We in the first two studies that apostasy was a falling away or defection. The Biblical Greek explains it this way a-pos'-ta-si, a-pos'-tat (apostasia, "a standing away from")
It is a falling away, a withdrawal, a defection. Used twice in the New Testament, in the Greek original, to express abandonment of the faith.
I know that many are emotionally tied to their church doctrines either because it was the church were they were saved or it was the one which their parents brought them up in. However, it is of no benefit to embrace doctrines that have so many "embarrassing Scriptures" that teach otherwise. I have found that people will believe anything you teach as long as you teach what they already believe.
I embrace the doctrine of "the eternal security of the believer." But I do not embrace the doctrine of eternal security or "once saved, always saved." When some approach a lot of the salvation Scriptures such as Jn.3:16 they read it like the "believing" is eternal. No, the life is eternal. The believing is conditional. We will be covering many examples within the Scriptures of those who walked with our Lord Jesus Christ and then walked away from the faith. However, if your mind is made up to embrace your denominational teaching over the Word then your heart is unteachable. Why do I teach this? Because the Scriptures relating to falling from the faith is a great warning to the church.
If you embrace the "once saved, always saved" doctrine, or perseverance of the saints then you cannot embrace Revelation chapter 22 as God's Holy Word
Revelation 22:18-19 ESV I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, (19) and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.
Some would say that our Lord is speaking to lost people here. But the lost don't have any part of the tree of Life, which is our Lord Jesus Christ.