Can A Person Walk Away From God?

Q. I am going through the book of Mark on your web site. You say in chaper 3 that anyone who is a believer can never blaspheme the Holy Spirt. I understand that but, What if  that person decides in his heart that he no longer is a believer and turns away and becomes a agnostic or atheist. Is he ever able to turn back to Christ?

A. This question comes up frequently, but the answer bears repeating. According to Ephesians 1:13-14 and 2 Cor. 1:21-22 when we first become believers, the Lord seals the Holy Spirit in our hearts to guarantee our inheritance.  At that point the Lord accepts responsibility for keeping us saved.  In John 10:27-30 and other places Jesus said that no one can get us out of His hands.

Christians sometimes rebel and may even say they’ve renounced their relationship with the Lord.  But if they were truly saved,  He has promised to go after them like a shepherd goes after a lost sheep and will bring them back.  If He doesn’t that means they were never saved in the first place, because He has promised never to lose anyone the Father has given Him. (John 6:38-40).