Bible Questions with Andrew Farley Dunham Podcast Network

In Matthew 7, Jesus is not addressing Christians who lose their salvation. He is talking about people at the final judgment who never knew Him. They’re seeking entrance into the kingdom because of their religious works instead of by the finished work of Christ. They have missed the Gospel entirely, and they are unbelievers. For this reason, Jesus says to them, “Depart from Me.”

The expression “fallen from grace” does not refer to loss of salvation but loss of perspective when a person (even a believer) shifts away from looking to Jesus for righteousness and seeks to establish their own self righteousness.

“Once saved, always saved” is absolutely biblical. Our sins have been completely forgiven – past, present, and future (Hebrews 10:14). We have received the gift of eternal life, not temporary life. And God has given us many promises assuring us that He will never leave us. For these reasons, we believers are saved completely and forever (Hebrews 7:25).

We know that God is faithful to people in a general sense, but what about to individuals? Will God ever give up on you? No, God never gives up on you. God will never leave you nor forsake you (Hebrews 13:5). No one can snatch you out of His hand (John 10:28). Even when you are faithless, He remains faithful (2 Timothy 2:13). Nothing separates you from the love of Christ (Romans 8:38).

God has promised to never leave you or forsake you (Hebrews 13:5). But that’s God’s end of the bargain, right? What if you walk away from God? Many Christians worry about this perceived possibility. If you’re the new self with a new heart, then you’re a “slave of righteousness” (Romans 6:18). You have an undying love for Jesus (Ephesians 6:24), and you’ll never want to walk away from God. Even if you thought you could, God goes with you wherever you might go, because Christ lives in you forever (Romans 8:38-39).

The term “backslide” is really an Old Testament concept related to being under the Law. It implies you were climbing, making progress, then your strength failed, and you slipped and started to slide back. Jeremiah 3:6 (KJV) says: “The Lord said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, ‘Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done?’” In Jeremiah 8:5 (KJV), it appears as well: “Why then is this people of Jerusalem slidden back by a perpetual backsliding? They hold fast deceit; they refuse to return” (Jeremiah. 8:5). Finally, Proverbs says: “The backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways” (Proverbs 14:14).