Here we go again
Once saved - always saved. This is perhaps one of the greatest dividing factors in the Church today.
There are Churches such as the Unitarians that believe everyone is saved no matter what. You don’t have to believe in God or Jesus or anything. Jesus died for everyone, so everyone is saved no matter what. (Unity Church)
Heb 13:5 Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, "I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER FORSAKE YOU,"
Yes God will never leave us. But can we leave him? There’s an old saying that says “If you feel far from God, guess who moved!” Keep in mind, many divorces are also one sided, both the husband and the wife do not want it, but it only takes one of them to make the divorce happen.
Can we backslide?
The word “backsliding” appears in the King James 12 times, and only in the Old Testament, not at all in the New Testament.
Jer. 3:6, 8, 11, 12, 14, 22
Jer 8:5
Jer 31:22
Jer 49:4
Hos 4:16
Hos 11:7
Hos 14:4
Most believe that the tale of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32) is a tale of backsliding because the son was not coming home for the first time: He was coming back home after leaving. To paraphrase, the son was with the father, left the father, and then came back to the father.
Luk 15:11 And He said, "A man had two sons.
Luk 15:12 "The younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of the estate that falls to me.' So he divided his wealth between them.
Luk 15:13 "And not many days later, the younger son gathered everything together and went on a journey into a distant country, and there he squandered his estate with loose living.
Luk 15:14 "Now when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country, and he began to be impoverished.
Luk 15:15 "So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine.
Luk 15:16 "And he would have gladly filled his stomach with the pods that the swine were eating, and no one was giving anything to him.
Luk 15:17 "But when he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger!
Luk 15:18 'I will get up and go to my father, and will say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven, and in your sight;
Luk 15:19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me as one of your hired men."'
Luk 15:20 "So he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.
Luk 15:21 "And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'
Luk 15:22 "But the father said to his slaves, 'Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet;
Luk 15:23 and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and celebrate;
Luk 15:24 for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.' And they began to celebrate.
Luk 15:25 "Now his older son was in the field, and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing.
Luk 15:26 "And he summoned one of the servants and began inquiring what these things could be.
Luk 15:27 "And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has received him back safe and sound.'
Luk 15:28 "But he became angry and was not willing to go in; and his father came out and began pleading with him.
Luk 15:29 "But he answered and said to his father, 'Look! For so many years I have been serving you and I have never neglected a command of yours; and yet you have never given me a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends;
Luk 15:30 but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.'
Luk 15:31 "And he said to him, 'Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours.
Luk 15:32 'But we had to celebrate and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found.'"
Jesus taught a lot in parables (stories). The only place that he actually explained what the parable meant was the parable of the sower.
Matthew 13:3-8 is the parable itself. It is also found in Mark 4:3-8 and in Luke 8:5-8.
Mat 13:3 And He spoke many things to them in parables, saying, "Behold, the sower went out to sow;
Mat 13:4 and as he sowed, some seeds fell beside the road, and the birds came and ate them up.
Mat 13:5 "Others fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil.
Mat 13:6 "But when the sun had risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away.
Mat 13:7 "Others fell among the thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them out.
Mat 13:8 "And others fell on the good soil and *yielded a crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.
Mat 13:9 "He who has ears, let him hear."
Mat 13:10 And the disciples came and said to Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?"
Mat 13:11 Jesus answered them, "To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted.
The explanation
Mat 13:18 "Hear then the parable of the sower.
Mat 13:19 "When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road.
Mat 13:20 "The one on whom seed was sown on the rocky places, this is the man who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy;
Mat 13:21 yet he has no firm root in himself, but is only temporary, and when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he falls away.
Mat 13:22 "And the one on whom seed was sown among the thorns, this is the man who hears the word, and the worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.
Mat 13:23 "And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty."
Verse 19 is about the people who never believed in the first place because they did not understand.
Verses 20 and 21 are about people who believed for a little while and then quit believing.
Verse 22 is also about people who believed and then for various reasons quit believing.
Verse 23 is about people who never did backslide (not everyone backslides!) and who continue to believe.
In Romans 11, verse 20 we see that people can be “broken off” because of unbelief.
In verse 23 even though they were broken off, they believed again, thus God was able to “graft them in again.”
Rom 11:16 If the first piece of dough is holy, the lump is also; and if the root is holy, the branches are too.
Rom 11:17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree,
Rom 11:18 do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you.
Rom 11:19 You will say then, "Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in."
Rom 11:20 Quite right, they were broken off for their unbelief, but you stand by your faith. Do not be conceited, but fear;
Rom 11:21 for if God did not spare the natural branches, He will not spare you, either.
Rom 11:22 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.
Rom 11:23 And they also, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again.
A person cannot be something “again” for the first time. They would have had to be that something once already in order to be it “again.”
Here the Bible says that someone can quit being what they were. In other words you can be a Christian (“salt”) and you can quit being a Christian (losing your “saltiness”)
Mat 5:13 "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men.
1Tim 1:19 keeping faith and a good conscience, which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck in regard to their faith.
1Ti 5:15 for some have already turned aside to follow Satan.
In the verses below, how would they know it’s a “different” gospel unless they had already heard the gospel in the first place?
Gal 1:6 I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel;
Gal 1:7 which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.
Apparently just because your name was written in the book of life, it doesn’t mean it will always stay there forever, it can be removed.
Psal 69:28 May they be blotted out of the book of life And may they not be recorded with the righteous.
Could it be, there really is such a thing as going too far? Even for those who have already been used by God and have accomplished some of his work? A common argument is “well they were never saved in the first place”.
2Jo 1:7 For many deceivers have gone out into the world, those who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist.
2Jo 1:8 Watch yourselves, that you do not lose what we have accomplished, but that you may receive a full reward.
2Jo 1:9 Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son.
2Jo 1:10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting;
2Jo 1:11 for the one who gives him a greeting participates in his evil deeds.
Yes there is grace. Thank God for that.
Mat 18:21 Then Peter came and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?"
Mat 18:22 Jesus *said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.
Phi 2:12 So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling;
Heb 3:12 Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God.
Having said all of this, do I think it happens often? No. I think it is VERY difficult for this to happen, but I do think it is possible.
Heb 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Eph 4:30 Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
As I said at the beginning, he will never leave or forsake us, but can we leave and forsake him?
1Ti 4:1 But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons,
Can we “fall way” from something we never had in the first place?
Luk 7:50 And He said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."
Eph 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;
Eph 2:9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.
Joh 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
Notice all 5 of the verses above say we are saved by what we believe in, or have faith in. Not by what we do. So how then, is it possible to get "unsaved" by what we do? We can't. We can't sin so much that we lose our salvation. (After all we weren't saved by works in the first place)
However we can sin so much that we lose our faith. (1Tim 4:11 and the parable of the sower) and once we lose our faith.. well... read those 5 verses again.
Look at Peter, he denied Christ 3 times in 1 day (after he was a believer) David committed an affair and had the womans' husband killed, Paul said he does the things he shouldn't do and doesn't do the things he know's he should do. (Romans 7)
So this woman goes back to prostitution, does she lose her salvation? Did Rahab the Harlot lose hers? How about Hosea's wife Gomer (the whole story is an allegory of Hosea as God and Gomer as Israel and how they were unfaithful to their husbands). I think the grace of God allows for mistakes after we become Christians (or believers). But you can sin so much that your faith starts to slip..
Be good Bereans and study the Word.
