Can a Child of God Be Lost?

Introduction

1.    Boy on bus going home from school, reading a card from his grandmother with a note “Have Faith in God.” Wind blew it out the window. He cried out, “Stop the bus. I lost my faith in God.”

2.    Many teach a doctrine of “Once saved, always saved.”

Observations

1.    “Can” not “May”

a.    2,500 warnings in the Bible about falling away

b.    1 Corinthians 10:12

c.    1 Corinthians 9:27

d.    Hebrews 3:12

e.    Galatians 5:4

2.    Man is a free agent (free to make choices, even wrong ones)

a.    Christ invites – man decides to accept or reject

b.    Matthew 11:28

c.    Hebrews 5:8-9

d.    Revelation 22:17

e.    Revelation 2:4-5

f.     NOTE: remove candle = church will fall away; Objection: This is a church. But a church is made up of individual Christians. How can a church fall away but none of its members fall away?

3.    Other Passages

a.    2 Peter 1:5-10

b.    2 Chronicles 15:2

c.    Jeremiah 18:7-10

d.    Solomon – 1 Chronicles 28:9

e.    Jonah – Jonah 3:4

f.     Men – Ezekiel 18:24

4.    3 Simple Points

a.    Know God = eternal life John 17:3

b.    We can forget God Jeremiah 2:32

c.    Result = into hell Psalm 9:17

5.    Born again = born into the kingdom

a.    John 3:3, 5

b.    Angels gather out of kingdom all that do iniquity Matthew 13:41

c.    Result – cast into fire

6.    God’s people – name written in heaven

a.    Philippians 4:3

b.    Sin will remove the name Exodus 32:33

c.    Result = name not in book of life – cast into lake of fire Revelation 20:15

7.    One final passage – Luke 12:41

a.    Faithful- v. 42

b.    Servant – v. 45

c.    Sins – drunk, cruel to others

d.    Lord returns

e.    He is cut asunder

f.     Results = his portion is with the unbelievers – v. 46