learn how.
- Maintain our testimony of Jesus, even to the death
"They overcame him because of the Lamb's blood, and because of the word of their testimony. They didn't love their life, even to death" (Revelation 12:11).
But if we sin, we do not lose eternal life.
Does falling away mean loss of eternal life?
I have heard some say that "falling away" means loss of eternal life and that one who falls away must be born again, again. But one can not be born again, again.
"then fell away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance; seeing they crucify the Son of God for themselves again," (Hebrews 6:6).
At the time one is born again... in the spiritual realm we were crucified with Christ, into His death (Galatians 2:20, Romans 6:4-5). Christ will not be crucified again, so there is only one crucifixion (6:6). The section above titled, "Can We Be Born Again, Again?" explained that there is only one conversion.
I suggest that you read Hebrews 6:1-9 for context. This passage does not represent the loss of eternal life.
It speaks in figurative language of one who was born again, who fell away into disobedience like land bearing thorns and thistles, which is burned as a discipline to bring the land (the Christian) back into a state to bear a suitable crop.
Here is the relevant portion of the passage:
"For concerning those who were once enlightened and tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 and then fell away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance; seeing they crucify the Son of God for themselves again, and put him to open shame. 7 For the land which has drunk the rain that comes often on it and produces a crop suitable for them for whose sake it is also tilled, receives blessing from God; 8 but if it bears thorns and thistles, it is rejected and near being cursed, whose end is to be burned" (Hebrews 6:4-8).
I will now show you more clearly why Hebrews 6:1-9 does not represent the loss of eternal life. The passage speaks in figurative language of one who was born again (6:4, "partakers of the Holy Spirit"), who "fell away" into disobedience (6:6), like "land" (6:7), bearing "thorns and thistles" (6:8), which is "burned" (6:8) as a discipline to bring the "land" (6:7, the child of God), back into a state to bear a suitable "crop" (6:7).
Burning land (6:8) to burn the seeds of weeds was and is a common practice to bring about a weed free crop in the following year. Burning land was not done to destroy the land. It was done to RESTORE the land. The original hearers of Hebrews 6:1-9 would have understood that, as would any who understood agriculture (6:7).
This person was not cursed... but was "near being cursed". The purpose of burning was to restore, not damn. Burning is the "end" (6:8) of land which bears "thorns and thistles" to restore the land into land which "produces a crop suitable". The Greek word translated as "end" is the word telos, which means end or goal.
Can God's discipline be described as "fire" and "burned"? Yes it can. Please observe:
- "For you, God, have tested us. You have refined us, as silver is refined. You brought us into prison. You laid a burden on our backs. You allowed men to ride over our heads. We went through fire and through water, but you brought us to the place of abundance" (Psalm 66:10-12).
- "Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver. I have chosen you in the furnace of affliction" (Isaiah 48:10).
Can you stop believing?
Can one believe and then stop believing? In other words, can one be an unbeliever in the present, but have been a believer in the past? John 3:18 answers that question. It expressly states that one who does not believe in the present did not believe in the past. Please prayerfully consider verse eighteen:
- "17 For God didn't send his Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through him. 18 He who believes in him is not judged. He who doesn't believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God" (John 3:17-18).
Verse eighteen says, "He who doesn't believe"... "has not believed". I will repeat the passage and insert the tense in parenthesis:
- "He who doesn't believe (present tense) has been judged already, because he has not believed" (past tense).
In other words, one who doesn't believe in the present did not believe in the past. So, it is not possible to believe and then stop believing.
There are many other passages that shed light on this truth. Please prayerfully consider...
- "Christ is faithful as a Son over his house. We are his house, if we hold fast our confidence and the glorying of our hope firm to the end" (Hebrews 3:6).
- "Christ is faithful as a Son over his house. We are his house, if we hold fast our confidence and the glorying of our hope firm to the end" (Hebrews 3:6).
