Leaving Christianity

[elman]

QFT. I know there are other believers who would disagree with me, but not everyone who claims to be a Christian is truly and genuinely saved. First John 2:19 says, “They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.” This Scripture makes it abundantly clear that there is no such thing as an ex-Christian. If a person who claimed to be a Christian denies the faith, he or she wasn't a genuine Christian to begin with. The Bible makes it clear that not everyone who names the Name of Christ is genuinely saved.

Jesus said, "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'" (Matthew 7:21-23). He spoke of true and false conversion through His Parables:the Sower (Mark 4:3-8); the wheat and tares (Matthew 13:24-30); the wise virgins and the foolish virgins (Matthew 25:1-13); the dragnet (Matthew 13:47-51); and the sheep and goats (Matthew 25:31-46). True and false converts will be alongside each other in the Church, and will be separated by God on the Day of Judgment. There are people who have “tasted” and “sampled” Jesus Christ, without ever actually receiving Him as Savior.

Many who profess Christ with their lips deny Him by their own words and actions. They have found religion, but they have not found a new life in Christ. They are not being transformed by the renewing of their mind (Romans 12:2) nor have they "crucified the flesh" (Romans 13:14; Galatians 5:24). Jesus said His disciples would be known by the fruit they bear (John 15:8; Galatians 5:22). If someone who professes Christ does not repent of their sins, they will have a false conversion (Mark 4:16-17). The Bible says that they must "depart from iniquity" (2 Timothy 2:19). No one who has truly and fully trusted in Christ as Savior could ever deny Him.

Actually once saved always saved is from man not God. God never binds us to Him by force. We are all volunteers and like the prodical son we can leave if we wish. Look at Ezekiel 18. The righteous can turn to wickedness and if they do they will die and not live. Their turning to wickedness does not prove they were never righteous.

 

[E.C.]

What causes seemingly dedicated Christians to give up the faith? I know of some people who go from fundamentalists to atheists fairly quickly. What would cause them to do that? You see people like that on ex-christian.net.

When you say Fundamentalists, part of it is the fact that Fundamentalism is an extremely flawed system which leaves people with more questions than answers.

 

[aiki]

QFT. I know there are other believers who would disagree with me, but not everyone who claims to be a Christian is truly and genuinely saved. First John 2:19 says, “They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.” This Scripture makes it abundantly clear that there is no such thing as an ex-Christian. If a person who claimed to be a Christian denies the faith, he or she wasn't a genuine Christian to begin with. The Bible makes it clear that not everyone who names the Name of Christ is genuinely saved.

Jesus said, "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'" (Matthew 7:21-23). He spoke of true and false conversion through His Parables:the Sower (Mark 4:3-8); the wheat and tares (Matthew 13:24-30); the wise virgins and the foolish virgins (Matthew 25:1-13); the dragnet (Matthew 13:47-51); and the sheep and goats (Matthew 25:31-46). True and false converts will be alongside each other in the Church, and will be separated by God on the Day of Judgment. There are people who have “tasted” and “sampled” Jesus Christ, without ever actually receiving Him as Savior.

Many who profess Christ with their lips deny Him by their own words and actions. They have found religion, but they have not found a new life in Christ. They are not being transformed by the renewing of their mind (Romans 12:2) nor have they "crucified the flesh" (Romans 13:14; Galatians 5:24). Jesus said His disciples would be known by the fruit they bear (John 15:8; Galatians 5:22). If someone who professes Christ does not repent of their sins, they will have a false conversion (Mark 4:16-17). The Bible says that they must "depart from iniquity" (2 Timothy 2:19). No one who has truly and fully trusted in Christ as Savior could ever deny Him.

Amen!

 

[DiligentlySeekingGod]

Actually once saved always saved is from man not God. God never binds us to Him by force. We are all volunteers and like the prodical son we can leave if we wish. Look at Ezekiel 18. The righteous can turn to wickedness and if they do they will die and not live. Their turning to wickedness does not prove they were never righteous.

Matthew 7:13-14: Jesus said, "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it."

Matthew 7:21-23: Jesus said, "Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’"

John 10: 25-30: Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The works I do in My Father’s name testify about Me, but you do not believe because you are not My sheep. 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. I and the Father are one.”

