This Post is a Followup to my Post: The Strength is in His Grip from November 7, 2023. This material is also found in my book, The Wigglesworth Dilemma. There, I stated my firm opinion that nothing can pull us from God’s Saving Grip. Nothing! Done!

However, The Question Remains: Can We Choose to Depart from God’s Grasp?

There are several scriptures, particularly in the book of Hebrews, which seem unambiguous in their assertions that a person can depart from their salvation.

• Hebrews 2:1-3 – “Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard,”
• Hebrews 3:12 – “Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall awayfrom the living God.”
• Hebrews 4:1 – Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it.
• Hebrews 6:4-6 – “For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt.”
• Hebrews 10:26 & 29 – “For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, . . . 29 How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace?”

My humble opinion is that those scriptures are referring to followers who willingly commit the Unpardonable Sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, identified in Matthew 12:31-32, “Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.” The sin of blaspheming the Holy Spirit is essentially the sin of rejecting Christ.

By shaking their fist at God with the self-righteous conviction that they are more perfect than God, those who depart have decided to reject God’s free gift of salvation in Jesus. A sinner sears their conscience and resists the voice of the Holy Spirit to stiffen their neck. Eventually, they get to the place where genuine repentance is no longer possible. This stubborn and unrepentant attitude and persistent self-hardening are the chief marks of true blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

How Do I Reconcile These 2 Teachings?

My opinion is this: We cannot lose our salvation. Just as our gracious God is the eternal gentleman who gives us free will and does not force us into a relationship with Him, He also allows us the freedom to depart from His love.

The key words in the book of Hebrews scriptures are to those who “drift away”, “depart”, “come short of it”, “fall away/apostatize/abandon beliefs”, and “deliberately sin”. These indicate to me that if anyone makes a deliberate choice to walk away from God, God graciously allows us to go our own way. True love does not force one to stay. If we choose to depart from God, He lets us go.

2 Timothy 2:11-13 gives us a window into this seeming dichotomy of thought, “This is a faithful saying: For if we died with Him, We shall also live with Him. If we endure, We shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.”

If we stridently deny him, he will deny us. He lets us go our own way. Yet, if we are true to our commitment to follow Jesus, but our faith wavers, he is the one who remains faithful. God does not relent in his absolute commitment to save those who desire to be saved.

The difference between the two concepts is “we can’t lose something we desire to keep” versus “we can walk away from something we desire to depart from.”

These scriptures also give some indication that those who depart may have never given their whole-hearted belief in and commitment to following Jesus.

In Luke 8, Jesus tells the Parable of the Sower, saying, “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it. Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture. And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it. But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold.” When He had said these things He cried, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

For those who have heard the Good News but let it wither away or be choked out, they may depart from His love. But, I frankly don’t believe that there are any for whom the Gospel has fallen on good soil, and it answered the desire of their heart to then fully believe in Jesus, who will ever fall away.

To reiterate, “departing” does not include continued sin as Christ-followers. As we strive to grow to be more like Jesus, even in our failures, we cannot be pulled from His grip. Our salvation is not earned, and it cannot be lost. Romans 8:39 says, “nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” God still loves us even if we were to walk away from His love.

How can you know you have not committed the unpardonable sin? You can’t possibly be guilty of this sin if you’re concerned that you may have offended God without realizing it, your heart is in the right place, and you’re securely in His grip.

Can We Judge Another’s Salvation?

How do we know about another’s salvation? We know them by the fruit they bear (Matt 7:20). Other than that, we don’t know what only God can know –  the true desires of a person’s heart.

Yet, even when someone walks away from their faith, our God continues to pursue them to draw them back into a loving relationship. Even in our faithlessness, God still calls out to us. It is a call to turn back to Him.

• Acts 8:22 – “Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you.”
• 2 Corinthians 7:9-10 – “As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us. For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.”
• Hebrews 3:13-15 – “but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end, while it is said: “Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”
• Revelation 3:19-20 – “Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”

The Spirit Continues Faithfully Calling You to the Father

• John 14:26 – “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”
• 1 Corinthians 10:13 – “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.”
• 2 Thessalonians 3:3 – “But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.”
• 1 Peter 1:3-5 – “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”

Does God Give Some Over to Their Depravity?

• Romans 1:28 – “Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done.”
• 2 Timothy 3:8 – “Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these teachers oppose the truth. They are men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected.”

Our Charge is to Pursue and Restore

We are tasked with restoring fellow believers from ongoing sin that does not change their eternal salvation but damages their lives and those around them. And, we are also called to be used by God to bring those who have walked away back into a loving relationship with God. Galatians 6:1 – “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.”

Jesus highlights the relentless pursuit of God in Matthew 12:11, “What man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out?” and in Matthew 18:12, “What do you think? If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is straying?”

What About Jesus Declaring, “I Never Knew You”

The challenging words of Matthew 7:21-23 speak to His people abiding in a relationship with God. “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day, many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’”

You can do great works using God’s name, but those works are of no eternal value to you if you have never entered into a relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ.

Build Your House on The Rock

The scriptures above are followed by Matthew 7:24: “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” This speaks of a trusting relationship with God as the solid foundation for our security in Him.

If you have never put your faith in Jesus to know the peace and comfort of His eternal security, you can do that at any moment – even right now!

Romans 10:9-10 says, “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

Jesus is calling to you, “Follow me.” From there it starts with a simple prayer where you call out to God and invite Him into your life…

Pray:

If you prayed that prayer, you have been saved by God’s grace and entered into an amazing journey of knowing God. I’d love to hear from you and help you on your great journey.