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NASB | Deuteronomy 32:4 "The Rock! His work is perfect, For all His ways are just; A God of faithfulness and without injustice, Righteous and upright is He. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Deuteronomy 32:4 "The Rock! His work is perfect, For all His ways are just; A God of faithfulness without iniquity (injustice), Just and upright is He. |
Subject: Is God really just? |
Bible Note: Greetings Joe! I hope you had a great Christmas my friend! I realize that illustrations are weak vessels with which to explain spiritual truths, but maybe this one will explain my understanding. Salvation is a gift. Let's say that I buy my son a gift. I go to great trouble and expense to purchase this gift. I box it. I wrap it. I put his name on it. However, until he actually accepts the gift, he never receives any benefit from it. I see salvation in the same way. I don't see Jesus as a possible Savior. I see Him as the Savior of the whole world. But, we must accept the gift or we don't receive the benefits. There are verses which would support this view. John 1:12 - "Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—" Rom. 5:17 - "For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ." 2 Cor. 6:1 - "As God’s fellow workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain." Gal. 3:14 - "He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit." Heb. 9:15 - "For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant." All of these verses use an active voice for the verb 'receive'. I think John 1:12 and Rom. 5:17 make the strongest case. Based on John 1:12, I would say that "receiving" is equivalent to "faith". Thus, the gift of grace is something which must be accepted by faith (Eph. 2:8-9). To go back to my "weak" illustration, suppose that my son refused my gift. Does that negate the price that I paid? Does that mean that there really isn't a gift? Of course not! So, salvation is an accomplished fact, whether we accept it or reject it. But, our faith response determines whether or not we get to enjoy the benefits of the gift. Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |