Once Saved, Always Saved?
One of the common questions I have encountered from my protestant (evangelical) friends is regarding the concept of “once saved always saved”.
For many Fundamentalists and Evangelicals it makes no difference—as far as salvation is concerned—how you live or end your life. You can heed the altar call at church, announce that you’ve accepted Jesus as your personal Savior, and, so long as you really believe it, you’re set. From that point on there is nothing you can do, no sin you can commit, no matter how heinous, that will forfeit your salvation. You can’t undo your salvation, even if you wanted to.
However,
In reading material of authors supporting this concept of “once saved always saved”, I find that their scriptural proof is very scant and interpreted out of the context of the rest of the Bible, New Testament as well as Old Testament.
From the start of the Salvation Journey, one must consider the case of Adam & Eve in the Book of Genesis. They were given a perfect life with the free gift of salvation or eternal life with God. Yet, they, as all mankind, were given a free will to love and honor God or to sin. After their sin, they obviously lost their pre-existent salvation, at least for a time.
Of course, the same theme continues throughout: all of those destroyed by the flood, Sodom & Gamorah, Ninevah, etc.
Ezekiel 33:13-16
“Though I say to the virtuous man that he shall surely live, if he then presumes on his virtue and does wrong, none of his virtuous deeds shall be remembered; because of the wrong he has done, he shall die.
And though I say to the wicked man that he shall surely die, if he turns away from his sin and does what is right and just,
giving back pledges, restoring stolen goods, living by the statutes that bring life, and doing no wrong, he shall surely live, he shall not die.
None of the sins he committed shall be held against him; he has done what is right and just, he shall surely live.”
As Christ fulfilled the Old Covenant, we will move on to the New Testament to see as clearly as possible the will of Christ in regard to this subject of “once saved, always saved”.
Since Paul is considered to be the first and most prolific writers of the New Testament, we will start with his writings. We proceed with the premise that all of Paul’s letters were sent to Christian churches wherein the members were already saved Christians.
Colosians: 3:23-25
“Whatever you do, do from the heart, as for the Lord and not for others,
knowing that you will receive from the Lord the due payment of the inheritance; be slaves of the Lord Christ. For the wrongdoer will receive recompense for the wrong he committed, and there is no partiality.” So, assuming that this letter is to be read by, to, and for Christians of wrongdoers will be punished, with no partiality. Narrowly focused to this verse, it could be argued as to whether this punishment will be in this life, after this life in hell, or after this life but not in hell.
Below, we begin to deal with St. Paul’s definition of Faith. He defined faith as “hope in something yet unseen”. Below, he adds clarity to the fact that faith and hope are not certainty.
Romans 8:24- 25
“For in hope we were saved. Now hope that sees for itself is not hope. For who hopes for what one sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait with endurance.” Little or nothing in Paul’s letters affirm the concept of “eternal security” as preached by reverend Charles Stanley.
1 Corinthians 9: 24-27
“Do you not know that the runners in the stadium all run in the race, but only one wins the prize? Run so as to win.
Every athlete exercises discipline in every way. They do it to win a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one.
Thus I do not run aimlessly; I do not fight as if I were shadowboxing.
No, I drive my body and train it, for fear that, after having preached to others, I myself should be disqualified.” Now, I realize and agree that there is room for many winners in the race for salvation that Paul speaks of. However, Paul himself states that he has fear of being disqualified, which I take to me “losing salvation”. How else could his statement be interpreted?
1 Thesalonians 5:23-24
“Refrain from every kind of evil.
May the God of peace himself make you perfectly holy and may you entirely, spirit, soul, and body, be preserved blameless for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ”. Why would the Christian need to be “refrain from evil and be preserved blameless”, if Paul believed in the concept of “once saved, always saved”?
Notice, this verse not only encourages holiness but exhorts that the power (grace) of God allow for the perfection of spirit, soul, and body, and be blameless. Orthodox and Catholic Christians have held the belief for 2,000 yrs. that the Grace of God allows the changing of the person (the will and ability to be holy). On the other hand some Christians that believe in “once saved always saved” tend to believe that Grace only “hides the sinfulness of man”.
We have discussed a verse in Revelation about being blameless before the eyes of God.
Revelation – blameless in the eyes of God.
