Building Christians Up From The Foundation & Unto Perfection
Hebrews 6:1-3
Hebrews 6:1-3
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Before you read: This article is part of a larger series that builds on itself from the foundation up, with each study building on the last. If something in this article does not make sense to you or if you believe it to be incorrect please be sure you have read over the entire course before passing your final judgment. Also be sure to visit this page’s FAQ And Objections Page
It is indeed possible for a Christian to lose salvation. So there may be fear in the hearts of people who have been Christians, but who are fallen from grace. These are not people who simply sinned (because that isn’t what causes a fall from grace). These are people who have at one time been a Christian who have now rejected Christ.
Yes, there are those who were REALLY Christians that left the faith. There are a number of reasons they will give for their falling from grace. Some claim that God left them or somehow broke His word. The attack of Satan has caused them to harden their hearts towards God.
But once they come to a place where their heart can be softened again is there any hope of salvation? These people have tasted and seen that God is good and yet walked away from Him. No doubt, there are many asking how to come back to God after falling away.
The answer is yes! There is hope for those who have once been in the faith and yet left it. Some may think that is untrue because of certain scriptures such as Hebrews 6, which we will be talking about in this unit. But the truth is that even those who have known God but renounced the faith have a chance to return.
We spoke of what it means to be born again in unit 3:4b. It means the soul of a person, which was dead in sins and distant from God, has new life breathed into it. This new life comes from the Holy Spirit, which takes up residence within a person. At that point, a person has their own soul brought to life because the Spirit of God, which is the breath of life, is abiding with us.
Job 33:4
The spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.
John 11:25
Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
John 14:6
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
So if a person’s soul has been “born again” (had life breathed into it) what happens if that life breathing Spirit of God departs? Obviously, without the Spirit of God, which gives life, there is only death.
Now, I know I just hit a nerve with some people by using the words “Spirit of God departs.“ After all, Jesus said He would never leave us nor forsake us. This is the truth. Jesus did say that and His word is sure. It will not fail. If He said it then He meant it!
But what happens if WE are the ones doing the forsaking? That would mean the statement Jesus made has not been broken, and yet there is still a separation. God remains who He is, and where He is, but we are the ones who moved. We are the ones who rejected Him.
So even though the Spirit of God Himself will not leave you it doesn’t mean that you can not depart from Him. Of course, there is still another objection about this that someone may try to raise, which I would like to answer now as well.
John 10:27-30
27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. 29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand. 30 I and my Father are one.
Romans 8:35 And 38-39
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Many believe these passages are great scriptures to prove that once a person is saved they can not lose salvation. They also believe these verses show that we can not walk away from God through our own will. They say there is no escape from the hand of God.
This does seem logical, in a certain way. Since God is all powerful there is no way that ANYTHING could escape His grasp. But does that mean He will not allow us to walk away? No, He WILL allow us to do that.
In earlier units, we already spoke of the difference between the promise and the reality of salvation. We also gave verses which show without a question that even a Christian can become lost. That is obviously a direct contradiction to the thought that we can not walk away from God if we so chose.
So let’s examine the scriptures above and see if they really do say what some people believe them to say.
John 10:27-39
27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. 29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.
“And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish,” Jesus is speaking of the sheep that follow Him. Thus, those who FOLLOW Him are given eternal life and they will never perish. Remember, we have the promise of eternal life when we follow Jesus, but the reality has not yet come to pass until we are actually raised from the dead.
“Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.” This is not saying a person can not leave on their own freewill. It says no man can pluck them out of my hand. In other words, it is saying no outside force can snatch you away (plucked out). This does not, however, say that no one on the INSIDE can remove THEMSELVES from God’s hand.
Verse 29 follows the same thought. No outside force can remove you from the hands of God. But, it does not say that God will deny a person the right to leave, on their own freewill.
Romans 8:35 And 38-39 also speak of an outside force. It does not speak of someone on the inside being held as a prisoner. The hands of God are protection, not prison. Another thing to note is that you can love someone even if they are lost. The love of the Father, which is also in Christ Jesus (as they are one), is not dependent on a person being righteous or not.
You can love what you hate. The two are not incompatible. A person may love food, but hate it at the same time, because even though they enjoy it they do not enjoy what it does to them. A parent can love their child and yet still hate them at the same time because of their actions. You can love and hate at the same time. Hate is not the opposite of love.
So now that we have addressed that issue we can move on.
When a person chooses to deny the faith that they once had they depart from God, and fall from grace. This causes their soul to, once again, take on death since they have left the source of life. The Holy Ghost is no longer in communion with their soul.
There are many verses which speak of the Holy Spirit as being a seal that preserves us. It is called the earnest of our inheritance. This means as long as the Holy Spirit is within us, breathing life into our souls, we are protected from death.
Again, God will not forsake us. But, He will not imprison us either. If we forsake Him then He will not force us to remain with Him. He will let us walk away.
Judges 10:13
Yet ye have forsaken me, and served other gods: wherefore I will deliver you no more.
2 Chronicles 15:2
And he went out to meet Asa, and said unto him, Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin; The Lord is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.
So again, WE forsake Him and He LETS us walk away. This is why the Bible says that IF WE forsake Him HE WILL ALSO forsake us. Not because He chose to do so, but because we forced Him to no longer be with us by walking away. He will let us go (forsake us) if we chose.
There are some verses that may seem to imply that a person who has left the faith can not return to God.
Hebrews 6:4-6
4 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, 5 And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, 6 If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
Hebrews 10:17-18 and 26-31
17 And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. 18 Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.
26 For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, 27 But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. 28 He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: 29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
These are some very powerful verses. They really do seem to imply that if a Christian departs from the faith then there is no way to return to God. But this is not actually what they say. We will examine them closer (as we did above with John 10:27-39) to see if what we THINK they say is REALLY what they say or not. Because often we read more into things than is there.
