Salvation not based on our merit

[Lamb]

Believe what their whole life? Drawing and enabling is God stepping in (John 6:44, 65) and God doesn't believe for us. We must choose to believe (John 3:18)

According to scripture it is enough because Jesus and His death, burial and resurrection is enough. (Romans 3:22-26)

John 3:15 - that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

Acts 10:43 - Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins.

Acts 13:38 - Therefore, let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; 39 and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.

Acts 16:30 - And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.

Romans 1:16 - For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.

1 Corinthians 15:1 - Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.

God is not impotent and believers have a relationship with God. John 17:3 - And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent (which is an intimate, experiential knowledge, found only in a relationship). The term "know" implies intimate, experiential knowledge, through a relationship with Him and not merely theoretical knowledge.

Philippians 1:29 doesn't change the fact that we choose to believe (John 3:18) and both believing and suffering for Christ's sake are a part of the Christian journey. Philippians 3:8 - Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.

Out of all those quotes you posted, none state your point that we have to choose because faith is a gift from God. The only choice you have, once the Gospel works faith into you is to reject the Savior who forgives your sins.

 

[mailmandan]

Out of all those quotes you posted, none state your point that we have to choose because faith is a gift from God. The only choice you have, once the Gospel works faith into you is to reject the Savior who forgives your sins.

A gift does not mean fatalistic determination and a gift must be received. I believe that salvation is the gift in Ephesians 2:8 - For it is by free grace (God’s unmerited favor) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ’s salvation) through [your] faith. And this [salvation] is not of yourselves [of your own doing, it came not through your own striving], but it is the gift of God. (AMPC)

 

[Lamb]

A gift does not mean fatalistic determination and a gift must be received. I believe that salvation is the gift in Ephesians 2:8 - For it is by free grace (God’s unmerited favor) that you are saved (delivered from judgment and made partakers of Christ’s salvation) through [your] faith. And this [salvation] is not of yourselves [of your own doing, it came not through your own striving], but it is the gift of God. (AMPC)

A gift is received, not grabbed. It's like the rain falling down on you. You can't choose for it, but you can get out of the way and stop it from getting you wet.

Think about the dead bones who came to life. They didn't choose that.

 

[mailmandan]

A gift is received, not grabbed. It's like the rain falling down on you. You can't choose for it, but you can get out of the way and stop it from getting you wet.

Think about the dead bones who came to life. They didn't choose that.

So, free will or fatalistic determination?

 

[Lamb]

So, free will or fatalistic determination?

Neither. The will is not free to choose while in the state of spiritual death. God does not choose to damn. People can reject Him.

 

[brightfame52]

No, Christ is my Savior. Through faith I simply received the free gift of eternal life. (Romans 6:23; Ephesians 2:8,9)

You are playing with words, you dont believe the free gift was yours by the work of Christ alone, until you did something to make it save you.

How is Christ your saviour if what He did was only make the gift of salvation possible ? Thats what your faith believes, He made it possible, correct ?

 

[brightfame52]

I get a sense that all three of you believe in the same thing? You just state it in different ways.

No, see some believe Christ merely made salvation possible or available, but He didnt actually save them by His death. Big Big difference

 

[brightfame52]

Out of all those quotes you posted, none state your point that we have to choose because faith is a gift from God. The only choice you have, once the Gospel works faith into you is to reject the Savior who forgives your sins.

If Christ died for your sins, He died for the sin of rejecting Him, all unregenerate in the flesh reject Him . So when one rejects Christ in unbelief, they are acting like the spiritually dead sinner that loves darkness rather than light they are.

 

[Lamb]

If Christ died for your sins, He died for the sin of rejecting Him, all unregenerate in the flesh reject Him . So when one rejects Christ in unbelief, they are acting like the spiritually dead sinner that loves darkness rather than light they are.

What does the bible say about not believing in Him (which is rejecting)?

 

[mailmandan]

Neither. The will is not free to choose while in the state of spiritual death. God does not choose to damn. People can reject Him.

That's where drawing and enabling comes in (John 6:44, 65) and once that is done, people then can make their choice. (John 3:18)

 

[mailmandan]

You are playing with words, you dont believe the free gift was yours by the work of Christ alone, until you did something to make it save you.

How is Christ your saviour if what He did was only make the gift of salvation possible? That's what your faith believes, He made it possible, correct ?

A free gift must still be received and receiving it by faith does not mean that we earned the gift and it also does not change the fact that Christ saves us through faith based on the merits of His finished work of redemption alone (Romans 3:24-26) and not based on the merits of our works. Christ being my Savior was not the result of fatalistic determination. Christ died for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:2) and salvation is possible for all, but not all will be saved. (Luke 13:3; John 3:18; 2 Peter 3:9; 1 John 5:11-12)

 

[Lamb]

That's where drawing and enabling comes in (John 6:44, 65) and once that is done, people then can make their choice. (John 3:18)

God's Word is alive and active and effects faith in us when the Gospel is preached. Faith clings to the truth that Jesus is Savior and sins are forgiven. That's not our choice to make, but we are awakened to the truth and we realize that we do indeed have a savior. That's not a choice. The choice we have is to reject that truth and turn away.

 

[Oseas]

God's Word is alive and active and effects faith in us when the Gospel is preached. Faith clings to the truth that Jesus is Savior and sins are forgiven. That's not our choice to make, but we are awakened to the truth and we realize that we do indeed have a savior. That's not a choice. The choice we have is to reject that truth and turn away.

John 15:16-19

16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.

17 These things I command you, that ye love one another.

18 If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.

19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

 

[Can't think of a name]

According to scripture it is enough because Jesus and His death, burial and resurrection is enough. (Romans 3:22-26)

John 3:15 - that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

Acts 10:43 - Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins.

Acts 13:38 - Therefore, let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; 39 and by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.

Acts 16:30 - And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.

Romans 1:16 - For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.

1 Corinthians 15:1 - Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.

God is not impotent and believers have a relationship with God. John 17:3 - And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent (which is an intimate, experiential knowledge, found only in a relationship). The term "know" implies intimate, experiential knowledge, through a relationship with Him and not merely theoretical knowledge.

Philippians 1:29 doesn't change the fact that we choose to believe (John 3:18) and both believing and suffering for Christ's sake are a part of the Christian journey. Philippians 3:8 - Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.

The entire New Testament very much changes the fact that YOU chose to believe, especially Philippians 1:29. You are welcome to exegete that passage of scripture for me so that you can prove you chose God and then He saved you and not the other way around.

 

[brightfame52]

What does the bible say about not believing in Him (which is rejecting)?

That means you were not a sheep Christ died for Jn 10:26

26 But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.

So a person Christ didn't die for, they are condemned by their sins Christ didn't die for Jn 3:18

18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

Unbelief gives evidence of being condemned. I have addressed this plenty of times in my threads already.

 

[brightfame52]

A free gift must still be received

No it doesnt in spiritual things. You are speaking carnally. Spiritual gifts are received because God gives them Jn 3 27

John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.

 

[Frankj]

No it doesnt in spiritual things. You are speaking carnally. Spiritual gifts are received because God gives them Jn 3 27

John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.

That really needs to be understood in context with the entire chapter and not just as a single verse.

 

[brightfame52]

That really needs to be understood in context with the entire chapter and not just as a single verse.

It is understood in context. Spiritual blessings are received because they are given. Thats why Paul asked the Corinthians 1 Cor 4:7


For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?

 

[Frankj]

It is understood in context. Spiritual blessings are received because they are given. Thats why Paul asked the Corinthians 1 Cor 4:7


For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?

Strange that different people can read the same words and see them as saying different things.

 

[John Steed]

Really we can never at all do anything on our merit especially trying to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
As only accepting Christ and forgiveness of sins that we can enter God's kingdom.
John 3:16-17 makes it very clear!