Can I lose my salvation?

Tonight was college group at our house, and since Matt and Lynn were gone, they asked me to lead the group tonight. No problem. they asked me to discuss the topic, “Can a person who is genuinely a follower of Christ lose their salvation?” It amazes me what people do when they are hit with the hard reality of truth when they are not at a place to accept that truth.

We opened with a statement, “Read what you believe or believe what you read?” Most Christians already have a system of belief that they follow, which can be influenced by how they were raised, what they were taught as a believer through their church or denomination, or their own personal experiences with God and His Word. So we had to eliminate that type of thinking first, otherwise someone who believes what is contrary to what the Word says will automatically not receive from the Word.

According to the Word, someone who is part of the true Body of Christ, someone that is truly a believer and not a fake, imposter, or pretender, CAN in fact lose their salvation.

However, if righteous people turn to sinful ways and start acting like other sinners, should they be allowed to live? No, of course not! All their previous goodness will be forgotten, and they will die for their sins.
Ezekiel 18.24

My dear brothers and sisters, if anyone among you wanders away from the truth and is brought back again, you can be sure that the one who brings that person back will save that sinner from death and bring about the forgiveness of many sins.
James 5.19-20

These are just a couple of the main passages that describe the absolute possibility that a true believer has to fall away from Christ and miss out on heaven. Toward the end of the night, I was looking at many “bug eyed” college age people who had come to grips with the fact that a person that falls away has the same fate as a non-believer, and in most cases, will receive far worse then non-believers.

At the end of the night, we broke into groups, and I had a very long discussion with a young man who was very knowledgeable of the Word, but was misguided on some key things in relation to our discussion. He would say things like, “How can a person who is on the foundation come off of that foundation and go to hell?” Basically, it comes down to choice. God will not override man’s free will. Now someone that has a deep intimate relationship with Him more than likely won’t fall away, but the potential is still there.

Overall, it was a great night, with a few more people than last time in attendance. And I can think of a couple people that probably won’t be returning.