But first, let me provide some other verses which would seem to contradict this thought if it is correct.
Revelation 2:4-5
4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. 5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.
Jesus Himself was speaking to a people who had left their first love, and who had fallen from grace.
Some believe the first love it speaks of here is evangelism rather than Jesus Himself. This belief doesn’t hold up under examination though since you must love Jesus FIRST before you can love evangelism. This is the reason the greatest of the commandments begins with loving God first, and others second.
Also, in Luke 15 we find the story of the prodigal son. This was not a servant or someone unknown to the father. This was a son. The SON left his FATHER. But when he remembered from where he was fallen he repented and came to his father, now humbled. His father accepted him back as one who was dead and now alive.
This story told by Jesus does not begin with the son already out in the world. It begins with him being in his father’s household. This is one way we can know that Jesus is not speaking of someone who never knew their father.
The wonderful thing about it is that the son who had left his father came to his senses later on. His hard heart was turned back to his father and he repented. His father did not reject him when he returned but instead took him back as his son. It was as though he had never left. It was as though his son had simply died, and was now alive again.
So if these things speak of returning to God AFTER FALLING FROM GRACE then how can it be saying a person can not do so in the book of Hebrews? The simple answer is that it DOESN’T say that in Hebrews. We just read something into it that isn’t there.
Hebrews 6:4-6
4 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, 5 And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, 6 If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
Here we see it say in verses 4-6 that those who have known God and been Christians can not be renewed UNTO repentance. The word “renewed” means to “begin again, or start over from the beginning.” The word “unto” is like saying you are “going unto the end“. It simply means “to cover a distance until you reach a destination.”
So these verses say that a person who once knew of God and became a Christian can not go all the way to the beginning. They can not begin again as though they never knew God.
Like the prodigal son. He could not go back to his father and become a servant because it was impossible for him to be less than the son of his father. He could never say he did not know what it was to be a son.
This is why verse 6 also says that doing so would “crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.” Because it would be like saying they never knew Jesus, even though they once were Christians. It would be a denial of everything they once knew of their Father. Thus, it would be an open shame.
So these verses do not show that a person can not repent. They only show that a person can not become as if they never knew God in the first place. They can not simply have their memory wiped clear. So they don’t start over. They just return again as though they had never left.
They can not have Jesus purchase them again by His blood since He already paid the price. He doesn’t have to pay again for what is His in the first place. He can revive his “dead son” but he can not pretend the person was never His son in the first place.
Hebrews 10:17-18
17 And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. 18 Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.
In 17 we see God say that He will no longer remember their sins. This is because they are forgiven and “swept under the rug” so to speak. This is also known as “remission of sins.” So in verse 18, when we see it say that there is no more offering for sin, we have to ask, “Why would we need another?” Our sins are forgiven through Jesus, and if our sins are forgiven we no longer need a sacrifice to forgive us of something already taken care of.
Take note in these verses that it does not say a person can not be forgiven if they walk away, nor does it say that another sacrifice would be needed if they did. It simply says that since our sins are forgiven we do not need another sacrifice.
Hebrews 10:26
26 For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
Again, we see here that there is no more sacrifice for sins even if we walk away. What does this mean? We can take this to mean that the blood of Jesus is no longer able to cover us, or we can take it to mean that there is no OTHER sacrifice that can cover us.
Hebrews 10:28-29
28 He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: 29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
First, let’s look at verse 28. What was Moses’ law in relation to sacrifice? It was that if you sinned you would need a sacrifice to be forgiven of that sin. So, how could someone despise this? Simply by sinning without offering a sacrifice. Thus, they would be in disobedience by not only committing sin but also by not believing (or caring) that God would forgive them through a sacrifice.
Going on into verse 29 we will remember the context of verse 28. What does it mean for someone to “trod underfoot the Son of God?” It means that person counts it to be of little value (or beneath them). Going on from there we read the rest of the verse.
“And hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing,” Again, this person counts the blood of Jesus as having little value and unable to save them.
From there we read “and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace.” Despite means “without being affected by; in spite of or contempt; disdain.” In short, a person who has done despite unto the Spirit of grace has treated the grace (goodwill) of God with contempt and counts it as ineffective.
In all of those verses, there is NOWHERE that we find the Bible say that the blood of Jesus is not enough to cover someone who has left the faith. We find NOWHERE that it says a person can not return to Jesus, as the prodigal son who was alive, then dead, and now alive again.
In fact, it says the opposite! It says that if you count the blood of Jesus as not being enough to cover ALL sins, even of someone who once walked away, then you have done despite unto the Spirit of grace.
These are not verses which say you can not be saved from hell. These are verses that say only those who count God as unable to save them from hell can not be saved from it!
It is blasphemy to say God cannot, or will not, save the repentant soul!
So to sum this all up, we have discovered that even a Christian who has left the faith can indeed return to Jesus through repentance. They can not begin as though they never knew Him to begin with, though. They simply come to their father and ask for forgiveness. Once again, the Holy Spirit abides in them as the son of the Father and breathes life into them.
THERE IS HOPE!
In the next unit, we will be talking about one more thing that affects the topic of forgiveness and salvation. We are going to address what Jesus was talking about when He spoke of someone never having forgiveness if they blaspheme the Holy Ghost.
Continue To Unit 3:4f – What Is the Unforgivable Sin OR
Return To Christianity 101 Unit 3 – Repentance and Salvation
June 23, 2016 at 6:51 pm | | 71 comments
Jason:
I desperately need your help. Please email me.
I had sent you an email but have not yet had a reply.
Hi Jason,
Would you please contact me?
Thank you, & Blessings, Donna
I had sent you an email, but haven’t heard back.
I lost my faith In God when my father died, which is why I’m working on regaining it through attending mass. I agree with you that Jesus will never fail me, and he’ll be with me throughout my journey. If only there’s a personal testimony book that is available in the market because this could help me understand the wisdom of the Lord.
