"Wow, that's a lot more complicated than I thought it would be!" That was the thought running through my head after agreeing to restring someone's guitar. Normally, restringing a guitar is a piece of cake. But in this case the individual wanted me to convert his right-handed guitar into a left-handed guitar. Now here is the problem. Converting a right-handed guitar to left-handed involves more than reversing string positions. It requires replacing the nut for proper string alignment and adjusting bridge for proper intonation. I told him to sell his old guitar and buy a new left-handed guitar.
Just as converting a guitar is more complex than it appears, so too is the concept of losing one's salvation. Some Bible teachers claim that genuine believers can lose their salvation. However, God's Word does not support that claim. There are a handful of ambiguous verses that such Bible teachers will attempt to use to make their case. However, the overwhelming evidence of scripture supports the eternal security of the believer.
Beyond the fact that it is not scriptural, losing your salvation is more complicated than you might think. What would it take to lose your salvation? Some people would say that if you sin too much or deny the faith then you would lose your salvation. But it is way more complicated than that.
Dr. Lewis S. Chafer listed 33 things that occur the moment a person places their faith in Christ for salvation. If believers could lose their salvation, they would have to undo all 33 things that God accomplished for them when they believed. Here are a few examples.
When you trusted Christ for salvation, you experienced a new birth. How could a believer reverse the new birth? You cannot be un-born again. When you believed the good news, you were sealed by the Holy Spirit. How could anyone break the seal that was put on you by the third person of the godhead who is omnipotent? When you received Christ by faith, you were "justified" or "declared righteous" in the courtroom of God. This is a legal verdict pronounced by the Judge who is none other than God Almighty. How could anyone reverse this legal verdict? This is only a small sample of what must take place if a believer could actually lose their salvation. Losing your salvation is way more complicated than you might think!
Because of Calvary,
Bob
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Back To The Bible
1Timothy 3:15 describes the mission of the church as being the pillar and support of the truth. Whatever else the church does, it must take this commission from God seriously. No one but God's church is interested in such a project – it falls on God's people, the true church, to be the one place where truth is believed, upheld, and gloriously proclaimed. Of course, the truth that the church has to offer has a source – the Word of God. All the church does must emerge from the Scriptures. Every method, program, evangelistic effort, and message the church declares must find its roots firmly planted in biblical truth. -Selected
