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Salvation is through faith "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God" -- Ephesians 2:8 Saved by grace through faith. If Paul had wanted to say what you said, he would have written "Faith saves you." He didn't. He said "Grace saves you." And God bestows His saving grace through faith in Jesus Christ. That's why salvation IS NOT a work of man, since man has nothing to do with God's grace. Salvation is of the Lord alone. The world turns on the understanding of a couple prepositions.

It would seem so, and you can't seem to understand them.

Here is the Calvinist, A.T.Robinson, considered the foremost Greek scholar of his day,

For by grace (th gar cariti). Explanatory reason. "By the grace" already mentioned in verse Romans 5 and so with the article. Through faith (dia pistewß). This phrase he adds in repeating what he said in verse Romans 5 to make it plainer. "Grace" is God's part, "faith" ours. And that (kai touto). Neuter, not feminine tauth, and so refers not to pistiß (feminine) or to cariß (feminine also), but to the act of being saved by grace conditioned on faith on our part. Paul shows that salvation does not have its source (ex umwn, out of you) in men, but from God. Besides, it is God's gift (dwron) and not the result of our work.

Did Paul ever say that we are saved by faith?

Yes, he did in Rom.5:1.

Through: by means of; by an agency of, noting instrumentality (sanctify them through thy truth (Jn.17)(American Dictionary of the English Language)

http://bible.crosswalk.com/Commentaries/JamiesonFaussetBrown/jfb.cgi?book=eph&chapter=002

Below is the JFB commentary.

The instrument or mean of salvation on the part of the person saved; Christ alone is the meritorious agent.

Calvin states, The next question is, in what way do men receive that salvation which is offered to them by the hand of God? The answer is, by faith;

Here is the Calvinist Gill,

through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; salvation is through faith, not as a cause or condition of salvation, or as what adds anything to the blessing itself; but it is the way, or means, or instrument, which God has appointed, for the receiving and enjoying it,

http://bible.crosswalk.com/Commentaries/GillsExpositionoftheBible/gil.cgi?book=eph&chapter=002&verse=008&next=009&prev=007

Anymore questions on how through is being used?

Calvinists A.T. Robinson, Gill, and Calvin all say it is the instrument by which we are saved, not just a sign that we are saved

You continue to offer our side of the debate and call it your own.

Fine by me. Grace saves. Faith is the instrument God employs to bestow His grace. It's what we've been saying from day one.

Calvinists A.T. Robinson, Gill, and Calvin all say it is the instrument by which we are saved, not just a sign that we are saved

God could have given us a fortune cookie to tell us of His bestowal of grace, ftd, with the following verse inside...

"YOU ARE SAVED BY THE ATONING SACRIFICE OF JESUS CHRIST WHO DIED IN YOUR STEAD. FALL TO YOUR KNEES AND THANK GOD ALMIGHTY

But the cookie doesn't save us; HIS GRACE SAVES US through faith in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ.

One day, God willing, you'll get the distinction. It's the difference between Geneva and Rome. Monergism/synergism.

Pleazzzzeee! How many times have we talked about this- round and round and round! Here's what the Westminster Confession has to say:

I. The grace of faith, whereby the elect are enabled to believe to the saving of their souls,[1] is the work of the Spirit of Christ in their hearts,[2] and is ordinarily wrought by the ministry of the Word,[3] by which also, and by the administration of the sacraments, and prayer, it is increased and strengthened.[4]

II. By this faith, a Christian believes to be true whatsoever is revealed in the Word, for the authority of God Himself speaking therein;[5] and acts differently upon that which each particular passage thereof contains; yielding obedience to the commands,[6] trembling at the threatenings,[7] and embracing the promises of God for this life, and that which is to come.[8] But the principal acts of saving faith are accepting, receiving, and resting upon Christ alone for justification, sanctification, and eternal life, by virtue of the covenant of grace.[9]

III. This faith is different in degrees, weak or strong;[10] may often and many ways assailed, and weakened, but gets the victory:[11] growing up in many to the attainment of a full assurance, through Christ,[12] who is both the author and finisher of our faith.[13]

Faith is a gift from God as pointed out in the confession.