If anyone is doubting their salvation or feels lost please feel free to contact me. I have been exactly where you are. I once thought there was no way I would ever feel secure in Christ again but I tell you today I have never been more secure in my life. You can know you’re saved and secured.
Chaplain.j.lewis@gmail.com
Hello!! I’m here to give hope to the hopeless! To proclaim salvation to the troubled heart! I was YOU! There is hope and you will find it. My witness!
I was saved 17 years ago and had a life in Christ that was abundant and flowing in love. I got into legalism and my heart grew cold towards Christians. This sin made me critical in spirit and soon found my love for Christ cold. I began to try to do more “stuff” and not sin so that he would accept me. My life became a place of utter turmoil and despair.My faith in Christ was gone. I kept trying to “do” the christian life but I knew it wasn’t in me. I would sorrow and repent but I couldn’t feel saved. I kept this up for years until i realized it was fake. Whatever I had when I was saved was gone, so I gave up.
I lived my life in sin and despair for 7 years. I knew what I was doing was wrong (which looking back is a very good thing) but I didn’t know how to return to God because I saw Him as angry and wanting to crush me. My life just kept getting worse and worse until I got divorced. I felt the terror of God one day and knew that I was done if I didn’t turn. This was a sudden unexpected event, it didn’t save me but it did make me start seeking him again.
I began going to church again and reconciled with my wife. We remarried and had children. I went through the same struggle going back to Church as when I left. I saw God as angry with my sin and wanting to destroy me. I kept pushing on and ended up with a bunch of do’s and don’t. I would look at what was acceptable for other Christians and think, ok, I can do that. Or see what was unacceptable and put it away from myself. I convinced myself I was saved because I went to a church that was OSAS and I learned to push the struggle of doubt down. As I continued reading my Bible I kept seeing these warning passages and it would trouble me to no extent.(For sure a page like this would have been a blasphemous page to me.) But through my struggle I began to accept the fact that I wasn’t saved. I again started trying to do good and determining not to sin. I would plead and beg God to save me. I would repent and cry out to Him, but silence. I felt so in despair because all I wanted was to be saved but couldn’t find it. I felt like God had cast me off and there was no hope for me. I had moments of complete darkness and despair that made me feel like God was just waiting and longing to destroy me.
BUT THEN GOD!!
I was listening to a sermon by Spurgeon ( will link below) He was speaking on the conscience and how a person who was repentant and sorrowful and wanting to be saved is ALREADY the person He died to save. The call to repentance is already there, you are already doing the very thing God wants the UNSAVED to do. As i listened it came near the end and I could see that my repentance and sorrow were the very sins that were keeping me from God. The very actions of being sorry and wanting God to accept me for my sorrow were sins of unbelief. They were things I was giving to God so that He would accept me and I could feel saved. God has offered His son and I had lifted my repentance and feelings up to Him. He cant accept those. He will only accept you without anything you can offer.
He gave His Son for you just the way you are. To repent is to acknowledge that your sin deserves hell, which we do. So now accept that he died for you just as you are. He didn’t die for you IF YOU. HE DIED FOR SINNERS! THIS IS YOU! THIS IS ME! If you bring Him anything for Him to accept you then you are not believing. You are offering your feelings and sorrow for Him to accept, AWAY WITH THOSE! He accepts you just as you are, a sinner.
HE LOVES YOU BECAUSE OF WHO HE IS, NOT BECAUSE YOU ARE SORRY! YOU BEING SORRY MEANS NOTHING TO HIM! ITS IDOLATRY TO THINK HE ACCEPTS US BECAUSE WERE SORRY! YOU’RE DESPISING HIS PROMISE!
HE DOESN’T LOVE YOU BECAUSE YOU DO SOMETHING OR BRING HIM SOMETHING, HE LOVES YOU BECAUSE YOU CANT, YOU ARE HELPLESS!!
If you need help please don’t despair. Contact me. I will talk to you and help you. God is here for you and I’m here for you. He loves you, O how he loves you. I love you and desire to help everyone who longs to love Him.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNd0TLtqYRM
This is 100% correct. I have many people that email me asking how they can return to God. They ALL feel the guilt and fear. They also ALL use the words “I feel”. But the truth is that your feelings DON’T determine reality. It is Gods word that is true. If He said He will not cast out those who come to Him in truth then He meant it. It doesn’t matter if you “feel” Him or not. As you said, “YOU BEING SORRY MEANS NOTHING TO HIM! ITS IDOLATRY TO THINK HE ACCEPTS US BECAUSE WERE SORRY! YOU’RE DESPISING HIS PROMISE!
HE DOESN’T LOVE YOU BECAUSE YOU DO SOMETHING OR BRING HIM SOMETHING, HE LOVES YOU BECAUSE YOU CANT, YOU ARE HELPLESS!!”
Jason can you contact me ?
Sent you an email.
Im 25 and have fallen away from god, 2 years ago was when i ignored god and entered a sinful life with a non- believer, before that i walked with god. I had been reborn again and had an overwhelming sense of security in the lord and my relationship with him was so strong as he was showing me physical proof of his existence and showing me how dark the world is without him. I felt his presence and spirit and i was fruitful. I knew when i entered into this relationship with the non- believer that i was doing wrong and i did it anyway, throughout the whole 2 years i have turned to alcohol, drugs and sex and i enjoyed it all. There has always been that voice to stop and turn away from it all and i had the thinking of “well i just want to try this drug and then ill turn back to god once ive done everything i want to do “Im struggling to regret doing all this because im not sure if i do. I have now done all my earthly desires and i now feel more empty than ever, almost emotionless. I know that i regret turning away from god in the first place but im struggling to regret my actions. I have repented to god for turning away from him in the first place but i feel something inside that isnt totally sorry and i weep for it. My heart feels dead and i dont feel many emotions of love, I feel that god is angry at me and has turned away from me, i can almost see it when i prey to him and all i want is to get back to where i was before with him. I know that in a heart beat i would go back in time and change the decision to turn away from him in the first place because i feel that to feel the Holy spirit again is a lot more difficult. Currently im still in a relationship with a non- believer, we are unmarried and live together but im wanting to come away from sin and show god that i want to follow him. I feel that i don’t deserve his forgiveness because i rejectted him when he showed me everything. I feel like god wants me to help him wake people up to his word, and see the ugly truths of the world. im scared about the difficult times which may lie ahead with proving to him that i will follow only him (possible homelessness), i feel lost
You don’t need emotions to follow God. You just have to trust and follow, no matter the feelings.
