Salvation
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2. Can a believer lose his salvation? In other words, can those who
had a real experience with God lose their state of grace? |
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Yes, a
believer can lose salvation. The Scripture clearly teaches that this
possibility exists. Let us see what the Scripture says. |
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The author
of the epistle to the Hebrews says: “For it is impossible for those who were
once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become
partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the
powers of the age to come, if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance,
since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an
open shame. For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it,
and bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated, receives blessing
from God; but if it bears thorns and briers, it is rejected and near to being
cursed, whose end is to be burned” (Hebrews 6:4-8 – NKJV). |
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Now I am
going to expound these words. First of all I want to say that those about
whom the Scripture says: “If they fall away” are believers. Why do I say
this? Because I know that some Christians think that those about whom the
Scripture says: “If they fall away” are not believing persons, or rather they
are not true believers. In other words, according to some Christians, these
people who may fall away look like believers outwardly but actually they are
not true believers. But that is untrue because the things which are said
about these people can be said only about true believers. On the other hand,
the writer of that epistle wrote to believers, and if he had cited as an
example what might have happened to false believers in order to warn
believers of a risk they could not run because they were true believers, it
would not have made sense!! Don’t you think so? |
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Not only
that, we say also that the above mentioned words apply to mature Christians
who are well versed in the Word of God, and not to babes in Christ. But let
us look closely at these words. |
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Those who
were once enlightened are the believers who, after they lived in darkness,
through the Word of God, which is light, and the Holy Spirit, who was sent
into the world to convict the world of sin and of righteousness and of
judgment, acknowledged their sins (that is, they recognized they were sinners
before God) called upon the Lord so that He might have mercy on them. On that
blessed day, a great light dawned upon them, darkness vanished and the light
of the Lord came upon them. Therefore they were enabled to see the light. That
the passage applies to believers is confirmed by the fact that a little further
the writer tells those believers to recall “the former days in which, after
you were illuminated, you endured a great struggle with sufferings” (Hebrews |
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Once they
were enlightened, they tasted the heavenly gift, which is eternal life
because the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans |
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After they
tasted the heavenly gift, they became partakers of the Holy Spirit, which
means that they received the Holy Spirit, that is to say, they received the
baptism with the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in other tongues
as the Spirit gave them utterance. Just as when one receives Christ, he
becomes partaker of Christ (Hebrews |
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In
addition to this, these people tasted the good word of God because they
delighted themselves in the Word of God. Therefore, they meditated on it,
they put it into practice, it became their joy, their interest in the word of
God was profound and not superficial. |
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They
received also some gifts of the Holy Spirit, for the Scripture says that they
have tasted the powers of the age to come. The gifts of the Spirit are not
powers of this age. Therefore they have received some of the following gifts:
gifts of revelation (the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, discerning of
spirits), gifts of word (prophecy, different kinds of tongues, the
interpretation of tongues); gifts of operation (the working of miracles,
gifts of healings, faith). |
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Now, if these
people fall away, and I say it again, if they fall away, then they can’t
repent and they can’t return to the Lord any more. However, I would like to point
out that this fall is not any fall (or sin) for it is written: “A righteous
man may fall seven times and rise again” (Proverbs 24:16 – NKJV), but is a
particular fall, from which it is impossible for them to rise again. This is
confirmed by the fact that the Scripture says that if they fall away it is
impossible “to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for
themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame” (Hebrews 6:6), whereas
the same Scripture says that it is possible for those who commit any other
sin to be brought back to repentance, in that God gives them time to repent. In
the Scriptures of the New Testament we have the example of those servants of
the Lord who committed adultery with Jezebel (Revelation |
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With
regard to the fact that it is impossible for them to repent, I want you to
notice that since the Scripture says that if they fall away, it is impossible
for them “to be brought back to repentance” (Hebrews 6:6 – NIV), it is
evident that one day these people had been brought to repentance; so this proves
that the Scripture here is speaking of true believers. |
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What destiny
is awaiting then those who fall away? Here is the answer: “For if we sin
wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there
remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of
judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. He that
despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: Of how
much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath
trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the
covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite
unto the Spirit of grace? For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth
unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge
his people. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews
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I conclude
by reminding you of the following words of Paul: “It is a faithful saying:
For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: If we suffer, we
shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us: If we believe
not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself” (2 Timothy 2:11-13).
Therefore, our aim must be to die in Christ in order to go to be with Him;
our aim must be to endure so that one day we may also reign with Him. Far be
it from us to deny the Lord, for if we deny Him, He also will deny us and
thus we will go to perdition. |
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Of course,
during our pilgrimage we all stumble in many things, but God has promised us
that He will remain faithful, for the apostle John says: “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 – NKJV). |
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O, Lord
our God, how great is your faithfulness. To You be the glory now and forevermore.
Amen. |