1. "But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? All the righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; because of the unfaithfulness of which he has committed, because of them he shall die." (Ezekiel 18:24).
2. Many religious groups teach that a child of God can not sin so as to be lost.
3. Some Christians deny the doctrine, but live as though they believed it.
4. We need to realize the seriousness of our sins, and our need for faithfulness and for prayer.
I. What Do They Really Teach?
A. "We take the position that a Christian's sins do not damn his soul. The way a Christian lives, what he says, his character, his conduct, or his attitude toward other people have nothing whatever to do with the salvation of his soul All the prayers a man may pray, all the Bibles he may read, all the churches he may belong to, all the services he may attend, all the sermons he may practice, all the debts he may pay, all the ordinances he may observe, all the laws he may keep, all the benevolent acts he may perform will not make his soul one whit safer; and all the sins he may commit from idolatry to murder will not make his soul in any more danger The way a man lives has nothing whatever to do with the salvation of his soul The way I live has nothingwhatsoever to do with the salvation of my soul." (Do A Christian's Sins Damn HisSoul?, Sam Morris, First Baptist Church, Stamford, Texas).
B. "All true believers endure to the end. Those whom God has accepted in Christ, and sanctified by His Spirit, will never fall away from the state of grace, but shall persevere to the end. Believers may fall into sin through neglect and temptation, whereby they grieve the Spirit, impair their graces and comforts, bring reproach upon the cause of Christ, and temporal judgments on themselves, yet they shall be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation." (Broadman Church Manual, Southern Baptist Church).
C. "They whom God hath accepted in His Beloved, effectually called and sanctified by his Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace: but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved." (Westminster Confession of Faith, Presbyterian Church)
D. "We believe the Scriptures teach that such as are truly regenerate, being born of the Spirit, will not utterly fall away and finally perish, but will endure unto the end; that their persevering attachment to Christ is the grand mark which distinguishes them from the superficial professors; that a special Providence watches over their welfare; and they are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation." (Hiscox Standard Baptist Manual).
E. Not all Baptists believe in the impossibility of apostasy. Free Will Baptist do not.
II. Can A Brother's Soul Die?
A. James 5:19,20 "Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and
someone turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way
will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins."
B. Ezekiel 18:26 "When a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, commits iniquity,
and dies in it {physical death}, it is because of the iniquity which he has done that he dies
{spiritual death}."
III. Salvation Is Conditioned Upon Our Faith
A. Everyone agrees we are "saved by faith" (John 3:16, 36, 6:47, 1 John 5:13)
B. Various things can happen to our faith:
1. It can become "shipwrecked" (1 Tim. 1:19).
2. We may "deny" the faith (1 Tim. 5:8).
3. We may "cast off" the faith (1 Tim. 5:11,12).
4. We may "err concerning" the faith (1 Tim. 6:20,21).
5. It can "fail" (Luke 22:32).
6. We can "depart" from it (1 Tim. 4:1).
7. It can be "overthrown" (2 Tim. 2:16-18).
C. Hebrews 3:12 "Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God."
IV. Man Is A Free Moral Agent
A. We are free to come to God:
1. Matt. 11:28 "Come to me take my yoke"
2. John 5:40 "But you are not willing to come to me"
3. Hebrews 5:8,9 "author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him"
4. 2 Peter 3:9 "The Lord is not slack concerning his promise "
B. We are free to turn our backs on God:
1. Rev. 2:4,5 "remember therefore from where you have fallen"
2. Romans 8:13 "If you live after the flesh, ye shall die"
3. 1 Cor. 10:12 "Therefore let him who thinks he stands "
4. Gal. 5:4 "you have fallen from grace"
5. Heb. 3:13 "the deceitfulness of sin."
C. The Bible tells us how to avoid falling:
1. 1 Peter 1:5 "giving all diligence, add to your faith"
2. John 15:1-6 Abiding in Christ and His word
3. 2 John 9-11 Abiding in the doctrine of Christ
D. It tells us what to do when we fall:
1. 1 John 2:1,2 "We have an Advocate with the Father"
2. 1 John 1:9 "If we confess our sins"
3. Acts 8:22 "Repent and pray"