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NASB | Acts 8:13 Even Simon himself believed; and after being baptized, he continued on with Philip, and as he observed signs and great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Acts 8:13 Even Simon believed [Philip's message of salvation]; and after being baptized, he continued on with Philip, and as he watched the attesting signs and great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed. |
Bible Question: I have a related question for anyone who happens to read this. The central issue in the "eternal security" debate seems to be whether or not the kind of belief mentioned in Hebrews 6 and 10, Acts 8:13, and other places is the kind that produces salvation or not. I think we can agree on the basic point that salvation is by grace through faith, not of works, and that this faith is not a mere mental assertion of the truth, but a genuine trust in Christ for salvation. So is this the kind of faith that is mentioned in these and other verses? I think the key to understanding this is found in one phrase that is used in Hebrews 10:26 and all over New Testament scripture: "the knowledge of the truth." This exact phrase is used several times, with little explaination to its meaning. Is it synonymous with "saving faith," or is it refering to a mere mental acceptance? It seems to me that it indicates that the person has repented and become a genuine believer (see 2 Tim. 2:25), but I could be wrong. What is the correct way to interpret this rather ambiguous phrase? |
Bible Answer: dgregg, Somethings to consider in the context of your question. “ Not everyone who says to me, ‘ Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father. On that day many will say to me ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and cast out demons in your name and do many mighty works in your name?’ And I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me you evil doers.’ (Matt. 7: 21) “Then the King will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you visited me...’” (Matt. 25:31-45). "and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing…So faith, hope, love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” (1 Cor. 13: 1-3, 13) But where in St. Paul’s letter to the Romans can we find any reference to this kind of works in Christ? St. Paul opens and closes his letter with a reference to “the obedience of faith.” (Romans 1:5 and Romans 16:26) In chapter two he tells us: “For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who are justified.” (Rom. 2: 13) Eight times in chapter two, between verse six and verse twenty-seven, he speaks of the necessity to “do the law.” Is this the same Paul who in the same letter has told us that we are not justified by “works of the law” but by faith? Or is he speaking of two different laws? Emmaus |