Context is everything. There is no explicit or implicit content of forgiveness of sins in Rom 5:18 and Rom 4:25. Yet the word "justification" is used. Stay on point. As I stated before what is being justified is "life", not the forgiveness of sins.
The Gospel of Reconciliation
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Please provide for me the reference(s) detailing man's reconciling himself to God. I don't recall ever reading about such.
Sorry to be the one to tell you, but it is the Calvinist doctrine that is completely confused about works. They understand almost nothing about soteriology correctly, including works.
Also I would point out that Peter and Paul both speak of obedience to the gospel or the lack thereof (Rom 10:16; 2 Thess 1:8; 1 Peter 4:17). You think they were speaking about doing something, which you call works? In all three cases, the end for those who fail to obey is clearly stated. Given that is the case, then there must be something about obeying the gospel that is required to avoid that terrible fate. Just sayin'.
Lol, you cant even see that forgiveness of sins and Justification are relatively the same.
II Cor 5:20, Rom 4:2-3. Every time you ask for the forgiveness of sins, you are reconciling yourself to God. In Rom 5:1 Paul is using the word, justified, we are justified to God through our faith. Paul could have used the word, reconcile as well. The meaning is the same. Your belief justifies you to God. There are many more.
In the story of Abraham where he was made righteous by his faith. Reconcile and justify has the same meaning. to make right and could have been used as well.
Jesus has finished all, only those who seek to finish Christ speak on.
John 5:36 But I have greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me.
John 19:30 When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.
Romans 9:28 For he will finish the work, and cut it short in righteousness: because a short work will the Lord make upon the earth.
On the forum EVERY DAY:
Psalm 56:5 Every day they wrest my words: all their thoughts are against me for evil.
2 Peter 3:16 As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.
How they discount the reconciling death of Christ !
Mans religion discounts what Christs death did for all whom He died, it reconciled them to God, it doesn't say it reconciled God to them. Now read it carefully Rom 5:10
10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
Now it states as clear as day, that when we[believers] were [past tense] [enemies] present tense, we were [past tense] reconciled to God, and then he writes how, How does it happen according to the sacred writer ?
If you said it was by the death of Christ you are correct. This is an actual and factual reconciliation, both parties are reconciled to one another lest we deem Christs death insufficient to have accomplished just that.
Mans religion insists that Rom 5:10 doesn't speak of men being reconciled to God, but that God is reconciled to men, and now its up to man to reconcile himself to God, stealing the Glory from what Christs death did and attributing it to sinful man ! They say Christs death is merely a insufficient partial reconciliation ! 24
Mans religion discounts what Christs death did for all whom He died, it reconciled them to God, it doesn't say it reconciled God to them. Now read it carefully Rom 5:10
10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
Now it states as clear as day, that when we[believers] were [past tense] [enemies] present tense, we were [past tense] reconciled to God, and then he writes how, How does it happen according to the sacred writer ?
If you said it was by the death of Christ you are correct. This is an actual and factual reconciliation, both parties are reconciled to one another lest we deem Christs death insufficient to have accomplished just that.
Mans religion insists that Rom 5:10 doesn't speak of men being reconciled to God, but that God is reconciled to men, and now its up to man to reconcile himself to God, stealing the Glory from what Christs death did and attributing it to sinful man ! They say Christs death is merely a insufficient partial reconciliation ! 24
Many false teachers, and they do no works.
Many hear them, but they are not followers of Christ, who finished HIs works so we live with Him, not die with those who are already dead.
1 Timothy 5:6 But she that liveth in PLEASURE is dead while she liveth.
2 Thessalonians 2:12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
2 Peter 2:13 And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you;
2 Timothy 3:4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
Titus 1:16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.
Jude 1:4 For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.
Many hear them, but they are not followers of Christ, who finished HIs works so we live with Him, not die with those who are already dead.
