Typical long winded post from you, full of scripture twisting and propaganda.
Your twisted implication here seems to be that only YOU have denied yourself and follow Him and His instructions perfectly and will qualify for heaven under those terms, while the rest of us will be disqualified for heaven because we follow religious traditions of man. This is the same old straw man argument that you continue to try and sell, but I'm not buying it and neither are any of my brothers and sisters in Christ on Christian Chat.
Genesis 15:6 and Romans 4:2-3 explain how Abraham became righteous. It was because he
BELIEVED IN THE LORD/BELIEVED GOD and its was
accounted to him for righteousness.
In James 2:19, we see that the demons believe "mental assent" that "there is one God" but they
do not believe/entrust their spiritual well being to Christ; have faith/reliance upon Christ for salvation. In other words, they
do not believe on the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 16:31)
and are not saved. Their trust and reliance is in Satan, as demonstrated by their rebellion in heaven and continuous evil works.
Action does not change belief into faith and action does not establish faith. More works-salvation confusion! The word "believe" can describe mere "mental assent" belief, as in James 2:19 or also include "trust and reliance" in Christ for salvation, as in Acts 16:31. The Greek words for "pistis" and "pisteuo" are two forms of the same word. "Pistis" is the noun form, "pisteuo" is the verb form. Nothing in the root meaning of either word carries any concept of works. If you believe in Christ/believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, then you are trusting in Him as the all sufficient means of your salvation. This belief results in actions appropriate to the belief (all Christians are fruitful, but not all are equally fruitful) - but the actions are NOT INHERENT in the belief.
It's your "religious traditions" sales pitch and judaizing doctrine that is very tricky and deceptive. Just because the Pharisees added their own traditions to the law does not mean born again Christians do.
Blessed is one thing and accounted as righteous is another. You continue to define faith "as" obedience/works, just as ALL works-salvationists do, including Roman Catholics, Mormons and SDA's. *This is the very HEART of your ERROR!
Hebrews 11:1 - Now
faith is the
assurance of things hoped for, the
conviction of things not seen. *Nothing there about faith is multiple acts of obedience/works. In Hebrews 11, notice in all of these occurrences that is was "by" or "out of" faith, not faith is in essence, these acts of obedience/works. Their faith was genuine and it was shown by their actions (works) so all of these works accomplished in Hebrews 11 were done "by" or "out of" faith, but those works are not the essence of faith, only the evidence (fruit) of faith. That is absolutely critical to understand! We are saved through faith at it's origin and not at some time later, based on the merit of works. Faith is the root of salvation and acts of obedience/works which follow are the fruit.
I have noticed that works-salvationists accuse others of transgressing God's Commandments and imply they will be saved based on the merits of obeying God's Commandments and misunderstand the simple Biblical truth about Abraham (Genesis 15:5-6; Romans 4:2-6).
I can accept it. As I have already explained numerous times, in James 2:20,
"faith without works is dead" does not mean that faith is dead until it produces works and then it becomes a living faith or that works are the source of life in faith. That's like saying a tree is dead until it produces fruit and then it becomes a living tree and the fruit is the source of life in the tree. James is simply saying faith that is not accompanied by evidential works is dead. If someone says-claims he has faith but lacks resulting evidential works, (James 2:14) then he has an empty profession of faith/dead faith and not authentic faith.
*Remember that James is discussing the
evidence of faith (
says-claims to have faith but has no works/I will show you my faith by my works - James 2:14-18),
not the initial act of being accounted as righteous with God (Romans 4:2-3).
I said that Abraham was "accounted as righteous" based on his faith and not his works, as we clearly read in Romans 4:2-3.
You can criticize and condemn these people all you like, but you are no better than any of these people with your perverted gospel of salvation by "grace plus law, faith plus works." You seem to enjoy labeling everyone else as transgressing the Commandments of God and claiming for yourself to have obeyed the Commandments of God and will qualify for heaven under those terms.
You have a serious PRIDE issue!
Difference in style from others you condemn, but same in substance. WORKS BASED FALSE GOSPEL. Learn the difference between faith and works, blessings received based on obedience and salvation through faith.
This is the same verse that works-salvationists (including Roman Catholics, Mormons, SDA's etc..) quote in their quest to try and prove that salvation is by works. 3 For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham. 4 I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed. This was many years AFTER Abraham
believed in the Lord/believed God and
his faith (not his works) was
accounted to him for righteousness (Genesis 15:5-6; Romans 4:2-3).
I have no religious traditions and there is a distinction between faith and works of obedience which "follow" and are produced "out of" faith. The Bible clearly makes a distinction between faith AND works (Romans 4:2-6; Ephesians 2:8,9; James 2:14 etc..). You have to make no distinction whatsoever between faith and obedience/works, not because of the Bibles teaching, but because of your perverted gospel. You are not fooling me.
Abraham believed God and it was called faith. Abraham followed God's instructions and it was called obedience/works.
He believed in God, trusted in God. The demons merely believe "mental assent" that "there is one God" but they
do not believe/entrust their spiritual well being to Christ; have faith/reliance upon Christ for salvation and neither do works-salvationists.
Obedience is the demonstrative evidence of faith, but not the essence of faith. Perverting the gospel by teaching salvation by works is not an example of faith no matter how much so called obedience that someone attempts to conjure up through the flesh in a vain effort to receive salvation based on the merit of works/law keeping etc..
Another example of how works-salvationists twist the scriptures and confuse faith with obedience/works. Romans 10:16 is another example as well. But they have not all
obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has
believed our report?” Campbellites use this verse to erroneously teach that we obey the gospel by receiving water baptism. Yet we
obey the gospel by
choosing to believe the gospel.
Doing works meet for repentance is the
fruit of repentance (Matthew 3:8) not the essence of repentance (change of mind). Works-salvationists confuse the fruit of repentance/faith with the essence of repentance/faith, as you have just demonstrated. Your true colors are really showing now!
This is your continued straw man argument. Perverting the gospel by teaching salvation by works is neither works worthy of repentance or the faith of Abraham. It sounds to me like you are suffering from a terminal case of self righteousness. It's a real shame to see so much zeal wasted on UNBELIEF (2 Corinthians 4:3,4).