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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Grace AND? | Matt 6:20 | Hank | 120264 | ||
Mommapbs: One of the problems we encounter on the Forum and in real life is the use of theological terms by people who don't know what they mean. I'm thinking of such words as grace, regeneration, justification and sanctification. One of the most recurring errors I've seen on the Forum in regard to soteriology is the jumbling in one's mind of the two terms, justification and sanctification, to the extent that they teach outright (or strongly imply) that the latter is the cause of or contributes to the former. This simply isn't true because the Bible teaches no such thing. Man is saved (justified) by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Period. That's all. Nothing else. Nothing added. Sanctification is the result of, not the cause of, justification. Unless one has the meaning of these fundamental theological terms fixed firmly in his mind, he is prone to err; and he should not attempt therefore to teach others what he himself does not understand. And it really isn't all that difficult to understand. John 3:16 and Ephesians 2:8-10 are not written in code. We are saved by God's grace through faith in His Son. These are plain statements that a child can understand. Why can't we? Why do we say, "Yes, I believe we are saved by grace, but..." and then insist on attaching our own laundry list of things we must do to in order "to be safe instead of sorry"? Was our Lord lying to Paul when He said, "My grace is sufficient for thee."? (2 Cor. 12:9). Or did Paul omit any essentials and mislead the Philippian jailer when he, in answer to the jailer's question about how to be saved, told him, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house."? Will we vain little vessels of clay never learn how useless it is to wave our own righteousness before the Lord seeking His salvation, knowing that they are nothing but filthy rags to Him? (Isaiah 64:6). --Hank | ||||||
2 | Grace AND? | Matt 6:20 | BradK | 120269 | ||
Hank, I want to duly note your post with an AMEN! You are so right. I think there tends to be a lack of understanding basic Systematic Theology- and specifically Soteriology. The terms justification, sanctification, redemption, regeneration, etc. MUST be understood to have a cohesive, coherent theology that is in line with the Bible. I try to stay away from using non-biblical terminology because it can mislead and confuse. Further, if it's not based upon Biblical principles, then what do we really hold to? For example" the term "justification" can be found and defined from scripture- they are objectively defined. I think it fair to say that what any one of us "thinks" about something is subjective and depends on "my" reference point that may or may not be scripturally based. Thanks for your concise comments which do lend us all something to think about as we post. Speaking the Truth in Love, BradK |
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