(remember, these are unedited/draft show notes, not a transcript — listening is always better…and if you listen AND follow along below, you’ll see why)
Focus Question:
Can Christians lose their salvation?
Intro:
I just heard that one of the families in my church (that I don’t know) just lost their 9 year old son to cancer. So it’s appropriate, in a way, that today is one of those big questions about life kinda days.
Hey Hopeful, welcome to our last Bible reading before we do reflections for the next couple days…do you hope you’ll catch those, particularly the shorty on Christmas morning. We’ll keep a little shorter today because, you know, saving you a couple minutes might contribute to a present-wrapping projecct.
Today in the Old Testament we begin the book of Job…one of those books people tend to think of when it comes to suffering. But before we get there we begin with Hebrews 6 that contains one of the thornier passages in the Bible, one that makes it sound like you can lose your salvation. So “Can Christians lose their salvation?” is our Focus Question and we’ll get to that in our Bottom Line segment.
NEW TESTAMENT SEGMENT:
As we turn to our NT segment, you might remember that Hebrews 5 ended with a gentle castigation that called out the writer’s audience for not growing up.
Passage: Hebrews 6
Translation: CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
Verses: 20
Words: ~456
One quickie thought before we move on based on that very last thing. When we think about the essentials or foundational elements of our faith, we often (I often) refer to Jesus’ sinless life, atoning death, and bodily resurrection. And those, indeed, are foundational. But what comes right on the heels of that is also important, His ascension. And the writer of Hebrews just alluded to why that’s important — Jesus right now sits at the right hand of God as we read in ch1v3…why? To be the high priest who intercedes for us right now, today.
OLD TESTAMENT SEGMENT:
The book of Job opens with a prologue that sets the stage for the story. Every good story needs a setting, characters, and conflict, right? But to set up the whole book theologically, because even though it’s not written to us, it’s preserved for us, remember three things.
Job has trials, but he is not on trial.
The story isn’t about Job, it’s really about God.
And it’s not really about the reasons for suffering, but reasons for righteousness.(1)
And we’ll come back to these, obviously, over the next 42 chapters.
Passage: Job 1-2
Translation: CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
Verses: 35
Words: ~576
Oh, one other tidbit we’ll have to tackle another day. Just remember that “Satan” isn’t a name, it’s a description or title. The original words were “the satan,” which means “adversary.” He’s a liar and accuser and a whole bunch of things, including an enemy of righteousness. But most of the time I’ll just call him The Devil because, well, Satan’s not his name.
Wisdom SEGMENT:
Finally, a short psalm as our Wisdom Segment today, and it’s befitting to the beginning of Job because it reminds us of one big theme in Job.
Passage: Psalm 29
Translation: CSB (Christian Standard Bible)
Verses: 12
Words: ~197
The bottom line:
Can a Christian lose their salvation? That’s a big question, and this is a short answer, so I run the risk of being simplistic.
The short answer is no, but here’s the skinny.(2) This is an internal discussion, theologically. The problem doesn’t call into question the inspiration of Scripture, just the interpretation.
There is a theological camp (often referred to as Aminianism) that believes you can lose your salvation, but even they won’t accept the line we read that says “if you lose it, you can never get it back.”
But this passage is, I think, clearly written to believers. It’d be easier if the passage referred to unbelievers, and some think so. But if written to believers, the key is in the word translated “fallen away” — which sounds like it’s a one-way thing. But the root word is something more like “drifted,” and what I think the writer is saying is that drifters or backsliders don’t need to make a profession of saving faith in the same way they did when first coming to Christ.
Remember, what Jesus said:
My sheep hear my voice, I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one. Jn 10:27b–30, CSB
He loves you. He sits at the right hand of God as your high priest, and He Himself was the perfect and final sacrifice on your behalf.
And that, my friends, is good news.
Love you! Amen? Amen!
ForTheHope is a daily audio Bible + apologetics podcast and blog. We’ve got a passion for just keepin’ it real, having conversations like normal people, and living out the love of Jesus better every single day.
Roger Courville, CSP is a globally-recognized expert in digitally-extended communication and connection, an award-winning speaker, award-winning author, and a passionately bad guitarist. Follow him on Twitter -- @RogerCourville and @JoinForTheHope – or his blog: www.forthehope.org.
Sources and resources:
(1) John H. Walton and Tremper Longman III, How to Read Job (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic: An Imprint of InterVarsity Press, 2015), 14.
(2) This discussion from Norman L. Geisler and Thomas Howe, The Big Book of Bible Difficulties: Clear and Concise Answers from Genesis to Revelation, (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1992), 514-515.