Not By Works

  • Christian Chat is a moderated online Christian community allowing Christians around the world to fellowship with each other in real time chat via webcam, voice, and text, with the Christian Chat app. You can also start or participate in a Bible-based discussion here in the Christian Chat Forums, where members can also share with each other their own videos, pictures, or favorite Christian music.

    If you are a Christian and need encouragement and fellowship, we're here for you! If you are not a Christian but interested in knowing more about Jesus our Lord, you're also welcome! Want to know what the Bible says, and how you can apply it to your life? Join us!

    To make new Christian friends now around the world, click here to join Christian Chat.
Dec 12, 2013
46,515
20,395
113
See this is what they want us to think

there are 100 people in rough sees, all of them are drowning, non of them will survive unless they are saved, and non of them deserve to be rescued or can earn it

god comes and although god has the power to save all 100. He choses instead to save part of them and just lets the others drown.
and they want us to think we merit salvation, yet refuse to acknowledge they are special people because god chose them over others.

its sickening to be honest
The reason it is sickening.....It came from an ex Catholic and they, hook, line and sinker swallowed it and now peddle it as factual, when in fact it is not even close to biblical.....
 
May 23, 2020
1,558
313
83
Why have you dismissed the scripture I posted?

About God testifying to my Spirit that I am his child??

Why have you done that?...
What scripture? Book., chapter and verse please. Not “God said scripturally I’m his.” That doesn’t count.
 
May 23, 2020
1,558
313
83
Then you need to humble yourself more DorothyMae......and also learn from others.

All I see from you...with respect....is a cherry picker and a know it all.....

Again,I posted scripture......why aren’t You recognising it?
Where did you post scripture?
 
E

eternally-gratefull

Guest
Well said.




Well, I could be wrong, but your posts indicated that you had a choice to believe (have salvific faith) or not believe. Your posts indicated that you decided to believe in God to some degree via your own power (free will) independent of God. Thus, your salvation is not 100% of God's making, but a co-operative effort. Thus you can boast as, via your understanding of salvation, you did something to be saved. I grant you humbly deny it and give God all the credit.
I will go at it another way to clear the air.

First way:
Why are you saved and the guy down the street is not?
My answer: Because God changed my heart to cause me to have faith. ...not a work as I did nothing but exercise His gift
Your answer (IMO): Because God presented me with with a choice and I decided to believe (this is something you did and thus a WORK.)

Second way:
My answer: Regeneration by the Spirit logically precedes Faith (God gave me faith) ...not a work as I did nothing but exercise His gift
Your answer (IMO): Faith precedes regeneration (thus you are rewarded by regeneration for what you did (a WORK)

Third way:
My answer: Calvin's method of how we are saved
your answer (IMO): Arminian (SP?) method of how we are saved (thus you are rewarding by regeneration for what you did (a WORK)

Fourth way:
My answer: God picks who He will save with NO input from me ...not a work as I did nothing but exercise His gift
Your way (IMO): God looked into the future and saw I would chose to believe (this is something you did and thus a WORK.)

So, since the definition of work is SOMETHING YOU DO TO ACCOMPLISH A PURPOSE ... then 'your way' is a work by definition. Your way is something you did to accomplish a goal.
(apologies if I misrepresented YOUR WAY. YOUR WAY is pretty much standard amongst Libertarian Free Willers)




My definition of God saving a drowning person: "Lord, I don't want to be saved. I love my life of sin. My father is the devil". But it is God who decides (Eph. 2:8-9, Phil 1:29, Romans 3:12, 1 Cor. 3:12, John 1:12-13, etc. etc.) God comes and changes the drowning man's heart. Now the man of his own desire says, "Lord, save me a sinner." God's answer, "I already have".
Your definition of God saving a drowning person: "Lord, thanks for throwing me a life jacket. Hmmm ... not sure I want it." God says, "If you don't reach out to the jacket you will drown". Your answer, "well, I think I will do my part and grab the life jacket so I can swim to shore". God's response, "I looked into the future so I knew you, with my help, would save yourself. Don't call your swimming a work though, it can be our secret."
as usual you love to use examples but do not quite get all of the possible ways, you need To be more open and realise you may not know others as well as you think they do

romans 1 says the world not only knows god, who he is and what he did, but the also know they are in serious danger, and rightly judged for their sin, that is why they hide god, because they know coming to the light exposes so god gave them over to their passions and did not stop them,

so fatalism on its face is already in danger

as for the area where 100 people where drowning, God sent his son to all 100. He called all of them to salvation, but like romans 1. Many hated God so much they would rather die then have him save them, others wanted to save themselves (religion) others did not trust god completely so said yes lord save me but I have to help. While others like the tax collector, realized their situation, and called out for Jesus to save them.

as the old saying goes. Many are called, few are chosen, God wants to save all, but his will is not to force his salvation on anyone, his will is all who see and believe will be given eternal life. In John 6 many saw him, but only a few believed, even judas was called but never came to saving faith, in my example all saw him, but only a few believed, it is they who were saved, because instead of wallowing in unbelief, they listened to God and god saved them.

this regeneration before justification but is unnerving, it has those who are still dead in sin (not yet justified) and dead because of that sin, made alive while still in that sin, THEN forgiven of that sin after they are made alove

this is against Gods character, he has to penalize sin, he can not make alive until the problem of sin first is taken care of.

as for your 4 examples, I do not have time this morning i will try to get to them later
 
E

EleventhHour

Guest
Grace is unmerited, a position that a believer is placed into and it outbounds ANY AND ALL SIN in a believer!

I think where I find the difficulty is the "favour" part when it is used in the Calvinist sense in that God denies salvation to some and favour to others.

Certainly "grace" is not earned or deserved, if it was it would not be grace.

However, some on here state God forces us to believe and if it is otherwise then it is our work.

So is trusting in Jesus for salvation a work of merit?

It cannot be a work of merit because scripture is clear we cannot earn salvation... but then do we have to go to the extreme as Calvinists do and make it so God forces Himself on people >>>> irresistible grace?

How does one deal with that constant accusation on here by people like @Fastfredy0 that we earned our salvation since we are not Calvinists?
 
E

EleventhHour

Guest
That Jesus did his part doesn’t mean universalism.
Jesus did not do His "part" ... He paid the debt for all sin.

Are you stating that Jesus only did a part and we are to do the rest?
 
E

EleventhHour

Guest
If it had said “some” of our sins then we’d know some could NEVER be forgiven. We’d have to ask which ones can never be forgiven since He provides no cleansing for some of them.

Tell me how can you possible be aware of all your sins?
 
E

EleventhHour

Guest
Did you that one of the apostles addressed a crowd who had rejected the Gospel as “not considering themselves WORTHY” of it? I didn’t write it, I just read and accept all of it.
I do not understand this response in context of my post.

My question was when are you worthy of entering the Kingdom?

What is the benchmark?
 
May 23, 2020
1,558
313
83
When you stated

So many people use this out of its context. They read Paul's mystery grace revelation into it when that was not the intention of what Jesus was saying above.

John wrote his gospel as a record of the 8 signs that Jesus performed in order for Jews to believe that he is their promised Messiah (John 20:30-31).

In that record, the signs are seen as works of God. There are at least two times the John account explains that.

John 10:
24 Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly. 25 Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me.

John 14
10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. 11 Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: or else believe me for the very works' sake. 12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

Once you understand what John was trying to do in his gospel, this verse you quoted is not saying we are trying to make it say, after we read Paul's revelation of the mystery.

Jesus was not saying to "believe in his death burial and resurrection and that is all you need to do to be saved." He was telling the Jews to believe in the signs, that he is their promised Messiah.
Pretty interesting as Paul talked about coming not just in words but also signs.
 
E

EleventhHour

Guest
Did God owe it to YOU to die for you?

This means once Grace stops being a Gift, you are ordering God to keep your Salvation.

Who made WHO?

God keeping us saved is not us ordering God.

I have never heard such wonky idea in my life!!
 
May 23, 2020
1,558
313
83
I do not understand this response in context of my post.

My question was when are you worthy of entering the Kingdom?

What is the benchmark?
I wasn’t answering your question, I admit. Just your question brought that scripture to mind. The speaker must have had something in mind.