Once saved always saved???

United States
September 27, 2009 1:23pm CST
Why do you or why don't you believe in this phrase? My belief is against this, as it downplays the value of forgiveness, our free will, and of worship itself. Why does Paul put such emphasis on perservering and "finishing the race" if we are not supposed to continually choose to live for Christ? What do you think?
1 person likes this
4 responses
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
27 Sep 09
If you are a Christian, God gives you the faith to continue and persevere. Honestly, it is not that easy being a Christian. You are going against the flow of the world, and also there are so many more financially profitable things that non-Christians can do. They can work on Sunday, they can gamble, they can take revenge against some other person, they can wear micro minis and show most of their bosoms if they have the right proportions while a Christian lady has to wear her clothes longer and not show most of her top. They can cheat someone, etc.If their spouse is not good looking, or does what they want, they can find a better one, etc. So in ourselves, we cannot please God. The only way that we can please God is if God gives us a new nature. So our living for Christ is the gift that God gave us by changing our worldly nature into a God loving and fearing nature. But in order to reap the full reward, we have to show that God nature to others and if we are true Christians, we do that naturally. We are not forced or say something like 'OH i really have to give $100 to the Mission Fields, oh my!" or "I have to go and visit that poor lady at the nursing home today." God puts into our heart to do good deeds and we do not think we are being forced to. In fact, we often say "I wish I could do more."
@kerriannc (4279)
• Jamaica
27 Sep 09
Lol Suspenseful lol. No christian has to wear her clothes longer lol. The bible says dress modest. You can do this with nice styles. Christians does gamble where in the bible that says we ought not to. God give HIS blessing in different ways. No one can fathom the MIND of God. It is us humans who look down on things and say it is bad. Anyway if we read the bible and ask God for wisdom, knowledge and understanding then we will realized that what Man deemed as wrong is a Blessing in the eyes of God.
@barehugs (8973)
• Canada
27 Sep 09
I am not a Christian, yet I am enjoying life and have plenty of faith to continue and persevere. I am going with the flow ( for the most part) but I am careful to do what I feel is right and good. I am a well-to-do senior, and can enjoy the good times a faithful life has earned for me.I have always worked on Sunday and have always considered it the best day of the week, for indeed it Is! Every day of my life has been a gamble, a Gamble, which I usually win, but not always, and I wouldn't have it any other way. Revenge is silly - like child's play. I love the way God Created the human body, and I enjoy micro-minis, and a plump bosom. I wonder why Christians feel God made a mistake with His creation of the Human Female? (Its been a very long time since God made a mistake!) It is said," Marriages are made in heaven," but over 50% of all marriages fail. God must be very displeased about this failure rate, given that more Christians marry than Heathen. I have lived my whole life pleasing God. I know this because I've had a wonderful life, which is proof that I've pleased Him. I do not fear God. Fear is a negative emotion which would not please an intelligent God. I never feel the need to do more to please God, because my life has shown me I'm doing OK. I am very happy with my life as a Heathen, almost to the point of feeling sorry for the Religious Right!
1 person likes this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
29 Sep 09
Actually there is a phrase in our catechism that says that God leaves them in their darkness. What that means is that they may leave good lives, and be very happy, but that happiness is a delusion. One of the ways that God leaves heathen in darkness is to let them for instance think that all the Hebrews sacrificed to idols, that David and Jonathan did bad things, that whenever something is wrong it is the Christian's fault - in other words a lie. And non Christians are more likely to publish the failings of so called Christian leaders - like one tv preacher who had an affair, one who changed from hetereosexual to homosexual, a preacher's wife who killed her husband and then say aha ! We are more likely to downplay our good deeds and think it is nothing. I am not going to write down all my good deeds and publish it on the net. That would be boasting. I am also not going to tell you and give you the name of my friends or the people I know who never were divorced, etc. It would do no good. I am still married to my husband and the only time I thought of divorce was when I found I could not bear children and wanted him to find someone who could and that was before I was a Christian. oh and not only Christians, but Muslims, Buddhists, Brahmans, Taoist, etc. are married, but did you blame the non-Christians for the 50 percent failure rate? No. You put all the blame on the Christians.
@Rozie37 (15499)
• Turkmenistan
27 Sep 09
Once saved, always saved, as long as you stay saved. What I mean to say is that it is possible to renounce Christ and the salvation that he so freely gives. People turn back for different reasons. I will never turn my back on God, he has been way to good to me.
@kerriannc (4279)
• Jamaica
27 Sep 09
I belief that once a person is saved he/she has to work to continue to be. Hence why Paul emphasis so much on perservering and finishing the race. I was a backslider and I never knew God the way I know HIM now during my christian hood at age 16. For the past year I have learn so much about him. Paul know that the road is not an easy one and because of this he put a lot of emphasis on this. Remember that our flesh is one that is always interacting with the spiritual and so he has to constantly reminding us to preserve and finish the race that we have started. No backsliding but hold on.
@kprofgames (3091)
• United States
27 Sep 09
I agree that I don't agree with that statement. Being saved is opening your eyes. It is a rebirth through new eyes and heart. It just isn't smooth sailing from there because of the challenges of morality and fee will that everyone has. Once your eyes are open then you actually have new challenges because you constanly work to maintain that faith. I've seen too many people that are devoted church goes every Sunday but during the week that don't practice. To me that is falsely living. Any faith has to be applied everyday to everything you do. This is walking in the way. Too many people think they are 'saved' that they redeemed themselves because they believe in something. I believe that to follow any faith you have to live by it along with practice it. Living by the word needs to be done over just a weekend pick me up so you can call yourself part of any religious factor.