If a person leaves Christianity, then he or she was not genuinely saved in the first place (true and false converts). Scripture is very clear about this, as I have already cited multiple passages to verify it. You only cited Ezekiel 18. Personal opinions about salvation and other matters of the Christian faith and practice, without the validation and confirmation of Scripture, being in agreement with the whole of Scripture, are rather invalid IMO. And attempting to prove your position or beliefs on a single chapter in the Bible is also moot, IMO. 2 Timothy 2:15 tells us to do our best to present ourselves to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth. However, with that being said, I don't think this thread would be the appropriate place to discuss our different interpretations of Scripture and personal beliefs.

 

[RisingSpirit]

This Scripture makes it abundantly clear that there is no such thing as an ex-Christian.

Quote of the year:
"There is no such thing as an ex-Christian"

 

[RisingSpirit]

Actually once saved always saved is from man not God. God never binds us to Him by force.

God keeps His promises. It's positive in being saved. Being saved is knowing that God will keep his promises. Broken Promises means not saved? Never was broken to begin with. God don't break promises.

 

[DiligentlySeekingGod]

God keeps His promises. It's positive in being saved. Being saved is knowing that God will keep his promises. Broken Promises means not saved? Never was broken to begin with. God don't break promises.

God promises, "My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of My lips" (Psalm 89:34). And He also promised, "So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it" (Isaiah 55:11). Psalm 105:8 says, "He will keep his agreement forever; He will keep His promises always.” Numbers 23:19 says, "God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?" Romans 8:28 says, "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." Nothing can separate a Christian from God’s love (Romans 8:38-39). Nothing can remove a Christian from God’s hand (John 10:28-29). He is both willing and able to guarantee and maintain the salvation He has given us. Jude 24-25 says, “To Him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy—to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” So, yes God definitely keeps His promises and He is most faithful.

 

[Handmaid for Jesus]

Ye must be born again! There are a lot of people calling themselves Christian who have never been born again.These are they that want others to think they are good people. The minute a bold Christian asks them "Have you been born again?" They get angry and say something like " I've been confirmed!" To which the bold Christian says "By whom? And I did not ask you if you had been confirmed. Have you been born again?" Not many can answer in the affirmative. Some people hang around the fire, others become the fire. Once you have been born of the Holy Spirit, there is no turning back. He is in you, He possesses you. You could not leave if you wanted to. But you will not want to. Because you know deep down in your bones, there is absolutely nowhere else to go.

 

[RisingSpirit]

Ye must be born again! There are a lot of people calling themselves Christian who have never been born again.These are they that want others to think they are good people. The minute a bold Christian asks them "Have you been born again?" They get angry and say something like " I've been confirmed!" To which the bold Christian says "By whom? And I did not ask you if you had been confirmed. Have you been born again?" Not many can answer in the affirmative. Some people hang around the fire, others become the fire. Once you have been born of the Holy Spirit, there is no turning back. He is in you, He possesses you. You could not leave if you wanted to. But you will not want to. Because you know deep down in your bones, there is absolutely nowhere else to go.

If you ask me then I'll say I hope so but it's up to God since the Bible states that it is God that predestines the Elects to Salvation and the goats on the Express Bus to Hell. Leave to the Bible and the answer will be I hope God predestined me to be the Elect. Everyday, every moment, I have hope and hope to face the right direction to the narrow road to the gates of Heaven. I rather fall to my face and break my face on my local gravitational surface and allow God to chose according to His own pleasure rather than mine.
Even the atheist can say, "I've been born again" or "I have been confirmed". You ask a child the say that and the punk will repeat what you asked him to say.

Coaching and convincing ain't the Gospel.
It's about Jesus Christ.

Proclaim the Story of Jesus and don't tease another that they have the ability to be sinless. If you know you're the elect then God doesn't need you to be there on Judgment day. What's the point of standing before Him if you know you have be born again and bypass the fields of judgment?

God keeps His promises to the Elects only, not to the Tares as it is in the Bible in plain view.

 

[RisingSpirit]

Matthew 7:13-14

Replying to this is the only way to contact you. How do I join the group you suggested? There are no option to click on.
Maybe I haven't posted enough to qualify.

