Burning Questions: What do you mean you don’t believe “once-saved-always-saved”?
Burning Questions part 3: What do you mean you don’t believe once-saved-always-saved?
Burning Questions:
“What do you mean you don’t believe in once-saved-always-saved?
So, what’s with this question? What’s it about or what’s behind it?
a.This question is about a doctrine commonly held within the Reformed or Calvinist tradition, for example think Baptists, Presbyterians or United Church of Christ.
b.This doctrine or belief states that once you have been saved, you can never lose your salvation.
c.The belief is that God’s grace will always keep you, and that no matter what you do, you will be finally saved and spend eternity with Christ
Salvation becomes like that sign you see at the store “All sales are final, absolutely no returns.”
Scriptures that seem to uphold this view:
John 10:28-29
1 Peter 1:5
Philippians 1:6
So, Whats the Big deal? I think we can encounter a two-fold problem.
First, if we are leaning heavy into the idea that once we are saved, we are automatically saved forever, our corrupt sinful nature will cause us to put too much emphasis on what we did in the past, rather than how we live currently.
Secondly, to lean heavily on the idea that we are once saved and always saved is to minimize or ignore the many, many scriptures that point to the necessity of believers growth, persistence, and continued response to the call of Christ.
Philippians 3:12-14
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
Hebrews 3:12-14
See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end.
Jesus argued against once saved always saved, giving us a very clear warning about falling away and the urgency of persistence in our faith.
Matthew 24:12-13
Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.
So, do you believe in once-saved-always-saved?
We believe that those in Christ can rest assured that they are saved, that those who love Him and desire to surrender to Him don’t have to worry that God will abandon them. We believe that a person’s relationship with God is just that – a relationship. And that a person can, sadly, choose to abandon that relationship.
As with many of our questions throughout this series, we are challenged to evaluate our own hearts, our own “position” if you will on the matter.
How is your relationship with Jesus? Right now?
How is your race of Faith going today? are you still in it?
Has the cooling wind of lawlessness cooled your once white-hot devotion to God?
The beauty of all of this is that you can decide right now to love Jesus actively. Your love doesn’t have to grow or remain cold.