Part 3 (1/2)

Another example of asking the wrong question involved a good friend of mine named John. He prayed about college for a long time and received a scholars.h.i.+p to Oklahoma Baptist University. He felt totally confident G.o.d told him to go to that school. Then, not long after he began attending there, G.o.d told him to leave and go to Seagoville, Texas, where I was pastoring a church, and just sit under the ministry and gain some maturity.

John really had trouble with that. He said, ”G.o.d, this isn't right. I've got a full scholars.h.i.+p. I've made all these plans. I've prayed and I know You told me to come here. Now six weeks after I arrive, You're telling me to leave the scholars.h.i.+p, leave everything, and go down there to nowhere?” nowhere?”

Seagoville's not actually the end of the world, but you can see it from there! So my friend wrestled with that for three or four months and finally one day when he was praying he said, ”G.o.d, if this is really You, why didn't You tell me before I came?”

G.o.d said, ”John, out of the two choices you gave Me, Berkeley or OBU, OBU was the best of the two. But if you had asked Me where I really wanted you to go, I would have told you.” You see, sometimes we don't always give G.o.d enough options when we pray, or we ask the wrong questions.

So I was praying, ”G.o.d, which is right, once saved, always saved or saved-lost, saved-lost?”

He said, ”Neither.” Then I began to study the Scriptures for myself. I could go into a lot more detail, but I'll give a brief discussion of the answer here.

Finding the Balance the Balance .

I believe that both teachings have a truth. Once your spirit has been born again, it is eternally redeemed. Your spirit has been sanctified, perfected forever, and that spirit cannot sin. Therefore, a sin does not send you to h.e.l.l.

Sin does not violate or invalidate your salvation. You do not fall from grace in the sense that you commit what religion calls an unpardonable sin, lose your salvation, and have to ”pray back through” and be born again once more.

The Bible doesn't teach being born again, again. again. It teaches being born again once! There is only It teaches being born again once! There is only one one new birth. You can't be born again multiple times. The Scripture in Hebrews 6:4-6 makes this crystal clear. new birth. You can't be born again multiple times. The Scripture in Hebrews 6:4-6 makes this crystal clear.

For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,And have tasted the good word of G.o.d, and the powers of the world to come,If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of G.o.d afresh, and put him to an open shame.

These verses are saying that if you do reject salvation, it's impossible to renew it again. There is no such thing as being born again, becoming lost, and being born again once more.

The terminology may vary, but some people use the term ”pray through” when they talk about their salvation. They are born again, but they believe they've fallen from G.o.d's grace and feel feel if they were to die in that condition they would go to h.e.l.l. So they ”pray through” until if they were to die in that condition they would go to h.e.l.l. So they ”pray through” until they feel they feel they get their salvation back. they get their salvation back.

I hope you love me anyway for saying it, but that is bondage! This is a heresy that has condemned a lot of people and it is not of G.o.d. Scripture makes it clear you do not get saved, lost, and saved again.

On the other hand, I don't believe that once you're saved, you're always saved without any other possibility. I believe it is possible to be saved and then lost - but not saved, lost, and saved again.

The reason I believe this is that it is not a sin that d.a.m.ns you to h.e.l.l. If it was, which sin would it be that is going to cause you to lose your salvation? Again, most people would say, ”the bad ones.” But if sin made you lose your salvation, any sin - even overeating or gossip - would cost you your salvation, and it would be impossible to ever regain it again. Sin does not make you lose your salvation.

The answer that harmonizes both sides is the free will of man. the free will of man. You were not forced to get saved. You got saved of your own free will. And You were not forced to get saved. You got saved of your own free will. And G.o.d doesn't force you to stay saved. G.o.d doesn't force you to stay saved. Even though you can't Even though you can't sin sin your salvation away, you can your salvation away, you can reject reject your salvation by an act of your own free will. You can willfully reject salvation and become reprobate. There are many scriptures which verify this. your salvation by an act of your own free will. You can willfully reject salvation and become reprobate. There are many scriptures which verify this.

One of the scriptures is in Hebrews 6, where it says for those who have done certain things, if they fall away it's impossible to renew them again to repentance. I always heard this taught as a hypothetical case, and that renewing them again to repentance couldn't actually happen, because Jesus would have to die for them again.

But that's not what this pa.s.sage is talking about. It is talking about a person who falls away. They must have had something to fall away from. You can't lose something you didn't have to begin with. The book of Hebrews describes people who have become reprobate or enemies of the faith.

For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden underfoot the Son of G.o.d, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?Hebrews 10:26-29 This is addressing people who sin willfully after they've received the knowledge of the truth, but also have trodden underfoot the Son of G.o.d, trodden underfoot the Son of G.o.d, counting the blood of the covenant an counting the blood of the covenant an unholy unholy thing! This would have to be people who had completely turned against Jesus and salvation. These are not Christians who simply fell into sin. thing! This would have to be people who had completely turned against Jesus and salvation. These are not Christians who simply fell into sin.