Romans 11:17-24
“But if some of the branches were broken off, (I presume the unbelieving Jews?) and you, a wild olive shoot, were grafted in their place and have come to share in the rich root of the olive tree, do not boast against the branches. If you do boast, consider that you do not support the root; the root supports you. Indeed you will say, ‘Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.’
That is so. They were broken off because of unbelief, but you are there because of faith. So do not become haughty, but stand in awe.
For if God did not spare the natural branches, (perhaps) he will not spare you either. See, then, the kindness and severity of God: severity toward those who fell, but God's kindness to you, provided you remain in his kindness; otherwise you too will be cut off. (Sounds like a clear threat to revoke Salvation!). And they also, if they do not remain in unbelief, will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again. (Sounds like a single conversion experience may not be adequate for all cases, hence an ongoing process of conversion and renewal).
For if you were cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated one, how much more will they who belong to it by nature be grafted back into their own olive tree?”
Phillipians 2:12
“The one who calls you is faithful, and he will also accomplish it.
So then, my beloved, obedient as you have always been, not only when I am present but all the more now when I am absent, work out your salvation with fear and trembling.”
If the “saved” Phillipian Christians possessed “eternal security” why would Paul stress them out with such a statement, “work out your salvation with fear and trembling”?
Ephesians 4: 25-32
“Therefore, putting away falsehood, speak the truth, each one to his neighbor, for we are members one of another.
Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun set on your anger,
and do not leave room for the devil.
The thief must no longer steal, but rather labor, doing honest work with his (own) hands, so that he may have something to share with one in need.
No foul language should come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for needed edification, that it may impart grace to those who hear. What do you think about this comment – The language coming out of their mouths imparting grace? You may recall my previous question from Hebrews about the verse on hindering someone’s access to grace.
And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were sealed for the day of redemption. All bitterness, fury, anger, shouting, and reviling must be removed from you, along with all malice. To me, it is clear that the Grace spoken of by Paul is for the transformation of the person, not just a free ticket into heaven.
(And) be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another as God has forgiven you in Christ.”
Galatians 5: 1-8
“For freedom Christ set us free; so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.
It is I, Paul, who am telling you that if you have yourselves circumcised, Christ will be of no benefit to you.
Once again I declare to every man who has himself circumcised that he is bound to observe the entire law. Wow, I am glad that we don’t have to apply every word and verse in a totally literalist sense. Otherwise, I and most young men circumcised in the modern world would be bound to the entire law.
You are separated from Christ, you who are trying to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace. Key here, the “fallen from grace”. Doesn’t sound like eternal security.
For through the Spirit, by faith, we await the hope ( again, that word
hope) of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.
You were running well; who hindered (here, another case of one person or spirit hindering access to grace) you from following (the) truth?
That enticement does not come from the one who called you.”
Hebrews
Apparently, Bible scholars do not uniformly agree as to the author of this book, but for the sake of this discussion it is treated as a Pauline book.
Hebrews 2: 1 “So that we do not drift away.”
Hebrews 6: 4 “As for those people who were once brought into the light, and tasted the gift from heaven, and ..... in spite of this have fallen away.”
Also, Hebrews 10: 26
The Gospel of Mathew - The first of the Gospels
It is my understanding that Mathew addressed a principally Jewish audience, not necessarily all Christians as in the case of Paul’s letters. Hence, it is reasonable to presume that some of his audience was not yet saved.
Mathew: 18:8-9
“If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter into life maimed or crippled than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into eternal fire.
And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter into life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into fiery Gehenna.”
Be this to the gentiles or Jews, it seems the same. Sin threatens salvation. These visual figures of speech seem to make that clear. And of course, if sin threatens salvation, who is to say that such is not the case after being once saved.
Mathew 13: 40-42
“Just as weeds are collected and burned (up) with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all who cause others to sin and all evildoers.
They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.” Some might suggest that the evildoers don’t get thrown into the furnace if they are “once saved”. Some might suggest that such a tough position only applies to the Jews, not saved by faith. A bit presumptuous to me!
Mathew 18-23-35
“That is why the kingdom of heaven may be likened to a king who decided to settle accounts with his servants. When he began the accounting, a debtor was brought before him who owed him a huge amount. Since he had no way of paying it back, his master ordered him to be sold, along with his wife, his children, and all his property, in payment of the debt.
