(Love123;2126)
Ephesian 2:8 for by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: ...
But when we do get saved; we work outwardly the genuine experience of the heart. God BlessLove123
Greetings,Let's dig for the
hidden treasure (Matt. 13:44); perhaps the Good News is better than we think. To rightly discern the verses you quote dear believer, the context becomes clearer with the preceeding ones. Firstly, "For by grace you have been saved
through faith" (Eph. 2:8). The verse does not say, "have been saved 'because' of your faith." Many make the mistake of thinking that repentance and faith is of such value as to atone for sin, but that can't be. Grace must be imparted, the atoning sacrifice must avail for man, before he can repent. "But with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place
once for
all,
having obtained eternal redemption" (Heb. 9:12).Christ Jesus is already the "Savior of all men, especially of those who believe" (1 Tim. 4:10). And has tasted "death for everyone" (Heb. 2:9). Going back to Ephesians 2, examining the contextual layout. "But God, who is rich inmercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us
alive together with Christ (by grace you
have been saved), and
raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (Eph. 2:4-6). There is no mention of the believers confession, repentance or faith. It is an act of God, apart from our own personal experience. The verses are referring to the "death and resurrection" of Christ." How do we know this? Because Paul took a great amount of his writings straight out of the Old Testament. In this case, from the book of Hosea. Hosea 6:1,2--"For He has torn, but He will heal us: He has stricken, but He will bind us up. After two days He will
revive us [make us alive]; On the third day He will
raise us up [He will
revive us], That we may live in His sight" Where were you when Christ died on the cross? In Christ! All humanity, past, present, and future were crucified "in Him." Objectively, we "sit together in the heavenly places 'in Christ Jesus.'" "And He is before all things, and
in Him all things consist" (Col. 1:17). Hence, Jesus Christ first saves us, then calls us! How do we know this? According to the gospel, the power of God, "has saved us, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began" (2 Tim. 8,9). I'm not talking of Universalism, nor of Calvinism. Sadly, many will refuse the salvation already obtained for all. If any are to be saved at last, it will be because of God's intiatiative. And, if any will be lost at last, it will be because of man's initiative. It is easy to be saved and hard to be lost, IF, one comprehends the love of God's wonderful gospel. (See Eph. 3:14-20). No one will see Jesus for the first time and say, "I did my part" "I did my part." The gospel is God laying the glory of man in the dust. Oh, the poor suffering sinnner, who all their lifetime trying so desperately to live up to God's calling by trying "first"
to do something. He already
has done something for us! Will we believe? Many think this belief in an already established salvation will encourage people to go on sinning
ad infinitum. However, there is one sin that cannot be forgiven, the deliberate, persistant resistance against the Holy Spirit (unbelief). When the Bible states: "For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to ALL men, it goes on to say, "instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age" (Titus 2:11, 12). The covenant of grace has God more actively involved in our salvation, initiating the entire process, "from first to last this has been been the work of God," (2 Cor. 5:18, NEB). Legalists are fearful of lowering obedience, unmindful that only "love is the fulfilling of the law," and that all egocentric motivation produces either lukewarmness or eventual falling-away (Rom. 13:10; only "agape never fails," 1 Cor. 13:8). Blessings in Christ,John S.
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