1 Timothy 5:6 But she that liveth in PLEASURE is dead while she liveth.
2 Thessalonians 2:12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
2 Peter 2:13 And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you;
2 Timothy 3:4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;
Titus 1:16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.
Jude 1:4 For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.
@Rightglory
Thats teaching against what Christ accomplished, for He by His Death reconciled them He died for to God Rom 5:10
10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
And as a added bonus they are already forgiven of all trespasses, and they arent imputed to them. You making mans actions of asking the basis of divine Forgiveness, thats apostate mans religion, exalting man over the finished work of Christ.
Thats teaching against what Christ accomplished, for He by His Death reconciled them He died for to God Rom 5:10
10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
And as a added bonus they are already forgiven of all trespasses, and they arent imputed to them. You making mans actions of asking the basis of divine Forgiveness, thats apostate mans religion, exalting man over the finished work of Christ.
And your focus is on the doing/works of men and not on what Christs Death alone accomplished.
Teaching by many false teachers, worth a dime ?
2 Peter 2:1 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
1 John 2:27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.
2 Peter 2:1 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
1 John 2:27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.
Focus on the teacher verified, or on the ones predicted to deceive. not a difficult decision.
1 Corinthians 4:9 For I think that God hath set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men.
10 We are fools for Christ's sake, but ye are wise in Christ; we are weak, but ye are strong; ye are honourable, but we are despised.
11 Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwellingplace;
12 And labour, working with our own hands: being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it:
13 Being defamed, we intreat: we are made as the filth of the world, and are the offscouring of all things unto this day.
14 I write not these things to shame you, but as my beloved sons I warn you.
15 For though ye have ten thousand instructers in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.
16 Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me.
We cant be reconciled to the devil and live, its abut time some of you stop the vanity. ( it is vain to hear man)
And you are rejecting and/or ignoring significant passages of Scripture. But given that you haven't a clue about what salvation by works even means, I will stick to Scripture and reject your false Calvinist doctrine.
No, reconcile and justify do not have the same meaning. When we are saved, we are both reconciled and justified, but that doesn't mean that the words mean the same thing. Reconcile means a change of one condition to another. In the case of our reconciliation to God it is a change from being an enemy of God to being right with God. In 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 it speaks of reconciliation as becoming a new creature, being in Christ. That is what is accomplished in regeneration, not in justification. To be justified is not to change anything. It is a declaration. When God saves, He forgives the sin and declares the sinner to be righteous. To be justified is not to be made righteous, but rather to be declared righteous. God declares, "No punishment for you", even thought that is what we deserve. What we deserve hasn't changed. When we are saved, we are not made righteous, the sin is not eradicated, it is forgiven.
In the story of Abraham we read that "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness" (Rom 4:3). He was not made righteous; rather he was counted as righteous. That is true for us as well, Rom 4:23 But the words "it was counted to him" were not written for his sake alone, 24 but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, 25 who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.
Saving faith is distinct from every works-righteous system because it isn’t the result of human effort. In the same way that repentance is granted by God (Acts 11:18; 2 Tim. 2:25), faith is also a supernatural gift of God. Ephesians 2:8–9 affirms this: “By grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
Our response in salvation is faith, but even that is “not of [ourselves], it is the gift of God.” Faith is nothing that we do in our own power or by our own resources. In the first place, we do not have adequate power or resources. Moreover, God would not want us to rely on them even if we had them. Otherwise salvation would be in part by our own works, and we would have some ground to boast in ourselves. Paul’s emphasis in Ephesians 2:8 is that even faith does not come from us apart from God’s giving it. Human effort has nothing to do with it (cf.Romans 3:20; Galatians 2:16), and thus no one should boast, as if he contributed any part.
Spiritually dead, we were helpless until God intervened to quicken us: “Even when we were dead in our transgressions, [God] made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)” (Ephesians 2:5). Faith is an integral part of the gift His grace bestowed on us.
Scripture consistently teaches that faith is not conjured up by the human will but is a sovereignly granted gift of God. Jesus said, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” (John 6:44). And “No one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father” (John 6:65). Acts 3:16 speaks of “the faith which comes through Him.” Philippians 1:29 says, “To you it has been granted for Christ’s sake . . . to believe in Him.” And Peter wrote to fellow believers as “those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours” (2 Peter 1:1).
How do we know that faith is God’s gift? Left to ourselves, no one would ever believe: “There is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God” (Romans 3:11). “So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy” (Romans 9:16). God draws the sinner to Christ and gives the ability to believe. Without that divinely generated faith, one cannot understand and approach the Savior. “A natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised” (1 Corinthians 2:14). That is precisely why when Peter affirmed his faith in Christ as the Son of God, Jesus told him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 16:17). Faith is graciously given to believers by God himself.
As a divine gift, faith is neither transient nor impotent. It has an abiding quality that guarantees that it will endure to the end. The familiar words of Habakkuk 2:4, “The righteous will live by his faith” (cf. Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11; Hebrews 10:38), speak not of a momentary act of believing, but of a living, enduring trust in God. Hebrews 3:14 emphasizes the permanence of genuine faith. Its very durability is proof of its reality: “We have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end.” The faith God gives can never evaporate. And the work of salvation cannot ultimately be thwarted (cf. John 10:27–29). In Philippians 1:6 Paul wrote, “I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus” (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:8; Colossians 1:22–23).
For those reasons, saving faith is nothing like the fickleness of wavering human belief. It is as enduring and unchanging as the God who grants it.
Our response in salvation is faith, but even that is “not of [ourselves], it is the gift of God.” Faith is nothing that we do in our own power or by our own resources. In the first place, we do not have adequate power or resources. Moreover, God would not want us to rely on them even if we had them. Otherwise salvation would be in part by our own works, and we would have some ground to boast in ourselves. Paul’s emphasis in Ephesians 2:8 is that even faith does not come from us apart from God’s giving it. Human effort has nothing to do with it (cf.Romans 3:20; Galatians 2:16), and thus no one should boast, as if he contributed any part.
Spiritually dead, we were helpless until God intervened to quicken us: “Even when we were dead in our transgressions, [God] made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)” (Ephesians 2:5). Faith is an integral part of the gift His grace bestowed on us.
Scripture consistently teaches that faith is not conjured up by the human will but is a sovereignly granted gift of God. Jesus said, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” (John 6:44). And “No one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father” (John 6:65). Acts 3:16 speaks of “the faith which comes through Him.” Philippians 1:29 says, “To you it has been granted for Christ’s sake . . . to believe in Him.” And Peter wrote to fellow believers as “those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours” (2 Peter 1:1).
How do we know that faith is God’s gift? Left to ourselves, no one would ever believe: “There is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God” (Romans 3:11). “So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy” (Romans 9:16). God draws the sinner to Christ and gives the ability to believe. Without that divinely generated faith, one cannot understand and approach the Savior. “A natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised” (1 Corinthians 2:14). That is precisely why when Peter affirmed his faith in Christ as the Son of God, Jesus told him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 16:17). Faith is graciously given to believers by God himself.
As a divine gift, faith is neither transient nor impotent. It has an abiding quality that guarantees that it will endure to the end. The familiar words of Habakkuk 2:4, “The righteous will live by his faith” (cf. Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11; Hebrews 10:38), speak not of a momentary act of believing, but of a living, enduring trust in God. Hebrews 3:14 emphasizes the permanence of genuine faith. Its very durability is proof of its reality: “We have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end.” The faith God gives can never evaporate. And the work of salvation cannot ultimately be thwarted (cf. John 10:27–29). In Philippians 1:6 Paul wrote, “I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus” (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:8; Colossians 1:22–23).
For those reasons, saving faith is nothing like the fickleness of wavering human belief. It is as enduring and unchanging as the God who grants it.
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