Once a Sheep Always a Sheep, or Salvation Deficit Disorder?

[stevenw56]

When I pray I ask Jesus to come into my heart and fill me with the Holy Spirit often. I pray and tell Jesus that I believe He died for my sins and ask Him to cleanse me with His blood. Then I thank Him for what He did. I pray this often, not because of lack of faith or because I feel I need to be saved over and over again. It's just me telling God I'm your's and that I can't make it without Him.

[Born Again 2006]

"Also, I've noticed that when I slack off on my Bible reading is whenever the doubts start to gain a foothold again. There is no substitute for spending time daily in God's Word." I find this comment to be so true as I oftentimes find myself trying to do things on my own. I allow daily life to "get in the way" of seeking God's word and that's when the doubts about my salvation roll over me.

Holy Father,
Please forgive me when I allow my flesh to doubt your word and the promises that your word provides us.:pray

[BrideOfChrist]

their lives werent changed by the gospel? which means they never accepted it to begin with. 1 john is clear that a born again regernerate man can not live in a life style of sin. Meaning there is no such thing a back slidding, because they never were born again to begin with. They might have had the head knowledge but like James says that even the demons believe. If you life hasnt changed because of the gospel then you arent right with God.
Basically you cant back slide if you never slid foward

I'm not sure where you're coming from, really. There absolutely ARE carnal Christians, living in sin. I was one of them. To make a blanket statement that one who is living in sin for a time was never born-again to begin with is presumptuous at best and judgmental at worst. The prodigal son is a type of backslidden Christian. After living in sin for a time, he realized what he had done and returned to his father, who is a type of our Heavenly Father. David was backslidden for a time - adultery, murder etc, but he returned to God with a contrite and repentent heart.

Again, the Corinthian church is a prime example in the NT of backslidden, carnal Christians.

Do I condone living in sin? Of course not. But God alone knows the hearts of His children. Not one Christian alive today has achieved a state of perfection. We will sin until we die. So who am I to look at a brother or sister and state matter-of-factly that he/she is not saved? For a period of 10 years, no one would've ever guessed that I was born-again. I was living in sin. I'm not proud of that time of my life. I feel guilt-ridden about it often. But I was saved and Jesus says that no man is able to pluck the children of God out of the hands of His Father. He brought me back into the fold.

"Meaning there is no such thing a back slidding, because they never were born again to begin with." - This is a dangerously judgmental statement you make here.

[HeIsEnough]

Thanks everyone to letting me chat here too.. I so appreciate you all..Debbie

:hug

Thank you for sharing some of your testimony. The Lord gives us things that are precious.

[FaithContender]

I'm not sure where you're coming from, really. There absolutely ARE carnal Christians, living in sin. I was one of them. To make a blanket statement that one who is living in sin for a time was never born-again to begin with is presumptuous at best and judgmental at worst. The prodigal son is a type of backslidden Christian. After living in sin for a time, he realized what he had done and returned to his father, who is a type of our Heavenly Father. David was backslidden for a time - adultery, murder etc, but he returned to God with a contrite and repentent heart.


Wow, I totally disagree.

And David is a completely different situation. Believer were not indwelt with the Holy Spirit back then, they were filled, and the filling could be removed ("take not thy Holy Spirit from me"). Believers under the New Covenant are regenerated (born again) and indwelt with the Holy Spirit. They are a new creation. They still sin, but they are continually being sanctified...made holy...and as a result, they sin less as they mature. There is no such thing as a "carnal Christian." Either a person makes Christ Savior and Lord of their life and is born again or they are just fooling themselves.

[BrideOfChrist]

Wow, I totally disagree.

And David is a completely different situation. Believer were not indwelt with the Holy Spirit back then, they were filled, and the filling could be removed ("take not thy Holy Spirit from me"). Believers under the New Covenant are regenerated (born again) and indwelt with the Holy Spirit. They are a new creation. They still sin, but they are continually being sanctified...made holy...and as a result, they sin less as they mature. There is no such thing as a "carnal Christian." Either a person makes Christ Savior and Lord of their life and is born again or they are just fooling themselves.


Are you saying that I was un-born again? That I lost my salvation? That I was only fooling myself previously and was never born-again because I strayed away from God for a time? And what gives you authority to question someone else's salvation?

If David had been under the New Covenant and he had committed adultery and committed murder, would you conclude that he was never saved to begin with? In the final analysis, would you say that because he slipped into sin for a time and strayed from God by committing these two egregious sins, that he is sinning more than you are, so he must not be going though the process of sanctification? Therefore, he was only fooling himself to begin with? Don't you think God alone would know the state of one's heart?

It sounds like you're a proponent of lordship salvation. I adhere to the free grace theology and I do believe there are carnal Christians.

[icebear]

I came to Christ just after I tried to kill myself.

:hug i'm so glad you didn't

i've had suicide issues myself, for different medical reasons

if it weren't for Jesus, i'd be dead

[amy_elisabeth]

The word 'Rapture' is not in the Bible either...neither is homosexual or abortion etc. :)

I was backslidden for many years - a carnal Christian. I'm not clear on what the "sinner's prayer" is exactly. I'm constantly in a repentent state, it seems. So, I'm constantly repenting and asking for forgiveness. I asked the Lord to save me, in faith, when I was a child. Have I asked Him to save me since? ...Sure, I think it's human nature to have doubts...it is, after all, our eternal state we're talking about. I do find myself asking God for surety and peace of mind these days. As we see the day approacing, I think Satan is going to work overtime to try to cast doubts on all of God's children.

Hi BrideOfChrist (love that name by the way!)... I struggled with the "carnal Christian" thing for a long time. I was told I was backslidden and a carnal Christian for some time, so I decided to study it to see where it comes from - whether it's in the Bible or a doctrine that man made up. Check out this link below when you get a chance... read through it; I'd like to see what you think about it. It's been about a year and a half now for me since studying it and now I'm at peace with the whole thing. Hope you enjoy it :)
Link: http://www.founders.org/journal/fj17/article2.html

[amy_elisabeth]

If anyone wants to hear my testimony about being backslidden, a carnal Christian, and how I taught the Bible for years, but wasn't saved, you can click on the link in my sig line. I was in church, doing the small group thing, a youth leader, wrote devotionals weekly for our church bulletin, led people to Christ... but I wasn't saved. I was never born again. God had not converted my soul. You can hear me in the link below; that may help some people :)

I was that "prodigal" son - not saved, then God granted me repentance and faith in Christ. I was taught the "no-repentance" path. (Matthew 7:21-23 is my biography prior to Oct. 2006).

[hilhill]

Hi BrideOfChrist (love that name by the way!)... I struggled with the "carnal Christian" thing for a long time. I was told I was backslidden and a carnal Christian for some time, so I decided to study it to see where it comes from - whether it's in the Bible or a doctrine that man made up. Check out this link below when you get a chance... read through it; I'd like to see what you think about it. It's been about a year and a half now for me since studying it and now I'm at peace with the whole thing. Hope you enjoy it :)
Link: http://www.founders.org/journal/fj17/article2.html

Thanks for posting.... This is the quote I think sums it up the best...

"Too often modern evangelicalism has substituted a 'decision' in the place of repentance and saving faith. Forgiveness is preached without the equally important truth that the Spirit of God must change the heart. As a result decisions are treated as conversions even though there is no evidence of a supernatural work of God in the life."

:thumb