Grace 101

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Chris1975

Senior Member
Apr 27, 2017
2,492
517
113
#1
How are we saved?

Ephesians 2v8-10
[SUP]8 [/SUP]For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, [SUP]9 [/SUP]not of works, lest anyone should boast. [SUP]10 [/SUP]For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

- what saves us? Grace
- who is the source of Grace? God
- how is Grace received? By Faith
- who is to believe? The Believer
- Without Faith its impossible to please God Heb 11v6. God cannot judge Himself for He is perfect. Therefore we are to have a continued faith.
- Can a believers works alone save them? No. We are saved by Grace (God) through Faith (Believing in Him)
- John 3v16 [SUP]16 [/SUP]For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son
<Grace>, that whoever believes in Him <Faith> should not perish but have everlasting life.
- verse 10: the purpose of God's saving grace was for good works which He has for us to complete
<He gives us the mission. He is the CEO of our lives>. And it is up to the believer to respond in Faith by walking out these works. <thats the part that we DO>
- Matthew 7v24; James 1v22 - be not merely hearers of the word, but DOERS of the Word.
- works is never divorced from faith.
- verse 10 starts with "For" which links it inseparably from verse 9. In other words its a foregoing conclusion as a result of the previous verse.
- if someone falls from the Faith (and no longer believes), he can no longer be saved by Grace. Because Grace is only available to them who believe in the Son.

Spirit of Grace

Zechariah 12v10
[SUP]10 [/SUP]“And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication

The Holy Spirit is GRACE !!!


Lets look at Ephesians 2.8 again with this insight.

Ephesians 2v8-10

[SUP]8 [/SUP]For by the Holy Spirit you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; HE is the gift of God,
How do you receive the Holy Spirit?

Acts 2v38
[SUP]38 [/SUP]Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

And one of the primary roles of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer is to TEACH.

John 14v26
[SUP]26 [/SUP]But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name <Gift>, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.

1 John 2
[SUP]27 [/SUP]But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will[SUP][e][/SUP] abide in Him.

And what is it that the Holy Spirit (Grace) teaches us?

Titus 2v11-14

[SUP]11 [/SUP]For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, [SUP]12 [/SUP]teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, [SUP]13 [/SUP]looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, [SUP]14 [/SUP]who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.


That is what Grace is.

Lets look at the ways we can glean the most insight from this....

Romans 8
[SUP]13 [/SUP]For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. [SUP]14 [/SUP]For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.

Romans 8 (substituted for insight)
[SUP]13 [/SUP]For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by GRACE you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. [SUP]14 [/SUP]For as many as are TAUGHT by GRACE, these are sons of God.
 

Zmouth

Senior Member
Nov 21, 2012
3,391
134
63
#2
The scriptures say you are saved by hope, not faith. Since faith is the 'substance" of thing(s) hoped for, the evidence of thing(s) not seen then hope is the belief in something simply because they feel it is true.

For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? Romans 8:24
 
B

BeyondET

Guest
#3
Appears this thread be looking through...

 

stonesoffire

Poetic Member
Nov 24, 2013
10,665
1,829
113
#7
The Parable of the




The Parable of the Sower Explained
Mat 13:18  "Listen, then, to the parable about the farmer. 
Mat 13:19  When anyone hears the word about the kingdom yet doesn't understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path.
 
Mat 13:20  As for what was sown on the stony ground, this is the person who hears the word and accepts it joyfully at once,
 
Mat 13:21  but since he doesn't have any root in himself, he lasts for only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes along because of the word, he immediately falls away. 


Mat 13:22  As for what was sown among the thorn bushes, this is the person who hears the word, but the worries of life and the deceitful pleasures of wealth choke the word so that it can't produce a crop.
 
Mat 13:23  But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the person who hears the word, understands it, and produces a crop that yields 100, 60, or 30 times what was sown." 

Why people fall away explained by Jesus. But, when the ground is good...New birth.
 
Apr 23, 2017
1,064
47
0
#9
good writing brother Chris!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
B

BeyondET

Guest
#10
[video=youtube;w_zeZVBvGWU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_zeZVBvGWU[/video]
 
B

BeyondET

Guest
#11
[video=youtube;GfyhOJjBHQw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfyhOJjBHQw[/video]
 
Dec 12, 2013
46,515
20,402
113
#12
That not of yourselves is grammatically directed at the faith that saves.......

Have been saved out of faith, and this NOT OF YOURSELVES, of GOD the gift (is) Literal translation...

IT is the gift of FAITH that has led to one's "past tense" salvation!

For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Christ is the SOURCE of OUR FAITH

Keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that lay before Him endured a cross and despised the shame and has sat down at the right hand of God's throne.

fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith
, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

PROFOUND TRUTHS denied and swept under the rug by ALL who say salvation can be lost....

a. JESUS is the Source of the faith that SAVES US
b. JESUS is the FINISHER of the faith that SAVES US
c. THE FAITH that JESUS STARTS and FININISHES WITH US is A GIFT
d. IT IS THIS GIFT OF FAITH that SAVED US

For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

ἐν πίστει ζῶ τῇ τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ

in flesh through faith I live that OF THE SON OF GOD

Jesus is the source, the beginner and finisher of our faith, of the FAITH that saves which is a GIFT

HIS FAITH gifted to US<--he starts, sustains and finishes it! FROM FAITH to FAITH the JUST shall LIVE by the FAITH....THE FAITH OF THE SON OF GOD!

TO LOSE FAITH and SALVATION JESUS MUST FAIL in his EFFORT that HE BEGAN and that which HE FINISHES

The scriptures are clear!
 
May 12, 2017
2,641
65
0
#13
That not of yourselves is grammatically directed at the faith that saves.......

Have been saved out of faith, and this NOT OF YOURSELVES, of GOD the gift (is) Literal translation...

IT is the gift of FAITH that has led to one's "past tense" salvation!

For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Christ is the SOURCE of OUR FAITH

Keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that lay before Him endured a cross and despised the shame and has sat down at the right hand of God's throne.

fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith
, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

PROFOUND TRUTHS denied and swept under the rug by ALL who say salvation can be lost....

a. JESUS is the Source of the faith that SAVES US
b. JESUS is the FINISHER of the faith that SAVES US
c. THE FAITH that JESUS STARTS and FININISHES WITH US is A GIFT
d. IT IS THIS GIFT OF FAITH that SAVED US

For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

ἐν πίστει ζῶ τῇ τοῦ Υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ

in flesh through faith I live that OF THE SON OF GOD

Jesus is the source, the beginner and finisher of our faith, of the FAITH that saves which is a GIFT

HIS FAITH gifted to US<--he starts, sustains and finishes it! FROM FAITH to FAITH the JUST shall LIVE by the FAITH....THE FAITH OF THE SON OF GOD!

TO LOSE FAITH and SALVATION JESUS MUST FAIL in his EFFORT that HE BEGAN and that which HE FINISHES

The scriptures are clear!
I do not believe in sinless perfection and that I still SIN and do not believe you can lose your salvation, and even with that, I cannot wrap my head around what you are saying here, because it is completely agaisnt what the Bible says

The only gift of Faith is found in 1 Cor 12 and it has nothing to do with salvation. 1 Cor 13 has nothing to do with salvation and by elevating Faith over Love you are actually calling the Bible a lie.

If you are stating that man does not have any personal faith nor does he exercise personal faith in salvation you are invalidating ALL of the Bible.

Silly me! I thought it was his love that saved us not his faith.

You are once again confusing how we obtain the gift of positional righteousness/justification with salvation and deliverance.

One thing is for certain, if you believe that you do not have to exercise any personal faith to be saved and it is all Christ's faith on our behalf, you can state without hesitation that nothing else is required of you, but to sit tight and wait to get your ticket punched. This means you can also live like hell and anyway you want to live. This is also dangerously close to universalism.

Hey since we have Christ own faith and that faith saved us, we are all going to heaven.
 

valiant

Senior Member
Mar 22, 2015
8,025
126
63
#14


Through faith in the ONE Whose grace (unmerited favour) HAS saved us so that we are now saved.

