Once Saved, Always Saved?
Heyy friends, (Yk here!) I hope you are doing well?
You might need to get cozy for this one, because it’s a long post!
This topic has been on my heart for some time but I usually shy away from discussing it online because it can be quite controversial but I believe it is important to share as the Holy Spirit leads. I pray that the words you’re about to read will be life-giving and will edify you as you mature in the knowledge of Christ. Amen.
Once Saved, Always Saved (OSAS) is a popular teaching that basically means salvation is guaranteed as long as you believe in Jesus Christ and acknowledge Him as Lord and Saviour. For many years, there has been a lot of discourse within the Church on how true this teaching is. This teaching advocates unending grace for a believer and the notion of eternal security.
To address this topic, it is important to establish what it means to be a Christian or believer.
A Christian simply means a follower of Jesus Christ; someone who believes that Jesus is truly the Son of God, the Way, Truth and LIfe . The bible says:
“Whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did” - 1 John 2:6 NIV
That is, everyone who claims to be a follower of Jesus is expected to live like Jesus did, which is, glorify the Father in everything they do.
Following this definition, this post will explore some of the assertions of the OSAS teaching.
It is impossible for a true believer to fall away
The OSAS teaching posits that it is impossible for a true believer to fall away or depart from the faith. It is said that those who abandon the faith never truly believed as seen in 1 John 2:19 AMP:
“They went out from us [seeming at first to be Christians], but they were not really of us [because they were not truly born again and spiritually transformed]; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out [teaching false doctrine], so that it would be clearly shown that none of them are of us”
It is argued “a Christian is not simply an “improved” version of a person; a Christian is an entirely new creature. For a Christian to lose salvation, the new creation would have to be destroyed.” This follows 2 Corinthians 5:17 - “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”
It is true that a believer is indeed a new creation. Jesus Christ said to Nicodemus in John 3:6-8 NKJV:
“Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
This simply means, when a person believes in Jesus Christ and becomes born again, they become born of the Spirit of God. That is, the Holy Spirit dwells in them and enables them to do the biddings of God. Indeed, we are new creations however, Apostle Paul exhorts the Romans 12:1-2 NIV:
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
This exhortation and the many more we see throughout the bible shows that even though the Holy Spirit now dwells inside a believer, we still have free will and Paul urged the brethren to continually offer their bodies as an acceptable offering to the Lord.
While it is easy to agree that true believers will not fall away, it is imperative that we understand scripture in its entirety. Here are some scriptures that clarify that true believers can indeed fall away:
“Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.” - 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 NKJV
“Watch yourselves, so that you do not lose what we have accomplished together, but that you may receive a full and perfect reward [when He grants rewards to faithful believers]. Anyone who runs on ahead and does not remain in the doctrine of Christ [that is, one who is not content with what He taught], does not have God; but the one who continues to remain in the teaching [of Christ does have God], he has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching [but diminishes or adds to the doctrine of Christ], do not receive or welcome him into your house, and do not give him a greeting or any encouragement; for the one who gives him a greeting [who encourages him or wishes him success, unwittingly] participates in his evil deeds.” - 2 John 1:8-11 AMP
“And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.” - Matthew 24:10-14 NKJV
Jesus spoke to his disciples about the love of God growing cold in the hearts of many because of lawlessness; lawlessness that arises from ungodly compromise on the believer’s part. He then reinforces the importance of enduring till the end. Again, this poses a responsibility on the believer to persevere. However, persevering is not done in our own strength but through the empowering of the Holy Spirit - the Spirit of Jesus that indwells us. I will explain this further a bit later in this post.
In agreement with the above scripture, we see John warning the church in Ephesus as instructed by our Lord, Jesus Christ in Revelation 2:4-5 NKJV
“Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.”
Paul admonished Timothy saying: “O Timothy! Guard what was committed to your trust, avoiding the profane and idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge— by professing it some have strayed concerning the faith.” - 1 Timothy 6:20-21 NKJV
These verses clearly show that it is possible for one who has previously believed to stray away from the faith. This does not in any capacity diminish the power of God to save us but reinforces our responsibility as we walk the path of salvation. We have been justified and redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ but will we continue to abide in Him?
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.” - John 15:1-6 NKJV
Jesus says to his disciples, every branch in Him that does not bear fruit, the Father takes away. This tells us that the branch (a christian) was included at first but, if it fails to bear fruit, that is, continue to abide in Christ and be conformed to His image, he is cast out as a branch and is withered.
These verses remind us of the new life that we now possess and urges us to submit to the process of sanctification that the Spirit of God takes us through. A believer that fails to do this and continuously lives a life of sin without repentance will not be saved. If anything, our understanding of these verses should birth a holy fear and reverence for God that causes us to depend on the Holy Spirit to continue to abide in Christ.
Eternal Security
The idea of eternal security that the OSAS teaching proposes in accordance with scripture is this:
“For Christ did not enter into a holy place made with human hands, which was only a copy of the true one in heaven. He entered into heaven itself to appear now before God on our behalf. And he did not enter heaven to offer himself again and again, like the high priest here on earth who enters the Most Holy Place year after year with the blood of an animal. If that had been necessary, Christ would have had to die again and again, ever since the world began. But now, once for all time, he has appeared at the end of the age to remove sin by his own death as a sacrifice.
And just as each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment, so also Christ was offered once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him.” - Hebrews 9:24-28 NLT
It is taught, following the verse above, that Jesus Christ has been offered once for all as a sacrifice to take away.our sins; therefore, once saved, always saved.
Furthermore it is said that our eternal security is guaranteed having been sealed by the Holy Spirit per Ephesians 1:13-14 NET:
“You also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory”
Indeed, Jesus Christ has paid the debt for sins that we may be redeemed, but please understand that this does not mean once saved, always saved (at least, not in the way that I have seen taught). Every believer who has the Holy Spirit has been marked for redemption. This is the only way we can live the life of Christ, no man can please God without the Spirit of God. This is why it says we have been sealed for the day of redemption because the Holy Spirit will keep us. However, in Ephesians 4: 17- 31, Apostle Paul admonished believers saying they must no longer live as they used to. He particularly warned them in verse 30 “do not grieve the Holy Spirit, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption” what does this tell us?
This means that a believer can grieve the Holy Spirit and a believer can choose to ignore the Holy Spirit and not submit to His Lordship. If a believer continues to grieve the Holy Spirit through their actions without repentance, there will be consequences. Scripture says:
“But they rebelled and grieved His Holy Spirit; So He turned Himself against them as an enemy, and He fought against them.” - Isaiah 63:10 NKJV
“Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.” - 1 Corinthians 3:16 NKJV
The peril of teaching ‘Once Saved, Always Saved’
Abdication of responsibility
Although some proponents of OSAS say the notion of eternal security is not a licence for believers to live riotously, however, there is an overwhelming number that teach “it doesn’t matter how you live, as long as you believe in Jesus Christ, you will be saved.”
This teaching is dangerous because not only does it limit our belief in Jesus Christ as a one-time commitment, it also abdicates the life-long responsibility of a believer. Believing and trusting in Jesus Christ is a life-long commitment and it is not an easy path to walk which is why believers are continuously admonished to persevere and endure throughout scriptures. If we endure and submit to the leading of the Holy Spirit, our lives will surely look different and the Holy Spirit Himself will bear witness with our spirits that we are indeed children of God.
“The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.” - Romans 8:16 NKJV
Furthermore, Jesus says in the verses below that it is the person who keeps His commandments that love him and we know through scriptures that it is those who love Him that will dwell with Him, how then can we teach that dwelling with the Lord in eternity is guaranteed regardless of how we live?
“He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him.” - John 14:21
Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me. - John 14:23-24
Are we saved by our works - the things we do?
Absolutely not.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” - Ephesians 2:8-9 NKJV
Salvation is not about what we can do for God but what God has done for us. God has already reached out to us through Jesus Christ that we may be redeemed so we can never be saved by what we do. However, to be saved, we must believe.
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” - John 3:16 NKJV
The Greek word pisteuōn is translated as ‘believe’ in this verse above. Pisteuōn means “to believe, put one’s faith in, and continuously trust with an implication that actions based on that trust must follow.” Therefore, to believe in Jesus Christ isn’t limited to the salvation prayer we say in church or what we know about Jesus. But, continuously show through our actions such as, renewing our minds by studying the word with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Salvation entails repentance - the Greek word is Metanoia which means “a change of mind, as it appears to one who repents, of a purpose he has formed or of something he has done.”