We will know that a person was truly a part of Christ's family if that person continues to trust in Him to the end. There is no such thing as one who has a true confession and then truly recants that confession. One who confessed Christ and later recanted that confession had faith without root (Luke 8:13). The one who recanted faith never truly believed. He had faith without root (Matthew 13:6). (Faith without root will be explained further down this page).
Here is the passage again:
- "Christ is faithful as a Son over his house. We are his house, if we hold fast our confidence and the glorying of our hope firm to the end" (Hebrews 3:6).
- "Christ is faithful as a Son over his house. We are his house, if we hold fast our confidence and the glorying of our hope firm to the end" (Hebrews 3:6).
Please observe the phrase "are his house". Notice that the word "are" is in the present tense. Notice also that "our hope firm to the end" is in the future. People who believe that this passage indicates that one can loose eternal life unintentionally understand the tense of the word "are" to be a future tense instead of the present tense. They make the mistake of understanding this sentence as if it reads "We will be his house, if we hold fast our confidence and the glorying of our hope firm to the end". It doesn't say that. It says "We are his house, if we hold fast our confidence..."
To illustrate that the sentence presents a future state as the proof of a present state, consider the following analogy:
The squirrel said to the monkey, "I am a fish". The monkey said, "You are a fish, if you can stay under water for two hours." So the monkey held the squirrel under water and the squirrel died. The monkey said, "Squirrels are not fish".
The monkey identified the present state of the squirrel by a future condition. (You are a fish, if you can stay under water for two hours.)
"We are his house, if we hold fast our confidence and the glorying of our hope firm to the end" (Hebrews 3:6).
The present state, ("are his house"), is identified by a future condition, ("hold fast our confidence... firm to the end").
So, "hold fast our confidence and the glorying of our hope firm to the end" are words of identification. They are not words of causation. Future conduct identifies those who "are his house". Once that future conduct has occurred, it will have identified those who were His house in the past.
Matthew 24:13 is similar, "But he who endures to the end will be saved". The endurance of faith proves that the faith was authentic. The words "he who" are words of identification, not causation. Here is an example of words of causation: "by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works" (Ephesians 2:8-9). The words "by" and "through" are words of causation. The words "he who" are words of identification. This is obvious once we think about it.
Another passage with a similar message is Colossians 1:21-23: "You, being in past times alienated and enemies in your mind in your evil deeds, yet now he has reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without defect and blameless before him, if it is so that you continue in the faith..." (Colossians 1:21-23).
So, in Colossians 1:21-23, we are "now" "reconciled", if we "continue in the faith" in the future. Future continuance in the faith will identify those who are now reconciled to God. Once one continues to the end in faith, it could then be said that one's continuance proved that that one was reconciled in the past.
To partake of Christ is permanent:
- "For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence firm to the end" (Hebrews 3:14).
We will know that a person was truly a part of Christ if that person continues to trust in Christ to the end. The message of this verse is very similar to Hebrews 3:6 which we read earlier in this section. The present state of being a partaker in Christ is proved by holding "confidence firm to the end". There is no such thing as one who has a true confession and then truly recants that confession. One who confessed Christ and later recanted that confession had faith without root. The one who recanted faith never truly believed. He had faith without root.
Faith Without Root
Faith without root is one of the ten varieties of faith described in subchapter 2.6 titled, "What Variety of Faith do you Have?". Faith without root is a temporary faith based on a superficial consideration which is not viable from its beginning... Faith without root is not the kind of faith that brings eternal life (Luke 8:13, Matthew 13:6). The Bible Knowledge Commentary by Zuck is helpful on these passages. Faith without root may explain Colossians 1:23 ("if you continue in the faith").
Let me explain from the scriptures:
In the parable of the Sower, the word of God is sown on four types of soil. 1) beside the road, 2) on rocky soil 3) in thorns and 4) in good soil. If you would like to read the parable, it is found in Luke 8:4-15. It is also found in Matthew 13:1-23 and Mark 4:1-20. Faith without root is the rocky soil in the parable of the sower. If we consider all three gospel accounts of this parable, we will receive a more complete understanding of "faith without root". Here are relevant excerpts from each account.
Mark 4:5
"Others fell on the rocky ground, where it had little soil, and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of soil."
Luke 8:6
"as soon as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture"
Luke 8:13
"Those on the rock are they who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; but these have no root, who believe for a while, then fall away in time of temptation."
Matthew 13:6
"When the sun had risen, they were scorched. Because they had no root, they withered away."
Prayerful Observations:
In Mark 4:5, we see that this seed "immediately sprang up". Luke 8:6 reveals that "as soon as it grew up, it withered away". Luke 8:13 shows that they had "no root" and only "believe for a while". Temptation or testing is the catalyst for the disappearance of this variety of faith. Matthew 13:6 shows that the reason they withered was because they had "no root". Mark 4:17 says "they have not root in themselves."
So the seed, the word of God, was on them but not in them.
These passages also link "no root" to "no depth of soil" and "no moisture".
As I said before, faith without root is a temporary faith based on a superficial consideration which is not viable from its beginning.
The immediate reception of the truth, followed immediately by withering upon the first test or temptation indicates a response based on a superficial consideration. It is like a man who was asked "Is that boat safe?" After a quick glance at the boat, he said, "sure". But when asked to get into the boat, he thought about it and said "No, that boat may sink."
That man expressed a temporary faith based on a superficial consideration which was not viable from its beginning.
Here is the passage from Luke:
"Other seed fell on the rock, and as soon as it grew, it withered away, because it had no moisture... Those on the rock are they who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; but these have no root, who believe for a while, then fall away in time of temptation" (Luke 8:6, 13). He said that they experienced a temporary, joyful, rootless, reception of (faith in) the word.
He did not say that the growth from the seed indicated life in the person. Though the seed, God's word1, sprang up or grew2, the seed had no root in the person3. A plant growing from a seed but with no root, grows only from the life present in the seed (God's word), having no connection with the soil (the person). The word of God is alive (Hebrews 4:12). But Jesus did not say that those of rocky soil ever had life.
1) Matthew 13:19, Mark 4:14, Luke 8:11
2) Matthew 13:5, Mark 4:5, Luke 8:6
3) Matthew 13:6,21; Mark 4:6,17; Luke 8:13
Every aspect of the actions and characters in parables do not contribute to the intended meaning of a parable. Jesus himself interpreted this parable and did not say that the growth meant life. He said that it meant a temporary, joyful, rootless, reception of (faith in) the word.
Jesus did not say that those of rocky soil had life and then lost life. Jesus did not interpret all of His parables. But He did interpret this one. We should not draw conclusions from it which He Himself did not draw.
Faith without root is a temporary faith based on a superficial consideration which is not viable from its beginning
One should not assert that a temporary, joyful, rootless, immediate reception of (faith in) the word brings about eternal life. This is illogical on its face. It results in an eternal life that is temporary... an eternal life that is not eternal. To assert that one had eternal life temporarily is a contradiction in its-self.
Jesus said "One who believes in the Son has eternal life, but one who disobeys the Son won't see life, but the wrath of God remains on him" (John 3:36). One who believes in the Son has eternal life in the present. If he could lose it, it would not have been "eternal."
Is it possible that the person of the rocky soil in Luke 8:13 who believed temporarily and then stopped believing could have eternal life because that person believed for a moment? No. That would mean that one who does not believe has eternal life. "He who believes in him is not judged. He who doesn't believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God" (John 3:18).
That resolves the issue of eternal security.
Are salvation and eternal life the same thing?
That question demands another question: Which type of salvation are you talking about?
You may have heard the expression "once saved, always saved". Those who use this expression are communicating one of the possible meanings of the word "saved". In this expression, the word "saved" is intended to mean "eternal life".
There is much confusion over this word "saved". I mean that there is confusion over what the word actually means according to scripture. The term "saved" has come to be the equivalent of "eternal life" to many.