Ephesians 2v8-10
[SUP]8 [/SUP]For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, [SUP]9 [/SUP]not of works, lest anyone should boast. [SUP]10 [/SUP]For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
That is it, You have been and therefore ARE saved (perfect tense).

- what saves us? Grace
No actually it is God in His grace (unmerited favour)

-
who is the source of Grace? God
true

- how is Grace received? By Faith
Which receives God's unmerited favour.

- who is to believe? The Believer
true.

- Without Faith its impossible to please God Heb 11v6. God cannot judge Himself for He is perfect. Therefore we are to have a continued faith.
We will have (not we are to have) because it is God given.

But you are mixing up two types of faith, the faith that RESPONDS in Ephesians 2.8 and the faith that ACTS in Heb 11.

- Can a believers works alone save them? No. We are saved by Grace (God) through Faith (Believing in Him)
Funny, I see the faith IN CONTRAST to the works. It is not of ourselves, it is NOT of works. From our part it is ALL of faith,

- John 3v16 [SUP]16 [/SUP]For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son
<Grace>, that whoever believes in Him <Faith> should not perish but have everlasting life.


True.

- verse 10: the purpose of God's saving grace was for good works which He has for us to complete
<He gives us the mission. He is the CEO of our lives>. And it is up to the believer to respond in Faith by walking out these works. <thats the part that we DO>

read it again, NOT of works lest any man should boast. Your idea WOULD lead to boasting.

- Matthew 7v24; James 1v22 - be not merely hearers of the word, but DOERS of the Word.
- works is never divorced from faith.
But works are divorced from faith in Rom 4.4-5. We are accounted as righteous WITHOUT WORKS.

- verse 10 starts with "For" which links it inseparably from verse 9. In other words its a foregone conclusion as a result of the previous verse.
But only as result, not as a requirement..


- if someone falls from the Faith (and no longer believes), he can no longer be saved by Grace. Because Grace is only available to them who believe in the Son.
So God withdraws His undeserved favour because they didn't deserve it? Hmmmmm. They are saved by works contrary to Rom 4.4-5.

Grace is UNDESERVED favour. Therefore he can always be saved by grace. If his faith fails undeserved favour will seek him out. That is the reason for grace.

Spirit of Grace Zechariah 12v10
[SUP]10 [/SUP]“And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication

The Holy Spirit is GRACE !!!


The Holy Spirit is a gift of grace.

Lets look at Ephesians 2.8 again with this insight.

Ephesians 2v8-10
[SUP]8 [/SUP]For by the Holy Spirit you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; HE is the gift of God,
Pity God didn't leave His word for you to sort out. You obviously think you do a better job of it than Him? But the Holy Spirit is a gift of grace, not grace itself. In the verse it is salvation that is the gift.

How do you receive the Holy Spirit?

Acts 2v38
[SUP]38 [/SUP]Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
As a part of salvation. But no works are required. We receive the gift of repentance, we receive our baptism and we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. It is all the result of God in His unmerited favour giving us gifts.

And one of the primary roles of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer is to TEACH.
But this follows on. God gives the Holy Spirit to teach us by unmerited favour as a result of the fact that we have been saved.

John 14v26
[SUP]26 [/SUP]But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name <Gift>, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.
Same again.

1 John 2
[SUP]27 [/SUP]But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will[SUP][e][/SUP] abide in Him.
All gifts given us by His grace, the grace which first saved us. You have replaced the grace of God with one of His gifts of grace. And that is unforgivable,.
 

Chris1975

Senior Member
Apr 27, 2017
2,492
517
113
#15
That not of yourselves is grammatically directed at the faith that saves.......

Have been saved out of faith, and this NOT OF YOURSELVES, of GOD the gift (is) Literal translation...

IT is the gift of FAITH that has led to one's "past tense" salvation!
Well you are clearly wrong here. Lets look at the verses building up to this great scripture:

Ephesians 2
[SUP]4 [/SUP]But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, [SUP]5 [/SUP]even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), [SUP]6 [/SUP]and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, [SUP]7 [/SUP]that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. [SUP]8 [/SUP]For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,

Do you see it yet? Look at verse 5 again.

In the context of this buildup, what saves us is Grace. That is the gift. The gift is because of his (1) mercy; (2) love; and (3) kindness towards us.

Faith (our belief in Him) is how we receive this gift. Yes, He gives us faith the size of a mustard seed. We are to exercise it.

Our walk with God through life is a walk of faith - continually exercising it. And yes, if you don't exercise it you can lose it.



Another way to think of Grace through Faith is as follows:---
Assume you are walking through the desert and you are dying of thirst (symbolic of our spiritual death in the world). You have been walking for days on end and finally come across a small town. Nobody is there but you see a water tank sitting 10 feet off the ground, and a hose pipe lying next to the water tank. You know that there is water in the tank, and that water is needed for your salvation (Grace). For only this water can cure your thirst, and restore life to your body. The only way to extract water from this tank is to connect up the hose (which was lying there alongside the tank). You pick up the hose (faith) and connect it to the tank, and open up the tap.
The life giving water begins to flow from the tank through the hose and you are able to drink and nourish your soul.

Now --- what saved you?

The Water saved you. That is what restored life to your body. Thats what God provides. Thats Grace.
But you are saved through Faith (the Hose) - through your connection to the water tank.

Both the tank and the hose were provided to you. But never forget - its the water that brings salvation.

If you disconnect your hose (faith) you cannot drink from the tank.
 
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Dec 12, 2013
46,515
20,402
113
#16
I do not believe in sinless perfection and that I still SIN and do not believe you can lose your salvation, and even with that, I cannot wrap my head around what you are saying here, because it is completely agaisnt what the Bible says

The only gift of Faith is found in 1 Cor 12 and it has nothing to do with salvation. 1 Cor 13 has nothing to do with salvation and by elevating Faith over Love you are actually calling the Bible a lie.

If you are stating that man does not have any personal faith nor does he exercise personal faith in salvation you are invalidating ALL of the Bible.

Silly me! I thought it was his love that saved us not his faith.

You are once again confusing how we obtain the gift of positional righteousness/justification with salvation and deliverance.

One thing is for certain, if you believe that you do not have to exercise any personal faith to be saved and it is all Christ's faith on our behalf, you can state without hesitation that nothing else is required of you, but to sit tight and wait to get your ticket punched. This means you can also live like hell and anyway you want to live. This is also dangerously close to universalism.

Hey since we have Christ own faith and that faith saved us, we are all going to heaven.
DUDE....It is not my problem you cannot see what is written....I have not elevated faith over LOVE, faith is the BEGINNING POINT what I wrote is BIBLICAL, the verses are right there to prove faith is a gift and the statement FAITH to FAITH is as plain as day...

JESUS gives us a measure and GIFT of his faith which we EXERCISE into HIM

FAITH to FAITH....as plain as day!
 
Dec 12, 2013
46,515
20,402
113
#17
Well you are clearly wrong here. Lets look at the verses building up to this great scripture:

Ephesians 2
[SUP]4 [/SUP]But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, [SUP]5 [/SUP]even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), [SUP]6 [/SUP]and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, [SUP]7 [/SUP]that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. [SUP]8 [/SUP]For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,

Do you see it yet? Look at verse 5 again.

In the context of this buildup, what saves us is Grace. That is the gift. The gift is because of his (1) mercy; (2) love; and (3) kindness towards us.

Faith (our belief in Him) is how we receive this gift. Yes, He gives us faith the size of a mustard seed. We are to exercise it.

Our walk with God through life is a walk of faith - continually exercising it. And yes, if you don't exercise it you can lose it.



Another way to think of Grace through Faith is as follows:---
Assume you are walking through the desert and you are dying of thirst (symbolic of our spiritual death in the world). You have been walking for days on end and finally come across a small town. Nobody is there but you see a water tank sitting 10 feet off the ground, and a hose pipe lying next to the water tank. You know that there is water in the tank, and that water is needed for your salvation (Grace). For only this water can cure your thirst, and restore life to your body. The only way to extract water from this tank is to connect up the hose (which was lying there alongside the tank). You pick up the hose (faith) and connect it to the tank, and open up the tap.
The life giving water begins to flow from the tank through the hose and you are able to drink and nourish your soul.

