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EleventhHour
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It is impersonal because we are given no understanding/information upon which God makes the decision.
Not By Works
- Thread starter dcontroversal
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It is impersonal because we are given no understanding/information upon which God makes the decision.
Salvation is not base upon what fallen man does or doesn’t do. It’s based upon what God has done through the a Christ. You’re still peddling this merit base salvation my friend.
Saved by grace through faith, not works (Ephesians 2:8,9) is not merit based salvation.
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EleventhHour
Guest
AMEN and AMEN!!!
It is God that has created the plan of salvation.... when we trust His plan there is no merit, HE defines what is meritoriousness not us.
Faith is in Jesus not ourselves, therefore it is not a work.
Fallen man must choose to believe the Gospel. God does not make anyone believe.
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EleventhHour
Guest
Once you were alienated from God and were hostile in your minds because of your evil deeds. Colossians 1:21"We are all born as enemies, and hostile toward, God"
not true (i don't think so).dont forget about babies - - what we first were.
... because the mind of the flesh is hostile to God: It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Romans 8:7
For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son,
much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. Romans 5:10
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EleventhHour
Guest
Romans 8:7, NIV: "The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so."
Romans 8:7, ESV: "For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot."
Romans 8:7, ESV: "For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot."
Whichever way, if one follows the other, it is not exactly simultaneous. They do happen together.
Why should a born again Christian fear the lake of fire?Well I must say; I see an improvement in everyone’s behavior in this thread since the fear of banning was put on everyone who would sin against the moderator’s precept.
Perhaps a little fear of God and the lake of fire could do the same in our lives within and outside this chat board regarding sin in general.
Something to think about.
There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Do you believe you can lose your salvation?
Do we not have to accept the gift, have faith, and believe?
If/since it is not forced on us, we make a choice.
The Galatians fell.
"2 Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all.
4 You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace." - Galatians 5:2,4
Agreed. No one has the power in and of themselves to save themselves or keep themselves saved.
We can only believe, and keep believing, by God's grace.
I just cited one above.
And, Hebrews 10:14, 26-31 talks about sanctified people who have been made perfect forever by the one time sacrifice of Jesus who will then be subject to the raging fire judgment of God if they purposely trample on that blood that sanctified them.
Matthew 18:6-9, and Luke 9:42-47 talk about little ones who believe in Jesus stumbling so as to go to hell.
See, Jesus' sacrifice being 'forever' doesn't mean you always have the benefit of his sacrifice no matter what. It means it never runs out like the old covenant sacrifices did and had to be made over again.
And eternal life doesn't mean that, while in the body, you have that life for eternity no matter what. It means the life itself that you receive will never run out, like it did under the old covenant.
And because this is true we are exhorted to keep believing in Jesus in order to keep that which our God given faith secures for us apart from the merit of the works of the law.
Yes, and this is considered by all of us to not be a work of the works gospel. But some insist if you have to continue in that believing it does become a work of the works gospel for it would be you doing something to save yourself. It wasn't doing something to save myself when I started it. How can it suddenly now be me doing something to save myself? Their reasoning doesn't make sense.
Hebrews 10:14,26-31 explains why.
Which is exactly why we should stay in Christ Jesus!
"14Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, f Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess." - Hebrews 4:14
"23Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful." - Hebrews 10:23
The choice thing seems to be the stickler. Do we have free will? Of course not, at least, I disagree with that whole concept, since our will is constrained by many factors; I prefer instead the term self will. Man's will is clearly bent one way or the other, as plainly shown throughout the whole of Scripture. To say one makes a choice aligns with the fact that we are not forced, and does not deny that it is God Who makes it possible