But the English word "saved" does not mean "eternal life". It essentially means deliverance.
When I was five years old, a woman ran into the second floor of our burning home and "saved" me from the flames. Nearly sixty years from that day I still remember the terror in her eyes as she screamed. Some have been saved from drowning by a life jacket or saved from death by medicine. My earthly father saved a woman from strangulation. He beat her assailant unconscious with his fist. Some might even call her salvation a miraculous one, considering the size and youth of her attacker in contrast to my father who was 67 and recovering from five-way bypass heart surgery.
These uses of the word "saved", while indicating great and powerful deliverance... do not indicate a deliverance into eternal life. They do not indicate a deliverance from eternal Hell.
By Hell, I mean the state of eternal absence from the grace, presence, power, peace and ecstasy of God. By Hell, I also mean the eternal absence from the sensual and egotistical crutches used in the present age as woefully insufficient substitutes for the grace, presence, power, peace and ecstasy of God. See 2 Thessalonians 1:9. Hell is "eternal fire" (Matthew 24:41).
But, upon faith in Jesus Christ, I am "saved" from eternal damnation... that particular use of the word "saved" refers to "eternal life". This is the greatest and most powerful deliverance of all time... one that only God Almighty, full of undefeatable grace, can accomplish.
Jesus said:
- "Most certainly I tell you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life, and doesn't come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life' (John 5:24).
Notice the phrase "eternal life".
Those who believe have "eternal life".
Now consider this passage:
- "Pay attention to yourself and to your teaching. Continue in these things, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you" (1 Timothy 4:16).
Salvation (deliverance) comes to both Timothy and others if Timothy pays attention to himself. It doesn't mean that everyone who hears Timothy will be saved (delivered). But people will be saved (delivered) through Timothy. Timothy didn't receive eternal life every time he paid attention to himself and his teaching. He did save himself and others in the sense that they maintained fellowship with God by obeying.
But, if we distort the word "saved" to be identical to "eternal life" we create a contradiction. John 5:24 above said that eternal life came to those who believe. But the condition for eternal life in 1 Timothy 4:16, according to this restricted meaning of "saved", would be for Timothy to "pay attention" to himself. This manufactured contradiction is not in the scripture. This artificial contradiction arises from presuming that "saved" equals "eternal life". The terms are not equivalent, in either secular or scriptural usage.
If you presume that "saved" equals "eternal life", you will create contradictions as you read scripture.
My point is this:
The meaning of the English word "saved" is broad enough to include the meaning of the English phrase "eternal life". But "saved" can mean other forms of deliverance that fall short of the deliverance of "eternal life". Being saved from fire, water or physical death are examples.
Here is an example from the Old Testament:
When God delivered Israel from slavery in Egypt, Pharaoh's army chased Israel through the Red Sea and Moses spoke to Israel about "salvation":
"13 Moses said to the people, "Don't be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of Yahweh, which he will work for you today; for you will never again see the Egyptians whom you have seen today" (Exodus 14:13).
Then God destroyed the army of Pharaoh in the Red Sea. This salvation had nothing to do with eternal life. This "salvation" was a physical deliverance from an earthly, physical enemy. God "saved" Israel from a king who intended to kill them.
The word salvation in this passage in Exodus had nothing to do with "eternal life".
My point is this. The word "salvation" in the Bible does not always mean "eternal life". So, while there may be verses in the Bible which suggest that salvation can be lost... they mean that one will not receive deliverance from something... perhaps deliverance from a particular sin in this life. They don't mean that "eternal life" may be lost.
If you want to understand "eternal life" according to scripture, you must first look at scriptures which use the phrase "eternal life". When we see the word "saved" in scripture, we must look to the context to determine if the word means deliverance from eternal destruction or deliverance from something else.
If you will use a concordance and read all of the occurrences of the word saved in the Bible, you’ll find that the word saved almost never means eternal life. It is obvious from the context.