Now --- what saved you?

The Water saved you. That is what restored life to your body. Thats what God provides. Thats Grace.
But you are saved through Faith (the Hose) - through your connection to the water tank.

Both the tank and the hose were provided to you. But never forget - its the water that brings salvation.

If you disconnect your hose (faith) you cannot drink from the tank.
Of course I am....You work for your salvation.....and have to maintain it by your own power and you are way more righteous than us sinners who trust JESUS and his word.....GRAMATICALLY my point stands....I could care less anymore if you want to save yourself and reject JESUS....
 

valiant

Senior Member
Mar 22, 2015
8,025
126
63
#18
Another way to think of Grace through Faith is as follows:---
Assume you are walking through the desert and you are dying of thirst (symbolic of our spiritual death in the world). You have been walking for days on end and finally come across a small town. Nobody is there but you see a water tank sitting 10 feet off the ground, and a hose pipe lying next to the water tank. You know that there is water in the tank, and that water is needed for your salvation (Grace).


The water is not given by God's gracious action. It is purely by chance. You are making grace an impersonal thing when it is in fact God's personal action.

To try to liken a water tank with the grace of God is pathetic,

For only this water can cure your thirst, and restore life to your body. The only way to extract water from this tank is to connect up the hose (which was lying there alongside the tank). You pick up the hose (faith) and connect it to the tank, and open up the tap.
The life giving water begins to flow from the tank through the hose and you are able to drink and nourish your soul.
so you DO believe salvation is by your works.?

Now --- what saved you?
Your WORKS. But that is the difference. In the verse it says that it was God's grace, His unmerited favour, that saved you. Your works had nothing to do with it.

The Water saved you. That is what restored life to your body. Thats what God provides. Thats Grace.
But the water was there by chance. It was a pure accident. How different that God's gracious action reaches out to save.

But you are saved through Faith (the Hose) - through your connection to the water tank.
But in Eph 2.8-9 GOD saves you. And because it is the work of God it is permanent, because God's grace is immeasurable.. He does not supply a leaky hose.

Both the tank and the hose were provided to you. But never forget - its the water that brings salvation.
And GOD provided our salvation, It is a work of God. Therefore man has nothing to do with it except to receive.

If you disconnect your hose (faith) you cannot drink from the tank.
But God is faithful and will never 'disconnect the hose'.
 
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Chris1975

Senior Member
Apr 27, 2017
2,492
517
113
#19


The water is not given by God's gracious action. It is purely by chance. You are making grace an impersonal thing when it is in fact God's personal action.

To try to liken a water tank with the grace of God is pathetic,



so you DO believe salvation is by your works.?



Your WORKS. But that is the difference. In the verse it says that it was God's grace, His unmerited favour, that saved you. Your works had nothing to do with it.



But the water was there by chance. It was a pure accident. How different that God's gracious action reaches out to save.



But in Eph 2.8-9 GOD saves you. And because it is the work of God it is permanent, because God's grace is immeasurable.. He does not supply a leaky hose.



And GOD provided our salvation, It is a work of God. Therefore man has nothing to do with it except to receive.



But God is faithful and will never 'disconnect the hose'.
I see valiant is in need of another refresher thread. Here it is for you again:

http://christianchat.com/bible-discussion-forum/152309-falling-away-faith-its-possible.html
 
May 12, 2017
2,641
65
0
#20
Of course I am....You work for your salvation.....and have to maintain it by your own power and you are way more righteous than us sinners who trust JESUS and his word.....GRAMATICALLY my point stands....I could care less anymore if you want to save yourself and reject JESUS....
You deny Jesus outright by calling yourself a sinner and not a Sin forgiven saint that will still SIN after conversion.

You go from sinner to saint[set apart/holy one] that will still SIN and not perfect or ever perfect. This is understanding your identity in Christ now and not later.

This is also not works based salvation, it is position given
 
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