How to be saved (born again) and join the family of God!

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mailmandan

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Luke 24:47 - and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

Acts 3:19 - Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.

Acts 5:31 - Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins.

Acts 10:43 - Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins. 44 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message. 45 All the circumcised believers who came with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also. 46 For they were hearing them speaking with tongues and exalting God. Then Peter answered, 47 “Surely no one can refuse the water for these to be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he?”

Acts 11:17 - If therefore God gave them the same gift (Holy Spirit) as He gave us when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God?” 18 When they heard these things they became silent; and they glorified God, saying, “Then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance unto life.”

Acts 16:30 - And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” 31 So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

Acts 15:7 - And when there had been much dispute, Peter rose up and said to them: “Men and brethren, you know that a good while ago God chose among us, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. 8 So God, who knows the heart, acknowledged them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us, 9 and made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.

Acts 26:18 - to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.

Mark 16:16(b) - ..but he who does not believe will be condemned.

John 3:18 - He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who (is not water baptized? - NO) does not believe is condemned already, because he has not (been water baptized? - NO) because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

*So the only logical conclusion when properly harmonizing scripture with scripture is that belief/faith in Jesus Christ "implied in genuine repentance" (rather than water baptism) brings the remission of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
 
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Truther

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Not if you believe that belief has to come first. It absolutely is first.

Here is some commentary by Matt Slick.

Questions for those who believe baptism is necessary for salvation. | CARM.org

  1. Rom. 4:5 says that he who believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness. So do you agree that when a person believes, he is righteous in God's sight?
    1. If not, how do you not contradict what the scripture says?
    2. If yes, then baptism isn't necessary; otherwise, they wouldn't be righteous in Christ's sight.
  2. If a person who believes is not declared righteous, then why isn't he?
  3. If a person who believes is declared righteous, then is he righteous without baptism?
  4. Is a sinner who has prayed and asked the Lord Jesus to forgive him of his sins actually forgiven, or is he still in a state of damnation until he gets baptized?
  5. If a person prays and asks Jesus to forgive him of all of his sins, is he forgiven or not?
    1. Jesus said in John 14:14, "If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it."
    2. If he is not forgiven, then aren't you saying that trust and faith in Christ isn't enough?
  6. A ritual is a set of forms and practices. It is a ceremony. Baptism is a ritual, a ceremony where one person administers baptism to another person. Therefore, if you maintain that baptism is necessary for salvation, are you not saying that salvation is by faith and a ritual?
  7. Can you please tell us if such a man who has believed in Christ and received him, yet dies without being baptized goes to eternal damnation?
    1. If you say no, then baptism is not necessary for salvation.
    2. If you say yes, then he is not declared righteous by faith.
Commentary and Acts 2:38 dodging can never debunk this...

38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
 
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Marymog

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Mmmmmmmmmm, No! One cannot lose their salvation.

“Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat; but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not” (Luke 22:31).
That passage in Luke was Jesus talking to Simon (Peter) and has nothing to do with guaranteed salvation.
 

Marymog

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Mmmmmmmmmm, No! One cannot lose their salvation.

And, this is the promise that He hath promised us, even eternal life (1 John 2:25).
Stop cherry picking Scripture to fit what YOU believe or someone that is tickling your ears taught you.

Look at vs 24: IF that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father.

Soooooooo IF you hold to what you heard from the beginning THEN you will have eternal life. It does NOT say you are guaranteed eternal life....o_O
 

Marymog

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Mmmmmmmmmm, No! One cannot lose their salvation.

And, the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen (2 Timothy 4:18).
Oh goodness.......Do you know what 2 Timothy is?????

It is basically a farewell (death) letter from Paul to Timothy! If you noticed, which you obviously didn't, in vs 6 Paul says For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. Then in vs 18 Paul is telling Timothy the Lord shall deliver HIM (Paul) from every evil work, and will preserve HIM (Paul) unto his heavenly kingdom. Paul was talking about HIMSELF and not every single Christian from the time of Christ until eternity.o_Oo_Oo_Oo_Oo_O
 
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Spurgeon's Girl

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Stop cherry picking Scripture to fit what YOU believe or someone that is tickling your ears taught you.

Look at vs 24: IF that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father.

Soooooooo IF you hold to what you heard from the beginning THEN you will have eternal life. It does NOT say you are guaranteed eternal life....o_O

Wrong again. I didn't use verse 24 because it does not change what was said in verse 25. The IF here refers to having heard the original and authentic saving message of Christs death for sin and his conquest of death.

This is not cherry picking, it's looking for the main idea. That's a skill that I'm quite sure you understand. Here it is again

And, this is the promise that He hath promised us, even eternal life (1 John 2:25).

Honestly, I don't think you (corporately, not individually) have ever heard the good news because the RCC teaches things the scriptures know nothing of.

Here are more:

Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen (Jude 24-25).

And, the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen (2 Timothy 4:18).

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And, I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand. I and my Father are one”
(John 10:27-30).

Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:2-6).



And, the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen (2 Timothy 4:18).

There it is "Jesus will preserve me"

 
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Marymog

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Wrong again. I didn't use verse 24 because it does not change what was said in verse 25. The IF here refers to having heard the original and authentic saving message of Christs death for sin and his conquest of death.

This is not cherry picking, it's looking for the main idea. That's a skill that I'm quite sure you understand. Here it is again

And, this is the promise that He hath promised us, even eternal life (1 John 2:25).

Honestly, I don't think you (corporately, not individually) have ever heard the good news because the RCC teaches things the scriptures know nothing of.

Here are more:

Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen (Jude 24-25).

And, the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen (2 Timothy 4:18).

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And, I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand. I and my Father are one”
(John 10:27-30).

Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:2-6).



And, the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen (2 Timothy 4:18).

There it is "Jesus will preserve me"
PLEASE...stop twisting scripture to fit YOUR belief.
 

justbyfaith

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PLEASE...stop twisting scripture to fit YOUR belief.
She is not twisting scripture...

But your beloved church does in fact, twist scripture to fit a certain theology which is contrary to the teaching of holy scripture.
 

Spurgeon's Girl

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John 1:12, Joshua 24:15, Revelation 22:17.

Let's go over these verses you have posted and see if they say what you claim.

John 1:12

12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,


Not a word about free will unto salvation. The verse isn’t even about salvation, it about those who have already believed.


Joshua 24:15

English Standard Version

15 And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”


This is warning. It asks people to either serve the Lord or their own ‘little gods’. Not a word about free will unto salvation.

Revelation 22:17

English Standard Version

17 The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.


This is the transmission of the Revelation. As promised in Revelation 1:1. ‘Come’ is the prayer addressed to Jesus who had promised to come soon. Not a word about free will unto salvation.
 

Spurgeon's Girl

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38 And Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
No mention of belief. Just repent and be baptised and then you are saved.

41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.
Doesn't say they were saved before they were baptised.
Believe and be baptised - then they were saved
Just as Jesus said "He who believes and is baptized shall be saved..."

Funny thing about words, I almost didn't catch what you had done.

It doesn't say a word about believing in Jesus first. Trying to introduce the word 'saved' into the verse isn't what I said.
 

justbyfaith

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John 1:12

12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,


Not a word about free will unto salvation. The verse isn’t even about salvation, it about those who have already believed.

Joshua 24:15

English Standard Version

15 And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”


This is warning. It asks people to either serve the Lord or their own ‘little gods’. Not a word about free will unto salvation.

For both of these, you kind of have to "read between the lines"...try meditating on what the scripture says (chewing on what it really means; Psalms 1).

Revelation 22:17

English Standard Version

17 The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.


This is the transmission of the Revelation. As promised in Revelation 1:1. ‘Come’ is the prayer addressed to Jesus who had promised to come soon. Not a word about free will unto salvation.

In the kjv, it says, "whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely."

I know that there is a trend in some circles, when the kjv doesn't say what you want it to say, to get another version out and hope that it is more to your liking. This is what was prophesied in 2 Timothy 4:3-4...people heaping to themselves teachers (Bible translators) to tell them what their itching ears want to hear.

Then there is also a tendency, once a translation has told you what you want it to say, to stay with that translation because it has tickled your ears once and will do so again.

Of course, if it does not tickle your ears, it is par for the course that you will go to yet another translation, but not returning to the kjv because it offended you once.
 

Spurgeon's Girl

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Commentary and Acts 2:38 dodging can never debunk this...

38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Really? Baptism isn't about the remission of sins. The blood of Jesus did that. Peter knew that. I can agree that it is implied that the people Peter was talking to knew that. There are many ways to present the gospel. But pay attention, the goal was to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

No one is saying that baptism isn't important, it is important. But it is not necessary for salvation.


Is Acts 2:38 referring to the baptism of the Holy Spirit rather than water Baptism? | CARM.org

Is Acts 2:38 referring to the baptism of the Holy Spirit rather than water Baptism?

by Luke Wayne
1/30/17

In Acts 2:38, Peter tells the crowd to express their repentance in water baptism. There is no doubt that the context here is referring to physical baptism in water and not the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Teachers who attempt to say otherwise are generally either trying to promote the false premise that water baptism is unimportant in the New Testament, or else they are trying to uphold their own (generally false) definition of "baptism of the Holy Spirit" as a necessary supernatural experience required for salvation. Either way, they are incorrect. Acts 2:38 is plainly talking about water baptism. The verse says:

"Peter said to them, 'Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit,'" (Acts 2:38).

Peter tells them to repent and be baptized. He then promises that they will receive the Holy Spirit. These statements are distinct, connected by the word "and." They are two separate things. He doesn't say "be baptized BY receiving the Holy Spirit." He says, "be baptized AND you will receive the Holy Spirit." Peter does not equate these two things. The command to be baptized is not identical to the promise that they will receive the Holy Spirit. We see this even more plainly as we look at the broader context. The book of Acts does use the term "baptize with the Holy Spirit," but it is always in the same formula:

"John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit," (Acts 1:5, 11:16).

Outside of these two references to the words of Jesus, the context makes clear that Acts is talking about water baptism. Note, for example, when Phillip preaches the gospel to the Samaritans:

"But when they believed Philip preaching the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were being baptized, men and women alike," (Acts 8:12).

Like with Peter in chapter 2, the author simply says that they were "being baptized" without clarification. Does that mean with water or Spirit here? The answer becomes obvious a little later in the chapter:

"Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent them Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. For He had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus," (Acts 8:14-16).

So when Acts tells us that people received Baptism, it is not the same thing as receiving the Holy Spirit. It is outward, water baptism. Likewise, later in the chapter, when Phillip preaches to the Ethiopian eunuch, we are told:

"As they went along the road they came to some water; and the eunuch said, 'Look! Water! What prevents me from being baptized?'” (Acts 8:36).

The man heard the gospel and wanted to "be baptized," so he looked for water. They then go down into the water for Phillip to baptize him. Again, the normal use of "baptized" in Acts is water baptism, and water baptism is a response to the gospel just as Peter was calling for in Acts 2:38. To cite one more example, when Peter preached the gospel to the Gentile house of Cornelius in Acts chapter 10, they respond in faith and immediately receive the Holy Spirit. Afterward, Peter responds to this by saying:

"'Surely no one can refuse the water for these to be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he?' And he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay on for a few days." (Acts 10:47).

Again, we see Peter preaching the gospel, just as he did in Acts chapter 2. When people respond in faith, he has them baptized, and that baptism is plainly not the receiving of the Holy Spirit, which had already happened. He calls for water. It is water baptism.
 

Spurgeon's Girl

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Oh goodness.......Do you know what 2 Timothy is?????

It is basically a farewell (death) letter from Paul to Timothy! If you noticed, which you obviously didn't, in vs 6 Paul says For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. Then in vs 18 Paul is telling Timothy the Lord shall deliver HIM (Paul) from every evil work, and will preserve HIM (Paul) unto his heavenly kingdom. Paul was talking about HIMSELF and not every single Christian from the time of Christ until eternity.o_Oo_Oo_Oo_Oo_O

The context is indeed Paul writing to Timothy and expecting his execution. No one is denying that. But who is it Paul says is preserving HIM? The Lord.

I have given you other verses. that say the same thing. God helps us to persevere, we don't do it on out own.

He said the same thing earlier in his ministry. You can find it in Philippians 1:2-6, 1 Thessalonians 5:23
 
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farouk

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The context is indeed Paul writing to Timothy and expecting his execution. No one is denying that. But who is it Paul says is preserving HIM? The Lord.

I have given you other verses. that say the same thing. God helps us to persevere, we don't do it on out own.

He said the same thing earlier in his ministry. You can find it in Philippians 1:2-6, 1 Thessalonians 5:23
@Spurgeon's Girl I love these words of verse 6 of Philippians 1; "he who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ:"
 
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Spurgeon's Girl

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@Spurgeon's Girl I myself wasn't aware that you twisted anything, anyway...

I try not to, but if you think I have be sure to let me know. I'm a sinner and I can get too full of my own beliefs. Jesus instructed us to help each other when we fall. Thank you.

Romans 8:37-39

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.