Can salvation be lost once it is received?
Nearly 50% of Christians across denominations (Pentecostal, Evangelical, and Protestant) believe that salvation can be lost in some way. If this were possible, every Christian would need a clear understanding of what this entails. Holding onto salvation, then, would be just as critical as receiving the miracle of salvation itself.
There are verses like Romans 11:22 that individuals believe is talking about loss of salvation. I’d like to evaluate this for a moment.
What is a True Believer?
A true believer is a person who has repented of their sins and fully trusted in Jesus Christ as their Savior and therefore receives the Holy Spirit (John 3:16; Acts 16:31; Ephesians 2:8-9).
Let’s examine what the Bible says of what occurs at salvation and to study what losing salvation would entail:
1. A true believer is a new creation.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17). A Christian is not simply an “improved” version of a person; a Christian is an entirely new creature. He is “in Christ.” For a Christian to lose salvation, the new creation would have to be destroyed.
2. A true believer is redeemed.
“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect” (1 Peter 1:18-19). The word redeemed refers to a purchase being made; a price being paid. We were purchased at the cost of Christ’s death. For a Christian to lose salvation, God Himself would have to revoke His purchase of the individual for whom He paid with the precious blood of Christ.
3. A true believer is justified.
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). To justify is to declare righteous. All those who receive Jesus as Savior are “declared righteous” by God. For a Christian to lose salvation, God would have to go back on His Word and “un-declare” what He had previously declared. Those that have been pardoned of guilt would have to be tried again and found guilty.
4. A true believer is promised eternal life.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). God promises that if you believe, you will have eternal life. For a Christian to lose salvation, God would have to reverse eternal life and declare you to perish.
5. A true believer is marked by God and sealed by the Spirit.
“You also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:13-14). At the moment of faith, the new Christian is marked and sealed with the Spirit, who was promised to act as a deposit to guarantee the heavenly inheritance. The end result is that God’s glory is praised. For a Christian to lose salvation, God would have to erase the mark, withdraw the Spirit, cancel the deposit, break His promise, revoke the guarantee, keep the inheritance, forego the praise, and lessen His glory.
6. A true believer is guaranteed glorification.
“Those He predestined, He also called; those He called, He also justified; those He justified, He also glorified” (Romans 8:30). According to Romans 5:1, justification is ours at the moment of faith. According to Romans 8:30, glorification comes with justification. All those whom God justifies are promised to be glorified. This promise will be fulfilled when Christians receive their perfect resurrection bodies in heaven. If a Christian can lose salvation, then Romans 8:30 is in error, because God could not guarantee glorification for all those whom He predestines, calls, and justifies.
Conclusion
Most, if not all, of what the Bible says happens to us when we receive Christ would be invalidated if salvation could be lost. Salvation is the gift of God, and God’s gifts are “irrevocable” (Romans 11:29). A Christian cannot be un-newly created. The redeemed cannot be unpurchased. Eternal life cannot be temporary. God cannot renege or break His promise on His Word. Scripture says that God cannot lie (Titus 1:2).
The only people that become children of God are those that God: Foreknew, Predestined, Called, Justified, and Glorified. This means that if we are on the list of being predestined, then we are going to go through the whole process of being glorified. There’s no “if” within these verses. These are all promises of God.
God knows everything, and He foreknew everyone that will be going to heaven. We are not told exactly how this works, but we are told that we should all go out and make disciples of all nations.
How a Christian chooses to define verses like Ephesians 1:4-6 defines how they believe certain truths about Scripture. If a Christian believes that this promise is talking about “the world in general” that chooses Christ, then this will change the whole meaning of this promise into something a little different. It will also open up other beliefs, such as, since we chose Christ, we can “un-choose” Christ.
First, let’s read the 3 verses below, and then let’s read how they might be defined.
Ephesians 1:4-6 says, “4…He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love, 5He predestined us for adoption to Himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, 6to the praise of His glorious grace, with which He has blessed us in the Beloved.”
- Vs.4 – “…He chose us”: Can “us” mean the whole world, and those that choose Him?
- Vs.4 – If the word “us” meant the whole world, then the next part wouldn’t make sense, because He said, “He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world.”
- Vs.4 – Not only did He choose us, but He chose us “that we should be holy and blameless before Him.”
- Vs.4 – Those that are “holy and blameless” are ONLY those that are children of God. They are only those that have the Holy Spirit, which He chose.
- Vs.5 – This verse goes on to say, “In love, He predestined us for adoption to Himself.” Taking this thought against the #1 point discussed above, this is not talking about the whole world. It’s talking about certain individuals that Christ “predestined for adoption.”
- Vs.5 – This verse says, “according to the purposes of His will”, which is a decision He made. Why did He make the decision He chose? We don’t know all the reasons behind His decisions, but we know that these were made “according to the purposes of His will.”
- Vs.6 – This was all made because of “the praise of His glorious grace.”
- Vs.6 – Lastly, “He has blessed us in the Beloved.”
What is the meaning of Romans 11:22?
I believe this passage is NOT talking about being “cut off” from eternal salvation. The context of this chapter as a whole is talking about the nation of Israel. God had “cut off” some of Israel for their rejection of Him, and “grafting in” Gentiles to be God’s people to be a light to the world. Paul is still referring to the Gentiles as a group, as much as to Israel as a nation.
Continue Your Study
If this study encouraged or challenged you, continue exploring what God’s Word says about genuine faith, salvation, and Christian living.
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