Requirements of Salvation

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hornetguy

Senior Member
Jan 18, 2016
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I agree with you it was a one time only event. After this incident, Peter had no scriptural record of him ever going to the Gentiles to preach again.

What do you think was the Holy Spirit's objective in prompting him three times to go to the unclean Gentiles then?
He was sent to the Gentiles to show the doubting Jews that the Gentiles were called by Jesus just like they were. This was the whole purpose of his vision of the sheet holding all the animals... to prove to HIM that the Gentiles were acceptable, and that he was to use his position of "seniority" to convince the other Jews of that fact.
 
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Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.” So those who rely on faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.[Gal. 3:7-9]


Notice the man Abraham is called the man of faith. Later on in this same chapter, Paul wrote For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, as it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.” Clearly no one who relies on the law is justified before God, because “the righteous will live by faith.” The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, it says, “The person who does these things will live by them.”[Gal. 3:10-12]

So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good, [Rom. 7:12] yet no man could keep it. All of this pointed out their failures to themselves and also pointed them to Him.
That is what anticipating revelation means: Just because you had the benefit of the mysteries revealed to Paul, you assumed all the Jews during the period of the 4 gospels must have also known.

As far as the Jews are concerned during that time, that was what animal sacrifices were for. Everytime you sin, you sacrifice an animal. They still have to keep the Law, otherwise they will be cut off from the covenant (Genesis 17)
 
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i'll say it.
no one needed circumcision or sacrifice to be saved, when Salvation Himself was walking among them. no one was saved by scrupulously keeping the ministration of death, when Life Himself came to seek out and save the lost. do we not understand how He said '
take heart, your sins are forgiven' ? this is the same One who looked down at the mercy seat and saw the blood, and overlooked sin, who said He desired mercy, not sacrifice. Who lamented because of their unbelief. Who was raised up exactly like the brazen serpent, that all who look to Him may have life.
no, in His presence, when He came to call not the righteous, but sinners - the sick and the lost - you didn't need to have the righteousness which is found in the law in order to receive life.
Genesis 17:14 made it clear that God will cut any Jew who refused circumcision, from his covenant and Israel.

That goes your "no one needed circumcision to be saved".
 
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this is what James was doing, even what was prophesied in the very same chapter:

And as we stayed many days, a certain prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. When he had come to us, he took Paul’s belt, bound his own hands and feet, and said, “Thus says the Holy Spirit, ‘So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns this belt, and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’ ”
(Acts 21:10-11)
notice who the Spirit of Prophecy said would bind Paul: the Jews.
notice how: with his own belt, hands and feet.


read on:

the people ran together, seized Paul, and dragged him out of the temple; and immediately the doors were shut. Now as they were seeking to kill him, news came to the commander of the garrison that all Jerusalem was in an uproar. He immediately took soldiers and centurions, and ran down to them. And when they saw the commander and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul. Then the commander came near and took him, and commanded him to be bound with two chains; and he asked who he was and what he had done.
(Acts 21:30-33)
notice that the Jews did not physically bind Paul hand and foot.
the Romans did. with chains, not with Paul's belt.
Paul was not physically bound until the commander of the garrison came and ordered his soldiers to do so.


so the binding Paul was to be subjected to that the LORD God spoke through Agabus was not the shackling of his hands and feet by physical fetters.
the binding that God determined Paul to experience was something the Jews did to Paul.


consider James, the Jew, speaking to Paul on behalf of the believing Pharisees.
consider what was Paul's belt. consider how his hands and feet were restricted. consider how they delivered Paul.





maybe if i keep pointing this out to you one day you will comprehend it :)
If you want to read into what James was actually doing there, that is your choice.

I take what James literally stated in Acts 21:20-25, as well as in his James 2. To Jews who believed, he stated that faith without works is dead. But Gentiles who believed are exempted.
 
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Peter instructed the Jewish people of their responsibility to repent, and get water baptized in Jesus' name for the remission of sins. And told them God would give the gift of the Holy Ghost. (Acts 2:38) He went on to say that this promise was for "...as many as the Lord thy God shall call." (verse 39) I would agree with your assessment that these instructions only applied to the Jews if the biblical record attested to that. It does not.

THIS RECORD PROVES SAMARITANS HAD TO COMPLY WITH THE SAME INSTRUCTIONS GIVEN FIRST TO THE JEWS.
The same instructions were given to the Samaritans by Philip. (Acts 8:12-17) After they believed Philip concerning the kingdom of God AND the name of Jesus, the people were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Afterward, Peter and John came and laid hands upon them and God filled them with Holy Ghost.

