salvation

[oxo]

can you lose your salvation?

 

[Albion]

This very question is the subject of discussion on the Christian Apologetics forum right now.

 

[MWood]

NO!
As soon as you believe in the death, burial, and ressurection of Jesus you are sealed into the Body of Christ by the Holy Spirit and nothing can take you out. Not even anything that you do or say.

 

[damascusroad]

No. .......... and that is NOT a license to sin. God forbid!

 

[iambren]

Being truly saved, NO!

 

[DiligentlySeekingGod]

Can someone lose their salvation? - thread in the Christian Apologetics forum.

 

[MrJim]

Yes

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples..." Jn 8:31ESV

Col1:21-23 And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds,yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach—if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister. NASB

Rom11:19-24 You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.”Quite right, they were broken off for their unbelief, but you stand by your faith. Do not be conceited, but fear; for if God did not spare the natural branches, He will not spare you, either. Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness, if you continue in His kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off. And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. For if you were cut off from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and were grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these who are the natural branches be grafted into their own olive tree? NASB

There are so many warning "if" verses in the NT not to ignore them. Some of the traditions that teach a believer can become lost/apostate are Lutheran, Weslyan (Methodist/Nazarene), Free-Will Baptist, Anabaptist (Mennonite, Brethren), Eastern Orthodox and more; and yes there are plenty of "Conservatives" in these groups .

 

[ALoveDivine]

No. Perseverance in faith is necessary for final salvation, but all those who are truly saved will persevere in faith because they are kept by the power of God through enduring, saving faith (Jude 24, 1 Peter 1:5). We are kept by God's power, not by our own strength.

If salvation could be lost we would not be saved by grace, we would be working for our salvation. Conditional security is ultimately a form of works-righteousness, even though its adherents would try to deny that. It would mean one is not saved when they put their faith in Christ, but only when that person dies if they have been righteous enough or faithful enough. We are saved by grace, not by works. We are accounted righteous only by the imputed righteousness of Christ; we have no righteousness of our own to offer God.

Eternal security is biblical, but perseverance is a key part of that truth. Perseverance without security is wrong, security without perseverance is wrong. The Perseverance of the Saints is the biblically accurate doctrine describing the believers security, and it effectively harmonizes the variety of verses on this topic.

For more:

Is eternal security biblical?
Is eternal security a "license" to sin?
What is conditional security?
Perseverance of the Saints - is it biblical?
Can a Christian lose salvation?
http://www.gotquestions.org/apostasy-salvation.html

 

[damascusroad]

No. Perseverance in faith is necessary for final salvation, but all those who are truly saved will persevere in faith because they are kept by the power of God through enduring, saving faith (Jude 24, 1 Peter 1:5). We are kept by God's power, not by our own strength.

Yes, and Amen. Not by might, not by power, but by Thy Spirit.

 

[lismore]

It's not your salvation. It's God's salvation given to you as a gift, unmerited, unearned.

 

[Living in the Light]

No. However, earthly punishment or reaping the seeds we have sown comes to all of us.

 

[bro jim]

No

 

[Rhamiel]

yes
or else it would make no sense when St.Paul writes that he is working out his salvation with fear and trembling

 

[Albion]

yes
or else it would make no sense when St.Paul writes that he is working out his salvation with fear and trembling

It's very appparent that that verse isn't to be taken literally, however. It would be impossible, in fact, because if it were taken literally, it would mean that Paul would be saving himself--which even your church doesn't think is possible.

 

[bbbbbbb]

It's very appparent that that verse isn't to be taken literally, however. It would be impossible, in fact, because if it were taken literally, it would mean that Paul would be saving himself--which even your church doesn't think is possible.

Not to mention the small detail that Paul immediately follows the verse in question with -

13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

 

[ALoveDivine]

Paul says to "work out" your salvation, not "work for" your salvation. That's a big difference. Just as Paul says elsewhere to examine yourself to see whether you are in the faith, so here he is exhorting professing Christians to "work out" whether they are truly redeemed. That's the first sense of the statement.

The second sense is as an encouragement for Christians to live the Christian life with reverence and indeed fear, lest we offend the thrice holy living God whom we love. But there is nothing in this verse that suggests we could lose our salvation. If that is what he meant then he would have contradicted himself.

"But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness."
- Romans 4:5

 

[Rhamiel]

Not to mention the small detail that Paul immediately follows the verse in question with -

13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

ofcourse we believe salvation is from God working within us
but people are also free to reject that salvation

Adam and Eve were created free of all sin and they were able to choose sin and thus break friendship with God

I think the mindset that those who are "truly born again" will not fall away leads Christians into the mindset of judging others and has born much bad fruit in denominations that teach that

 

[Albion]

Paul says to "work out" your salvation, not "work for" your salvation. That's a big difference.

Agreed...and thank you for that observation.

But there is nothing in this verse that suggests we could lose our salvation. If that is what he meant then he would have contradicted himself.

 

[bbbbbbb]

ofcourse we believe salvation is from God working within us
but people are also free to reject that salvation

Adam and Eve were created free of all sin and they were able to choose sin and thus break friendship with God

I think the mindset that those who are "truly born again" will not fall away leads Christians into the mindset of judging others and has born much bad fruit in denominations that teach that

As for the tangent about judging others, I have observed such actions on both sides of this issue. It is very easy and tempting for Christians to become "fruit inspectors". This was one of the difficulties with the double predestination of Augustine, which maintained that the elect can only be known by their perserverance to the end.

This pair of verses (and they must be read together in order to understand them properly) gives a proper perspective on our salvation - that it is something we work out (not for, as has been noted) and that it is God who is at work in us, both to will and to work for what? For His good pleasure.