The Heretical Doctrine of Once Saved, Always Saved

“I believe that since I’m saved I will always be saved.” What heretical hogwash! The position that one could rape, murder, steal, and commit suicide and be saved as long as he did it for Christ is asinine. That someone could never backslide from the faith if they were truly saved is nonsense, it is purely unbiblical. How do we know that “once saved always saved” is a foolish and heretical doctrine? The Bible tells us so. Calvinists to a degree hold the same manner of belief, we see it in “Dr.” R.C. Sproul’s form of Presbyterianism when he once stated “If you could lose your salvation, you would” (paraphrased). In St. Paul’s Epistle to the Hebrews it states, “Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God” (3:12). St. Paul admits here that those who are already saved could potentially fall away from the faith if they do evil and begin to not believe. Therefore, those who hold the extreme view of OSAS about rape, murder, stealing, and suicide would not be saved, but eternally damned for betraying Christ and His Holy Word. Furthermore, the word for “fall away” in Greek is “aphistémi” which according to Strong’s Concordance is “to fall away from, become faithless.” St. Paul says in his First Epistle to the Corinthians, “But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.” The word “disqualified” in this verse is “adokimos” in Greek. Which to this verse according to Strong’s Concordance means “rejected, reprobate.” St. Paul warns us that in two instances we can fall away from the faith because of our own actions and the actions of evil and therefore we must be on our guard. St. Paul admits that he must keep himself under control, lest he be disqualified and rejected by God. The truth is, once you are saved, your salvation depends on you and God and as St. Paul says towards the ending of Philippians 2:12, “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” Salvation and the attainment of Heaven is a work in progress that will not end until you are judged before God on if you will be saved or damned. It is a fight to be fought, a race to be won! All we can truly do is be confident that we will not lose the faith nor the fight and by doing so we will make it to Heaven!