How can one lose their salvation?

Yups.

 

Sorry, I kinda slipped into churchspeak there.

A person's thought life is basically what's on his mind, and particularly what he chooses to focus on. Yeah, focusing on nekkid wimmin is part of that. In fact, that's one area Jesus called out specifically.

If it makes you feel better, VA, I don't think anyone stands a chance of being innocent in that area. I know I certainly don't.

 

I think that the quesiton that JB is asking is a really good one, especially for those who believe in salvation and heaven and want to experience those things.

I personally do not believe in predestination, i.e. once saved, always saved. I believe, like hasbeens posted, that one can lose their salvation by renouncing their faith.

Here is what I mean by that: a person somehow comes to a sense that they want to be saved, asks forgiveness for their sins, and accepts Jesus as their savior. At that point, they have become "saved". Their name is written in the Lamb's book of life (Rev. 21:27).

However, God does not take away a person's right to chose. Thus, they always have the freedom to renounce their faith, essentially, to tell God that they do not want Him in their lives anymore and that they do not want their sins forgiven nor to go to heaven.

Since God honors our freedom to chose our eternal destiny, he then allows us to chose death over salvation.

As to the issue of being lost because of a particular sinful act, I do not believe that we will be lost because of one specific act. I believe that God understands our temptations and issues and knows just how much we struggle with them. This was Paul's point when he wrote his famous line about doing what he wanted to avoid and not doing what he wanted to do (Romans 7:17-20).

Yet, we are still "saved" as long as we truly and genuinely feel sorry for the pain we have caused God, for the way we've hurt our relationship with Jesus and if we ask for forgiveness for those things. The key is to be truly sorry and repentant for what we've done.

For example, if I do something that hurts my wife, if I were to ignore it or to fail to ask for forgiveness, that would hurt my relationship with my wife. If I continued to do this, that relationship would be damaged to the point where, one day, she would end it and it would no longer exist. I think our relationship with Jesus is along the same lines.

For those who desire to be saved, this is good news. It means that our specific sins will not necessarily make us be lost, but only an attitude that we do not need repentance.

 

If we truly know Christ and are seeking to follow Him, we will not be complacent and unconcerned about sin in our lives. In fact, one of the signs of true spiritual life is the hatred of sin and the determination to conquer it.

We will not continue to repeat the same sins over and over again, but will seek God's help (by the Holy Spirit who dwells within us) to overcome them.

The Bible promises, "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it" (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Indifference to sin in one's life is a sure sign of serious spiritual sickness, and may indicate that one has never truly invited Jesus into one's life as Savior and Lord (1 John 2:3-4).

 

I have a different belief on this than HB, although it is actually pretty similar to his view in most practical ways. I believe that you can not lose your salvation. Here is why I believe that:

You did nothing to earn your salvation it was a free gift from God.

You do not have the power to save yourself and therefore do not have the power to damn yourself either.

I do not think you need to be saved because you committed sins, I think you need to be saved because you are a sinner. God forgives you not for your actions but for your very nature.

When you are saved you become a child of God and once you are his child you are always his child even if your relationship with your father becomes strained it does not change the fact that you are his son.

 

Ummm makes me think Thelt is Calvinestic (sp).

I guess you must ask the question "does it matter?" If it does obviously your not living a Christinan life or you wouldn't be worried.
Or maybe your trying to judge what someone else is doing.
We spend so much time worrying about all these little things, that really ONLY GOD KNOWS. So just get out there and serve Him the best you can.

 

There is so much hurt in the world, so many people who see no one around them showing them a self-giving love. Seize the opportunity to participate in the work of God, of loving the unloved, and everything else will get sorted out. Don't worry about what's going to happen after you die, focus instead of what transformation God can bring through you life to those you encounter.

 

If I were calvinist I would think that you are preordained to either be saved or not to be saved and I definately do not believe that. I do believe that once you are truly saved that it is a finished work. You are forever changed and that it can not be undone. To me when you say you have to live a certain way to obtain salvation you enter the realm of "salvation by works".

 

I always feel it's probably a "good thing" to THINK about your salvation, but maybe if you feel like your could be losing it, it's either you need to change some things, or it's just Satan telling you "YOUR NOT SAVED, HE DOESN"T LOVE YOU"

 

I don't think you can lose your salvation. If someone was to say they renounced their faith then I would question their faith to begin with. Also people do fall or backslide but I think that if they truly accepted Christ as their savior then I do not think they have lost their salvation. Otherwise you are saying that the devil has the power to snatch someone out of God's hand and I don't believe that.

The Bible says: John 10:28 "and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand."