Subject: What exactly must a person to be saved? |
Bible Note: Greetings, inhisname. You wrote: "I read your question with interest and wondered why you ask what a person must do to be saved." Well, the Philippian jailer asked the question (Acts 16:30). "Did Jesus tell the young ruler to do anything? Yes, but that was old Testament." Matthew is New Testament. "Jesus was emphasizing the necessity of obedience before the cross." No one has ever been declared forgiven by God by their obedience. Abraham, David and I were saved in exactly the same way: by faith in God's promised redemption (Romans 4). People were never, ever saved by their own sin-tainted works. "After the Cross the only thing you have to do is open your mouth and confess Jesus before men and you also must believe (Romans 10:9,10)." What do you make of "New Testament" passages like these: "Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord." --Hebrews 12:14 "Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God." --1 Corinthians 6:9-11 'As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, "YOU SHALL BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY."' --1 Peter 1:14-16 You wrote: "You also have to tithe and pray, but that's all." Why do you add those two if works have nothing to do with it? You wrote: "We probably could be saved if we only knew that verse and none others. " Then why did God give us 13,000 other verses? We are saved by grace through faith, but a "faith" that does not demonstrate itself in obedience to Christ is not a genuine faith at all and does not save (James 2). One of the best books I have read on the subject of the holiness in the Christian life is J.C. Ryle's _Holiness_. You can access the chapter in which Ryle distinguishes between justification and sanctification here: http://www.tctwest.net/[TILDE]trinity/HolinessPages/Chapter2.htm You will need to replace the [TILDE] above with the little squiggly thing above the "Tab" ket (Study Bible Forum won't let me use the character in the post). I hope this will help to give a clearer perspective on these two important and inseparable aspects of the believer's salvation. --Joe! |