The concept that true Christians could not lose their salvation was derived through deductive logic in the early part of the 16th century upon the teaching of a slightly earlier concept—that God is absolutely sovereign, a doctrine that is refuted throughout much of the Bible!
Premise = God is absolutely sovereign
Deduction = There is nothing that a person can do to undo what God has done
Application = There is nothing that a Christian can do to undo his salvation
God is not only a God of love; He is also a God of holiness, righteousness, and vengeance. Jesus taught that Christians must remain in Him and produce fruit in order to escape the fires of hell.
John 15:1. “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.
2. “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit.
3. “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.
4. “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.
5. “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.
6. “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned.
7. “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” (NASB, 1995)
The basic teaching in this passage is that if a Christian does not abide in Christ, he or she will be cast into hell as a consequence. We know for a fact that the persons being spoken of are Christians because the Greek verb translated in this passage as ‘abide’ means to ‘continue’ or ‘remain.’ In the context of John 15:1-7, it means to continue or remain in Christ. Obviously, a non-Christian cannot continue or remain in Christ.
The same Greek verb is also used in John 15:4, in John 15:9, and in John 15:16 where it is translated “remain.” It is also used in John chapter 1 four times, John chapter 2 once, John chapter 3 once, John chapter 4 once, John chapter 5 once, John chapter 6 twice, John chapter 7 once, John chapter 8 twice, John chapter 9 once, John chapter 10 once, and in John chapters 11, 12, 14, 19, and 21. It is also used numerous times in the First Epistle of John, all three of the synoptic gospels, the Book of Acts, six of Paul’s epistles, The Epistle to the Hebrews, the First Epistle of Peter, the Second Epistle of John, and Revelation. Therefore, its meaning as used in the New Testament is very well established.