eternal life Archives - Page 8 of 9

Have you ever read about the lukewarm believers in the church of Laodicea (Revelation 3:15-16)? I am sure you have. Many people wonder about these lukewarm believers and what Revelation 3 teaches about their eternal destiny.

Here is a question that a reader recently submitted:

What does the Bible mean when it refers to Lukewarm believers? Will they be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven?

Lukewarm Believers in Laodicea

Almost any Bible commentary will provide some decent background about this imagery of the lukewarm believers in Revelation 3:15-16. These books will probably tell you that the city of Laodicea had water piped in from Hieropolis, which is a few miles to the north. By the time the water reached Laodicea, it was lukewarm water.

Have you ever drunk lukewarm water? It’s not so good. You either want it hot or cold, but unless you are really thirsty, almost nobody drinks lukewarm water. You might even spit such water out, just as John writes in Revelation 3:16.

Though I hear that Europeans sometimes drink soft drinks and beer at room temperature (any Europeans want to confirm or deny this?), I think most people prefer their drinks to be either hot or cold, but not lukewarm. This is even true for Europeans with some drinks (like tea or coffee). I like iced tea and iced coffee (even if neither is sweetened), and I like hot tea and hot coffee, but I will rarely drink lukewarm tea or coffee. Blech!

So this is the imagery that John is using in Revelation 3:15-16 when writing about lukewarm believers in Laodiciea. Through John, Jesus is telling the believers to be either hot or cold, but not lukewarm.

Some pastors like to say that God only wants “on fire” Christians, that a “cold” Christian is not desired. Then they quote this verse to prove it. Well, you cannot use this verse to make that point. Jesus says, “I could wish you were cold or hot.” Don’t read too much into the imagery. There are different ways to follow Jesus, and Jesus isn’t too concerned about how you follow Him; only that you do.

There is not a whole lot in the context which helps us determine who is a lukewarm believer and who isn’t. These lukewarm believers claimed to be rich and wealthy, without needing anything (Revelation 3:17), but in reality, they were wretched and poor. Jesus challenges them to be zealous and to repent, and to let Him enter into fellowship with them (Revelation 3:19-20).

We could probably say that lukewarm believers are those who are self-sufficient and think that they don’t really need anything from God to get through life, and who don’t really think they need to repent of anything, and who don’t think that their life will be much better if they spend time with Jesus.

A Christian who is refreshing to be around and a Christian who is fired up is a follower of Jesus know knows they don’t have it all together, who knows that they aren’t perfect, and who knows that there is nothing better than hanging out with Jesus as He leads us into the world.

So that answers the first part of this question about the lukewarm believers. What about the second part of the question …

Will Lukewarm Believers Enter the Kingdom of Heaven?

Well … there are two answers here. There is the answer to the question that was asked and then there is the answer to the question that I think the person might have been trying to ask (though I could be wrong).

So first let me answer the question that I think the person was trying to ask. I think they were trying to ask, “Will lukewarm believers enter heaven?” or “Will lukewarm believers go to heaven when they die?” or maybe even “Can lukewarm believers still have eternal life?” I think that this is what the person was asking.

And the answer to these questions is an unqualified YES.

Eternal life is a free gift of God to everyone and anyone who simply and only believes in Jesus for it (John 3:16; 5:24; 6:47, etc.). Good works play absolutely no role whatsoever in earning, keeping, or proving eternal life (Eph 2:8-9; Rom 4:5; etc.)

So if a person believes in Jesus for eternal life, they are given eternal life by God. Even if they become a lukewarm believer, they continue to have eternal life. Yes, Jesus says He will “vomit” them out of His mouth (Revelation 3:16), but this has nothing to do with losing eternal life. Jesus is just continuing the imagery of the hot and cold water.

Furthermore, for those who overcome, that is, for those who remain either cold or hot, Jesus does not say, “You get to go to heaven when you die,” but rather, “You get to sit with Me on my throne” (Revelation 3:21). So you see? Being hot or cold does not earn eternal life. Instead, it earns the reward of co-ruling and co-reigning with Jesus Christ in His Kingdom.

And this brings us back around to the question that was actually asked. The person who sent in this question wanted to know if lukewarm believers will be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. The answer? No. At least, not as long as they remain lukewarm believers.

