Losing It!

This blog is the sixth in a series, "The Top Ten Questions People Ask Pastors."

Of all the questions asked of me this year, this one must surely be #5 in frequency. "Aren't there verses in the Bible that suggest a believer can actually lose his salvation?"

There is at least one verse that might suggest that, but only if you take it out of context. In fact, most people who raise this question are thinking of Hebrews 6: 4 - 6. "For it is impossible to bring back to repentance those who were once enlightened- those who have experienced the good things of heaven and shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the Word of God and the power of the age to come- and who then turn away from God. It is impossible to bring such people back to repentance for by rejecting the Son of God, they themselves are nailing him to the cross once agains and holding him up to public shame."

The problem is that the author of Hebrews is not describing Christians who fall from grace. In every first century church there were Jews and even Gentiles who met with the church on a regular basis, seeking Christ. In many cases, those seekers actually became convinced that Jesus Christ was real and faith was important. But because of fiery persecution by Jewish neighbors and the resentment of their own Jewish families, many retreated from the church and chose to delay their decision until a time when it would be safe to do so. By sharing in worship with true believers, they tasted the goodness of the Word of God and experienced the Holy Spirit working in people all around them. That is, they felt the Word of God resonate with their own hearts, and they saw the power of the Spirit working in the lives of others.

But when they dropped out of worship to escape persecution, they didn't lose their faith. They had never made a commitment. Rather, they were simply rejecting Jesus Christ and refusing to deal with him while he was dealing with them. "Seek the Lord while he may be found," Isaiah 55:6 counsels us all. "Call upon him while he is near." In other words, we are not guaranteed that God's Holy Spirit will continue to deal with us year after year while we delay and postpone. God is obligated to extend his grace to us once, but not forever!

In the verses that follow Hebrews 6: 4 - 6, the writer compares the people who fell away to land which is fertilized and watered but finally brings forth only thorns and thistles rather than fruit. He adds that they are worthless. Bearing fruit is always the New Testament analogy for people who receive salvation and are changed by it. People who don't bear fruit have not experienced salvation. (See Luke 8: 4 - 21.)

So there is one verse which, taken out of context, can suggest falling from grace. By contrast, there are numerous very clear verses which, taken in context, clearly affirm eternal security for believers. In John 6:38-40, for example, Jesus says, "For I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not my own will. And this is the will of God, that I should not lose even one of all those he has given me, but that I should raise them up at the last day. For it is the Father's will that all who see his Son and believer I him should have eternal life. I will raise them up on the last day."

Another personal favorite of mine is Ephesians 1: 14, "The Spirit is God's guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised us." The Greek text literally says we are sealed with the spirit who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance." The term sealed refers to the Law of the Medes and Persians which required that once a king sealed a law, he could not change it even if he wanted to. For instance, after the Babylonian king sealed the law requiring the execution of anyone praying to another god, he was forced to carry it out even when he learned the offender was his trusted friend Daniel!

So the Bible does not gurantee us that God will deal with any lost person forever. No wise person should ever presume that just because God is dealing with him, this will always be an option for him. But we are promised that once we come to Christ, we are sealed by the Holy Spirit and kept by the saving power of Christ Jesus our Lord.

Selah.