The Dangerous Doctrine of Once Saved, Always Saved

Today, the doctrine of “once saved, always saved” (also known as eternal security) has become increasingly popular among people who call themselves Christians.

Despite being rejected by many leading Christians over the centuries, the doctrine of eternal security has started to get a foothold within many denominations over the world once again.

This unbiblical doctrine stems mainly from the teachings of Calvinism and is part of the famous 5 points of Calvinism, known by the acronym “TULIP”. The doctrine has been furthered by the Baptists, and teaches that once you receive Christ you can never lose your salvation, and that if someone backslides, that person was never truly saved.

Now this doctrine is obviously dangerous, as it will in many cases encourage a casual lifestyle – either intentionally or unintentionally – where people really do not care that much if they have Jesus as their Lord 100% every day or not.

Instead, they believe they have a “fire insurance”, a guarantee of heaven no matter what they do.

And when some people go a step further and combine this teaching with the false, cheap Gospel of “free grace”, this doctrine becomes incredibly harmful for Christians.

Now, I want to clarify that I am not saying that there are not many true, saved Christians who have believed this doctrine.

On the contrary, some of the greatest evangelists of the last 500 years have been staunch Calvinists, including George Whitefield and Jonathan Edwards.

However, the difference then was that unlike today, they preached repentance and having Jesus as your Lord.

Jonathan Edwards is famous for his sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” which preached repentance like no sermon ever held today.

The result was that people got saved, even though they adhered to a faulty doctrine.

And because this was a mainstream teaching at that time, it is understandable why some heartfelt Christians did not see how wrong it was, much like infant baptism.

Therefore, even though it was a false doctrine, it was not as dangerous of a doctrine as it has become today, now that it is
paired with a cheap Gospel.

Many things can be said about this false doctrine. Yes, one could easily dedicate a whole book to this topic. But I will keep this part short, using evidence from the Scriptures.

Why the Doctrine of Eternal Security Is Unbiblical

In this section, I will present a few of the many Bible verses that clearly prove that salvation is conditional – if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end.

If the doctrine of eternal security had been true, its proponents would have to argue that:

1. No promising harvest can be choked with thorns after receiving the Word of God, through the cares, riches, and pleasures of this life. (See Luke 8:5-15)
2. No one can, after escaping “the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ”, again become entangled in them, making it “better for them not to have known the way of righteousness”. (See 2 Peter 2:20-21)
3. No virgin’s lamp can go out, leaving her barred from the wedding. (See Matthew 25:1-13)
4. No branch can be cut off because of unfruitfulness, nor can any who cease to abide in Jesus be cast forth. (See John 15:1-6)
5. No name can be blotted out of the Book of Life. (See Revelation 3:5)
6. No one can make a shipwreck of faith, as Hymenaeus and Alexander did. (See 1 Timothy 1:19-20)
7. No one can bury their talent, nor have it taken from him. (See Matthew 25:14-40)
8. No one can put his hand to the plow and look back. (See Luke 9:62)
9. No one can receive the grace of God in vain. (See 2 Corinthians 6:1)
10. No salt can lose his savor. (See Matthew 5:13)

They must also explain why the Bible warns about people falling away after being saved – and why the Bible warns that it is impossible to renew the people mentioned here again unto repentance:

“For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.” (Hebrews 6:4-6)

Furthermore, they would also need to explain these verses, where it is written in black and white that salvation is conditional:

“Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.

For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end; ” (Hebrews 3:12-14)

After reading what the Bible tells us, we can clearly conclude that salvation is conditional, on the terms that we persevere to the end.

Therefore, it is evident that the doctrine of eternal security does not hold up, after examining what the Scriptures say.

The list of Bible verses in support of conditional security could go on and on, but I think these are sufficient for this chapter.

Addressing the Most Common Misinterpretations

I do not think I need to add much to this. I think the previous section perfectly shows how unbiblical and flawed the doctrine of eternal security is.

But I will anyway address two of the most common arguments used to defend this doctrine today, and explain why they are misinterpreted and completely taken out of context.

Argument: That salvation is a gift from God and God’s gifts cannot be revoked.

The Bible is very clear in Ephesians 2:8–9 that salvation is a gift from God, and is not a result of human effort.

However, some people try to use this verse to argue that it means a person cannot lose their salvation, because God’s gifts cannot be revoked, referring to what is written in Romans 11:29.

However, the fact that God’s gifts are irrevocable, does not mean that a person loses their free will and cannot choose to reject God’s irrevocable gift.

Think of it this way: You give someone an expensive present that you will never take back. However, it is up to the other person to keep it, and that person can choose to throw your beautiful gift in the bin. You cannot force that person to keep your gift against their will.

And it does not have to be today, but it could happen in a year or two in the future.

In the same way, God will never revoke His gifts because

“God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent.” (Numbers 23:19)

But that, of course, does not mean a person cannot choose to reject God after receiving the gift of salvation.

Argument: God predestines some people to be Christians and others to not be Christians

This argument is based on Romans 8:29–30, that God predestines some people to heaven and others not.

First, we know from 1 Timothy 2:4 that God

“will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.”

So, we already know that God does not want anyone to go to hell and would of course not send people to hell just because He wants to.

But the explanation is actually very simple.

Because God is all-knowing and is outside of time. He knows what choice a person will make and if they will ultimately decide to make Jesus their Lord. So, while God knows what choice a person will make, from a human point of view, we do not know what a person ultimately will choose.

That is also why God hated Esau (Romans 9:13) and why He hardened the heart of Pharaoh (Exodus 7:3). Because God in His omniscience knew their hearts, and knew that they would never repent, no matter what.

But that does not mean that they did not have a free will and could be saved at one point in their lives. It simply means that God knew they never would.

The same is true for Christians. God knows who will choose to follow Him, who will not, and who will start on the way but later backslide.

Also, we know from Matthew 22:14 that:

“For many are called, but few are chosen.”

So, when reading this, and the rest of the Bible, it is impossible to conclude that these verses mean you cannot lose your salvation.

It is to take a verse completely out of context and try to twist it to mean something that contradicts the rest of the Bible.

Why Do People Still Believe This False Doctrine?

One question you might ask after reading this: “Why do some people still believe this, even though it clearly contradicts what the Bible teaches?”

Well, one explanation could be because many people have not experienced true salvation, and do not have the assurance of salvation in their hearts like 2 Corinthians 13:5 teaches.

Seeking a sense of security, they try somehow to find a “fire insurance” in believing a false doctrine, which allows them to deceive themselves into believing they are saved when they are not.

These people are like those described in this Bible verse:

“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;” (2 Timothy 4:3)