Salvation loss. Is it possible?

[BreadOfLife]

Whether venial/mortal does not make any difference. Sin is sin!

"The wages of sin (singular) is death."
"For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all." James 2:10

To God Be The Glory

First of all - James ia talking about the LAW - the Mosaic Law.

Secondly - he is prefacing his discourse on faith and works - and it is in THIS context that he speaks of the Law.
1 John 5:16 makes a clear distinction about the degrees of sin, stating that SOME sins cause spiritual death.

If a man steals a loaf of bread to feed his starving family - he has sinned.
However, if he murders the store owner to steal that bread - the gravity of his sin has been compounded.

In Joshua 2, Rahab sinned when she lied to hide the spies of Israel. Had she committed adultery or murder, then her sin would have been grave. Not only is she NOT condemned for her sin - she is celebrated as a heroine and referred to as "justified" (James 2:25; Heb. 11:31).

The view that ALL sin is equal is not a Biblical view.

 

[Stranger]

"Sin unto death" is talking about spiritual death.
Gee - I'd call that pretty "mortal" . . .

No, you are assuming it is spiritual death. It is not. It is a physical death. No Christian can sin a sin that separates him form God. He can sin and rebel to the decree that God will take him home, physical death.

Stranger

 

[BreadOfLife]

I don't believe the Holy Spirit will not give truth when asks by a believer. Jesus promised He will send another comforter and guide us into all truths. There is only one truth and one Gospel and that is circumscribed by the Bible! Not by the Catholic Church and that is the difference.

To God Be The Glory

First of all - the promise to be guided to ALL truth by the Holy Spirit is NOT to the individual - but to the Church.
In the NT, when Jesus speaks to the crowds, He speaks to ALL of us. However, when He instructs His Apostles - he is speaking to the leaders of His Church. This promise was made to His Apostles at the Last Supper - not to the crowds.

Secondly - your view that the Holy Spirit will guide ALL people who read the Bible to the truth is squashed by the mere fact that there are tens of thousands of disjointed and perpetually-splintering Protestant sects - ALL teaching different doctrines based on their different interpretations of God's Word.

How do you explain the fact that these sects all teach different doctrines like . . .
Some believe in baptismal regeneration, while others do not.
Some believe in soul-sleep, while others do not.
Some believe in the total depravity of man, while others do not.
Some believe in the Holy Trinity, while others do not.
Some believe in doctrine of “once saved, always saved”, while others do not.
Some believe in a pre-tribulation “Rapture”, while others do not.
Some believe that only those who were predestined will make it to heaven, while others do not.
Some believe that some were predestined for hell, while others do not.
Some believe in a woman’s right to choose abortion, while others do not.
Some believe that practicing homosexuality is a sin, while others do not.
Most believe in contraception, while others do not – and the list goes on.

Did the Holy Spirit create this confusion - of did men??

 

[BreadOfLife]

No, you are assuming it is spiritual death. It is not. It is a physical death. No Christian can sin a sin that separates him form God. He can sin and rebel to the decree that God will take him home, physical death.

Stranger

That's silly because we will ALL die one day.
John is speaking of spiritual death caused by grave sin - NOT the death of the body.

What sins is John talking about that will make you drop phsyically dead, hmmmm?

 

[Pisteuo]

Ananias and Sapphira could answer this one I bet!

What sins is John talking about that will make you drop phsyically dead, hmmmm?

.....I mean, if they weren't dead.

 

[BreadOfLife]

Ananias and Sapphira could answer this one I bet!

.....I mean, if they weren't dead.

Ananias and Sapphira were used as a Scriptural example.
Otherwise ALL of us would drop dead from not sharing everything we own with the Church.

 

[Pisteuo]

I agree. They were an example.

That story always kinda scared me. Glad to hear it wasn't real. whew

 

[Stranger]

That's silly because we will ALL die one day.
John is speaking of spiritual death caused by grave sin - NOT the death of the body.

What sins is John talking about that will make you drop phsyically dead, hmmmm?

Physical death can be a judgement from God against the believer. But it isn't a loss of salvation.

And, we will see Ananias and Sapphira in heaven. Their judgement was physical death, not eternal.

Nothing says you have to drop physically dead. But you will die from the judgement God gives. As to the sin of death, that is up to God who knows the individual.

Stranger

 

[Helen]

Just a question:
What about all of the people who have done just what you described and came out with completely different interpretations of Scripture?
Which one of you is right and which one is wrong?

No "right or wrong". :)
This is actually true..I believe it! God has spoken to me through the most obscure scriptures. He has just grabbed a scripture and spoken to me personally through it...YET in reading the whole passage, that one scripture is not saying what God used it to speak to me.

In my experience...God can indeed speak two different things from a scripture to two different people.
A friend of mine was doing a morning bible reading when a verse in Pauls writings "jumped" out at her. It made no sense to her at all...something about "accepting something"...and God blessing her for it.
That afternoon someone called her and asked her if they would be willing to accept a Pastor who needed lodgings. Straight way " she knew" that this was what the Holy Spirit was speaking about in the morning reading.
That was the pastor who led me to the Lord...he lodged with them for 15 years.
Just saying... blessings...H

 

[BreadOfLife]

No "right or wrong". :)
This is actually true..I believe it! God has spoken to me through the most obscure scriptures. He has just grabbed a scripture and spoken to me personally through it...YET in reading the whole passage, that one scripture is not saying what God used it to speak to me.

