How many times do Christians say, that once you are saved, you are always saved. Many scriptures are quoted to substantiate this statement. One of them is John 10:27-29, where Jesus says “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand. My Father, which gave them Me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.” Unfortunately, many Scriptures are taken out of context, or words are left out, so that people don’t have to change and don’t have to go through the process of sanctification, but can keep living after their flesh according to their will and persevere in sin, without feeling guilty. And that has also happened to John 10:27-29. Because is it true, can no one pluck you out of the hand of God?
The call to repentance
From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand (Matthew 4:17)
But when Jesus heard that, He said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance (Matthew 9:12-13, Mark 2:17, Luke 5:31-32, )
And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His Name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem (Luke 24:47)
Throughout the Bible, people are called to repentance and the removal of sin and walk after the Spirit in holiness and righteousness.
But because of false teachers, who have entered the Church of God and have misled many believers with their false doctrines, this message has been eliminated and is hardly preached anymore. Because of that true conversions are held off and people keep living as the old creation, as a slave to sin in the bondage of death (Read also: ‘What is repentance?‘).
But as long as someone wants to serve sin and persevere in sin, it proves that the person is not born again and has not received God’s nature. Because the Holy Spirit, Who dwells in the new creation, wouldn’t do anything that goes against God’s Word and His will.
Everyone, who is born of God loves God and doesn’t want to do anything that grieves God and denies and harms His Name and His Kingdom.
My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me
My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand. My Father, which gave them Me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one (John 10:27-30)
Because those, who are born of God and have received the Holy Spirit, shall follow Jesus and listen to His voice. They shall submit themselves to Jesus Christ; the Word and have a relationship with Him and spend time with Him and therefore they know Him and He knows them, and they do what Jesus has commanded them to do, causing them to be followers and witnesses of Jesus Christ, the Living Word, on earth (Read also: ‘Following Jesus will cost you everything’).
That’s the condition that Jesus spoke about, before Jesus said that no one was able to pluck His sheep out of His hand and out of the Father’s hand, since the Father and the Son are one. But the condition is many times left out and therefore a partial truth is preached, instead of the whole truth of God.
Because there is a condition in order to stay in the hand of Jesus and in the hand of the Father, and that is, that you hear His voice; His words and that you follow Him; the Word, and stay in Him and do the will of Jesus Christ, which is also the will of the Father.
Can no one pluck you out of the hand of God?
It’s not written that nothing can pluck you out of the of God but that no one can pluck you out of the hand of God. This means, that no one else is able to do something about your salvation and your position in Christ and His protection. No one else can disrupt, damage, and break your relationship with God; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The only one, who can break your relationship with God is you, by what you do.
The devil couldn’t do anything about the position of man; Adam, and his relationship with God, man was untouchable. But what the devil could do, was tempt man and mislead man and cause man to doubt the words of God, so that man would believe and obey his words instead of the words of God and do his words and that way submit to the devil and bow to him.
Adam and Eve sinned from their Godly nature
Remember, that man (Adam and Eve) was perfectly created after the image of God and didn’t have a sinful nature. Man was spiritual and walked in union with God (Genesis 1:26-31-2:25).
In our age, people blame the sinful nature for their sins and say there is nothing they can do about it, because they are sinners. But that is a pious lie from the devil, which many people use in order to live after their flesh, after their own will, instead of yielding to the will of God and His Word. By using this pious lie, they can persevere in sin, without feeling guilty (Read also: ‘Can you use a broken world as an excuse?’)
But by saying, that you are still a sinner, you deny the redemptive work of Jesus Christ and the creation of the new man.
Jesus didn’t go the way of sufferings and didn’t die on the cross, so that man can live in sin; in rebellion towards God, but to deal with the sinful nature, which reigns in the flesh, through regeneration and the death of the flesh in Christ.
Before the fall, man didn’t have a sinful nature, but man was perfect. Therefore Adam and Eve were not led by their sinful nature and their sinful nature didn’t cause them to sin. But their will caused them to sin.
They decided to listen to the adversary of God; the devil, and to believe his words and obey him. Because of their obedience to the words of the devil, they yielded to the devil and death entered. And so their spirit died and the relationship between God and man was broken.
God had warned man through His words and said, that if man would eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he would surely die. However, the devil twisted the words of God very subtly, causing man to doubt the words of God.
Man began to doubt the words of God and lusted after the promise of the devil, that if they would eat the fruit from the forbidden tree, they would be as God, which was also a partial truth.
And so they believed the words of the devil above the words of God and followed the devil instead of God, whereby man fell from his position and became separated from God.
The warnings of the Word
From the beginning of creation, God warned man and gave a commandment, but man rejected the commandment of God.
The devil couldn’t pluck man from the hand of God, but the devil could tempt man to sin and ensure that man would believe his words and follow his words and leave the words of God and become separated from God.
No person, no devil, principality, power, ruler, etc. can pluck you out of the hand of God. The only thing, that can cause you to leave the hand of God is by leaving God’s Word and His will and become disobedient to the voice of God.
As long as you listen to the voice of Jesus Christ and follow Him and live in union with Him, you shall be untouchable and He shall be with you and no one shall be able to pluck you out of the hand of God.
But if you refuse to submit to Jesus Christ; the Word and do His will, but instead decide to go your own way and do your will and serve the flesh, then because of your unbelief and your disobedience to the words of God and your works, you shall leave the hand of God.
Those, who are born of God do the things that please Him and live after His will
And He that sent Me is with Me: the Father hath not left Me alone; for I do always those things that please Him. (John 8:29)
Not every one that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the Kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven (Matthew 7:21)
For whosoever shall do the will of My Father which is in heaven, the same is My brother, and sister, and mother (Matthew 12:50)
Jesus was yielded to the will of the Father and did those things that pleased the Father and because of that, the Father was with Him.
The devil tried to tempt Jesus many times, by twisting the words of God very subtle and use them for His flesh, just like the devil did with Adam. But Jesus stayed faithful to the words of His Father.
Jesus loved His Father and spent a lot of time with His Father and He knew His nature and His will and therefore Jesus recognized the lies of the devil and rejected his words instead of the words of God, whereby God remained His Father
If Jesus, who was the Firstborn of the new creation, could be tempted, then those, who have become a new creation in Christ, can also be tempted and can choose to leave the hand of God by believing and obeying the words of the devil and leave the words of God.
Can you depart from the living God?
Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; 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 (Hebrew 3:12-14).
The Word testifies, that it is possible to depart from the living God, unlike the preachers and followers of the modern gospel, who contradict the words of God and say that if you are once saved, you are always saved and that it doesn’t matter how you live, even if you persevere in sin.
But God has given His Word and His Word testifies of Him and His will, together with His Spirit, and it’s up to every person to either believe the words of God or not
‘Be the salt of the earth’