How Sin Can Lead to h.e.l.l Sin Can Lead to h.e.l.l .

This next point is important, because if you don't give close attention, you will miss everything I've been teaching. If you think you have to maintain a certain level of exterior holiness to maintain your salvation and if you don't, you're going to go to h.e.l.l, then you'll come right back under the bondage of the Old Testament Law, having to perform to earn the blessings of G.o.d, and it will torment you. You'll become your own savior again, trying to receive things from G.o.d based on how good you are instead of what Jesus has done for you. You've got to recognize that both salvation and living the Christian life are totally a work of the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus.

You are going to stand before G.o.d someday, and if He asks you what you've done to justify getting into heaven, you can only point to your dependence on the blood of Jesus Christ, not to your church attendance, your t.i.thing record, or anything else. But you still need to live a holy life, because you don't want to give Satan any power over you. The most devastating result from habitual sin is a spiritual hardening of your heart. a spiritual hardening of your heart. If you go out and openly live in sin, your heart will become hardened to the Holy Spirit and G.o.d's Word. If you go out and openly live in sin, your heart will become hardened to the Holy Spirit and G.o.d's Word.

Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any ofyou an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from theliving G.o.d.But exhort one another daily, while it is called Today; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end.Hebrews 3:12-14 Sin is deceitful and will harden a person's heart toward G.o.d and other people. And the Word of G.o.d tells us it is possible for a person to harden their heart through sin to the point they no longer care about Jesus and salvation. Just as G.o.d did not make a person get saved, G.o.d does not make a person stay saved. It is not possible to ”lose” your salvation, but you could give it up you could give it up if you became deceived and hardened enough! if you became deceived and hardened enough!

For example, let's discuss the sin of not going to church. The reason reason you you go to church is not because G.o.d is keeping attendance and will only bless you if you go to church. You go to church to be around people who are going to build you up. If you are sitting home watching go to church is not because G.o.d is keeping attendance and will only bless you if you go to church. You go to church to be around people who are going to build you up. If you are sitting home watching TV, TV, you aren't going to hear the kinds of things I'm teaching, and your heart is going to slowly become hardened to the things of G.o.d. you aren't going to hear the kinds of things I'm teaching, and your heart is going to slowly become hardened to the things of G.o.d.

When your heart, through the deceitfulness of sin, becomes hardened, you become dull and insensitive to the leading of G.o.d. You start straying further and further away from Him and His protection. Obeying His Word and the leading of the Holy Spirit would no longer be important.

Any particular kind of sin or combination of sins can harden your heart. If a person continues to practice sin, they will be lured deeper and deeper into that sin, and their desire to seek and know G.o.d will become less and less. Also, the pleasure that sin offers will get a stronger grip on the person, making it harder to give up.

In an extreme case, a person could get so deceived by sin that they finally reject all conviction of the Holy Spirit and tell Jesus to get out of their life. That is a very serious - but possible - result of a believer who willfully lives in sin.

Ultimately it is possible for believers to harden themselves to such a degree that their conscience is seared. They no longer perceive what they are doing in a proper light. They can even think their sin is all right. They're entrapped in sin, and Satan begins to tempt them to renounce their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Their sin won't send them to h.e.l.l, but their sin will put them in a place where they are so far removed from fellows.h.i.+p with G.o.d that they will be more responsive to Satan than they are to G.o.d. When this occurs, it's possible they could say, ”I renounce all this salvation stuff. Jesus, get out of my life! Stop bothering me!” Because they reject the salvation through Jesus Christ, they go to h.e.l.l.

It is not because the sin sin made G.o.d send them to h.e.l.l, but because they threw their salvation away and made G.o.d send them to h.e.l.l, but because they threw their salvation away and rejected it of their own free will. rejected it of their own free will. If they do that, the Bible clearly states it is impossible to renew them again to repentance. If they do that, the Bible clearly states it is impossible to renew them again to repentance.

You are eternally redeemed. You are secure as long as you want to be secure, but you can't go to sleep spiritually. You can't afford to flirt with sin and live in sin, because I guarantee you, Satan will put you in a compromising situation.

If you've been living in sin and you've sold yourself out to sin, it's very possible that you won't be able to draw on the spiritual reserves it takes to lay down your life for the Lord. If someone put a gun to your head and said, ”Renounce Jesus, or I'll kill you,” you would probably reject the Lord to save your own life. Why? Because right now you are rejecting Jesus for your sin. Maybe you want wealth or s.e.x or drugs so much that you just shove Jesus aside again and again. Eventually you could renounce the Lord altogether.

Sometimes people are so shortsighted, they don't see h.e.l.l coming. There are people who have done just what I've described. A minister I will call Mark was known to be a great faith healer. I have met people who were healed through his ministry in miraculous ways. The son of a friend of mine knew Mark personally and says he believes Mark was born again, had a real calling on his life, and moved in the supernatural gifts of the Spirit. But because of the wealth, fame, and prestige he could get, Mark turned away from G.o.d and renounced Him for what he could gain in the flesh. He talked about how he now didn't even believe there was a G.o.d! If this is true, Mark would be an example of a person who renounced his faith and became reprobate. Thank G.o.d that's a rare occurrence.