 

[40creek]

I have to wonder why God inspired the inclusion of "The Upardonable Sin", if it is infact an impossibility. The unpardonable sin is exactly contrary to the once saved always saved philosophy. Heb 6:4
Bear in mind that I do not profess to know everything so if you can come up with verses that refute this and explain why these verses where inspired than I am trully willing to listen. Gods word is a lifetime study.

 

[Handmaid for Jesus]

click on her name and you will be taken directly to her profile page. leave a message.

 

[RisingSpirit]

click on her name and you will be taken directly to her profile page. leave a message.

Her messaging is turned off

 

[Handmaid for Jesus]

Even the atheist can say, "I've been born again"

Yes, but the Bible says no one can say Jesus is Lord without the Holy Spirit. So a good test is ask them to confess Jesus is my Lord. And If a person can say that you can be sure they are saved, and it does not matter which denomination they come from. But, be wary because the enemy has shown a way of talking around this. For instance JW"s will say "Jesus is Lord but not God." They contradict themselves in this statement proving that they will not own Jesus as their Lord. They will not say Jesus is my Lord.Mormons will say " the Mormon Jesus is my Lord". But they are talking about another Jesus and carry another Gospel. Atheist absolutely will not say Jesus is my Lord. If they do say it, it proves they are just backslidden Christians. Trust God to bring them in.

 

[RisingSpirit]

Yes, but the Bible says no one can say Jesus is Lord without the Holy Spirit. So a good test is ask them to confess Jesus is my Lord. And If a person can say that you can be sure they are saved, and it does not matter which denomination they come from.

This reminds me that the Catholics claims it's impossible to get germs of the communion cup shared with all. They say they've never in their life seen anyone get sick off shared cups. Maybe your claim might be true.

I'm on my own with my own observation since there's no difference between a weak atheists and an agnostic and the agnostics aren't sure about anything even when they say Jesus is Lord. I would never say they can't say that.

 

[Handmaid for Jesus]

I'm on my own with my own observation since there's no difference between a weak atheists and an agnostic and the agnostics aren't sure about anything even when they say Jesus is Lord. I would never say they can't say that.

Oh I would never on my own say a person could not say anything. But I trust the Spirit and the Word that says they cannot say Jesus is my Lord.

 

[ToHoldNothing]

I'm on my own with my own observation since there's no difference between a weak atheists and an agnostic and the agnostics aren't sure about anything even when they say Jesus is Lord. I would never say they can't say that.

The group called agnostic is rarer than the groups of people that are agnostic atheist or agnostic theist. Agnostics seem to be closer to a radical skeptic, or Pyrrhonist, that reserves judgment on everything. But an agnostic atheist or agnostic theist share a similar epistemological judgment that God cannot be absolutely known or proven in any philosophical or scientific way, but can be believed in or disbelieved in by personal convictions.

It's both intellectually dishonest and disingenous to try to confuse weak and soft atheism as classifications of degree of disbelief with agnosticism and gnosticism, which are concerned with whether knowledge about God in itself is possible, which I don't think even Christians believe in; any knowledge about God is revealed and indirect, not direct in seeing God face to face.

 

[RisingSpirit]

Oh I would never on my own say a person could not say anything. But I trust the Spirit and the Word that says they cannot say Jesus is my Lord.

Since I was on my own as an observer and denied what men tells me, I discovered by observation that I had Faith and recognized that it was God that gave me a Gift of Faith. I discovered by simple observation that the Bible was right and that it is God the predestines the Elects to Salvation before they were born.

I'm certain that I didn't create faith on my own.

 

[RisingSpirit]

The group called agnostic is rarer than the groups of people that are agnostic atheist or agnostic theist. Agnostics seem to be closer to a radical skeptic, or Pyrrhonist, that reserves judgment on everything.

All men disbelieved. God called and NONE answered. All was born to be on the fairy roller coaster ride to the pits. Adam and Eve was kicked out of the land of honesty. Adam came foot to butt with God and got kicked out. God footprint is still on Adam's butt.

 

[Handmaid for Jesus]

All men disbelieved. God called and NONE answered. All was born to be on the fairy roller coaster ride to the pits. Adam and Eve was kicked out of the land of honesty. Adam came foot to butt with God and got kicked out. God footprint is still on Adam's butt.

LOL!