True or False:
Once saved, always saved?


The bible teaches that once a believer comes to Jesus Christ for the salvation of his soul, there is nothing that can take that free gift of salvation away from him. Nothing, except he himself. God does not hold us captive to him if we afterwards decide not to follow him, or if we willfully sin and not confess and forsake our sins. Some teach that once you are saved, not even your own willful act of sin can separate you from our Holy, sinless God. This belief, or doctrine, is called “once saved always saved.”

To illustrate how this doctrine is unscriptural, we bring your attention to a famous parable taught by our Lord Jesus Christ… the parable of the prodigal Son:

Luke 15:11-12
(11) And he said, A certain man had two sons:
(12) And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living.
(13) And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living.
(14) And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want.

Already we know the son is “safe” with his father, for it was after he left his father that his problems began. If he would not have left the security of his father, he would not have fallen away as he did. But he made the “decision” to leave, and the Father, not willing to hold his Son against his will, let him make his own decision.

In this same way, when we come to Christ, we are safe with him, he holds us in his security, and never lets us go. Jesus said:

John 10:27-29
(27) My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:
(28) And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
(29) My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.

We notice that Jesus gives us “eternal life” and that “no man” shall pluck us out of his hands. This means that no one can take away our security in him… yet the bible tells us to hold fast:

Hebrews 3:6
(6) But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.

In other words, we are the house of Jesus, but only “if” we “hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.” Notice in this same chapter, verse 12:

Hebrews 3:12
Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

Since Paul here calls them “brethren” we automatically know they are saved individuals. Study Hebrews 3 and 4, and you will notice that he is comparing them to those Israelites who were “saved” by God from the bondage of Egypt when they were about to enter the Promised Land. Yet the Israelites “departed” from God while in the wilderness, which resulted in their losing their salvation, for they never got to enter into the Promised Land which today symbolizes the entering in of Heaven! Paul urges his “brethren” not to “fall after the same example of unbelief.” –Hebrews 4:11.

In other words, once we are saved, yes, we already have eternal life, and no man can take that from us. But if at any point we sin, and do not return in confession to our father for forgiveness and repentance, as the prodigal Son did (Luke 15:21) we will end up “lost.” Notice this next verse in Luke 15:

Luke 15:24
For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.

At first he was not lost, but saved (verses 11-12) yet now that he chose to depart “from the living God,” his Father, he was lost.

The life the prodigal son is a striking example of the presumptuous claims of those Christians who don’t take sin that serious, and claim that it is impossible for them, in their sinful condition, to be lost. He left confidently with all his wealth (verses 12-13). He lived his life wasting every penny (verse 13) without worry that he would end up living in the streets like the beggars. Some of us feel, or have been taught, that once we are saved, we need not worry much about the future, for since we are saved, we will make to heaven anyway. This is how the prodigal son felt... safe, secure and worry free, since he left with all his "wealth." Yet the bible warns us not to enter into such a comfort state, but rather to fear…

“… lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest (entering heaven), any of you (the brethren already saved –verse 12) should seem to come short of it.” Hebrews 4:11.

This attitude, produced by the “once saved always saved” belief, saying “I am saved I am saved” without taking heed “lest he fall” (1 Cor. 10:12) can lead many individuals to trust in themselves, for, if they are saved, what worry have they if they sin or offend?

Notice the following few verses in Hebrews chapter 10:

Hebrews 10:26-29
(26) For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
(27) But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.
(28) He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:
(29) Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?

We see here that a man can be sanctified by the blood of Christ, yet if he “sin willfully” and does not return in humble repentance, he will be lost. Note these next verses:

2 Peter 2:20-22
(20) For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning.
(21) For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
(22) But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned (returns) to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

It seemed obvious to Peter that the proverb, “a dog returns to his vomit,” (ISV) applies to those who, after having received Jesus Christ, return to their former lusts, resulting in their being in a worse state.

Some bring 1 John 5:13 to our attention. Yet a reading of this little book from the beginning will lead the reader to see that John is speaking to mature Christians (1 John 1:12-14) not babes in Christ. Notice that these mature Christians have “known the father” and “have overcome the wicked one.” Verse 4 of chapter 5 says that whoever is born of God “overcometh the world.” In other words; he is telling those who have over come through the “will of God” (1 John 2:17) which is a life of sanctification (1 Thess. 4:3) that they have eternal life. We are not only to believe and accept Jesus as our personal savior; we are to, as a result, live a life of sanctification, and “hold on” to the eternal life he has so freely given us.

The greek word translated “have” in 1 John 5:13 has the following Strong’s meaning:

echō: A primary verb (including an alternate form σχέω scheō skheh'-o used in certain tenses only); to hold (used in very various applications, literally or figuratively, direct or remote; such as possession, ability, contiguity, relation or condition)

This greek word implies much more then to simply “have.” It means to “hold” in order to “have.” This agrees with what we have been saying… we are to “hold fast” our faith in Jesus, and to maintain our daily relationship with him, in order to continue to “hold” on to the eternal life granted to us.

Peter is another great example. He had his faith in Jesus, and believed with all his heart that he would never deny him. He fully believed, with the salvation granted him, that he would never fall. Yet as soon as he was asked if he was one of Jesus’ followers, he denied him three times (Luke 22:57-61). What if Peter would have died in his denial, or what if Peter would have never repented of his sin, would he have still been saved? Jesus answers:

Matthew 10:33
But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.

Some have felt 2 Timothy 2:13 teaches once saved always saved, but let’s read it with the verse just before it:

2 Timothy 2:12-13
(12) If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us:
(13) If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.

Verse 13 does not say he cannot deny us, but rather that he can not deny himself. Verse 12 confirms the exact same thing Matthew 10:33 says, that if we deny Jesus, he will deny us.

Peter’s denial would have lead him to his ruin, if he did not confess his sin and repent. This is why Christ prayed for him, not so that he not deny him (for he already knew he would deny him) but that he return to his faith and turn away from his sin.


Some have made the claim that Ephesians 2:8. teaches “once saved always saved” because of the greek word “este” translated “are.”

Ephesians 2:8
(8) For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

They say that the greek word “este” is in the perfect tense, and that “the perfect tense conveys a completed action.”

Let’s take a look within our Strong’s concordance together:

este: Second person plural present indicative of G1510; ye are: - be, have been, belong.

We see clearly from the greek definition provided for us by Strong’s greek concordance, that the word is rather in the “present tense.” This actually builds upon our case even more, for as we have shown above, we are saved in the “present tense” unless in the “future” we decide to forsake our Father like the prodigal son did!

We pray this study was helpful in your research.