You see, the Kingdom of Heaven is not the same thing as “heaven.” The Kingdom is not the same thing as “eternal life.” The Kingdom of Heaven is the rule and reign of heaven, just like the Kingdom of God is the rule and reign of God. Believers who live according to the values and principles of the Kingdom of Heaven can begin to experience the rule and reign of heaven in their life right now! But if believers refuse to live according to the values of the Kingdom of heaven, then obviously, they cannot enter into the experience of the Kingdom of Heaven.

An Illustration

Let’s say someone gives you a million dollars and along with it you get a free membership to a Millionaire’s Club. Wonderful! But let us also say that the only condition to enter the club and enjoy all that it has to offer is that men have to wear a tux and women have to wear a nice evening gown. On the first night you wear jeans and a t-shirt. The guard up front says, “I am sorry. You cannot enter.”

“But I am a millionaire!” you say.

“I am sorry,” he responds. “You cannot enter the club without proper attire.”

This is somewhat how it is with the Kingdom of Heaven. As a believer, you have everything you need for entrance. But if you don’t adopt the principles and values of the Kingdom, this doesn’t mean you don’t belong … it just means you cannot experience it.

What sort of values are needed to experience the Kingdom of Heaven? Well, the sort of values which will make you either hot or cold to Jesus … values such as kindness, generosity, humility, patience, love, self-control, and other such Christlike attitudes.

So just to sum up … lukewarm believers are those who simply do not follow Jesus and don’t really seem to want to. Yes, they are still believers who have eternal life and will go to heaven when they die, but they are missing out on most of what the Christian life has to offer and due to being lukewarm believers, cannot experience the Kingdom of Heaven in all its joy.

What is the sin unto death in 1 John 5:16-17?

By Jeremy Myers

35 Comments

Recently someone sent in a question about the sin unto death.

When I was writing my book about The Unforgivable Sin, I originally intended to include chapters on Hebrews 6, 1 John 5:16-17, and other similar passages that cause trouble in the minds of many. If you have read that book, you know that while it deals with some of the popular teachings about the unforgivable sin and the primary text of Matthew 12:31-32, it doesn’t deal with these other passages that are used to teach that certain sins can lead to God’s ultimate rejection. I have plans for a future expanded edition of that book, but that is still many years off.

So until the new version of that book comes out, maybe I can write a few blog posts once in a while about these other passages. I was given the opportunity recently when someone sent in this question about the sin unto death in 1 John 5:16-17:

Got any thoughts on 1 John 5:16-17? What is the Father telling us about the sin unto death? Most ministries I have heard really don’t know and don’t teach on this.

For some reason, when people read the Bible, they tend to put on spiritual-colored glasses so that words which mean one thing in any other context mean something completely different when read in the Bible.

For example (and I have written about this before), take the word “saved.” If you were reading a book on finances, or energy conservation, or health tips, or almost any other topic, and the headlines read “8 Ways to Save!” you would understand that the word “save” has nothing to do with eternal life.

Yet when people read the Bible, they put on their spiritual-colored glasses so that when they read the word “save” they often put a spiritual twist on the word “save” and interpret it as having something to do with eternal life. Most of the time in the Bible, the word “save” (and saved) have nothing to do with eternal life.

The same is true with the word “death.”

Sin Unto Death

If you read an article in a newspaper with the title, “8 Things that Bring Death,” you would know that the article is probably going to talk about 8 things that ruin your health and bring an early death. It might include things like smoking, not exercising, stress, or jumping out of airplanes.

Yet when most people are reading their Bibles (and they have their spiritual-colored glasses on), and read about some sort of sin that brings death, they put a spiritual twist on it, and think it is referring to spiritual death, or losing your eternal life, or something like that. This is what happens when people read about the sin unto death in 1 John 5:16-17.

A similar thing happens, by the way, when people read James 5:19-20 which talks about saving a soul from death. The word “soul” doesn’t mean “spirit;” it means “life.” So to save a soul from death means to save a life from death. And again, if we read without our spiritual-colored glasses, we will remember to read the word “save” as having nothing to do with eternal life and the word “death” as not referring at all to spiritual death or losing eternal life.

Sin Can Cause Death

In other words, James 5:19-20 is saying the exact same thing as 1 John 5:16-17: there are certain sins which can bring death.