To receive and believe in Jesus Christ, we must first, have a change of heart and renounce our old ways. This act of repentance continues as we mature in Christ because we will sometimes fall short.
“My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.” - 1 John 2:1-2 NKJV
“For a righteous man may fall seven times And rise again, But the wicked shall fall by calamity.” - Proverbs 24:16 NKJV
Contrary to popular OSAS teaching that believers do not need to pray for forgiveness or actively repent before we are cleansed from sin, believers ought to repent if we fall into sin. As we walk the path of salvation, the act of repentance is evidence that our minds are truly being renewed in the way of the Lord.
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” - 1 John 1:9 KJV
Life through the Spirit
God calls us to a high standard as followers of Jesus’ Christ. We are to be conformed to the image of Christ, for the Scriptures say:
“You must be holy because I am holy.” - 1 Peter 1:16 NLT
“And there will be a highway called the Way of Holiness. The unclean will not travel it--only those who walk in the Way--and fools will not stray onto it.” - Isaiah 35:8 NIV
These standards have not changed over the years. God is still holy and righteous. In His mercy, Jesus sent us His Spirit, to help us live righteously.
”His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue” - 2 Peter 1:3 NKJV
Everything we need to live lives on God’s terms has been given to us through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth, Revelation, Counselor who leads us into all truth.
It is fruitless to attempt to live the life of Christ without submission to the Holy Spirit.
Scripture says:
“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.
This is the power of the Holy Spirit that dwells us. He gives life to our bodies, submission to the Holy Spirit is the only way we put to death the desires of the flesh that we may live.
Therefore, brethren, we are debtors—not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.” - Romans 8:1-17 NKJV
The Holy Spirit enables us to cry out “Abba, Father.” This means, we know we are of Him and we depend solely on Him. We do not compromise on the standards that the Father has set but we ask Him to continuously search our hearts and help us live like Christ.
Apostle Paul addressed the Galatians saying:
“Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” - Galatians 5:16-18 NKJV
Again, this indicates that as believers we ought to live by the Spirit.
He then made a distinction between a life led by the flesh and one led by the Spirit.
“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.” - Galatians 5:19-25 NKJV
Summary
The work of Christ is finished in the sense that there is absolutely nothing that can undo the cross and resurrection of Christ. Through Christ’s death and resurrection, every person has been offered the gift of redemption that we may be reconciled to the Father.
Scripture tells us in several verses that it is possible for a believer to fall away or depart from the faith therefore we are encouraged to persevere and walk in the Spirit; that is, continuously choose the way of the Spirit over our flesh. We can do this by:
Praying for humility and obedience to God’s word
Practicing spiritual disciplines such as fasting, prayer, meditating on God’s word
Sharing our struggles with other believers and asking them to pray for and with us
Submitting to godly authority and wise counsel
Being by accountable to the Holy Spirit and the spiritual authority He put in our lives
“But you, beloved, build yourselves up on [the foundation of] your most holy faith [continually progress, rise like an edifice higher and higher], pray in the Holy Spirit, and keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously and looking forward to the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ [which will bring you] to eternal life.” - Jude 1:20-21 AMP
It is not true that eternal life is guaranteed no matter how a believer lives. If you believe and continue to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, your life will testify to your belief in Him and If we truly submit to God, we can truly rest knowing He is more than able to keep us.
“...for I know the one in whom I trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until the day of his return.” - 2 Timothy 1:12 NLT
“Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to God our Savior, who alone is wise,be glory and majesty, dominion and power,both now and forever. Amen.” - Jude 1:24-25 NKJV
The Holy Spirit is our helper who guides us into all truth. If we submit our lives to Him again and again, He will surely keep us until Christ comes back for his bride, spotless and blemish-free.
May Christ be continuously formed in you. Amen.
More scriptures to meditate on
“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.”- Galatians 6:7-9 NKJV
“Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.” - 1 Corinthians 15:1-2 NKJV
“Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away. For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just reward, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him, God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will?” - Hebrews 2:1-3 NKJV
“Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation—as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.
You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.” - 2 Peter 3:14-18 NKJV
As always, we love to pray with you here.
With so much love,