mailmandan, but now you have changed the terminolgy but still confused. Christ finished work of redemption is not only sufficient for every thing in this world, it actually saved everything in this world from death and sin. Eph 2:8 is NOT addressing eternal life, but it is addressing salvation. Which is why it is not up to us, no works can defeat death and sin.
So those who have been saved through faith (Ephesians 2:8) do not possess eternal life as a present possession? Is that what you are saying? What did Jesus say in John 5:24 - "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me
has everlasting life, and
shall not come into judgment, but
has passed from death into life. Who is confused?
However, part of that gift is that one shall recieve eternal life through faith. All faith is doing is getting us in the door, into Christ.
Read it again -
has everlasting life, and
shall not come into judgment, but
has passed from death into life. Jesus is the door. John 10:9 -
I am the door. If anyone
enters by Me, he
will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. Jesus is THE DOOR. He is not simply a door to the next door. He is also not a revolving door.
It simply differentiates and makes the difference between a believer and an unbeliever. Faith has no content.
Faith has no content? Please define faith. Hebrews 11:1 says that faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. What is the content of saving faith? Nothing?
But eternal life must be accomplished with God which we do with that faith, belief IN Christ. We are to perfect ourselves as human beings which is all works. Works were created for us to do. Eph 2:10. They are the prerequiste to achieve eternal life with Christ.
That's not what Ephesians 2:10 says. Read verses 8-10. 8 For by grace you
have been saved through faith, and that
not of yourselves; it is the
gift of God, 9
not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus
for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. We are saved FOR good works, not by good works. Big difference.
Faith, faith only does not grant eternal life absolutely. It permits one to enter so that one can be saved and can be perfected, and thus attain eternal life absolutely.
So Christ only initially saves us through faith but we ultimately save ourselves by works? Is that what you are saying? Does that agree with Ephesians 2:8-10? No it does not.
You are believing in the very opposite of the deception that Satan used on Adam and Eve. The created purpose of man was to attain to the Likeness of God, maturity, perfection and attain immortality. Satan told Eve that they could do that by eating the fruit and attain the same thing, which meant by themselves, they did not need God to help them be like Him.
It sounds like you are mixed up in the sinless perfection doctrine.
Now, Satan has you believing that you don't need to do anything to perfect yourself as a human being because God supposedly has already done this for you which you call salvation.
Perfect (teleioi). The word comes from telo, end, goal, limit. The goal set before us, the absolute standard of our Heavenly Father. The word is used also for relative perfection as of adults compared with children. Absolute perfection (sinless, without fault or defect, flawless) for us will not become a reality until Christ returns and then we will be made perfect with Christ. Have you bought into the lie of Satan that becoming sinless, without fault or defect, flawless in this life is the basis by which you will receive eternal life?
The faith part merely gets us in the door.
Faith does more than simply get us in the door. From beginning (have been saved through faith - Ephesians 2:8) to end (receiving the end of your faith--the salvation of your souls - 1 Peter 1:9) salvation is through FAITH in Christ.
Adam fell out of a relationship, we also need to first get back into the relationship and that is what faith accomplishes, Justification by faith, made acceptable to God. That is NOT attaining eternal life.
John 1:12 - But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become
children of God, to those who
believe in His name:
Galatians 3:26 - For you are all
sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. If we are justified by faith, then we currently have eternal life as a present possession (John 5:24). Relationship restored through faith.
Now that we are IN Christ, in a relationship with HIm, just as Adam was in the beginning, we are to perfect ourselves as human beings and IF we are faithful, endure to the end, we shall be given absolutely eternal life with Christ.
So just how faithful do we have to be? According to your logic, that could include any number of good works but no assurance of eternal life. 1 John 5:13 - These things I have written to you who
believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may
know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God. Receiving the end of our faith--the salvation of our souls is being faithful to the end.
NO, you have simply been saved from death and sin. Which constitutes the fall of man through Adam. That is not what we were created to do, save ourselves from death and sin. We were given salvation from death and sin, in order for God and man to be reunited again in a union, but also for an eternity if we work with Him to perfect ourselves.
You are confusing Justification with ongoing Sanctification.
You can have one without the other.
I don't confuse what we are saved BY with what we are saved FOR, as you do.
Unbelievers also have salvation from death and sin.
John 3:18 (b) - ..but he who
does not believe is
condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. That's not salvation for unbelievers. What confusion!
You are not saved form death and sin as a potential believer.
Salvation has three tenses. We have been saved from the penalty of sin (Justification) we are being saved from the power of sin (ongoing Sanctification) and we will be saved from the presence of sin (Glorification). These tenses often get mixed up by works salvationists.
Eternal life is about working with God through faith.
John 17:3 - And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. The term "know" implies intimate, experiential knowledge, through a relationship with Him, not merely theoretical knowledge. Eternal life is not about working with God in order to help Him save you.
YOur explanation is that you trust in Christ for salvation and nothing more in needed from you.
What more do I need to accomplish and add to the cross? His sacrifice was sufficient and complete. No supplements needed.
Satan does not need anything done more to defeat him either. But neither is addressing attaining eternal life which is why Christ saved you, gave you salvation from death and sin.
1 John 5:13 - These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.. Do you believe in the name of the Son of God? Do you know that you have eternal life?
This is a very confused statement. Saving faith has nothing to do with actually trusting in Christ's finished work.
WOW! So you are not trusting in Christ's finished work of redemption? You don't believe in your heart (but only in your head) that God raised Him from the dead? (Romans 10:9). You don't believe the gospel? (Romans 1:16). What do you think it means to BELIEVE in Him? (John 3:16,18,36; Acts 10:43; 13:39; 16:31).
You have it whether you trust or not, just as an unbeliever has it, and he does not need to believe.
Believing is that you actually believe that Christ is the Savior of the world. That He is who He says He is, and thus you can trust HIM to be able to work with you toward attaining eternal life. Then you have all of His promises to assist etc, etc, but NEVER is there a promise that man has a guaranteed existence or eternal life just because he believed.
WOW! 1 John 5:13 - These things I have written to you who
believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may
know that you have eternal life.. John 3:18 - He who
believes in Him is
not condemned.. Ephesians 1:13 - In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the
gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having
believed, you were
sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the
guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. 2 Corinthians 4:3 - But if our
gospel be
hid, it is
hid to them that are lost: 4 In whom the
god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which
believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
Are you ready to repent and believe the gospel?