But how should we respond to people who commit these sins? Here is where some of the confusion enters, because John seems to instruct his readers not to pray for people who commit sin leading to death. Does this mean that when Christians commit certain sins which may lead to death, we should not pray for them?

Hardly!

In one of his commentaries on 1 John, Zane Hodges points out that all sins ultimately lead to death, so what John is referring to here are “sins for which death is a rapid consequence” (BKC, 902). So when John says, “I am not saying he should pray about that,” Zane Hodges writes, “But this clearly does not forbid prayer even in the most serious cases. But naturally in such cases believers will submit their prayers to the will of God” (BKC, 903).

If this sort of interpretations seems strange to you, just remember that there are groups of people today who do in fact pray for the forgiveness of people who have already died. Apparently, there were people in John’s day who were praying similar prayers. John is saying that such prayers are unnecessary. If a person commits sin that leads to their death, we don’t need to pray about that. Pray instead for those who are still living, no matter how serious their sin might be.

In other words, it is wise for Christians to pray for people who are caught in sin and help rescue them from these sins so that they don’t die. Once a person has died because of sin, we do not need to pray for them any longer, because they are now in the hands of God. Prayer for the sins of the deceased accomplishes nothing.

Examples of Sin Unto Death

When read this way, the verses about the sin unto death not only make more sense in context, but also make sense in light of the rest of Scripture, and in our own experience as well. For example, we all know that there are certain behaviors and actions which can lead a person to an early grave. But aside from that, there are even some sins which may cause God to discipline a person with early death. Those who did not properly observe the Lord’s Supper are another example (1 Cor 11:30).

There is also the example of the man who was boasting about sleeping with his stepmother (1 Cor 5:5). In 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 there is a whole list of regenerated people who died as a result of rebellion against God. Then there is the account of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11). All of these people committed a sin unto death, that is, a sin that led to their untimely death.

The sin unto death is not a sin to spiritual death, but a sin that leads to an untimely physical death.

Conclusion

John’s advice (as well as that of James) is that when we see a brother or sister caught in a sin that may lead to their death, we should pray for them, plead with them to turn from their ways, and do all we can to help restore this person back into fellowship with God and with one another. If they die as a result of their sin, we can learn from their mistakes and plead with others to turn from similar sins, but we need not pray for those whose sin has led to an untimely death. Such people are already dead, and are with God. So we don’t need to pray for them. We can pray instead for those who are alive and in need of our prayers.

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What about those who have never heard the Gospel?

By Jeremy Myers

45 Comments

The last couple weeks I have been working my way through dozens of Bible and theology questions which people have submitted through that “ask a question” area in the sidebar. This one deals with the age-old question of “What about those who have never heard?” Here is the question that was sent in:

If salvation was via sacrifices etc (Jews) and then via believing in Jesus; what happens to those outside these two faiths?

There is a hidden question within this question. The obvious question is the age-old dilemma, “What about those who have never heard the Gospel?”

But the question behind the question is “How did people receive eternal life before Jesus?” The assumption is always that the Jewish people received eternal life through obedience to the Law and following the sacrificial system instituted by Moses.

I don’t believe that anyone ever received eternal life through following the Mosaic Law or through the Levitical sacrificial system. Though many people think the Bible teaches this, it doesn’t.

If we can understand how Jewish people were saved prior to the death and resurrection of Jesus, then we can begin to answer how other people around the world may be able to receive eternal life before they have heard about Jesus.

So how did people receive eternal life before Jesus came to earth? The same way we do: by faith alone.

The Mosaic Law Never Granted Eternal Life to Anyone

A careful reading of the Mosaic Law reveals that there was no such thing as a sacrifice for willful sin. Does this mean then that people back then never sinned willfully? Of course not! They sinned willfully just as much as we do. We often know that what we are doing is wrong, but we do it anyway. It was the same for them.

Since there was no sacrifice in the Mosaic Law for willful sin, what could they do when they sinned willfully? The same thing we do! We depend on God for His grace, love, and forgiveness.

The Mosaic Law and the sacrificial system did not grant anybody eternal life.

People who lived before Jesus received eternal life the same way we do: by faith alone.