I was radically born again in 2010. I want to add but shortly began to backslide over and over again and the fire and hunger for God left. And then 2013 came and that’s when things started to get bad. And my heart started turning cold.
I had a dream a long time ago which I think was a warning dream from God saying that my heart would grow cold and I would change as a person. Then it did and then I was severely tormented because I felt my heart turning cold And I felt like I was becoming Gods enemy. and then I had a spiritual vision of myself turning into a pile of bones with mass amounts of people like in the days of Noah. It was like a spirit spoke to me. I guess the devil. Then I got involved with false teachers on accident and ended up with more oppressing spirits. I also heard something speak and tell me that I was Hebrews 6 and that God is not a respector of persons. One of which I was delivered from last October. That’s why I always look back to October thinking “why would God deliver me from that if He was finished with my life?” So that’s why I ran away from God back in 2013 because I was terrified of Him. I guess the devil made me think He was cruel.
But also when I was a kid I was randomly thinking “what is my purpose” and then all of a sudden it’s like God spoke to me in a vision. And I saw these two hands holding a light and heard “I gave you life” and I knew immediately it was God. And last October after I was delivered from that strange spirit my wife was randomly scrolling through her pictures on her phone and then I saw the same hands that I saw in that vision as a small child. So it’s like it was a fulfilled prophecy or something.
So I see the state of my heart and it’s a battle in my mind because I see how cold it is and I’m like oh no is that tormenting vision going to come true? Or is there a plan since I was delivered back in October? This is what I’m dealing with. It’s a battle for my life it feels like. And in recent times I have had moments of relief from my torments that I haven’t experienced in years. Like that time I think I actually felt the Spirit and my heart was soft and I was able to cry and thank God with sincerity. I have to hold onto these experiences because if I don’t I only have hopeless ones that I’m left with.
You said you felt your heart grow cold. But God said “I gave you life”… a candle is not just light, it’s fire. Hold Gods hand and let Him warm your heart.
Is anyone still here? Handed over to a reprobate mind and looking for hope
Sorry, I moved the site to a new host and did not get notifications or messages for a few months. I’ll email you.
You have no Idea the agony this article has set me free from. God bless you
I Thought it was over , but this more than others have indeed proved to me otherwise
Thank You
I feel I have lost my salvation.git into sexual several times.woukd feel convicted but tell holy spirit pretty much in my mind I don’t want to hear u right now..I repented but from videos I watched it was just worldly sorrow..which that leads to death..I keep trying to get back to God,but I feel hard..almost feelike he’s hardened my heart towards him.The Lord even reminded me of Esau when I was sinning..I just feel so lost .no joy..just fear of hell,.could someone call me..(EDITED OUT FOR SAFETY)..would love to hear of a testimony of someone who went through this like me but was able to get back to the Lord..I feel so overwhelmed and tormented at times. Thank u
Kim, the thing about sin is that it is deceitful. Every choice we make to sin is a choice to harden our heart just a little bit each time. Eventually we get to a place of being so hard that we deny we ever knew God. THAT is when we shrug off our faith and are in danger of Hell. But you are here reaching out. This, believe it or not, is an action caused by the faith you still have. TODAY is still the day of salvation. Just as sin slowly hardens your heart each step towards God can break the hardness down. There is so much more I want to say about this. But understand it takes time to feel things…but only one second to turn back to God and be saved.
Everybody sins it is not good but sometimes you give into Temptation that’s not an excuse to keep doing it but with that being said you won’t lose your salvation with Jesus Christ because of what you have done only if you thin on purpose and go against God on purpose I’m assuming because maybe you were mad at him or something like that but anything you have done repent and ask for forgiveness and stick with God just do not send later down the road you accidentally give in to temptation again that also doesn’t mean that you’re going to go to hell he knows the difference between if you accidentally giving in or just say you’re gonna live this lifestyle and do what I want So just turn to God and stay with him when you feel tempted quote scripture say a prayer
Jesus loves all of us just say no to sin it may be hard but just do it you will feel so much better and it will make Jesus happy At the moment you are tempted you might be about to give in to temptation think about the long run think about what is waiting for you in the end just do not give into temptation heaven will be far more beautiful in every way
1 (704) 401-2432
Billy Graham Center
Call them anyone they will speak with you and help you they are free and answer pretty quick
This has helped me a great deal may the lord bless you in a abundance for this !
I thank God, He has forgiven me, i Once was lost, am coming back to Him, there is no where I can go, I choose to proclaim His goodness and nothing but His goodness only.
I am christine, Ino longer entertain sin, it hurts, it removes peace of mind, I once turned away from him but its not easy living without Him, in fear, wothout peace. I am no longer living in the same sin and i dont like it. I once failed in the sin of abortion after being born again, I repented and I cant think of doing such kind of a thing anymore. i EVEN DONT LIKE MENTIONING IT,, ITS A SIN! I thank God that the blood blood of Jesus is purer that no sin can stand un washed, forward ever, backward never, I wont do it again!
Thank you for this
I’m kind of in a situation myself but I’ve come to the realization that when you returning back to God not because of who He is but because of what He can do for you or to escape hell or because you don’t have anything to lose, then you’ll only be setting yourself up for disappointment
I know not a solution to this but for the time I’ve been in communion with God, I’ve learnt that honesty goes a long way
Hi,
I became a born-again Christian when I was 7 years old. It was so real to me then. I served the Lord for years, witnessed to my friends, cried over the fact that they weren’t saved, and suffered minor persecution for my faith.
When I was 15, I backslide. It was somewhat gradual, yet sudden. It’s hard to believe that I ever was saved, but I know I was. My family still prays for me all the time, I know I’ve let them down as they’re all born-again Christians, and more importantly I let God down.
I really don’t want to go to hell, but I seriously can’t seem to repent of my sins, no matter how hard I try. I’ve had episodes of “repentance” where I literally cry out to God in front of people, but I know that I’m not fully turning away from sins in my heart, and I don’t have that full, real desire to serve Jesus. But I’m terrified. I’m 20 now, and I’m just drifting further from God…can you all please pray for me. How do I open my heart and mind to Jesus?
Hi Esther, what you are dealing with is understanding the difference between flesh and spirit. There is a reason we have the problem at times with “not fully turning to God.” It’s because the flesh NEVER will nor can it. Please read https://onthelineministries.com/struggling-sinning-saved/ to understand more on the subject.
Where are the story of those that have fallen and repented and are now living a victorious life in the power of the Holy Spirit, that’s what’s needed!
Is that a rhetorical question? Are you saying that there are no examples where a person knew God fell away/backslid for a while then came back?
Hi, my name is Carol and I am 72 years old. I have known the Lord for 42 years. I gave my heart and life to him when I was 30 years old and I had a wonderful relationship with Him for many years. I heard His Voice, once audibly. He gave me visions and dreams and told me things that He wanted me to do and I did them. I believe that He even gave me the faith to believe Him and to trust Him because some of the things that He wanted me to do took a big leap of faith. The years passed by, my children grew up, my husband died and I remarried a man whom I believed to be saved…he was not. As time passed hard times happened and I spent most of my time trying to figure things out and make my life work. Here I am, 42 years after I met my Best Friend, and I cannot hear Him! I feel absolutely no guidance from Him and I haven’t for around 5 years. I have been crying out to Him every day to hear from Him. Today, I was reading Hebrews 1ii:1, a scripture I knew well for many years, but today I read it and I cried bitterly. It says Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. As I read this scripture today, I was struck with the thought that the reason that I feel such fear and I am unable to feel the Presence of God anymore is Could I possible have lost faith?? I noticed a while back that I could not find that Blessed Assurance of my salvation and I did not know why and I have prayed and cried for some wisdom but it never came. I am so afraid that I have lost my faith and I do not want to lose it, I want it to grow. The only thing that I can think of that I have done and it is not good, is to live my life depending on my own self and not on the Lord who is the One Who died for me. Since I couldn’t feel him, or hear im for so many years, I just depended on myself and now I am afraid that I may have lost Him. How can I come back….I want Him in my life and I feel like I have to learn all over again….can you help me? Carol
Hi Carol, you don’t know this now but your faith is actually going through the growing process. These are growing pains you are feeling. Let me explain with my own testimony. When I met God I also felt His presence and heard His still small voice which I can only describe as a power that I could understand in the form of words.
Fast forward a couple of years and suddenly that presence and the still small voice seemed to be so distant that I feared I had lost the faith and it was so bad that I couldn’t even sleep without the light on because the darkness I felt within was so strong. This went on for 3 years. I called to God, tried to study the Bible, and only felt more and more distant.
But this dark time was one of my greatest blessings! I didn’t know it at the time but I hadn’t lost my faith. I was learning to WALK BY FAITH and not by sight! We always want to feel God near us. But what happens when He hides His face? What happens when He isn’t confirming to us who we are and if we are His? It’s then that we have to hold onto what God has already said rather than trust how we feel.
God is training you to trust His word over His presence and over all of your feelings. He is training you to see what you could not see before. He is training you to see the invisible. By that I mean He is teaching you how to trust in His word even when you feel lost.
At one point I even cried out “Even if you send me to Hell I’m still going to trust you and praise you for being a good God!” That’s the kind of growth I’m talking about. It’s one that can go through the darkest places and yet still be able to hold onto the hope that God will not forget His word that should I call on Him He would remember me and save me. Even if I spent time in Hell I believed His word that He would raise me up because I trust and love Him. That’s the place I believe He is bringing you through.
Jason, Please forgive me for not replying to your comment back in July. Believe it or not, I just stumbled upon the On the Line Ministry page due to googling and reading How to come back to God. I totally forgot that I wrote to this ministry back then and I didn’t see your reply until now. Believe me, I really needed to hear what you had to say. I am still going through this darkness and it is November now and I will be 73 years old in 2 more days. I am hanging on to what you said but I am really worried about the fact that I have absolutely no fruit in my life anymore and I know that I just can’t try to manufacture it. I am seeing my attitude towards people is not as nice as I used to be. I used to be sweet, or so I was told but now I am nasty and nobody has to tell me that..I see it. I am still in the same place as before. I pray all the time but, like you said, I do not go into the Word as I should because I do not hear from God and I am noticing that I do not understand the Word as I did before. I would love to go in and hear what He had to say. I understand what you said about Him wanting a believer to just believe regardless of whether you Hear Him or feel Him. I am such an emotional person, very touchy feely and I am sure that He knows that about me. I asked Him, “Why did you make me like this and now expect me to not go by feeling?” I know that that is a definition of faith but it is my “default “and I don’t know how to change it without His help and He is not Helping. I really don’t want to start complaining again and I pray that I will pass whatever test that He is giving me, if that is what is happening to me. I really hope that it is a test because if it is that means that He still loves me and He must know that I will eventually pass the test. I am getting older and I still want to do something for Him before I leave this world. I also would like my Blessed Assurance back like it was back in the 80’s and 90’s and even after my first husband’s death. I felt Him with me so much back then. I am sorry to take up your time but I sense that you are a very nice person and you don’t mind. Who knows, maybe someone will benefit from this…..Thanks again, carolmariev11@gmail.com. Carol
Hello again Carol, I know you are still longing for that “feeling” but I am glad you are hanging onto faith without the need for it. You mentioned the lack of fruit in your life. You may not see it as such but the fact that you are reaching out is that beginning of fruit. I compare the fruit of the Spirit with that of a tree. No tree starts it’s life with fruit. It starts with it’s branches reaching out for the light. With time it is well enough to SEE the beginning of fruit but it’s real beginning is when it reached for the sun. There are seasons for fruit. We all go through them. Some seem longer and colder than others. But hold onto this as well, the sun still shines. God who calls the end from the beginning can see the fruit in the seed.
