The abbreviated and direct answer is "no"
There is a remnant that is always talked about in the scriptures, and when reading the Bible the whole of it needs to be considered instead of dissecting it's parts and only taking what you want and throwing out the rest. However even if a person does THAT there are essentials that will always remain in the person who is born of the Spirit of God. The essentials:
1. God alone is true and everyone else is a liar (if you must chose between one or the other). We all err, no one gets it perfect here, so if there is error it would be on the side of man getting it wrong, not God.
2. Jesus came into this world, fully God made flesh, to die for our sins, and was resurrected from the dead on the third day. As He was resurrected so will He resurrect to eternal life those who are found in Him.
3. There is a hell which is eternal separation from God. We all were destined for it. God's grace provided one way to escape it. There is no other way except the way He has provided, Jesus sacrifice for our sins. Our sins would send us all to hell. His blood pays the ransom for that inevitable ending to be circumvented.
If anyone says they believed those 3 things above "at one time" but believe it no more, they never truly believed it. They may have thought they did, in a group think kind of way, by attending church, singing the songs, praying, REALLY PRAYING for forgiveness....however there is a surrender involved
where the Holy Spirit enters into the inner man of a person and causes a person to be born again, or born of the Spirit. This is the difference between the "haves" and the "have nots". If there was no internal transformation caused by God...if the person still holds on to the things of this world as more important and sees God as unforgiving and hateful for not including the whole world by eliminating hell and sending everyone to heaven, this person is in rebellion against what God says in His word; the Bible. Try and wiggle out of that as you might, but there is no way around it.
I've gone round and round on messageboards on the topic of eternal security, and those conversations always hinged (for those who thought you could fall away) on what a person does, not what God does. When God does something He does it completely, not half-way. If it was half-way it wasn't God doing anything but it was a delusion.
My personal belief is that satan wants Christians to believe they can fall away, and uses some of his pawns to say exactly that. The Bible says:
Joh 17:6 I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.
Joh 17:7 Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee.
Joh 17:8 For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me.
Joh 17:9 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.
Joh 17:10 And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.
Joh 17:11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
Joh 17:12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.
Joh 17:19 And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
Joh 17:20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
Joh 17:21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.(KJV)
and from the Apostle Peter:
1Pe 1:22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:
1Pe 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
1Pe 1:24 For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:
1Pe 1:25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. (KJV)
Now, either you believe the people that say "a true Christian can become unsaved" or believe the Bible. Both are not true, one is a lie, you decide which. If one is born again, it is through the Holy Spirit of God, and that endures forever and is never lost. Either you have it, or you never had it and you need to continue to strive to enter in at that narrow gate, seeking the Holy Spirit of God in earnest, but He will like with the Prodigal Son, already have you if you truly did seek him in true earnestness, that kind of earnestness comes from His Spirit drawing you. If it isn't His Spirit making you earnest, it isn't true it is all surface fake to fool others including yourself. His Spirit convicts you of sin and sends you running to the fountain of Jesus cleansing blood. Other spirits can convince you of other ways, but they are not the Spirit of God, and there are many deceiving spirits, we are warned over and over again of them.
So again, no, a truly saved person cannot fall away. So what is this falling away that we see?
1Jn 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
1Jn 4:2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:
1Jn 4:3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.
1Jn 4:4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.
1Jn 4:5 They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them.
1Jn 4:6 We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error. (KJV)
and
1Jn 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.
1Jn 2:19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us. (KJV)
The Bible tells us they were never saved to begin with. If the Bible says it, I believe it because if it is between what the Bible says and what someone else says is "their experience" and that experience contradicts the word of God, then it exposes the error of the one who contradicts God's word, not the other way around.
Therefore we who are born of the Spirit need not be convinced by anyone who says the Lord can also drop His saved ones like they were dropped by Him, saying that His words are not true. His words are true and He loses no one of those who are born of the Spirit of God. Anyone who says otherwise is demonic and an antichrist (according to 1 John).
Anyone who is against the Spirit of God can put on a holy act, but his or her words will eventually expose what source they are from, if they do not agree with God's word, they are not of God.
Jas 3:14 But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth.
Jas 3:15 This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.
Jas 3:16 For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. (KJV)
I say these things while there is still hope, if you have these things you can still be born of God. It requires a heart that is broken by the truth and acknowledges the errors of one's self before God. It cries out to God for saving mercy acknowledging truly how wretched he/she is and needful of the cleansing blood of the Lamb of God. It says "Not my will but Thine be done" even if that will lead to the gallows or dungeon or being cast out of a congregation, etc, still loving the Lord and the truth all the while, because it is the Spirit of God continuing to grow inside through all of these situations to the killing of the flesh. The "every evil work" is anything that contradicts God's word. Do we call Him a liar by saying the Bible is untrue or contradictory or what-have-you? Then we are full of evil devilish pride that flies in the face of our God and Redeemer.
Don't be deceived!
Tit 3:3 For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.
