Once Saved Always Saved?

                                    

Knowing whether or not you can lose your soul after having been saved should be of top importance.  Ideally, this should be settled by Scripture. Now an elderly church leader relayed that when he was young, him and his grandmother took opposite sides on this issue. His grandmother compiled a list of scriptures supporting her stance and he compiled a list supporting his. Nothing ever changed. I did likewise, and others claimed to see absolutely nothing from it.  Also, I was convinced that their use of select scriptures completely distorted the texts.  So, to avoid wasting time and energy, I exclude it here. 

First, since both sides claim it is crystal clear that their position is right and the other wrong, one side has to be very dishonest.  And oftentimes, both sides cannot agree to disagree, rightfully so.  So, this excludes any chance of simple misunderstanding. This leaves us with MOTIVATIONS. There must be a reason to hold a position contrary to truth.  Now what could be behind it? 

Holders to this doctrine of Once Saved Always Saved or Eternal Security attempt to provide Christian believers with absolute assurance of final salvation in this life.  Most accuse deniers of this idea of having works-based salvation, instead of trusting Jesus Christ for grace. This is nonsense because deniers of OSAS have numerous options in religions that have nothing to do with needing a savior and are strictly based on works or karma. Since they refuse those options, this claim is refuted. 

Secondly, some claim that churchgoing OSAS deniers do not realize the seriousness of sin.  This too is nonsense because such people openly proclaim that they, along with all sinners, deserve hellish damnation because of their sin.  And they immerse themselves in Scripture that declares exactly that. So, this claim is refuted. 

Thirdly, most complain that churchgoing OSAS deniers partially play God to help save themselves. They claim that God does absolutely everything for salvation and people do nothing. This nonsense is immediately refuted with Acts 2:40 (ASV), where it says, "Save yourselves from this crooked generation!"  That's along with a hundred other texts which they twist into a pile of worms. 

Fourthly, some believers in Once Saved Always Saved have variously said that those who deny it are unbelievers, that they preach a false gospel, or that believing it is essential for salvation. This nonsense is an utter denial of the earliest original Church, who were united in seeing OSAS as HERESY. It also causes division within Christendom, as it pits Baptists and Calvinists against everyone else.  That you can lose salvation has been a fixture within Christendom nonstop for two thousand years. REFUTED. 

Here are the true motivations: 1) Laziness in thinking you need not put any effort into maintaining salvation, 2) Desire to sin, 3) Wanting to make people like you by putting out a more palatable message, 4) Pride in thinking that your work of evangelizing cannot be undone, 5) This truth makes people very nervous and uncomfortable, so they use a fantasy to mask it. 

Denying that a hazard exists naturally makes you vulnerable to said hazard. For example, thinking that no harm could befall you if you stepped into the path of a speeding truck.  In this case the stakes are much higher: that of your eternal soul.