It is hard to know where to start! As a friend once said, there is hardly a page of the entire Bible that does not warn God's people about sinning . These warnings are real - because the danger is real! Not of just losing one's rewards - but of losing one's faith and hence his salvation!

Let me again state what I believe to be the real issue. It is not just of a "believer" being lost - but whether or not one can quit believing. Can a believer become an unbeliever? It is not just of a "righteous" person being lost - but whether a righteous individual can become an unrighteous one.

1.Ezek. 18:20ff. One can be righteous and become unrighteous.

2. Luke 8 - the parable of the sower.

a. Note, the heard, the received the word, the believed.

b. THEN - note the believed FOR A WHILE. Does this not mean that they quit believing?

c. Such faith was not "professor faith" only - but saving faith, cp. vs. 12

d. It states that they FELL AWAY.

3. Acts 8 - Simon the sorcerer.

a. He believed (notice that this was Luke's statement by inspiration).

b. he was baptized.

c. consequences as stated in Acts:

1. He was to perish in this condition - vs. 20

2. His heart was not right with God, vs. 21

3. He needed to repent and pray that PERHAPS God would forgive him. vs. 22

4. He was in the gall of bitterness, vs. 23

5. He was in the bond of iniquity, vs. 24.

WAS HIS RELATIONSHIP ONE OF A "SECURE, SAVED CHILD OF GOD"?

d. We are sometimes told here that the only danger was of losing his PHYSICAL life!

He was too wicked for God to allow to continue on the earth - so God took him to be in heaven??????

4. Luke 12:42-43.

A. QUESTION - "who is faithful?" (42)

B. ANSWER - the one doing as instructed (43)

C. DANGER - reliance on Lord's delay, and so sinning (45)

D. PENALTY - appointed portion with unbelievers (46)

NOTE:He was the Lord's servant. He sinned. He was NOT an unbeliever -but was given the portion or reward of the unbeliever. He was LOST!

5. Romans 8:12-13

A. Written to children of God. (they are "debtors" to live after spirit)

B. They could live after the flesh.

C. They then would die.

1. will die physically anyway -

2. death here is spiritual!

6. 2 Peter 2:20-22

A. Again, written to children of God.

B. They had escaped through knowledge (i.e., been saved!)

C. They were AGAIN entangled.

D.They were OVERCOME.

E. The SECOND end was worse then the first! the first = never saved.

7. Gal. 5:1-4

A. Called into grace of Christ - Gal. 1:6

B. Children of God by faith, having been baptized into Christ, Gal. 3:26-27

C. Had been made free - Gal. 5:1

D. They had FALLEN FROM GRACE! (not just away from, having never been in grace!)

E. Christ had BECOME of no effect unto them.

8. Hebrews 10:26-29.

A. These were sanctified by the blood - vs. 29

B. There was a sorer punishment coming -

1. Sorer than the death in the Old Testament!

2. This then describes the damnation of ones soul.

9. Warnings in Hebrews - to the "holy brethren, Heb. 3:1

A. They could be Christ's house only IF they held fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end. 3:6

B. They could harden their hearts. 3:8; 4:7

C. They had to take heed lest there be in THEM an evil heart of UNBELIEF in DEPARTING from the living God, 3:12

D. They could be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin, 3:13

E. They could come short of the promise of entering into the rest, 4:1

F. They could fall after the example of unbelief. 4:11

G. They could commit willful sin, 10:25

H. They could trod under foot the son of God, 10:29

I. They could do despite unto the Spirit, 10:29

J. They were told to have patience that they MIGHT receive the promise, 10:36

K. They were taught that they could draw back, 10:38

L. They had some besetting sin they were to lay aside. 12:1

M. The could fail of the grace of God. 12:5

N. They could have in them a root of bitterness, 12:15

0. They could be defiled) 12:15

P. They would be unable to escape if the refuse him that spake from heaven, 12:25

Q. They could be carried about with divers and strange doctrines, 13:9

ARE THESE WARNING REAL? CAN THEY BE DISREGARDED AND STILL ALLOW FOR SALVATION?

10. WE ARE SAVED BY -------- BUT:

grace -------- some may fail of the grace of God, Heb. 12:15

hope -------- may be moved away from that hope, Col. 1:23

blood -------- may count the blood an unholy thing, Heb. 10:29

Lord -------- may deny the Lord that bought them, 2 Pet. 2:1

truth -------- brethren may err from the truth, James 5:19

love -------- may fail to keep selves in that love, Jude 21

gospel -------- may believe it in vain, 1 Cor. 15:1-3

promise -------- may come short of the promise, Heb. 4:1

God -------- may depart from the living God, Heb. 3:12

Spirit -------- may do despite unto the Spirit, Heb. 10:29

endure -------- may not continue to endure, Matt. 10:22

11. A STUDY OF THE WORD "IF".

1 COR. 15:2 saved, IF ye keep in memory...

Heb. 3: 6Lord's house, IF hold fast...

Col. 1:23 Holy, unblamable, IF continue in the faith...

1 John 1:7 cleansed by blood, IF walk in the light...

2 Pet. 1:10 never fall, IF ye do these things

John 8:31 disciples indeed, IF continue in my words...

John 8:51 never see death, IF a man keep my sayings...

John 12:26 My father will honor him, IF a man serve me...

Gal. 6:9 shall reap, IF we faint not...

etc., etc., WHAT DOES THE WORD IF MEAN???? ALL OF THEM ARE ADDRESSED TO THE CHILDREN OF GOD - NOT THE CHILDREN OF THE DEVIL. SALVATION IS STILL CONDITIONAL!

12.THE BOOK OF LIFE?

1. God's children have their names written in the book of life, Phil. 4:3

2. Only those who overcome will NOT be blotted out, Rev. 3:5

3. Those who sin have their names blotted out, Ex. 32:33

4. Those whose names are not found in the book are cast out, Rev. 20:15

5. Hence, those whose names are blotted out will be cast out and will be lost.

Aswe said, where do we begin - and then, where do we end? The Bible basically was written to the children of God - warning thing on HOW to live! What do we do with such warnings as 1 Cor. 6:9-10 or Gal. 5:l9ff? Is God only "pretending" to warn us? Apostasy is a REAL danger - warnings are not to be taken simply as spurs to do good unto those who will be saved, they are warnings about losing your soul!

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