Tit 3:4 But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared,
Tit 3:5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
Tit 3:6 Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;
Tit 3:7 That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (KJV)
There is a remnant that is always talked about in the scriptures, and when reading the Bible the whole of it needs to be considered instead of dissecting it's parts and only taking what you want and throwing out the rest. However even if a person does THAT there are essentials that will always remain in the person who is born of the Spirit of God. The essentials:
1. God alone is true and everyone else is a liar (if you must chose between one or the other). We all err, no one gets it perfect here, so if there is error it would be on the side of man getting it wrong, not God.
2. Jesus came into this world, fully God made flesh, to die for our sins, and was resurrected from the dead on the third day. As He was resurrected so will He resurrect to eternal life those who are found in Him.
3. There is a hell which is eternal separation from God. We all were destined for it. God's grace provided one way to escape it. There is no other way except the way He has provided, Jesus sacrifice for our sins. Our sins would send us all to hell. His blood pays the ransom for that inevitable ending to be circumvented.
If anyone says they believed those 3 things above "at one time" but believe it no more, they never truly believed it. They may have thought they did, in a group think kind of way, by attending church, singing the songs, praying, REALLY PRAYING for forgiveness....however there is a surrender involved
where the Holy Spirit enters into the inner man of a person and causes a person to be born again, or born of the Spirit. This is the difference between the "haves" and the "have nots". If there was no internal transformation caused by God...if the person still holds on to the things of this world as more important and sees God as unforgiving and hateful for not including the whole world by eliminating hell and sending everyone to heaven, this person is in rebellion against what God says in His word; the Bible. Try and wiggle out of that as you might, but there is no way around it.
I've gone round and round on messageboards on the topic of eternal security, and those conversations always hinged (for those who thought you could fall away) on what a person does, not what God does. When God does something He does it completely, not half-way. If it was half-way it wasn't God doing anything but it was a delusion.
My personal belief is that satan wants Christians to believe they can fall away, and uses some of his pawns to say exactly that. The Bible says:
Joh 17:6 I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.
Joh 17:7 Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee.
Joh 17:8 For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me.
Joh 17:9 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.
Joh 17:10 And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.
Joh 17:11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
Joh 17:12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.
Joh 17:19 And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
Joh 17:20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
Joh 17:21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.(KJV)
and from the Apostle Peter:
1Pe 1:22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:
1Pe 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
1Pe 1:24 For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:
1Pe 1:25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. (KJV)
Now, either you believe the people that say "a true Christian can become unsaved" or believe the Bible. Both are not true, one is a lie, you decide which. If one is born again, it is through the Holy Spirit of God, and that endures forever and is never lost. Either you have it, or you never had it and you need to continue to strive to enter in at that narrow gate, seeking the Holy Spirit of God in earnest, but He will like with the Prodigal Son, already have you if you truly did seek him in true earnestness, that kind of earnestness comes from His Spirit drawing you. If it isn't His Spirit making you earnest, it isn't true it is all surface fake to fool others including yourself. His Spirit convicts you of sin and sends you running to the fountain of Jesus cleansing blood. Other spirits can convince you of other ways, but they are not the Spirit of God, and there are many deceiving spirits, we are warned over and over again of them.
So again, no, a truly saved person cannot fall away. So what is this falling away that we see?
1Jn 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
1Jn 4:2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:
1Jn 4:3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.
1Jn 4:4 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.
1Jn 4:5 They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them.
1Jn 4:6 We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error. (KJV)
and
1Jn 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.
1Jn 2:19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us. (KJV)
The Bible tells us they were never saved to begin with. If the Bible says it, I believe it because if it is between what the Bible says and what someone else says is "their experience" and that experience contradicts the word of God, then it exposes the error of the one who contradicts God's word, not the other way around.
Therefore we who are born of the Spirit need not be convinced by anyone who says the Lord can also drop His saved ones like they were dropped by Him, saying that His words are not true. His words are true and He loses no one of those who are born of the Spirit of God. Anyone who says otherwise is demonic and an antichrist (according to 1 John).
Anyone who is against the Spirit of God can put on a holy act, but his or her words will eventually expose what source they are from, if they do not agree with God's word, they are not of God.
Jas 3:14 But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth.
Jas 3:15 This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish.
Jas 3:16 For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work. (KJV)
I say these things while there is still hope, if you have these things you can still be born of God. It requires a heart that is broken by the truth and acknowledges the errors of one's self before God. It cries out to God for saving mercy acknowledging truly how wretched he/she is and needful of the cleansing blood of the Lamb of God. It says "Not my will but Thine be done" even if that will lead to the gallows or dungeon or being cast out of a congregation, etc, still loving the Lord and the truth all the while, because it is the Spirit of God continuing to grow inside through all of these situations to the killing of the flesh. The "every evil work" is anything that contradicts God's word. Do we call Him a liar by saying the Bible is untrue or contradictory or what-have-you? Then we are full of evil devilish pride that flies in the face of our God and Redeemer.
Don't be deceived!
Tit 3:3 For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.
Tit 3:4 But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared,
Tit 3:5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
Tit 3:6 Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;
Tit 3:7 That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (KJV)
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