Once Saved Always Saved?

Not according to the Scriptures. As a mater of fact, according to the Bible, just the opposite is true.

When read in context, the Scriptures teach us that we have a moral assurance- a moral certitude of heaven – if we do God’s will and endure to the end.

In Matt. 7:21, Jesus tells us, “Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.”

Later, in that same Gospel (Matt. 24:13), Jesus reminds us that "He who endures to the end will be saved"  There are many places in Scripture where we are admonished to continue to do the will of God and persevere (2 Chronicles 15:2, Matthew 10:22, 2 Timothy 2:12, 1 Corinthians 10:12, 2 Peter 2:20-21, 1 Cor. 9:27, 1 Timothy 4:16, Hebrews 10:26-27, Hebrews 10:29, 1 John 5:13).

In 2 Tim. 4:7, St. Paul likens this journey to a race when he says, “I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith.”

There are those who believe that once we accept Jesus, there is nothing we can do to lose our faith – our guarantee, yet Jesus himself says differently.  In the parable of the sower, we see that not all of the seed that fell on the ground grew and yielded fruit - only the seed that fell on the rich soil which are those who remain faithful in the Church (Mark 4:1-20, Matthew 13:1-23, Luke 8:1-15). These are the faithful who endure to the end.

We must remember that the Bible is not filled with absolute guarantees for those who believe – it is filled with God’s wonderful promises for those who remain faithful.