If our salvation is eternally secure, why does the Bible warn so strongly against apostasy?

Answer

The Bible teaches that everyone who is born again by the power of the Holy Spirit is saved forever. We receive the gift of eternal life “and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.”, (John 10:28), not temporary life. Someone who is born again “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”, (John 3:3) cannot be “unborn.” After being adopted into God’s family “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.”, (Romans 8:15), we will not be cast out. When God starts a work, He finishes it “being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”, (Philippians 1:6). So, the child of God—the believer in Jesus Christ—is eternally secure in his salvation.

However, the Bible also contains some strong warnings against apostasy. These warnings have led some to doubt the doctrine of eternal security. After all, if we cannot lose our salvation, why are we warned against falling away from the Lord? This is a good question. First, we must understand what is meant by “apostasy.”

An apostate is someone who abandons his religious faith. It is clear from the Bible that apostates are people who made professions of faith in Jesus Christ but never genuinely received Him as Savior. They were pretend believers. Those who turn away from Christ never trulyI trusted Him to begin with, as 1 John 2:19 says, “They went out from us, but they did not really belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us; but their going showed that none of them belonged to us.” Those who apostatize are simply demonstrating that they are not true believers, and they never were.

The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares (Matthew 13:24-30) provides a simple illustration of apostasy. In the same field were growing wheat and “false wheat” (tares or weeds). At first, the difference between the two types of plants was undetectable, but as time went on, the weeds were seen for what they were. In the same way, in any given church today, there may be true, born-again believers side by side with pretenders—those who enjoy the messages, the music, and the fellowship but have never repented of their sins and accepted Christ by faith. To any human observer, the true believer and the pretender look identical. Only God can see the heart. Matthew 13:1–9 (the Parable of the Sower) is another illustration of apostasy in action.

The Bible’s warnings against apostasy exist because there are two types of religious people: believers and unbelievers. In any church there are those who truly know Christ and those who are going through the motions. Wearing the label “Christian” does not guarantee a change of heart. It is possible to hear the Word, and even agree with its truth, without taking it to heart. It is possible to attend church, serve in a ministry, and call yourself a Christian—and still be unsaved (Matthew 7:21-23). As the prophet said, “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me” (Isaiah 29:13;cf: Mark 7:6).

God warns the pretender who sits inThe person who sits in the pew and listens to the gospel every Sunday is treading on dangerous ground. Sooner or later, a hypocrite will turn away from their faith if they do not repent. Just like the weeds among the wheat, their true character will eventually be revealed.

The passages cautioning against apostasy serve two main purposes. Firstly, they urge everyone to be certain of their salvation. Our eternal fate is a serious matter. Paul advises us in 2 Corinthians 13:5 to examine ourselves to confirm if we are truly “in the faith.”

One indicator of genuine faith is love for others (1 John 4:7-8). Another is good deeds. Anyone can profess to be a Christian, but those who are genuinely redeemed will bear “fruit.” A true believer will demonstrate, through words, deeds, and beliefs, that they are following the Lord. Christians bear fruit to varying extents based on their obedience and spiritual gifts, but all Christians bear fruit as the Spirit produces it within them (Galatians 5:22-23). Just as true disciples of Jesus Christ will have proof of their salvation «Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit. », (see 1 John 4:13), apostates will eventually be revealed by their fruit (Matthew 7:16-20) or lack thereof «Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. », (John 15:2).

The second aim of the Bible’s warnings against apostasy is to enable the church to recognize apostates. They can be identified by their denial of Christ, acceptance of false teachings, and worldly nature.

Refer to (2 Peter 2:1-3).

The biblical cautions against apostasy, therefore, serve as warnings to individuals who claim to have “faith” without truly demonstrating it. Passages like Hebrews 6:4–6 and Hebrews 10:26–29 caution those who are merely “professing” believers to introspect before it becomes too late. Matthew 7:22–23 reveals that individuals labeled as “professing believers” whom the Lord disavows on Judgment Day are rejected not because they “lost faith” but because the Lord never had a relationship with them. They never truly knew Him.

There are numerous individuals who embrace religion for the sake of religion and are quick to associate themselves with Jesus and the church. Who wouldn’t desire eternal life and blessings? Nevertheless, Jesus advises us to carefully consider the commitment of discipleship (Luke 9:23–26;14:25–33). Genuine believers have evaluated the commitment and made the decision; apostates have failed to do so. Apostates may have professed faith at one point, but they lacked genuine faith. Their words did not align with their beliefs. Apostasy does not entail a loss of salvation but rather serves as evidence of prior insincerity.