Once Saved, Always Saved? (part 6)

Welcome back to our discussion regarding the doctrine of Eternal Security (aka Once Saved, Always Saved).

Or as I like to put it... Once God Saves You, He Keeps You Saved.

Previously, we looked at the possibility of the Holy Spirit leaving us, thereby making us unsaved.

We saw that it can't happen and those who teach that grieving the Holy Spirit will cause Him to leave are teaching false doctrine... whether it be unintentional or on purpose - but it's definitely not what the bible teaches under the new covenant.



Today we'll be looking turning to the book of Psalms.

Psalms 51:11
Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me.

This psalm is known to many believers. It's sung in many churches today.

The problem though, is that many people read it and say, 'see, for King David to say this must mean that it can happen'.

Is this true? No, it's not.

How do we know that it's not true?

We turn to the words of God.

Remember, Jesus says He will not lose any of His sheep. We are sealed with the Holy Spirit who will be with us forever.

And one more thing we should bring to the forefront of our mind.

Hebrews 13:5
Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

We can be assured that God will never leave nor forsake us. He has given us His word, and God always keeps His word.

So what do you do with this verse in Psalms 51?

Well, the first thing we must do is read the chapter. When we want to understand the meaning of the verse, it is best to read the context it was written in.

Psalms 51, is a prayer of repentance and forgiveness by Kind David, after Nathan the prophet came to him regarding the issue with Bathsheba.

The entire chapter is King David speaking to God in light of that.

We must also realise that this is in the greater context of the Old Testament. The Holy Spirit was never promised to stay with anybody in the Old Covenant.

This is a stark difference to the New Covenant.

So David could indeed cry out to not have the Holy Spirit leave Him.

If we look to the next verse, we see something interesting.

Palms 51:12
Restore unto me the joy of my salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit.

Those who make the claim that the previous verse talks about losing one's salvation would have a problem with the next verse, because King David doesn't ask God to restore his salvation, but the joy of his salvation.

For those who are saved, when we are disobedient to God for a prolonged time (sin), we will lose the joy of our salvation. The Holy Spirit won't allow us to continue in the joy of our salvation while we're revelling in sin.

So it seems that King David even recognised the security of his salvation. He made the distinction between having the Holy Spirit (which wasn't a sign of salvation), having salvation, and having the joy of salvation.

In other words, not only is verse 11 not talking about losing ones salvation, but when you continue into verse 12, you'll see that it seems to be pointing to a salvation that he hasn't lost at all.

As a matter of fact that's exactly what he indicates...

2 Samuel 12:22-23
And he said, "while the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept; for I said, 'who can tell whether God will be gracious to me, that the child may live?' But now he is dead, why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.

These verses are in relation to the same issue that Psalms 51 is in relation to... Bathsheba.

In these verses we see that King David believed that he would be where his son is, namely heaven.

King David didn't doubt that he was saved. There was no doubt in his mind regarding the surety of God's salvation. The issue for him was the renewal of a proper relationship with God. A renewal of the joy of his salvation that comes from living before God in such a way that pleases Him.

This is what Psalm 51 is about. This is what we should take from it.

Remember, when we venture into the old testament, we must be mindful of the differences between the two covenants, and what was promised then, and what is promised now.

Join us next time, as we continue to delve into various scriptures that people try to stand behind in order to defend their unbelief in the words of Christ Jesus our Lord.