At that, the servant fell down, did him homage, and said, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back in full.'
Moved with compassion the master of that servant let him go and forgave him the loan. When that servant had left, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a much smaller amount. He seized him and started to choke him, demanding, 'Pay back what you owe.'
Falling to his knees, his fellow servant begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.'
But he refused. Instead, he had him put in prison until he paid back the debt.
Now when his fellow servants saw what had happened, they were deeply disturbed, and went to their master and reported the whole affair.
His master summoned him and said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you your entire debt because you begged me to. (Salvation granted, debt forgiven)
Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you?'
Then in anger his master handed him over to the torturers until he should pay back the whole debt. (Sounds like the master revoked the Salvation, at least for a time).
So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives his brother from his heart."
Mathew 6: 14-15
If you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your transgressions. (Just a reiteration of citation above)
The Apostle John
It seems that Bible scholars agree: John was the last to write his Gospel, that he was aware of the material in the 3 synoptic Gospels, that he wrote a more systematic Gospel, and that he chose to emphasize principles he considered critical to emphasize, if not thoroughly covered by the synoptic writers.
John 2:11
“Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs in Cana in Galilee and so revealed his glory, and his disciples began to believe in him”. So, here is the first evidence in this Gospel of the Apostles beginning to believe in Him.
John 3:16
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life”.
I think we can assume at this point in this Gospel that all of the Apostles believe in Jesus, in some capacity.
John 6: 66
Yet, after believing in and following Jesus (presumably saved), many of the disciples (not Apostles) left his company after he spoke of the eucharist. The scripture doesn’t say that they lost their salvation, but it sure appears clear that they lost their faith.
“As a result of this, many (of) his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him.” John certainly left no suggestion that they remained “saved”.
John 15: 1-11
"I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower.
He takes away every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and everyone that does he prunes so that it bears more fruit.
You are already pruned because of the word that I spoke to you.
Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me.
I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.
Anyone who does not remain ( Here, I assume that one must first be saved in order to “remain”), in me will be thrown out like a branch and wither; people will gather them and throw them into a fire and they will be burned. (Being ‘thrown into the fire and burned’ does not sound like “eternal security” or once “saved always saved”.)
If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask for whatever you want and it will be done for you.
By this is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.
As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love.
If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and remain in his love.
I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete”.
Here, we assume and agree that the key concept to remaining in Jesus is faith, but notice specifically what Jesus said, in essence, ‘keep my commandments and you will remain in my love by which you remain in me and a part of the vine – otherwise you wont be saved. Keeping the commandments is without question an active process and a matter of free will.
The Letter of James
James 5: 19-20
“My brothers, if anyone among you should stray from the truth and someone bring him back, he should know that whoever brings back a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.” (We know that here, like in Paul’s letters, James was addressing Christians that have heard the Word. This is made clear in James 2:1 “My brothers, show no partiality as you adhere to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.” So it appears clear again: Salvation in Christ ® Stray from the Truth ® Soul Death ® Repentance ® Saved Soul.
Additional notes: The term (death of soul) is not rare in the New Testament. In the letter of John, John mentions “deadly sin” vs. non-deadly sin.
Revelation Chapters 1-3.
It is clear John is writing/or addressing to the seven churches in Asia Minor. This part of Revelation cannot be directly correlated to today’s times, as Asia Minor is
muslim. So, while it may be debated that the rest of Revelation is futuristic, at least to some extent, it is clear that these first three chapters are written in the present tense for present issues (of the days of John).
We understand that the first three chapters of Revelation are written to the seven churches of Asia Minor. To be fully part of one of the churches, are person would be baptized and/or saved. So, the people to whom the letters are addressed are presumably saved Christians, whereas some of the Gospels were directed to the Jews or Gentiles, possibly Christian or non-Christian.
Revelation 2: 4-5
To the Church in Ephesus. “Yet I hold this against you: you have lost the love you had at first. Realize how far you have fallen. Repent, and do the works you did at first. Otherwise, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.” In the Jewish temple, as well as in the Catholic & Orthodox churches, the burning flame represents the presence of God. When the Son removes the lamp stand the Ephesians will be separated from God. Hence, initially they were saved and living the love and works of Christ, but they were falling away – threatening their salvation.
To the angel of the church in Smyrna.
Sounds like they get a good report.