One purpose of the Levitical Law was to maintain community standards of health, safety, and well-being before God and before one another. As a theocracy, the Levitical laws functioned much like the laws in a democracy. Today, we have have national and local laws to help maintain order, peace, and security. But nobody thinks that by obeying the speed limit and paying your taxes you get to go to heaven.

It was the same for the Israelites. The Mosaic Law was to maintain peace, order, security, and safety. Because Israel was intended to be a theocracy, there were also numerous laws related to the worship of God, but again, these were not intended to grant a person eternal life, but simply to maintain fellowship with other members of the Israelite community.

There were other purposes for the law as well, but I won’t get sidetracked with that issue here. (A new book is coming out by Maxine Armstrong soon which helps shed light on the purpose of the Law… ).

How Jewish People before Jesus Received Eternal Life

Once we understand the purpose and function of the Mosaic law for Israel, we can begin to understand how people receive eternal life, even if they have not heard about Jesus. While I firmly believe the truth of Acts 4:12 that there is no other name under heaven by which we must be saved, I have to argue that at least prior to the ministry of Jesus, people could have received eternal life by believing in God’s promises to rescue and deliver them, even if they didn’t know the name “Jesus.”

In other words, prior to the advent, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus, God gave eternal life to people who believed in Him for it. This does not mean that they simply believed that He existed any more than “believing in Jesus” means nothing more than that Jesus existed.

No, to believe in God means to believe that purely by His grace and out of His love, He gives eternal life freely to anyone and everyone who believes in Him for it.

That, I believe, is how Jewish people received eternal life in Old Testament times.

By faith, the Israelites placed themselves in the hands of God to do with as He wished. They did not know the name of Jesus, but they knew some things about God, and they believed what God had said. They believed the revelation that God had given.

But what about non-Jewish people who lived before Jesus?

So if God gave eternal life to the Jewish person who simply believed in Him based on the revelation He had been given, I think it is likely that something similar took place all around the world. I am not saying that if people simply believe what they learn about God from nature that this will be enough for God to grant them eternal life.

I do not think that natural revelation is enough revelation to bring anyone to eternal life.

However, if a person responds positively to the revelation which God has placed in creation and in the human conscience, I believe that God will make sure that this person receives more revelation.

Romans 1 and other biblical texts state that God has revealed certain truths about Himself in nature so that men are without excuse. I think that as people respond to the revelation they have received, God obligates Himself to provide more revelation to them, so that they receive enough revelation from God to either accept the offer of eternal life by faith alone, or to reject such an offer.

This then helps us understand what may be going on to people today who have never heard about Jesus.

What About Those Who Never Hear the Gospel?

So what about those who have never heard? Again, I believe that if they respond to the revelation they have received, God has obligated Himself to make sure they receive more revelation, until they get to the point where they have enough revelation to receive eternal life.

Note that this level of revelation might be different for different people of different ages and of different mental capacities.

Note as well that my proposal here says nothing about children who die before they are old enough to understand the Gospel, nor does it say anything about people who are mentally handicapped who can never understand much of anything about the Gospel. Those are related, but different, questions.

How does God make such revelation available to others?

There are a variety of ways in which God can provide further revelation to those who respond to the revelation they have. Some of these forms of revelation are even mentioned in Scripture.

If a missionary is available, God could send a missionary. If a missionary is not available, God could send angels to teach these people, or through the Holy Spirit moving like wind upon the earth, God could simply whisper more revelation to those who are responding to the truth they have received. Then, of course, there are dreams and visions. We often hear reports even today of people who have dreams and visions about Jesus who may have never heard of Him before.

Bottom Line on Those Who Have Never Heard

I fully admit that some of what I have written above is speculative. The Bible is relatively silent about the eternal destiny of those who have never heard. While some people say that all those who have never heard receive eternal life (universalism), I cannot accept this idea.

Others teach a form of Christian reincarnation so that before a person’s eternal life is finally determined, they get to live a life in which they have the opportunity to hear and respond to the Gospel. I reject that view as well.

Then there are some who say that God, in His infinite foreknowledge, looks into the possible futures of a person’s life to see what that person would have done if they had heard the Gospel. This view sounds a bit like that Tom Cruise movie “Minority Report” where people are condemned for crimes they haven’t yet committed.

