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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | need for a bible-anyone | Bible general Archive 1 | Reformer Joe | 50532 | ||
You wrote: "Who was Paul writing to in Ephesians 2? Was he not instructing the Gentiles that while prior to Jesus dying on the cross they had no hope for salvation, but now, through no effort of their own, God had (has) given them the opportunity?" Not exactly. Ephesians 2 speaks not of an opportunity, but an accomplished reality on the part of the Christians in Ephesus. Paul uses the word "formerly" to describe their previous state of existence (including himself in there, so obviously not referring exclusively to Gentiles). Ephesians 2:1-4 describes the unregenerate state of the Ephesians. The following three verses describe the transformation that has already taken place and their current state. It seems like a pretty completed task to me. Can our faith really be compared to a car which needs maintenance on our part so that it will not break down? I don't see that such an analogy is that great, but let's go with it. You assume that salvation is a gift to us that, once given, must be maintained by US. Let's see what the Bible says: "For 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." --Philippians 1:6 "Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy" --Jude 24 "Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." --1 Thesalonians 5:24 "For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified." --Romans 8:29-30 "Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust." --2 Peter 1:2-4 Certainly, there is an aspect of effort on our parts in our sanctification (with the grace that God gives us and the work of the Spirit in our lives and our wills), but it is quite clear from Scripture that Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith, not us; and that it is God who is at work in us, to will and to work for His good pleasure. In other words, the Father not only gives the gift; He also is the one who ultimately maintains it. --Joe! |
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2 | need for a bible-anyone | Bible general Archive 1 | Aspiring Overseer | 50551 | ||
A few more thoughts... Part II What has been the result of disobedience to God’s commands? Let’s look at an example of how God dealt with His people who were disobedient during OT times: Heb 3:12-19 12Take care, brethren, lest there should be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart, in falling away from the living God. 13But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called "Today," lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. 14For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end; 15while it is said, "Today if you hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts, as when they provoked Me." 16For who provoked Him when they had heard? Indeed, did not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses? 17And with whom was He angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? 18And to whom did He swear that they should not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient? 19And so we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief. NAS Note that the people of God during the early Mosiacal Age walked by sight. They actually heard God speak to Moses and were led by God’s column for 40 years! Thus unbelief must be incorrect. The original Greek is: NT:570 apaistia (ap-is-tee'-ah); from NT:571; faithlessness, i.e. (negatively) disbelief (lack of Christian faith), or (positively) unfaithfulness (disobedience): KJV-unbelief. (Biblesoft's New Exhaustive Strong's Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright (c) 1994, Biblesoft and International Bible Translators, Inc.) Thus they disobeyed and were therefore punished by not being allowed to enter the promised land. |
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3 | need for a bible-anyone | Bible general Archive 1 | Reformer Joe | 50575 | ||
Just as a side note, I find it telling that you did not address in the slightest the verses I posted before. Typical "Church of Christ" response. I would love for you to go back and show me how those verses mean the opposite of what they directly say. I agree that apostasy is a reality for those in the visible church. My question is, knowing that you dishonor and disobey God on a daily basis, how much sin is too much for grace to compensate for? In other words, how do you know that you have not crossed the "disobedience line"? --Joe! |
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