Notice the words “Remain faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life”.
While it’s not stated explicitly, one might consider – If they don’t remain faithful until death, they lose their salvation. On the other hand, maybe those that endure receive the crown while those that don’t endure are saved but get the minimal reward. “The victor shall not be harmed by the second death”. Same basic point – it is possible that their salvation requires a bit more than just a one time conversion.
To the angel of the church in Pergamum.
We notice here that some of these Christians are doing well. Why? Because they remain steadfast in faith despite the threat of life. “Yet I have a few things against you”. We notice that even though only some are wandering astray, he holds it against “you” the whole church of Pergamum. This is a challenging concept, that is the possibility that I will be to some extent responsible for my brother’s salvation.
To the angel of the church in Thyatira.
“I will give each of you what your works deserve”. Nothing new here. We’ve discussed this.
“To the victor, who keeps to my ways until the end, I will give authority over the nations. Verse 27 - “He will rule them with an iron rod. Like clay vessels will they be smashed,” Verse 28- “just as I received authority from my Father.” In addition to the concept of judgment being based upon perseverance and works, we find another principal: The most faithful will in some degree share with Christ in His reign.
Revelation 3
To the angel of the church in Sardis.
"I know your works, that you have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Be watchful and strengthen what is left, which is going to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God.” It seems here it is a given that Christ judges their works, and perhaps more importantly the inner intent and motivation in their works.
Of the more pure in Sardis, he states, “However, you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments; they will walk with me dressed in white, because they are worthy.” This gets to the nature of grace and holiness, and justification. “However, you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments; they will walk with me dressed in white, because they are worthy.” The key words here: “NOT SOILED THEIR GARMENTS, because they are WORTHY” (aided by grace infused). What does one make of this, that is the difference in those that are “worthy”, wearing the white garments? In my opinion, this is one of many reasons why Martin Luther attempted to discard the Book of Revelation.
“The victor will thus be dressed in white, and I will never erase his name from the book of life but will acknowledge his name in the presence of my Father and of his angels.” While not being absolute, it is reasonable to assume the corollary is that the non-victors, not dressed in white, will have his/their name erased from the book of life. To be clear, REGARDLESS OF HOW WE LOOK AT PREDESTINATION, TO BE ERASED FROM THE BOOK OF LIFE CAN ONLY MEAN ONE THING – TO LOSE SALVATION. The remaining question is: For those that are believers but are not dressed in perfectly white robes, how do they keep their name in the book of life? Most Christians appreciate why a baptismal dress, gown, etc. would be completely white. Historically, baptism has always been considered to cleanse sins.
To the angel of the church in Philadelphia.
“Hold fast to what you have, so that no one may take your crown”. Assuming that the crown is salvation, it would appear that if the Christians at Philadelphia do not cling (a persisting effort) to their faith, their salvation might be lost. “The victor I will make into a pillar in the temple of my God, and he will never leave it again”. Here again is imagery of the earthly temple and the heavenly temple. Of course, the earthly one is already destroyed by the time John writes Revelation. The new heavenly temple remains in Christ and his mystical body.
To the angel of the church in Laodicea.
“I know your works; I know that you are neither cold nor hot.” Again, we assume that the church members here in Laodicea, all made a decision to follow Christ, hence, once saved. Yet, the following statement: “I will spit you out of my mouth,” does not explicitly indicate loss of salvation, but it sure doesn’t sound like “eternal security”. And then comes the repeat of that theme of sharing in the Glory of Christ: “I will give the victor the right to sit with me on my throne”.
The Prodigal Son
To provide a strikingly clear argument against the concept of “once saved always saved”,
We turn back in the New Testament to the 15th chapter of Luke.
Luke 15
http://www.usccb.org/nab/031807a.shtml
Clearly, the younger son is born into his inheritance and security which is freely given by the earthly father. The following verse gets to the point.
“Father give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them.” I We can reasonably conclude from the situation that initially, the younger son is “saved”.
Yet, the younger son walks away from his inheritance freely given (salvation).
The parable, in my view, makes it fairly clear that the son, by his choice, lost his salvation, figuratively referred to as “death”. Reading along further the scripture states: “Then let us celebrate with a feast, because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again.” That word “death” certainly relates to his spiritual death. Yet, he was restored to the inheritance/salvation once again. Even as a young child, I understood this scripture in the same way – referring to the nature of sin, repentance, and salvation. I TRULY THINK THIS PARABLE GOES IN THE FACE OF “ONCE SAVED ALWAYS SAVED”.