Some say that God gives people who die without hearing the Gospel an opportunity after death to hear and believe it. This has a bit of merit from Scripture (depending on how you understand Abraham’s bosom in Luke 16:19-31, and the statement in 1 Peter 3:19 about how Jesus preached to the spirits in prison), but again, this view is highly speculative.

The bottom line is this: We don’t know for sure exactly what happens to those who have never heard the Gospel.

But we do know that God is loving, kind, merciful, gracious, and resourceful.

Based on what I know of God, I don’t think it is within the character or nature of God to separate anyone from Him eternally simply because they were unlucky enough to live in an area that didn’t have a Bible. The Bible serves God’s purposes; God does not serve the Bible. God’s work in the world is not limited only to where the Bible is available.

Ultimately and finally, we can do nothing more than depend on the grace of God, that He will do what is right.

What do you think? Weigh in below with your own perspective on what happens to people who have never heard the Gospel.

What are the signs of a False Conversion?

By Jeremy Myers

32 Comments

The last couple weeks I have been working my way through dozens of Bible and theology questions which people have submitted through that “ask a question” area in the sidebar. Here is a question someone sent in about the signs of a false conversion:

How would one know if they experienced a false conversion? I was raised in church with a very religious controlling mother. I continued in church through my teens and twenties and then married a minister.

This past year I started to struggle with my faith… It came to a head in October when I felt like the Holy Spirit departed.

I then had what I would term a mini nervous breakdown. After that point I feel like I was shown that I had been working against God all along and His people…. Jealousy envy, anger… All the while not even realizing that my heart was in the state it was in. I have had very dark thoughts even about God and am now concerned about the unpardonable sin.

I have not felt His presence since October. I feel empty and dead inside. How do I know if I am or was saved and if it is possible that I am now outside of grace?

Below is my answer to this question about false conversions. Please feel free to weigh in with your own perspective in the comment section below.

There are countless millions of people who struggle with this exact same question about the signs of a false conversion.

Are you ready for a short and shocking answer about the signs of false conversion? Here it is:

There are none.

What?! There are no sure signs of a false conversion? How can this be? Doesn’t Scripture teach us about good trees bearing good fruit? Doesn’t James warn us against dead faith? Don’t churches and pastors tell us to bear fruit worthy of repentance?

Yes, these are the sorts of things Scripture says and the sorts of things pastor preach. And while I believe those Scriptures, I understand them differently than how they are explained from most pulpits and in most books.

So let’s back up a little bit and see if I can unpack my short answer.

I am not denying that there is such a thing as false conversion; I am only denying that there are signs of false conversion. Yet Scripture provides a clear and simple way to know whether or not you have been truly converted….

Confused yet? Let’s break it down….

There is Such a Thing as False Conversion

It is true that there is such a thing as a false conversion. There are many who believe they have eternal life, but may not in fact have this free gift of God, because they do not understand what how God gives eternal life to us.

On the one hand, there are countless numbers of people who think they received eternal life when they walked an isle at a revival or evangelism crusade. Or maybe they signed a card, raised a hand, or said a prayer. If you ask someone how they know they have eternal life, and they say something like “When I was 10 my church had a guest evangelist come speak, and when he gave an altar call I went forward and prayed the sinners prayer” it is possible that this person does not actually understand what the Bible says about how to receive eternal life.

Then there the millions of people who believe that our own good works play some sort of role in gaining, keeping, or proving eternal life. Some teach that “Jesus has done His 99% and we must do our 1%.” This is the idea that there is a role we must play to gain eternal life.

Others say, “No, we don’t have to do anything to gain eternal life; it is the free gift of God (Eph 2:8-9), but if we want to keep eternal life, we have to live a life of holiness and obedience. If you commit certain sins, or do not repent of your sins, or fail to confess a sin, or live in sin for an extended period of time, well, then you no longer have eternal life. Either you give it back or God takes it back.”

Finally, there are many who say that if a person truly has eternal life, they can never lose it, but their good works will prove that they actually have it. If they do not have the good works to back up their claim, then they never really had eternal life to begin with. Theirs was a false faith, a spurious faith, a fake faith.

What does the Bible say about about conversion?

The Bible pretty clearly indicates that eternal life is an absolutely free gift of God which He gives to anyone and everyone who simply and only believes in Jesus Christ for it (cf. John 3:16; 5:24; 6:47, etc.).