Please pray for me.
I was someone who came to Christ in 2015. Having a radical transformation in my life and experiencing the Lord on a daily basis so strongly. But as time went on, I slowly started to slip back in my earthly ways. After 2 years I came running back to the Lord, crying out for forgiveness and fighting to be close to Him again. That was a year ago. Within the past year, I’ve been in a cycle of getting up, standing, and then falling after some time. Then getting back up and doing it again.
I’m at the point where I don’t even know if there’s any fight left in me and it concerns me.
I want to love the Lord like I did at the beginning but I just don’t know how to make it happen. Since this last time I’ve fell, it’s been harder to stand back up. I’m afraid God’s done with me and given me over to my sin.
Please pray for me.
Tyler, I know that my comment is kind of way after you first wrote and I pray that you have found out that The Lord has not given up on you. He is a God of forgiveness and Mercy. I can hear from what you posted that you love Him too. God bless you and never give up. Carol
Thank you so much for this. God Bless you brother.
So glad I found this site. Or rather, God led me here. Thank you for the clear explanations of God’s word.
Amen
please help i really need some bigger help..i’m spiritually dead, and been handed over years ago to a reprobate.
please help
James, God can turn the heart of stone into a heart of flesh. If you were indeed turned over to such a mind God can also restore your mind. Begin to empty everything else out as you fill it with His word.
Thank you Holy Spirit
Yes!
Hi,my name is Rickey. I grew up in a Christian household and at a young age I accepted Jesus as my savior and got baptized but since I was only a child, I didn’t understand the importance of it. So when I turned 17 I actually gave myself to Christ and got baptized. Throughout my teen years I would struggle with lust and pornagrphy but God was still active in my life until late 2015. I started to hang out with the wrong people and fell deeper into lust and sin. Before I knew it I was questioning if God was even real because the sin had blinded my spiritual eyes and then two years passed without the Holy spirit and I’ve forgotten what it was like to have the Holy spirit in my life. Recently, I had a major wake up call which made my life hit rock bottom. So my response was to try to kill myself three times out of fear and shame of my family. After those failed attempts I picked up my bible and I came back to God because I had no one else to turn to. Keep in mind that I actually told my Christian parents multiple times that I didn’t believe certain things from the bible. I did believe that Jesus did die on the Cross for me and then I would question his existence and then I would have a mental and spiritual warfare inside me because half of me believed and then half of me didn’t and sadly, I’m still kind of like that but I’m not as bad now because I realized that I took the wrong path. I regret everything all the sins that I committed so much and I repent about them every day. Sometimes my mind tells me that I’m not forgiven and I feel like the Holy spirit hasn’t came back to me yet but I do feel some things here and there. Now, I want to follow Christ again for the rest of my life and I’m doing my best to get back into the word, church and I’ve been doing my best to help spread the word because I do believe that we are living in the end times which is why I’ve been having such a feeling of urgency. I want to serve God and I got scared when I read that Hebrew scripture. I pray for God to have mercy on me and to remember me when he comes for his church. Now, a little background on my family. My dad is retired Air force and believes in God with his heart, mind and soul. He can be a good guy but he grew up in a abusive household which sadly affected me growing up. He would verbally, mentally and sometimes physically abuse me and my family when he would get upset. So I get depressed easily and I have anxiety and worry about everything. So back when I fell away from God, I was trying to find some sort of love from a girl because I wanted romantic love,I felt trapped at home with my dad which always formed a negative atmosphere because I recently graduated high school and I was trying to figure out what to do with my life and then my dad would just hound me about going into the Military. Not to mention we were transitioning to a new Church because our old church had my youth pastor and main pastor leaving and the youth group that I once loved and considered my friends turned out not to be so. So I felt hurt by my youth group the way they acted like they didn’t care about me and then I moved to a new church where I barely knew anyone and I’m a shy person so it takes me awhile to interact with people. Before I knew it I was hanging around the wrong people and sinning because I thought it was going to lead to something good but I was so wrong. I should have never turned my back on God and I should have relied on him to help me through that. Now, 3 years later I’m trying to get right with God and I feel like I’m running out of time. I’m just tired, scared and all I want is peace. I hope and pray to God that he will forgive me for doing such awful things and I hope that he does remember me when he comes for his church.
Rickey, thank you for your testimony. Your story is one that many people share. I love how much zeal you are showing here. Let me encourage you by telling you that God says He will never leave us nor forsake us. That doesn’t mean we can’t walk away from Him, but it does mean He is ALWAYS near to us when we turn back. The prodigal son didn’t even make it all the way to his father’s house before his father had ran to meet him down the road. The prodigal felt horrible and didn’t think his father would take him back EVEN AFTER SEEING HIM RUN TO HIM! But his FEELINGS didn’t matter! Because no matter how he felt, his father was the one that made the choice. Even if the prodigal felt lost and unworthy the FATHER was the one deciding what was true. It wasn’t the boys feelings. In the same way God also takes us back the MOMENT we turn to Him and even if we don’t feel it God is the one that decides what is true.