Conditions for Missing Heaven for Missing Heaven .

There may be someone saying, ”Brother Andrew, I can't accept what you're saying, because if that is true then I have rejected the Lord. One time after I was born again, I became tired of the whole thing and renounced it and turned my back on the Lord and went back into sin. You're saying it's impossible for me to repent, but I know I repented and I know G.o.d accepted me.”

For a complete perspective on a situation like this, Hebrews 6:4,5 has some qualifications: For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,And have tasted the good word of G.o.d, and the powers of the world to come.

Not every person can reject Jesus and become a reprobate. You must meet certain criteria. This scripture says that first, you have to have been enlightened. I believe that describes a person who has had G.o.d reveal Himself to him. Tasted of the heavenly gift Tasted of the heavenly gift is talking about the gift of salvation. Being is talking about the gift of salvation. Being made partakers of the Holy Ghost made partakers of the Holy Ghost refers to a person who has received the baptism of the Holy Ghost and spoken in tongues. refers to a person who has received the baptism of the Holy Ghost and spoken in tongues. Have tasted the good word of G.o.d Have tasted the good word of G.o.d is a person who started growing and maturing in the Word, who had revelation knowledge of the Word of G.o.d. Tasting the is a person who started growing and maturing in the Word, who had revelation knowledge of the Word of G.o.d. Tasting the powers of the world to come powers of the world to come refers to the supernatural manifestations of the gifts of the Holy Ghost. refers to the supernatural manifestations of the gifts of the Holy Ghost.

This pa.s.sage is talking about a mature Christian. Only a mature Christian who understands what they are doing can fall away or choose to renounce Jesus Christ and His gift of salvation.

For example, if one of my children had gotten mad at me when they were young and said, ”I don't like you anymore. I'm tired of being your kid, and I'm not going to be a Wommack anymore. I renounce you and I'm going to be somebody else. I'm going to run away from home.” I wouldn't have allowed them to do that, because they couldn't really understand what they were doing. And the law would have backed me up because they were just a child.

My children couldn't legally renounce me and sever ties with me when they were minors, but if they are thirty years old they can change their names, renounce me, file an injunction so I could never see them, and the law would back them up. There comes a place of maturity where they would be able, of their own free will, to sever our relations.h.i.+p.

When they are grown, my children can't change the fact that they were begotten of me, but they can certainly change any future relations.h.i.+p with me. They have a free will to do it, and they have entered a place of maturity where it's legally possible. They understand what they're doing.

I ran away from home when I was eight years old. Even though I was only three blocks away, I thought my parents were never going to catch me. Although I was already wanting to go back home, I couldn't humble myself and let them know it. So I got myself caught in a barbed-wire fence and I was waiting for them to come get me. I had changed my mind within two or three minutes after I left home. I didn't really mean it. I didn't really know what I was doing.

There are some people who never matured much in the Lord and because of that, they got frustrated, quit living for G.o.d, maybe went back into sin, and did all kinds of things. But they had not reached the place where they were knowledgeable enough in the things of G.o.d for Him to hold them fully responsible. Therefore, they were able to turn, repent, and come back to the Lord. And even as they did not like to retain G.o.d in their knowledge, G.o.d gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient. And even as they did not like to retain G.o.d in their knowledge, G.o.d gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient.

Romans 1:28 This scripture talks about being reprobate, which is a Bible term for a person who has refused their salvation or has renounced their salvation and now has no desire to get it back. According to Scripture, they didn't want to retain G.o.d in their minds, so G.o.d gave them over to a reprobate mind. It is as though they no longer have any conviction or conscience.

Jesus said no man can come unto Him except the Father draw him. (See John 6:44.) So G.o.d just quits drawing them. G.o.d quits dealing with them because they have rejected Him out of their lives.

A person who is truly reprobate has no more conviction or conscience. They know they are going to h.e.l.l and they don't care. They are no longer convicted. There is no longer any repentance in them. There is no longer any remorse in them. They are miserable and have become so hardened that they no longer retain G.o.d in their knowledge at all. So a person who has committed what Hebrews 6 is talking about is not concerned about their reprobate status. They no longer care about G.o.d, Jesus, or salvation.

Someone may be thinking, ”Brother, have I ever done that? Have I sinned against G.o.d to that extent? Have I renounced my salvation? Am I reprobate?” You can know you are not lost and without hope simply because you care whether you are or not! You can know you are not lost and without hope simply because you care whether you are or not!

If you are still being convicted by G.o.d, if you still have a desire to repent and come back to G.o.d, if there is any drawing in your heart towards G.o.d, then you are not reprobate and you have not committed that ”unpardonable” sin of rejecting Jesus and your salvation.