And since there is no good work that is necessary to earn eternal life, there is also no good work that is necessary to keep it. And while we would hope and expect that people who have eternal life will live lives of increasing holiness and obedience, the fact that God has given us freedom means that a life of good works is not guaranteed.

To sum up then, Jesus gives eternal life to anyone who believes in Him for it.

So what does all this have to do with the question of true and false conversion? Well, based on what we have seen so far, how can you know if you have been converted? Answer: If you have believed in Jesus for eternal life, then God promises that you have eternal life.

It really doesn’t matter how we feel at some point in our life, or what mistakes we have made, or whether or not we can sense the Holy Spirit’s presence. It is God’s guaranteed promise that if we believe in Jesus Christ for eternal life, then we have it.

This why I say that there are no signs of false conversion. To know whether or not we have been converted, there is only faith in the unfailing promises of God through Jesus Christ. Outward experiences, our own good works, and the inner feelings of our hearts are not reliable indicators of whether or not we are part of God’s family. Being part of God’s family is by faith from first to last.

All of that was to answer your first question about being falsely converted. How can you know whether or not you were falsely converted? Well, do you believe in Jesus for eternal life? If so, you have eternal life. It is God’s promise.

Knowing the Love and Acceptance of God

This then should help you with the rest of your questions. It is difficult being a pastor’s wife. It is difficult feeling that the Holy Spirit has departed (He hasn’t, by the way). It is difficult dealing with jealousy, envy, and anger. It is difficult feeling empty and dead inside.

But through all these emotions and feelings, remember this: God loves you more than you can possibly imagine. Though what you are going through right now is extremely painful, God is with you in this time and is seeking to strengthen and solidify your faith during this time. You are experiencing a winter in your relationship with God, a time that some have called “the dark night of the soul.” But spring will come. The light will dawn once again. The sense of God’s presence will return.

While you wait, remember God’s many promises in Scripture, that He loves you and will never leave you nor forsake you, and that you have eternal life because you have believed in Jesus for it.

If you want to weigh in on this theological question, please feel free to add your comments below. Also, please consider sharing this post on Twitter and Facebook below so that others can benefit from the discussion on this theological question.

Once Saved, Always Saved?

By Jeremy Myers

62 Comments

I sometimes get asked if I believe in “Once Saved, Always Saved.” One reader recently sent in this question:

Can a Christian lose their salvation?

The old saying is once saved, always saved.

I have two ways of answering this question, both of which are stated below.

1. Why I do NOT Believe “Once Saved, Always Saved”

The reason there is so much debate over this statement is because of the word “saved.” As I have written about on numerous times previously, the word “saved” (and other related words such as “save” and “salvation”) are used in a variety of ways in the Bible. When you do a study of the ways these words are used, it quickly becomes obvious that the vast majority of them have absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with anything related to gaining or keeping eternal life.

So, for example, the word “saved” might refer to being delivered from one’s enemies, or getting healed from a sickness, or being rescued from drowning at sea. Obviously, these words are not related to gaining or keeping eternal life. I would guess that the majority of times the words saved, save, salvation, etc., are used in Scripture, they are used in this way (e.g., Matt 8:25; Acts 27:31).

Another percentage of words refers to various ideas that are related to eternal life, but are not eternal life themselves. Often, the words in these contexts refer to some aspect of sanctification, or maybe getting rewards at the Judgment Seat of Christ, or some other related idea (cf. 1 Cor 3:15).

Finally, there is a tiny fraction (I would say less than 1%) of uses where the term probably does refer to receiving eternal life, though even in these contexts, the actual meaning of the word is debatable.

In Acts 16:30-31, for example, the Philippian jailer asks Paul and Silas, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” They answer, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” On the one hand, it seems that the jailer might have been asking about how to receive eternal life. But frankly, at this time, that may not have been the primary question on his mind. At that time, if a jailer let prisoners escape, the jailer would be tortured and killed. Maybe the jailer was not asking how to get eternal life, but how to be delivered (saved) from being killed by the authorities. This reading is possible. I am not sure how the jailer meant his question, and so don’t mind reading it either way. Besides, whatever he meant by it, Paul and Silas answer the most important question, which is how to receive eternal life: believe in Jesus for it.

