As God’s fellow workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain. 2 Corinthians 6:1
I noticed that whenever someone speaks or teach about obedience to God, you and the others who believe in OSAS would quickly say that they are working for their own salvation, call them Pharisees, sinless perfectionists and several other names for whatever reason or intent. What confuses me is when your group say that only genuine believers or born again will or can obey the commandments, but If I and others who don't agree with you will say that we obey the commandments and teach others to do so, we are not genuine believers and have no FAITH.
God's grace may be received in vain (believe without cause or without effect, to no purpose) when it is received superficially or externally (1 Corinthians 15:2) or when neglecting the importance of the Corinthians responding to God’s grace in humble obedience and seizing every opportunity to be pleasing to the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:9). Those who teach that we are saved by works, saved by faith + works, saved by grace plus law, faith plus works etc.. are not believers.
You are saying that you obey Him because you love Him and I agree to that because it is written that if we love Him we should obey His commands.
Amen!
What really bothers me is how this can apply to you who says that Faith ALONE saves without any sort of righteous works including obedience to God, and not to me and those who boldly state and promote obedience to God's laws and commands as being part of His own words and teachings....Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that.” Mark 7:6-17
We are saved through faith (rightly understood) IN CHRIST ALONE (Romans 4:5-6; Ephesians 2:8,9; Philippians 3:9). Righteous works are produced "out of" faith and are the fruit, but not the root of salvation. Works-salvationists have this backwards. I do not nullify the word of God and I have no tradition. Obedience is not forced or legalistic for those who are born of God. (1 John 3:7-10)
Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God. 1 Corinthians 4:5
God will expose everything and only God is capable of fully judging men's hearts.
I believe that the free gift is eternal life IN Jesus.(romans 6:23) We should be IN Christ Jesus to get eternal life.
Amen! Yet I get the feeling you "add" more to that, namely, salvation by works.
...what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”
17 “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to ENTER LIFE, obey the commandments.” matthew 19:16-17
Jesus is the LIFE that we must ENTER (john 14:6) and if we want to be IN Jesus we must obey the commandments.
How would we know that we are IN Jesus?
There it is. Jesus showed the rich young man how short he falls of keeping the first commandment (Exodus 20:3) which is the first of the two great commandments (Deuteronomy 6:5; Matthew 22:37). The rich young man confidently and (self righteously) declared that he has kept the commandments from his youth up and qualified for heaven under those terms. Yet
Jesus knew the man's wealth had become his idolatrous god, which kept him from believing in Jesus.
The rich young ruler missed the point that Jesus was making, failed to place his faith in Jesus for salvation, and continued instead to trust in his riches (vs. 21-23). His face fell and he went away sad because he could not part from his great wealth, not even in exchange for eternal life. If keeping the commandments is the basis by which we receive eternal life, then why isn't this remark the pattern for all discussions concerning eternal life? Paul would have said to the jailer who asked, "what must I do to be saved?" by replying in Acts 16:31 - keep the commandments, yet that's not what Paul said. Instead, he said,
"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.."
Jesus knows the hearts of all men and responds to each individual a little differently because He knows where their need is. He didn't respond to the woman at the well, or to Nicodemus or to the rich young ruler the same way, yet the consistent pattern in scripture is salvation by grace through faith, not works (Ephesians 2:8,9). None of us have "perfectly obeyed" all of His commandments. We have all fallen short (Romans 3:23) although believers do "keep" (Greek word "tereo" - guard, observe, watch over) His commandments (1 John 2:3). This is the
demonstrative evidence that we have come to know Him.
This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. (1 john 2:1-6)
1 John 2:6 - the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked. In what manner? Love (Ephesians 4:2-3; 1 Peter 4:8; 1 John 3:10; 1 John 4:7)
Jesus is the author of eternal salvation for those who OBEY Him.
...and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him hebrews 5:7-10
So who obeys Him? The saved or the lost? I've heard many works-salvationists use this verse to try and support salvation by works. Only believers have obeyed Him by choosing to believe the gospel (Romans 1:16) in order to become saved, and only believers obey Him after they have been saved through faith by keeping His commandments and practicing righteousness (1 John 2:3; 3:9,10).
*In either sense, only believers obey Him.
Unbelievers have not obeyed Him by refusing to believe the gospel (Romans 10:16) and without faith its impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6), so unbelievers do not obey Him no matter how much "so-called" obedience that they attempt to conjure up through the flesh in a vain effort to receive salvation based on their works.
*So in either sense, unbelievers do not obey Him
FAITH AND OBEDIENCE ARE BOTH ESSENTIAL TO SALVATION.
Faith is essential to salvation and obedience which follows is the fruit, but not the root of salvation. You have the tail wagging the dog. The cart before the horse. Faith is the root of salvation and good works which follow are the fruit. No fruit at all demonstrates there is no root.
...And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.hebrews 11:6
Hebrews 11:1
- Now
faith is the
assurance of things hoped for, the
conviction of things not seen. Faith is not a check list of works or salvation by works.
...As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead. james 2:26
In James 2:26, the comparison of the human spirit and faith converges around their modes of operation. The spirit (Greek pneuma) may also be translated "breath." As a breathless body emits no indication of life, so fruitless faith exhibits no indication of life. The source of the life in faith is not works; rather, life in faith is the source of works (Ephesians 2:5-10).
And again, we know that we are IN HIM if we obey the commandments and WALK AS JESUS did. (1 john 2:3-6)
That is the demonstrative evidence that we are in Him but how do we get into Christ? Ephesians 1:13 - In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the
gospel of your salvation—having also
believed, you were
sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise.
...For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ NOT ONLY TO BELIEVE ON HIM, but also to suffer for him, Philippians 1:29
First we are saved when we BELIEVE ON HIM (John 3:15,16,18) then afterwards living the Christian life results in suffering for Christ.