Context:
To test a doctrine, read the Post-Pentecost books of the Bible, Acts - Revelation, from beginning to end in one sitting. Read prayerfully, using one of the intimate reading methods from subchapter 1.1. Follow the flow of logic in each book and see if the doctrine fits the flow of logic.
The reason I suggest that you read the Post-Pentecost books is that they were written to saints who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit and are not under law. The age of the Spirit is the age in which we live. We are not under law. Subchapter A3, in the appendix titled, "After Pentecost: From the Law to the Sprit" explains this in detail from the scriptures.
All of the books prior to the book of Acts pertain to periods that were either under law or pre-law. The books under law provide a shadow of our age but not the complete picture. Mysteries are presented in those books. The mysteries are most completely revealed in the Post-Pentecost books. All together the Post-Pentecost books only have about 150 pages.
The Bible is a bit like a mystery novel. You may be confused and wondering as you read through the novel. But the final chapter reveals hidden things so that it all makes sense. Reading the last 150 pages in the Post-Pentecost books is like reading the final chapter of the mystery novel. After you read those books, the previous one-thousand pages can be read with much greater clarity. Then, as you read the previous one-thousand pages, these shadow books will help illuminate the Post-Pentecost books. They are all inspired.
I believe that God interacts with man in different ways in different ages for a reason. At the great judgement God will be able to say: "Whatever could have been tried to bring you to eternal life, I tried. I did everything that could have been done. I held out my hand to you all day, every day. I used one method in one age. I used other methods in other ages. I tried everything that could be tried. You who refused me are without excuse."
Do we lose eternal life when we sin?
Some say that eternal life is lost when we sin. That we get it back when we stop sinning. So, lets look at how the apostle Paul explained the Gospel and see if that fits. The word Gospel is a translation of the Greek word euangelion, which in the following translation is rendered as "Good News". The word saved is a translation of the Greek word sozo, which means deliverance. And, depending on the context, sozo could mean either physical or spiritual deliverance, with spiritual deliverance being deliverance in this life, then next life, or both. Please read the following scripture prayerfully, observing whether eternal life comes by belief or because we stop sinning.
The Gospel from 1 Corinthians:
"Now I declare to you, brothers, the Good News which I preached to you, which also you received, in which you also stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold firmly the word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to over five hundred brothers at once, most of whom remain until now, but some have also fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all, as to the child born at the wrong time, he appeared to me also. 9 For I am the least of the apostles, who is not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the assembly of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am. His grace which was given to me was not futile, but I worked more than all of them; yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. 11 Whether then it is I or they, so we preach, and so you believed" (1 Corinthians 15:1-11).
Paul didn't say that we are saved because we stop sinning. We are saved when we receive the gospel (v 1). In other words, we are saved when we believe (v 2,11). That really settles the issue of once saved always saved. The good news, as Paul explained it, pertains to who Christ is and what he did... clearly connecting it to faith in Christ... which according to John 3:16 is the condition of eternal life:
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life". (John 3:16).
So, the type of deliverance which the Good News produces, as indicated by the use of the word sozo, translated here as "saved" in verse 2, refers to eternal life. It does not refer to a physical deliverance from physical harm or a temporal spiritual deliverance as the word saved often indicates.
In case you are wondering about the phrase "believed in vain" (v 2), I believe that this refers to "faith without root". Faith without root was described above and in subchapter 2.6 titled, "What Variety of Faith do You Have?".
Objections to This Page
I have received an argument against the view presented in this page. It is discussion topic #49 which may be read by clicking here.
Links to Other Pages on Predestination
- What Does Acts 13:48 Mean? As many as were appointed to eternal life believed
- What Does 2 Thessalonians 2:13 Mean? God chose you from the beginning for salvation
- What Does Ephesians 1:4 Mean? Chosen Before the Foundation of the World
- What Do Revelation 13:8 and 17:8 Mean? Names written BEFORE the foundation of the world in the book of life