There are a few other examples of places where the word “saved” could be understood as eternal life, or could be understood as referring to something else (Eph 2:1-10 is one), but these examples are less than 1% of the uses in the Bible.

But here is what happens. Most church-going people assume that the word “saved” almost always means “get forgiveness of sins so you can go to heaven when you die” even though it rarely means that. So when they come across a passage like 1 Corinthians 15:2 where Paul says the Corinthians will be saved only if they hold fast to the word that was preached to them. And people say, “See? If you don’t hold fast, then you aren’t saved? See? Once saved, always saved is false!”

Right. But what does the word “saved” mean in this context? Is Paul really talking about the concept of “forgiveness of sins, escaping hell, going to heaven when you die?” No, he is not. Paul is using the word “saved” in the same way he uses it in 1 Corinthians 3:15. The word “saved” in 1 Corinthians refers to reward and honor at the Judgment Seat of Christ. This is something Christians can lose.

So the question, “Do you believe in ‘Once Saved, Always Saved?’ is a trick question. There are numerous verses in the Bible which indicate that there are some things in our Christian life which can be lost, and these texts use the word “saved” to talk about how to be saved from losing these things.

So do I believe in “Once Saved, Always Saved?” No. I do not. This slogan is unclear, imprecise, and does not fit with many Scriptures which indicate that there are many spiritual blessings in the Christian life that can be lost.

2. Why I believe “Once Saved, Always Saved”

Of course, after saying what I have said above about “Once Saved, Always Saved” I always try to then answer the question that people are really asking. When people ask if I believe in “Once Saved, Always Saved” what they are really asking is if I believe that eternal life can be lost. That is, do I believe in eternal security?

And the answer to that is a resounding Yes!

Once you see the difference in Scripture between the word “saved” and the terms “eternal life” or “everlasting life” or even something like “justification” you begin to see that while there are numerous verses which talk about saving something that can be lost, there is not a single verse in the Bible which talks about losing eternal life, losing everlasting life, or losing our justification. All of these gifts of God, once given, are never revoked or taken back.

There is no place in the Bible that talks about getting unjustified, unsealed, unregenerated, unindwelled, unbaptized by the Spirit, or any such thing.

If everlasting life can be lost, it has the wrong name.

Yes, I know there are difficult verses in the Bible, and troubling passages (Hebrews 6 and Hebrews 10 for example), but with a basic framework understanding of what Jesus teaches about eternal life being given freely to everyone and anyone who believes in Him for it, and that since Jesus died for us while we were yet sinners there is no sin that can take away the benefits of His death from us, and dozens of other Scriptures which talk about God’s infinite, unmerited, outrageous, scandalous grace, the clear teaching of Scripture seems to be that once God gives eternal life to someone, they have it eternally.

Yes, yes, there are people who might abuse this idea. Yes, there are people who think they have eternal life, but don’t. Yes, there are lots of false ideas out there about what eternal life is and how to get it. I am not talking about any of that. All I am saying is that according to Scripture, if a person has eternal life, then they have eternal life eternally. They shall never perish!

So do I believe in Once Saved, Always Saved? You tell me! What are your thoughts about the saying, “Once Saved, Always Saved”?

Will Lukewarm Believers go to Heaven?

Lukewarm Believers in Laodicea

Will Lukewarm Believers Enter the Kingdom of Heaven?

An Illustration

What is the sin unto death in 1 John 5:16-17?

Sin Unto Death

Sin Can Cause Death

Examples of Sin Unto Death

Conclusion

Do you fear that you have committed the Unforgivable Sin?

What about those who have never heard the Gospel?

The Mosaic Law Never Granted Eternal Life to Anyone

How Jewish People before Jesus Received Eternal Life

But what about non-Jewish people who lived before Jesus?

What About Those Who Never Hear the Gospel?

How does God make such revelation available to others?

Bottom Line on Those Who Have Never Heard

What are the signs of a False Conversion?

There are none.

There is Such a Thing as False Conversion

What does the Bible say about about conversion?

Knowing the Love and Acceptance of God

Once Saved, Always Saved?

1. Why I do NOT Believe “Once Saved, Always Saved”

2. Why I believe “Once Saved, Always Saved”

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