| Once
Saved, Always Safe by
Pastor Ray Pritchard Once Saved, Always Saved? © copyright 2001 by Lynette J. Hoy, N.C.C., L.C.P.C. Q:
I am searching for scripture that clarifies once saved always saved.
I know this is a hard concept. I was not raised on once saved always
saved. But I am trying to understand why so many believe it? thanks.
Once Saved, Always Safe by Pastor Ray Pritchard Two weeks ago a man stopped me on Sunday morning with a theological question. The man is a friend and an occasional attender. He put his question rather more bluntly than I expected. "You don't believe that "Once Saved, Always Saved" baloney, do you?" As a matter of fact, I do. And so does Calvary Memorial Church. For the uninitiated, "Once Saved, Always Saved" is street talk for the belief that is called (in more formal settings) Eternal Security. It is the belief those who are truly born again through personal faith in Jesus Christ can never lose their salvation. If you are saved, you are saved forever. Once you are saved by Jesus, he keeps you saved forever. Calvary Memorial Church has always believed in eternal security. A check of our old constitutions (going all the way back to the first one in 1915) shows that we have stated our belief in eternity security in very strong terms. To us it is no small doctrine. We believe the Bible teaches it, and teaches it very clearly. In our current constitutional revision, we have actually strengthened this part of our doctrinal statement. Section J of the Articles of Faith is entitled "The Security of the Believer," and reads as follows: "We believe the Scriptures teach that Jesus Christ, by His life, death and resurrection has conquered the dominion of sin, and therefore all who by faith have been united to Christ, who have been justified by God's grace, and who have been regenerated by the Holy Spirit cannot re-enter the dominion of sin nor lose their place in the kingdom of God." We offer as supporting Scriptures John 6:39; John 10:27-29; Romans 11:29; Philippians 1:6; I Peter 1:3-5; I John 2:19. What does it mean? It means that your salvation does not ultimately depend upon you. Salvation is work of God's grace from beginning to end. Even the faith you exercise is ultimately a gift of God. Your salvation rests upon three things: 1. Your union with Christ, 2.Your justification by God's grace, and 3. Your regeneration by the Holy Spirit. Do you see the Trinitarian emphasis? All three divine Persons are intimately involved in your salvation. The Father justifies, the Son unites, and the Holy Spirit regenerates. What the Father starts, the Son continues, and the Holy Spirit insures. Where do good works come in? Good works are the result and visible evidence of salvation. They are not the ground of salvation. Does this suggest that you can accept Christ and then live like the devil (as some have falsely implied)? No, not at all. It's true that all of us fall short of God's ideal. It is also true that God's children sometimes fall into grievous sin. Those who do face the chastisement of their Heavenly Father. But they do not lose their salvation. You don't gain salvation by being good, nor do you lose it by being bad. When we get to heaven, we will all be shocked to discover how sinful we really were and how great the grace of God really is. Those whom God saves, he saves forever. And that's no baloney. Permission granted to reprint by Pastor Ray Pritchard See articles and advice by Lynette J. Hoy, NCC, LCPC. |
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