Judas Iscariot
Most Christians would suggest that Judas lost his salvation by his actions/choice.
The biggest question would be as to whether he was saved in the first place. Clearly, he physically followed and traveled with Jesus for a time. However, some would reasonably point out that he never referred to Jesus as “my Lord”, but rather called him “Rabbi”. Hence, he never truly considered Jesus to be his Christ, Savior, or Lord. In contrast, Peter, when asked by Jesus, “Who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter responded, ‘you are the son of the living God’.
Faith Defined
Before leaving the inspired scriptures and looking at Church History, we briefly, for further reflection, consider St. Paul’s own definition of “faith”, (Romans 8:24- 25, & in Thesalonians), which in essence is: “Faith is hope in something yet unseen.” Hence, when one makes a pillar of his or her faith the concept of “once saved, always saved,” also described as “eternal security”, I encourage that individual to reflect of the very words of St. Paul in his defining of “faith.”
Church Fathers & “Once Saved, Always Saved”
It is quite common for contemporary legal scholars, in referring to the US Constitution and the “intent of the founders” to refer to extra-constitutional writings of the founders and their contemporaries. Hence, it is reasonable to refer to the writings of the church leaders of the centuries immediately following the death of the apostles.
The inserted text below is just one paragraph taken from an article about Novatian and the Novatian heresy from the Catholic Encyclopedia at
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11138a.htm
“But yet within a couple of months Novatian was called a heretic, not only by Cyprian but throughout the Church, for his severe views about the restoration of those who had lapsed in the persecution. He held that idolatry was an unpardonable sin, and that the Church had no right to restore to communion any who had fallen into it. They might repent and be admitted to a lifelong penance, but their forgiveness must be left to God; it could not be pronounced in this world. Such harsh sentiments were not altogether a novelty. Tertullian had resisted the forgiveness of adultery by Pope Callistus as an innovation. Hippolytus was equally inclined to severity. In various places and at various times laws were made which punished certain sins either with the deferring of Communion till the hour of death, or even with refusal of Communion in the hour of death. Even St. Cyprian approved the latter course in the case of those who refused to do pennance and only repented on their death-bed; but this was because such a repentance seemed of doubtful sincerity. But severity in itself was but cruelty or injustice; there was no heresy until it was denied that the Church has the power to grant absolution in certain cases. This was Novatian's heresy; and St. Cyprian says the Novatians held no longer the Catholic creed and baptismal interrogation, for when they said "Dost thou believe in the remission of sins, and everlasting life, through Holy Church?" they were liars. “
Some time later, during the time of Augustine, the Donatists were considered heretics for many of the similar beliefs. In a nutshell, the Novatian and Donatist heresies followed periods of intense Roman persecutions. During those persecutions ordinary, weak people like myself, denied their faith when put under the threat of death or other severe punishment. Of course, there were varying degrees of persecution at different times.
At times, those acting on behalf of the government might be demanding the surrender of all written scriptures and holy writings, and/or sacred vessels, and/or demanding a public recanting of faith.
The Novatians and Donatists, in a nutshell, the way I see it, pretty much said that those that betrayed the faith in any such way were not allowed to be restored to the faith, the church, or salvation, under any condition, once the persecutions were over. Whereas, as I understand it, the prevailing catholic position was that with some penance or process those cowards could be restored to the community of believers.
That is quite a contrast to the concept of “once saved, always saved”, as developed in the last few centuries. I find no evidence of it in the churches of the first centuries. There were no schisms, no debates, no councils, etc. that seemed to deal with any debate over such. The debate was: “For the Christians once baptized and saved, are there sins for which forgiveness or restoration to the community of believers was no longer possible?” Such matters are mentioned in the scriptures of John, Hebrews, Corinthians, etc.
In summary, to support the concept of “once saved, always saved”, one must not only have some imagination, but also overlook much of the Bible and the Early Church Fathers that lived and wrote within a couple of centuries of the earthly ministry of Jesus and,
as well, were involved with selecting the sacred writings to be included in the official cannon of the Christian Church, the Bible.
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