As I was reading through other blogs the other day, I came across a subject that many Christians have asked.
The question was raised: Can a Christian ever lose their salvation?
I am going to list some scripture so you can search for the answer for yourself.
My own belief is that once you’re saved, you’re always saved. There are many Christians who will challenge me on this, but let me go on and explain why I believe this.
If you have accepted Christ’s gift and have totally given yourself to God, your life will be completely different. Your actions, reactions, thoughts, temperance, and demeanor will all have taken a radical change. You will see the world completely differently. You gain a compass internally that points straight to God. Knowing this, your conscience tells you when you have acted in a way that goes against what you know is right. You know it was a sin. Inwardly, and possibly outwardly, you will be in turmoil until you seek forgiveness.
If you truly have accepted Christ as your Savior, you have an endless desire to please God and will naturally always want to draw closer to Him.
I am not saying that there are not times when we stop growing in Christ. If we are really honest with ourselves, we all have turned from God at one time or another. But did we lose our salvation because we did? I don’t think so. Have we disappointed God? Yes. Because we know the truth, we have walked in the light, we know who God is; a born-again Christian’s spirit will be in a state of unrest until we finally yield. We ask for forgiveness, make the necessary changes, and continue on with our journey with God.
Remember, God always gives us a choice: God’s way or your own way. Even when we make the wrong choice, we won’t lose our salvation.
God is a loving God. He doesn’t stand over us with a big thumb ready to squash us when we do wrong. It disappoints Him, but He still loves us.
Remember when you were a child? You knew if you were told not to do something and you did it anyway, if you were caught, there was a price to pay. Did your parents ever love you less? It became a teaching moment, a reminder of what would happen for disobedience.
We are not perfect; we will sin. God knows this. Though God cannot look down on us when we sin, He has unending grace that will allow us to confess our disobedience and return to Him.
As a true Christian, I do not see how you could continuously live your life in sin, knowing in the back of your mind what you know about God. The parable of the prodigal son shows this: Luke 15:11-32.
If you are questioning your salvation, one or more of these things may have happened:
- You never really accepted Christ as your Savior.
- God’s Holy Spirit is working on your heart, showing you that you are sinning and calling you to repent.
- You are going through or have gone through a major event that has made you question what God is doing or whether God is real.
Below, I have listed some scripture for you to study or look up.
The answer to the question of whether you can lose your salvation or not depends on your view of God.
I know for myself that my salvation is secured. I’ve been through many dark times; in fact, I am still emerging from one. I know God loves me. I know He has forgiven me. God never left me in those dark moments; I just wouldn’t acknowledge Him. Was I still saved? Yes! My bad choices didn’t take salvation away; I had to endure more hardships and take longer to emerge from darkness than I would have had to, if I had trusted in God and let Him lead the way. It was a hard but valuable lesson to learn—one that I won’t forget.
Scripture for reading on salvation security:
John 10:28-29
Romans 8:38-39
1 Corinthians 9:27
Colossians 1:21-23
Hebrews 6:4-6; 10:26-29; 13:5
Jude 1:24-25
May God’s peace abide in you.