Mark Vestal Supporter Proud of nothing of myself. Freed by Christ who did it all!

No. Col 1:22–23 does not teach loss of salvation. Paul is reminding believers to remain anchored in the hope of the gospel that they already believed unto salvation. He is not warning that justification is reversible by "no longer believing".

Col 1:22 is stating the completed work of Christ: “to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight.”. That presentation is accomplished “through death” (Christ’s death), not through our continued performance or endurance. This aligns with Paul’s consistent teaching that justification is a finished act received only by faith (Rom 5:1; Eph 2:8–9).

Verse 23 begins with “if indeed you continue”, but in Paul’s letters this construction is to exhort, not as a condition for salvation. Paul frequently uses “if” to urge believers to live consistently with what is already true of them (Col 2:6–7; 1 Cor 15:1–2).

The phrase “continue in the faith” does not mean “keep believing or you will be lost,” but rather remain grounded in the gospel you already believed...especially against false teaching. Colossians was written to combat doctrinal drift (Col 2:8, 16–19). Paul is saying: Don’t move away from the hope you already heard, believed, and were saved by, which is Christ crucified and risen for us.

This fits perfectly with Paul’s other assurances:

-Believers are sealed until redemption (Eph 1:13–14).

-Nothing can separate us from Christ (Rom 8:38–39).

-Even if we are faithless, He remains faithful (2 Tim 2:13).

If salvation could be lost by failing to “continue,” then assurance would rest on human perseverance rather than Christ’s finished work, which Paul explicitly rejects (Gal 2:16).

2 Tim 2:13
“If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.”

In Col 1, Paul has already declared the believer reconciled and presented holy and blameless through Christ’s death. That is a completed, objective act. (“if indeed you continue” v.23) addresses stability in hope, not the retention of justification. 2 Tim 2:13 explains why this must be so:

-Our faith can waver.

-Our understanding can weaken.

-We may at times act unfaithfully.

Yet Christ remains faithful, because denying the believer would require Him to deny His own finished work and His own body (Eph 5:30).

So Col 1:23 is not a warning about losing salvation, but a reminder: having been reconciled by Christ’s death, believers are to stay rooted in the hope of the gospel, not forgetting that Christ rose from the grave and completed the required work of God on our behalf.

Salvation is an eternal promise because its basis is of an eternal loving God.

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