Once saved always saved?

[Khristeeanos]

I no longer buy into the OSAS argument.

[WayneB]

I am part of the Christian church that is a non-denominal church that stresses (which you wouldn't be able to guess it by my posts here! ) unity and love.

There is no creed, no statement of faith, no headquarters that tells us what to do or believe.

There is an urgent cry among us to just go back to the Bible as the sole authority.

We have many people in our congregations that disagree on non-essentials, but are still able to love each other deeply from the heart.

One of my favorite people there believes in OSAS and yet we have had some great conversations about deep Biblical topics.

We allow our common belief (Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and our Lord and Savior) to be emphasized over our differences.

A common saying among those of the Christian church is:

In essentials: unity

In non-essentials: liberty

In all things: charity

Is it necissary to believe in OSAS to be a Christian?  No, it is not.

I personally do not struggle at all with my salvation assurance.  I have never been more secure or confident in  my relationship with Christ.

I came to realize that our faith is what justifies, saves, and allows God to keep us, and that our security comes from that faith.  Where there is faith, there is salvation.

But where there is no faith, there is no salvation.

So then, we must define faith and see where it comes from and if it is rejectable.  (by the way everybody, there are more verses than Ephesians 2:8-9 that talk about faith--quote some of those!)

Well said brother.

I do not believe in OSAS/UES either. Regardless, I am secure in my salvation because He abides in me and I abide in Him...Praise God. I realize my source of spiritual nourishment is His Living Water and Bread of Life, without which my branch would whither and die. [John Chapter 15 --- The Grapevine]

BUT...it is an old discussion, one that has proved to be controversial with both sides quite relentless and long-winded.

Some time ago, a very wise man of God said, "Whether you are a proponent of one view or the other, or if you are somewhere in the middle, all must admit that these are merely teachings, and do not themselves have anything to do with our salvation in Christ. Our salvation in Christ is not based upon any man's teachings or doctrines, but upon the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior; and upon the blood which He shed for us. Neither John Calvin nor Jacob Arminius ever had enough blood to accomplish redemption."

These words stuck in my mind and heart. I no longer need to argue this point of doctrine...what matters most is Jesus and He told us, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me." [John 14:23,24]

So let us LOVE and OBEY Him saints... because He is worthy.

Bless you saints,

Wayne

[Khristeeanos]

So let us LOVE and OBEY Him saints... because He is worthy.

Well put, Saved by Grace!

Here are some verses about obedience:

John 15:10

If you obey My commands, you will remain in My love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in His love. (NIV)

Acts 5:32

We are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him. (NAS)

Romans 1:5

Through Him and for His name's sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith. (NIV)

Hebrews 5:9

And, being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him. (ESV)

1 John 2:3-6

We know that we have come to know Him if we obey His commands. The man who says, "I know Him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in Him.  But if anyone obeys His word, God

[Guest Called]

Wayne, I agree with you. It is all about Jesus.

I still have family members that believe in OSAS and I don't even argue about it with them. I don't even know why I posted anything on this thread anyway. I know it is like talking to a wall. I know all the arguments, I used to give them. We all just need to realize that we are called to be holy, as Jesus was holy.

Bob, I know there is nothing I can do to earn salvation. I am nothing, but for the grace of God. Jesus is my everything! Salvation is a free gift of God. However, in MY experience the people who believed OSAS got saved and then used grace as a license to sin ( I know this is being discussed in a different thread). We can turn our backs on God, that is what I believe. I thank you for your insight.

God Bless,

Debbie

[Guest LadyC]

salvation is a gift.

we should all remain in a permanent and perpetual state of acceptance. this is the crux of what scripture teaches us over, and over, and over. being in such a state is not "earning" anything, it's remaining receptive, willing, and accepting.

i do, and this is why i now feel secure in my salvation. when i was OSAS, i never felt secure. whenever i would stumble and rebel, i would find myself beating myself up with the same thing i still hear osas'ers say..... "i must not be truly saved". well good grief, as many times as i begged forgiveness and said "God, if i wasn't saved before, save me now", i should have been!

[Guest Called]

Right on LadyC!

[Ovedya]

Amen, brother!  I serve under a ministry that's pretty much like that of your church locality, so I know of whence you speak (or something like that). 

Oh, and we don't read from the King James Bible like you do! :a2: :c: :tongue:

Neither do we: http://online.recoveryversion.org

[WayneB]

salvation is a gift.

we should all remain in a permanent and perpetual state of acceptance. this is the crux of what scripture teaches us over, and over, and over. being in such a state is not "earning" anything, it's remaining receptive, willing, and accepting.

i do, and this is why i now feel secure in my salvation. when i was OSAS, i never felt secure. whenever i would stumble and rebel, i would find myself beating myself up with the same thing i still hear osas'ers say..... "i must not be truly saved". well good grief, as many times as i begged forgiveness and said "God, if i wasn't saved before, save me now", i should have been!

That is the problem with the doctrine. It actually leads to more doubt in my experience.

I thought I would share a testimony of mine that I posted on another thread some time ago ---

God has blessed me with a jail ministry whereby once a week I go into the local jail with a buddy of mine and we teach and minister to the inmates. When I started going a few years ago, we use to draw about 15 of the 120 inmates incarcerated; today, we draw about 50-60 (except at our Christmas dinner service when we get about 100). Regardless, one night not too long ago I was showing a video and one of the inmates pulled his chair next to mine. He looked at me with tears in his eyes and he told me that he was scared. He said that he was unsure of his salvation because of the evil thoughts that were continuously going through his mind. He thought that if he were really saved that those thoughts would go away and that he would not sin. When he finished, I looked at him and said,

[traveller]

Thank you Wayne, for that post. You express yourself beautifully! And I totally agree with you.

[angels4u]

These words stuck in my mind and heart. I no longer need to argue this point of doctrine...what matters most is Jesus and He told us, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me." [John 14:23,24]

So let us LOVE and OBEY Him saints

...

True what's most important is that we follow Jesus and obey Him.

I'm not going to disagree either way about this topic, it doesn't really matter as long as you live for Jesus.

By the way hmm.....(I do believe in ones saved always saved) what could I do to lose my Salvation and what happens if I die in the middle of a sin? :x:

I choose to believe that Jesus is able to keep me until the end and that nobody can take me out of His hands.

Safe in His arms,Angels