In my experience...God can indeed speak two different things from a scripture to two different people.
A friend of mine was doing a morning bible reading when a verse in Pauls writings "jumped" out at her. It made no sense to her at all...something about "accepting something"...and God blessing her for it.
That afternoon someone called her and asked her if they would be willing to accept a Pastor who needed lodgings. Straight way " she knew" that this was what the Holy Spirit was speaking about in the morning reading.
That was the pastor who led me to the Lord...he lodged with them for 15 years.
Just saying... blessings...H

Then can you address why there are so many different sects teaching different doctrines - ALL based from different interpretations of the same Scriptures? Some of the differences I listed in post #663 are differences in ESSENTIALS.

How is it that the Holy Spirit would guide people to such confusion?
Or is it merely the opinions of men and NOT the guidance of the Holy Spirit?

 

[Mick_Alexander]

possibly the point of Job? Might also be a good reflection of "Law/Grace?"

Sorry but I don't follow you.

God bless,
Mick

 

[Jun2u]

I agree. They were an example.

That story always kinda scared me. Glad to hear it wasn't real. whew

Thanks for your post. It made my day. I've been laughing all day. What a wonderful Christian humor.

To God Be The Glory

 

[bbyrd009]

Sorry but I don't follow you.

God bless,
Mick

"We are in both a Father-son and Master-servant relationship"

Job kept the Law perfectly, but spoke of God as a distant entity in the beginning; yet repented (of...something; twice) at the end and seemed to be sorry for maybe not grasping that God wanted a relationship in grace.

so, it just suddenly sounded the same :)

 

[bbyrd009]

No Christian can sin a sin that separates him form God.

any time you sin, no matter what you call yourself, you separate yourself from God, Stranger.

 

[Helen]

Then can you address why there are so many different sects teaching different doctrines - ALL based from different interpretations of the same Scriptures? Some of the differences I listed in post #663 are differences in ESSENTIALS.

How is it that the Holy Spirit would guide people to such confusion?
Or is it merely the opinions of men and NOT the guidance of the Holy Spirit?

Now if I could tell you that...I'd get rich by writing a best seller!!
I am as wise as you are...one day God will tell us I am sure...or maybe, just like the Tower Of Babel, He did it..by scattering us all to the four winds.
Who knows...not me for sure!!?

As an aside,..sorry everyone...( and I know this thread is NOTHING about Catholic v Protestant, I don't wish to derail this thread!) But I read somewhere in a post that you made to someone else.... you mentioned me by name, saying I have lots against Catholics ( or something like that...I can't remember! ?? )
Just for the record. I don't "have lots against"... I admit I don't know why your church does some of the things it does, or why it believes what it does. ( I don't like legalism or control, in any church!! )
Yet I don't think I disagree with these friends any more than I disagree with a protestant that has different or strange ideas. I probably argue much more with them!!
I do have good Catholic friends who are spirit-filled, love the Lord and we fellowship happily..half the time, unless they mention something, I forget that they are Catholic. I respect them, they have told me why they are in your church, and that is good enough for me.
Where I sit, anyone who loves the Lord and is looking forward to the bless'ed hope of eternal life I can be good friends with. :)

Sorry Mick_Alexander for that sideline. I am just too lazy to try and hunt down the post BOL made somewhere.

 

[Mick_Alexander]

"We are in both a Father-son and Master-servant relationship"

Job kept the Law perfectly, but spoke of God as a distant entity in the beginning; yet repented (of...something; twice) at the end and seemed to be sorry for maybe not grasping that God wanted a relationship in grace.

so, it just suddenly sounded the same :)

I seem to have completely lost track of the conversation. Sorry about that.

God bless,
Mick

 

[pia]

Just a question:
What about all of the people who have done just what you described and came out with completely different interpretations of Scripture?
Which one of you is right and which one is wrong?

Jesus surely has to be the one who is right, not individual understandings of the scriptures.

 

[pia]

Thank you for those kind words. All glory belong to the Holy Spirit. Before I open my Bible I pray to the Holy Spirit to open my spiritual eyes to all truths, because I know nothing, teach me.

And, you are most welcome. I hope and pray I can continue to do the same with future posts.

To God Be The Glory

I feel so very awful because I got myself mixed up when posting this. The cordial reference He gave me, was me questioning whether one can lose the Holy
Spirit once received..........The example He gave me about losing salvation was this........He said :" What Mother or Father would upon receiving their new baby into their home, once the changing of nappies constantly begins and the cleaning up of vomit, losing sleep and so on, would then take that baby back to the hospital, or just hand it off to someone else saying :" I had no idea this baby would be this bad, here take it off my hands." He then continued :" Why would you think God capable of such a thing?" Needless to say I didn't feel good about my doubts in this direction, but once again, the pastors I sat under all insisted one CAN lose ones salvation. Thank the Lord forever more, that we can and should ALWAYS get the truth from Him, and not from our own understanding of scriptures, as one can easily see what happens when people do that. Wonderful that you seek the Lord before reading the Bible, it is so much easier to comprehend with Him showing us the true way ! ( Jesus or the Holy spirit, they are One )
Peace and blessings to you Pia

 

[Helen]

Thanks...good post Pia....and excellent illustrations from the Father ...glad that you shared them. (I wish they had a 'thumbs up' icon on here :) )

 

[pia]

Thanks...good post Pia....and excellent illustrations from the Father ...glad that you shared them. (I wish they had a 'thumbs up' icon on here :) )

Thank you dear Sister. I am not always sure that I should share those, but they were such a blessing to me, so I guess I just hope that even one person, will take this to the Lord for confirmation and be helped to be set free. :) Bless you !