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Understanding the gospel of salvation is by grace Salvation is given as a present possession for all who believe in the gospel message. Paul said, You have been saved, and you are continually being saved by the gospel. We are kept, and preserved as we continue in faith, our being faithful. The Hebrew language does not contain the word ‘faith’ in it, 'emuwn[ah] means faithfulness. It means a continual, active faithfulness, a trust toward God, on what He has said.Paul defines it“To the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 1:1). The Faith that brings salvation is by his blood, trusting in His work by his crucifixion that became the message that cleanse us, forgives us of our sins. He is the instrument of salvation. Christ himself giving his life unto death; Rom. 3:25 “Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation, through faith, to demonstrate his righteousness.” Our faith fulness is also mentioned as “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness” (Gal 5:22). Again, faith means faithfulness. A righteous man falls 7 times and gets up 7 times, showing he has faith, and he is faithful regardless of any lapse. To have genuine faith one must continue in having faith, trusting in Christ Jesus. Faith is not a temporary activity of the heart. Hab. 2:4 “Behold the proud, his soul is not upright in him; but the just shall live by his faith.” Emunah- faithfulness, steadfastness. Rom. 1:17 interprets this further, For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.” Heb. 3:5 “And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward” To the church of Pergamos Rev. 2:13 “And you hold fast to My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days in which Antipas was My faithful martyr, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells.” Paul explicitly states in Eph.2:9 “Not of works, lest any man should boast.” In Ephesians 2:8-10 Paul writes how we receive it- Not of works. It is by grace THROUGH Faith. Every false religion and cult has works as its basis, either by itself or included with faith. A work is a physical activity. Faith toward God is not - physical. Yet when salvation is a present possession, it can be seen in our works. When someone rejects receiving the grace of God by faith, they will replace it by something else. Whether it is the law, which is described as rules and regulations, rituals and ceremonies. Or whether it is works, exhibiting their self righteousness. False religion will make one work for what is freely given in Christ and received by faith. In Catholicism we see the very opposite of faith toward the real event. We have in its place sacramentalism, which is a physical object that they claim is Christ’s new incarnation in the daily sacraments given by the priest who has the power to change the bread and the wine. This becomes the means of grace, thus it nullifies true faith in the actual atoning sacrifice. Jesus has provides salvation by Himself crucified, He shed His Blood for the payment for your sin, and it is offered to you as a free gift. Baptism does not saved you, the sacraments do not save you, the Eucharist does not save you, Mary does not saved you, and no works, keeping the law saves you. It is all Jesus’ work. There are no works associated with any sinner becoming born again, beginning anew spiritual life. it is all a work of the LORD by our agreeing with the gospel by faith. It is ones disbelief that keeps one from getting saved. Jesus died for your sins, He wants to deal with your sins, to remove them to have a relationship. This is done by no longer turning away from him but to go toward him, embracing him as the only way. “Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Acts 20:21) At one point in his ministry he was asked how they can do the work of God. Jesus’ answer, “This is the work of God, that you believe on him whom he has sent” ( John 6:29). Torepent of our disbelief, we go from rejecting the gospel to believing the gospel, and when we do, we receive the free gift of God’s salvation. It is affirmed by the Holy Spirit coming to indwell us. No one is born saved, or is saved any other way then by putting their trust in Christ, the gospel, his work for us. No one is saved against their will, or without knowledge of Christ, but by acknowledging, believing, embracing his death and resurrection. God works on our hearts to be softened and turned toward him, to trust in him fully in what he did for us. It is after this that God deals with us on an individual basis. As God has imputed his righteousness toward us, we are daily changed by the Spirit through reading the Word into the image of the Son of God, becoming a new man, maturing spiritually to serve and work for his kingdom. |
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