Can a Christian Lose His (or Her) Salvation?

As I look at the question I have to answer “no,” a Christian cannot lose his or her salvation. This is, however, a matter of some debate amongst Christians and genuine believers have believed both throughout the course of Christian history. We should be mindful to keep the context of any given Bible verse in mind, and we should also be mindful to interpret Scriptural passages with other Scriptural passages in order to prevent us from reading our own interpretations into the Bible.

Jesus tells His followers “’I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life (John 5:24).” The point of conversion involves a person answering God’s call to enter into a restored relationship with Him. From that point on, Jesus asserts that the believer has eternal life. It is not something the believer still must earn, or the believer can then refuse.

When he later extrapolates on what it means to be saved, and how He is the means of salvation, Jesus says “’I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty… All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away… For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day (John 6:35-40).’” Those who come to believe in Jesus are drawn to Him by God the Father, and no believer will be driven from His presence but rather be “risen up at the last day.”

Paul also testifies to the permanent state of salvation when he writes to the Colossian church that “For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory (Colossians 3:3-4).” Paul is speaking here in terms of sanctification, or the process of being made more into the image of Christ. In light of our belonging to Christ now and forever, we are called to live a life that is pleasing and glorifying to God.

Some have said that the Book of James contradicts my assertions so far because James asserts that it is only through faith and good works that we are saved, and therefore also keep our salvation. “But someone will say, ‘You have faith; I have deeds.’ Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder (James 2:18-19).” What James is getting at is that a genuine, saving faith is not just talk – faith produces works that are in keeping with the relationship of a believer between himself and God. James, Paul and Jesus are all in agreement about the nature of true faith. After all, just because someone claims to believe, and even does things in the name of the Lord, does not mean that same someone is also a genuine believer who submits to Christ as Lord and Savior: "’Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven (Matthew 7:21).’” What is the will of the Father? As we have already seen, the will of the Father is that “everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life.”

As to those verses which seem to contradict what I have said so far, we will address some of them here. The first and foremost comes from the author of the Book of Hebrews who writes, “If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God (Hebrews 10:26-27).” This seems pretty self-explanatory. However, we must keep in mind the greater context in which the author is warning against those who keep stumbling into immorality despite their relationship with God. If these verses were meant to imply a loss of salvation, why does the author go on to encourage his audience by writing “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us (Hebrews 12:1).” If the audience has already engaged in behavior that is not in keeping with a new identity in Christ, then it is too late, as we have seen from the previous quotation. However, the fact that the author then calls upon his audience to change their lives means that all is not lost.

While there are verses that seem to imply that believers can indeed lose their salvation, I contend that when we regard these verses through the lens of Scripture, we can clearly see that our salvation cannot be lost. However, we should not let ourselves fall into apathy or moral laziness merely because salvation is guaranteed. Rather our assured victory should encourage us to greater acts of courage and love for God’s glory. If the battle is already won, then what do we have to fear?