THIS RECORD PROVES GENTILES HAD TO COMPLY WITH THE SAME INSTRUCTIONS AS THE JEWS.Again, God uses Peter to go and instruct the Gentiles what they must do to be saved. (Acts 11:14) Peter relays the gospel and tells them that through Jesus' name whosoever believes in Him will receive remission of sin. (Acts 10:37-43) Immediately the Holy Ghost fell on them and they spoke in tongues. This resulted is their repentance and obedience in submitting to water baptism in the name of the Lord.
Your last paragraph is your interpretation on why God sent Peter to the Gentiles. He never called Peter to be an apostle to the Gentiles, and Peter never again preached to the Gentiles after that one-off incident.
 
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He was sent to the Gentiles to show the doubting Jews that the Gentiles were called by Jesus just like they were. This was the whole purpose of his vision of the sheet holding all the animals... to prove to HIM that the Gentiles were acceptable, and that he was to use his position of "seniority" to convince the other Jews of that fact.
Yes, Peter was essential in Acts 15 in legitimizing the gospel of the uncircumcision that was given to Paul for the Gentiles.
 
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Just off the cuff, going back to John and speaking of James, they both bring up the concept of born again. John 3.3 and James 1.18. Do you really believe that is limited to Jewish believers?
Then turning to Paul, he mentions Jesus Christ to the Churches. Now Christ is a Greek word for a Jewish ceremonial act of consecration. The word being Mesach (Messiah) or annointing. Why would Paul be using Hebrew concepts with Gentile Christians?
Just like the OT, we can learn from John and James.

As long as you rightly divide the word of truth into which among the 3 groups it was written to: the Jews, the unbelieving Gentiles, and the Body of Christ, that is how one studies scripture.
 
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But which Gospel does 'being born again' belong to?
It is found in Jeremiah and Ezekiel as well.
According to Paul epistles, one who enters the body of Christ is also born again.

So there is the similarity in both gospels
 

crossnote

Senior Member
Nov 24, 2012
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According to Paul epistles, one who enters the body of Christ is also born again.

So there is the similarity in both gospels
So the differences between the Kingdoms aren't all that great.
 
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So the differences between the Kingdoms aren't all that great.
One required strict obedience to the law of Moses and not to be preached to gentiles

Another where one is dead to the law and Gentiles can be reached.

That to me is a big difference
 

crossnote

Senior Member
Nov 24, 2012
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One required strict obedience to the law of Moses and not to be preached to gentiles

Another where one is dead to the law and Gentiles can be reached.

That to me is a big difference
Yet the law was never given for salvation. Faith in the promises has always been what justified a person. (Hebrews 11).
 
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Yet the law was never given for salvation. Faith in the promises has always been what justified a person. (Hebrews 11).
Salvation was always by grace thru faith

You show your faith by obeying what God commanded you.

God told Abel to bring a blood offering, he did and that is faith

God told Noah to build an ark, he did and that is faith

God told the Jews to follow the law in exodus 19:4-6, they did and that is faith

BUT NOW, God told us to cease from all works and trust in Jesus death and resurrection, we do and that is faith.
 

BlessedCreator

Active member
Apr 22, 2020
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Faith means to have trust/confidence in God.
You can't have trust in God without having a good conscience toward God.
You can't have a good conscious toward God without obeying Him.
Believing in Jesus is the first commandment of God we are told to obey.
There are many other commandments we must live in obedience unto if we desire to be saved.

We are told in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 KJB
"9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God."

We see just from those 2 verses alone that there is a standard of righteous and holy living that God requires of us if we are to be counted worthy.
That is what is being spoken of in James 2:26 where it says faith without works is dead.

The works are not any righteous or holy works of our own, but of God. The works are the will of God, told to us through the commandments and precepts taught in the Holy Bible.

Without obedience unto God's will, your faith is dead, you are not living a holy life, and you will not see the Lord.

Hebrews 12:14 KJB
"Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: "
 

crossnote

Senior Member
Nov 24, 2012
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BUT NOW, God told us to cease from all works and trust in Jesus death and resurrection, we do and that is faith.
Works done for merit, yes, but we are not to cease works done out of a thankful heart, especially those that blesses our neighbor and those in need.
 
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Works done for merit, yes, but we are not to cease works done out of a thankful heart, especially those that blesses our neighbor and those in need.
Of course, you will be rewarded based on works at the bema seat of Christ, as Paul explained in 2 Cor 5:10
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
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According to Paul epistles, one who enters the body of Christ is also born again.

So there is the similarity in both gospels
did the "born-again" disciple of Christ need to be born a 3rd time into the "other gospel" ?
 

posthuman

Senior Member
Jul 31, 2013
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You can't have trust in God without having a good conscience toward God.
i'm not sure about that.
what manner of conscience does the man in the back of the sanctuary crying '
have mercy on me a sinner!' have?
daring not to lift his eyes? why not? yet this is the one who goes home justified, not the one whose conscience appears '
clean' to himself.

which one trusts in God?
 
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did the "born-again" disciple of Christ need to be born a 3rd time into the "other gospel" ?
John 20:31 states that a Jew who believes Jesus as the son of God during the gospel of the kingdom is already born again.

Peter James and John were all saved under that