Can I Lose My Salvation? (Crucial Questions)

by R.C. Sproul

covenant of the LORD. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever.” (Josh. 4:1–7) The people were to put a pillar of twelve stones in the middle of this riverbed as a memorial to this event. Then, representatives from each tribe were each to take a stone from the riverbed and set up a memorial at Gilgal, where they were staying that night. There are examples of this kind of memorial-making throughout the Old Testament. Noah built an altar upon being rescued from the ravages of the flood (Gen. 8:20–22). Jacob set up a memorial after his vision of the ladder reaching to heaven (Gen. 28:10–22). David built an altar at the spot where a plague from the Lord stopped (1 Sam. 24).

last. The key question here is, “Can a person who is truly and soundly converted to Christ lose his or her salvation?” Or, more personally, “Can I lose my salvation?” This gets at the issue of the doctrine of eternal security, also known as the perseverance of the saints, which is the P in the famous Calvinist acronym TULIP. This being such a crucial issue for believers, it has sparked great controversy through the history of the church, leading to a variety of answers to the question. During the sixteenth century, the Roman Catholic Church disputed with the Reformers because the Reformers said that a person can be justified by faith alone, and upon their justification, they can have an assurance of their present state of salvation. But the Reformers made a distinction between assurance of salvation—that is, certainty that one is currently saved, with no comment on whether

Reformed churches, there was a fierce debate in the Netherlands. A group called the Remonstrants modified Dutch Calvinism and argued against the perseverance of the saints, taking the position that salvation can be lost. In the Bible itself, there are many passages that strongly suggest that people can indeed lose their salvation (e.g., Heb. 6:4–6; 2 Peter 2:20–22). And yet, on the other side, there are also many passages that seem to be promises that God will preserve His people to the end. In the latter category, for instance, there is Paul’s

will not be forgiven. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age

comfort in the intercessory prayer of a friend or a pastor. How much more comfort, then, can we experience from the full assurance that Jesus is praying for us? Have you ever had people ask you, “Pray for me,” and you say, “Sure, I’ll pray for you,” and then you forget? I know that in my lifetime, I have told people that I would pray for them and I forget. If I remember at some point later, I will stop and pray, but often it’s only out of guilt—so that if that person asks whether I prayed, I can tell them that I did. Intercessory prayer is comforting, but we humans can’t always be relied on to follow through with our promises to pray. This is not so with Christ. The New Testament speaks of Him as our Great High Priest. As our Great High Priest, He has offered up the perfect sacrifice—Himself—but His priestly work did not end on the cross. Every day, in the presence of the Father, Christ intercedes for His people (Heb. 7:25). “The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working,” James tells us (5:16), but no prayer has the

of our Great High Priest is the foundation for our confidence when it comes to our perseverance. It also helps us make sense of the accounts of Peter and Judas, two of Jesus’ disciples who experienced a serious fall. One disciple’s fall away from Christ is seen as a final and full work of apostasy, whereas the other disciple’s fall is not final and full because he is restored. And we see that their crime against Christ

Christ. These two men who had been disciples with Jesus during his earthly ministry committed treason against Him in his darkest hour. And there are further similarities in these two examples in that Jesus predicted both Peter’s and Judas’ diabolical acts. But we recall that when Jesus said, “One of you will betray me,” the disciples said among themselves, “Who is it, Lord? Is it I?” When Judas asked, “Is it I, Rabbi?” Jesus said to him, “You have...

profusely. “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away,” he said (Matt. 26:33). This brings to mind Paul’s admonition, “Let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Cor. 10:12), because Jesus then turned to Simon and said to him in loving terms, “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat” (Luke 22:31). Sifting wheat is not a laborious task that only the strong can perform. It may take time and it may be tedious, but it’s not labor intensive. In using this metaphor, Jesus is cautioning Simon not to rely on his own

would be an easy thing for Satan to entice him to fall. Satan is stronger than Peter, and

whatever strength Peter thought he had. Notice, however, that Jesus does not say to Peter, “What you are going to do, do quickly.” Our Lord’s words to Simon Peter were significantly different from what He said to Judas. He said, “I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers” (Luke 22:32). Notice what Jesus doesn’t say. He doesn’t simply hope that Peter will be able to resist Satan, or that he will return, or that he will be able to strengthen the brothers. He expresses certainty that Peter will do these things. There was no doubt in Jesus’ mind not only that Peter would fall, and fall abysmally, but also ...

the New Testament hints at a causal connection between the words “I have prayed for you” and “when you turn.” Jesus is our Great High Priest who, upon His ascension, sat down at the right hand of God. There, He lives to make intercession for His people. Our greatest consolation when it comes to our eternal security comes from the full assurance of the present work of Christ on our behalf. When Jesus died on the cross, He cried out, “It is finished” (John 19:30). His atoning death purchased redemption

ascended into heaven, where He sat down at the right hand of God. There He rules as the King of kings and the Lord of lords, governing the universe and ruling over His church. All this comes under the heading of the finished work of Christ. We get a glimpse of Christ’s intercession for us in the Upper Room Discourse in John 13–17, and especially the High Priestly Prayer in chapter 17. In this discourse, Jesus instructs and comforts His disciples. As they are approaching their darkest hour, Jesus offers security to combat their anxiety, saying: