John 10:28-29

John 10:26-29, “But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.”

The inspired Holy Bible teaches 'ONCE SAVED, ALWAYS SAVED' (OSAS). This Bible doctrine in theology is called Eternal Security. Some preachers and theologians make the error of making a distinction between Eternal Security and Eternal Life. These are not two separate doctrines, but one and the same teaching.

Here are some helpful words from one of my favorite soulwinning preachers, Pastor A. Ray Stanford (1916-2012)...

CHAPTER II – Eternal Security

Eternal security is not a separate doctrine from salvation.
If you are not saved forever, you are not saved.

Those who think they are saved now but could lose their salvation later, have one of two problems: (1) either they are trusting to some degree in their works to save them, or (2) they do not understand that by trusting Christ as their Saviour, their destiny is in God's hands. Perhaps they have had little or no Bible teaching and do not realize that God has determined that all who believe will go to heaven when they die.

The first group, those who think leading a poor Christian life will result in a loss of their salvation, actually need to have the plan of salvation made clear to them. Somewhere they have not fully understood that Christ's death paid for ALL their sin, that their works have NOTHING to do with their salvation, and that only their FAITH IN CHRIST will save them. You would answer their questions just as you would almost any lost person's; it is a clear-cut problem of “grace and works.” You just stay with the gospel until they see the light.

An illustration that has clarified the issue for many with this problem deals with the definition of the word “Saviour.” What is a Saviour? Suppose you are drowning. There you are out in the middle of the ocean. Suppose someone were to throw you a book, Three Easy Lessons on How to Swim. Would he be a Saviour? No! Perhaps he could be called an “educator.”

Now suppose a man got out of his boat, jumped in along side you, and demonstrated various swimming strokes showing you just how you ought to do it. Would he be a Saviour? Of course not. He would merely be an “example.”

All right, what if he took you into his boat, dried you off, fed you, took you ten miles from shore-and then threw you out again into the ocean? Would he be a Saviour? By all means, no! He would be as a “deceiver,” a “probation officer,'' one who starts a heroic act and then quits right in the middle. He certainly would not be a Saviour!

A Saviour is one who takes you safely all the way to shore! When God says He gives you eternal life and that He will never cast you out or lose you, He means it because He is the true Saviour! If you do not trust Christ to take you all the way to heaven, then you have not trusted Him as your Saviour. Let's examine Christ's own promise in John 6:37, “All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me; and him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.” He says those who come to Him will not be cast out for any reason.

To bring home this truth, use an illustration from family life. What kind of a parent would you be if, when your child was disobedient, you kicked him out and said, “Go to hell, I'm through with you!” Rather, the proper parent says, “Come on in!” and the parent has ways and means to deal with the disobedient child.

God never casts out His children! God has other ways and means to deal with them, which we will discuss in Chapter Three.

Some would say, “All right, God won't cast me out, but I could get out of my own will and choice.” The Lord anticipated such doubts and answers them clearly in John 6:39, “And this is the Father's will which hath sent Me, that of all which he hath given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.” It is God's will that no saved person would ever become lost. He says He will “lose nothing,'' and you are at least something! You could never be saved and lost again. God saves you forever. This is HIS will! ...

SOURCE: Pastor A. Ray Stanford, 'Personal Evangelism Handbook,' chapter 2 - Eternal Security

Amen and amen, that is excellent truth. The subject of eternal security is hotly debated today in churches and on social media. If you want to start a religious feud real quick online in a  forum, just start talking about OSAS (ONCE SAVED, ALWAYS SAVED). Some people get angry real quick when you claim to be saved forever, regardless of how you choose to live. There are many false prophets today (e.g., Steve Pettit, Dan Corner, David W. Cloud and Ray Comfort) who falsely teach that you cannot know you are going to Heaven unless you turn away from your sinful ways. But that is a works-based-salvation, and not God's free grace.

Dear reader, no one has ever turned from his or her sinful ways. You may have cleaned-up your life of your past sinful habits, but you still sin every day. Psalms 130:3, “If thou, LORD, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?” The believer's assurance of eternal life is solely based in the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ on the cross, His burial and bodily resurrection three days later from the dead. This is the Gospel (i.e., the Good News) according to 1st Corinthians 15:1-4. Your performance, behavior and commitment as a child of God to serve Christ has absolutely nothing to do with your eternal security. If it did, then eternal life couldn't be a “free gift” (Romans 5:18).