I also was very young when I gave my life to the lord ,loved the happiness of the spirit but I was very ignorant of the bible never reading it then fell into a life of partying etc,sad now at 57 I am reading the bible the spirit never left me but when I read hebrews 6 ,I repented with such sadness ,I wish someone when I was young would of tutored me a bit to understand sad I had no idea then what the word was,if we are to help with we need to help with a young persons knowledge and encouragement
Do you know maladaptive daydreaming? I keep falling to maladaptive day dreaming i do not know if it’s a sin but i feel bad for that. I have confessed it to God multiple times but i keep falling. I am even tired of myself. I cannot resist it completely. I think I am reprobate now, I cannot repent for it anymore :(
R says:
January 24, 2019 at 5:08 pm
Do you know maladaptive daydreaming? I keep falling to maladaptive day dreaming i do not know if it’s a sin but i feel bad for that. I have confessed it to God multiple times but i keep falling. I am even tired of myself. I cannot resist it completely. I think I am reprobate now, I cannot repent for it anymore :(
Reply
Hi R
I was there like you do. Just ask yourself how you approach sin with your attitude? Do you like sinning like I love sex with women after born again believer until I read Hebrew I thought I was lost for good.
Until I found three verses in Romans that boost my faith to be with God all the times and fight against your “like” sinning ! I like sex with women is my problem so I fight for God.
Look at verse Roman 10:9-11
That scripture made me feel relieved.
Just stand firm with God and quit your “like” sinning and join Yeshua’s “Jesus” way, truth, and life before his Yehovah “Father” so use two greatest commandments daily to remember.
God bless you…
Cheers,
Woj
Hi.
I wanted to ask if when a person who was born again loses faith is it possible to regain faith in God.
I know Satan attacks our faith as it’s dangerous to his kingdom.
I recently lost my faith.
I was born again in late 2016.
Didn’t know anything about being born again.
Didn’t know much at all about Christianity.
I didn’t even know that we needed to be saved.
I repented as I came to the conclusion that God was trying to get my attention after a season of things began happening to me.
I didn’t know anything about repentance when I came to asking for forgiveness.
I was baptised in the Holy Spirit a few days later In a dream.
I didn’t even know this would happen at this point.
After being born again.
I still continued in sin.
I learnt the truth of what I was experiencing around 6 months ago and decided to throw my new age occult books away and focus on the bible.
I didn’t have assurance in salvation and because I was new to the truth I thought I have the Holy Spirit and he left me.
So I was still in sin but wanting the Holy Spirit to come back.
I came under spiritual attack around a month ago and failed.
Then my faith diminished.
I knew about grieving the Holy Spirit through sin but I didn’t know to grieve the joy spirit would mean you have the Holy Spirit.
Now my faith has gone and a change in mind has come about.
I want to serve God.
He’s the truth serving anything else wouldn’t be in line with the truth and would be pointless to do.
Is there still a chance for someone who has lost the Holy Spirit?
Will he come back or would you say that person is done for?
I know people say that the Holy Spirit does not leave a believer but in my case he has and I think it’s to do with the continuance in sin.
I’m speaking to an evangelist and he has said the same thing happened to him for 8 years. Then the Holy Spirit came back and they now have fellowship.
Any advice would be grateful.
Thanks
Chris
God bless
I’ll get right to the point here. Yes, the Holy Ghost can and sometimes will depart from a person. This is not due to sin, but due to the rejection of faith.
Yes, the Holy Ghost can and WILL return to a person. Again, this is not due to the absence of sin, but to the regaining of faith.
It sounds as though you may be lacking in some of the foundational understandings about God and the Bible. I would certainly suggest that you go through the entire Christianity 101 course on the website.
But pay special attention to units 3 and 4. The answer to your questions are in those units.
I don’t claim to be a bible scholar, but I am in your situation also. at the moment, i have been fasting for about a day and a half, and I was trying to find some enlightening versus when i ran into this site and saw your post.
I WILL tell you this though..
Read about SAMSON in the Book of Judges
It seems that the HOLY SPIRIT left him,
and came back to him later.
Hi Im twenty years old I was saved at in February 2019 and I was on fire for the Lord for the first few weeks and it was truly the greatest thing that happened to me. At first I went to my grandparents and was asking them all these questions I had about the faith and it was so fun learning. But they were in a different town than me and so I couldn’t go to there church every weekend. I had a couple of friends in the Faith I could have went to church with but I ended up not being around a community of believers which really hurt me. But by April I noticed that I started to sin a little more and then by May I found myself looking at women more and more in lustfull ways. I feel like I’ve fallen away and the Spirit hasn’t been in me for a month now. I feel like I lost my salvation and I’m reallt scared. I feel like I’m being cursed by God. But I truly miss Him so much.
What was your evangelical friend’s name? I’m going through the same thing. My email is zthompson402@gmail.com
Could I email you?
I needed this. I’ve been struggling with an addiction for about two and a half years now and it drove me away from God, despite being in ministry for most of that time. I’d started thinking that my struggle pushed me over the edge and there was no hope for me. Thank you.
I’m grateful that you have kept this blog open, and that you have kept this post available. Today, I really need to read a reminder about returning to God, and loving Jesus. I was active in ministry for many years, got married, looked forward to completing a a Masters in Divinity to become a full time pastor and walked away from ALL of it over a year ago. I proceeded to live a miserable disgusting life of isolation, disgrace and shame forgetting everything I learned and live in Christ.Yet, by the grace for God, a lifelong friend from high school needed my help, I drove an inherited vehicle from his deceased Aunt’s estate from NJ to NC and was met by Jesus (spiritual speaking) on the road to his home in Yadkinville, NC, where He ministered to me through a radio broadcast, my friend and the Great Comforter. Thank you Father for always being there! Thank you On The Line Ministries!
I had gone many years believing in the Lord but sinning whenever I wanted. Then one day I felt a strong draw to read my bible for the first time ever. I repented and could feel my connection with the Lord. I could feel the joy of the Holy Spirit in me. Then I started working and my coworkers were far from the Lord. In trying to bring the Holy Spirit to them, I instead fell to sin. Again. And for years once more, I sinned whenever the desire came. Guilt for it soon faded and left me. I believed in God and Jesus but I was blinded by my sin anyway. Now, 2 years later, I felt the pull and repented again. This time, despite being baptized for the first time, saying the sinners prayer and truly longing for the Lord, I don’t feel the joy of the Holy Spirit. I don’t feel like my prayers are heard the same way they used to be. I have a very time staying focused long enough to say a full prayer or read my bible. The understanding I had for the bible and closeness I felt in prayer has left me. I am beginning to believe I am unforgiven. Or “spit out”… I care deeply for the Lord and even if I have been left behind I will never cease to worship. Though I feel he has left me I will not stop reading His word and I will not stop praying. I will not allow myself to fall to my earthly desires again. Even if I am to burn I will burn while rejoicing to the Lord. I will never stop trying to prove to the Lord that I long for Him.
Pray for me
Hadassah, your story sounds like mine a good many years ago. I was in the same place. I even said (and meant) the same thing. “Even if I am to burn I will burn while rejoicing to the Lord.” Yeah, those are words I know very well.
It was in that time that I had to learn a very important lesson. I had to learn to walk by faith and not by sight. What that means is I had to learn that what God has said beats whatever I feel. I learned that when I prayed He listened according to His word. I learned that when I asked for forgiveness He gave it according to His word. I learned that when God is silent, feels distant, and when I am at my weakest He is still who He is and where He is (“I will never leave you nor forsake you.”).
NOTHING in His word is dependant or to be judged by our feelings. And guess what, … HE upholds those who love Him. Don’t have the power to lift your head or open the Bible? It was the sinner that couldn’t look up who beat his chest crying out “GOD HAVE MERCY ON ME A SINNER!” who God was pleased with. Our walk is made easier by prayer and study, … but it’s His GRACE and MERCY that carries us home.
I got upset with Christians that just aren’t friendly in churches or there for you. Over a period of 14 years i got weary and i found my joy was going. i got down and a little bitter and it affected my relationship with Christ. I felt doomed, i was always looking for hope, but reading your site it was very sobering, i did feel oh no! i’ve done it now there is no hope till i kept reading and i felt relief which i have wanted, for so long. i just have to keep in touch with people like your readers to gain back my confidence in Christians who are real.
Hello I just need a prayer request. I accepted Jesus Christ is my Lord and savior back in 2013. For 3 years everything went well and amazing, but has times passed I went away from God and willfully sinned even though I knew this will quench the Holy Spirit and have fallen away. Please pray for me that God will help me to return. I told God many times I’m sorry and repented but I lied and sinned again. I’m scared now that I’ll be going to hell. Please pray for me. Thank you and God bless Pius Műller
Hi Pius, You may want to read on the subject of why we sin even when we become Christians at this link: https://onthelineministries.com/struggling-sinning-saved/. The truth is that the only thing you need to do is believe the word of God over your feeling of guilt. Because if He said He will forgive you then He means it!
Read Romans especially 7 and 8
Thanks for your article I too walked away and was haggling with Hebrews 6:4-6. Thanks for breaking down the scriptures, and allowing clarity to take center stage
Iam a 22 year old guy ,and I was saved in 2014.but fell because I was engaged in a relationship with an unbeliever ,I was simply trying to please my partner and God At the same time ?.i later Engaged myself in the act of fornication .and since then I have felt this heavy load on my check ,I confess and really want to get back ,but its harder than I thought ,i keep falling back to sin .i don’t know how to get back .
You may want to read another page on this site which deals with the subject of continual sin. Why Do I Still Sin If I Am Saved.
Besides immersing yourself in the old and new testiment read “No More Excusses” by Tony Evans. Its truly helpful in real life situations and has tons of scriptures included to back what he says.
Amen, this has really encouraged me to come back to God and not be afraid no matter how far I’ve falling away. I like how you clear both those scriptures up because I used to take it literally and not having a full understanding and they used to terrify me and felt like there was no hope, but the way you cleared it up has given me much hope so I thank God for you and keep spreading the Word. Thank You my Brother you.
I’m a 18-year-old girl who willingly decided to leave God’s hands after several episodes where any church I has tried to join and feel like home had disapointed me. Everytime I saw or heard someone using God’s name to hurt or hate on others I felt sick. I blamed it all on God. And eventually walked away from him.
About 5 years later I felt God’s call again. I resisted it at first because I was ashamed of admiting I had been wrong, until last night it became too much and, with my mother beside me, I prayed for the first time un a long time. We both cried. My mom because she couldn’t believe I was finally trying to correct my mistakes and me because I was finally doing what it felt right again. I physically felt God’s power welcoming me, a sinner, again. It felt warm and so, so powerful. Loving, protective. I was no longer afraid, but I felt at home instead.
I don’t want go make the same mistakes again, so I’m researching on how to make this right. How to build my faith in a way that even those disgusting acts that once led me away from God will not do it again. Your article helped me a lot and I’m planning on to read all the parts, even if now I’m scared that I might find my sins have no forgiveness. I hope they can be forgiven, because I don’t want to go back to where I was these past years.
Thank you.
You don’t have to fear. All sins can be forgiven.
Admiring the dedication you put into your blog and detailed information you offer.
It’s great to come across a blog every once in a while that isn’t the same outdated
rehashed material. Great read! I’ve bookmarked
your site and I’m including your RSS feeds to my Google account.