“Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.”

Putting it right out on the table, Paul tells the Corinthians they are not what they used to be. Therefore, they need to stop acting like they used to act. As one Christian comedian termed it, they are “Used to Be’s.” That is not who they are now. They need to live up to the characterization that Paul gives them when he says they are “called to be saints” (1 Cor. 2:2).

Some get tripped up over passages like this (see the book of Hebrews for similar passages), which some interpret as the possibility that Christians could lose their salvation by falling into deep sin and not repenting. After all, such interpreters say, the list is pretty obvious. If a Christian is found to be an unrepentant fornicator, drunkard, homosexual, etc., then he or she cannot inherit the kingdom of God. But there is a better way to understand this passage.

First, that a Christian cannot lose his or her salvation is clear from an abundance of passages in Scripture. For example:

I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Rom. 8:38–39)

John 3:16 tells us that belief in Christ brings everlasting life. To be sure this includes a new, spiritual quality of life, but it also contains the concept of endurance. If one could lose one’s eternal life, then it would not be everlasting.

Hebrews 6:1-6 is often quoted as a proof passage indicating the potential to lose one’s salvation, but if that were the case, it would also say that once a person loses his salvation it would be “impossible to renew [him] again to repentance.” Actually, the impossibility of losing salvation is what that passage teaches, because if it were possible, then it would require an impossible thing to happen, namely a second crucifixion of Christ (since the first crucifixion would not have been sufficient for eternal salvation, something thoroughly debunked in Hebrews). Thus, it is ludicrous to think someone can lose his or her salvation.

What do we make of this passage then? We will address that next.

Lord, I confess at times I have fallen into sinful behavior. Thank You for Your forgiveness and eternal life despite my sin.