How Do You Obtain Salvation Through Belief in Christ?

Antinomianism and Salvation ^ | 2/22/2001 | Gart O'Toole

[Benchim]

And what is the condition for this absolute forgiveness?

And what must we do to reach "imputed righteousness"?

Very simple. John 3:16

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world,but that the world might be saved through him. 18

He who believes in him is not condemned; he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son Of GOD.

[Benchim]

There is nothing else "stacked on top" of our salvation except by those seeking material gain in the name of God for which I am convinced they will not be "condemned" . (They are forgiven, like you)

The verse ignored by those wanting to "stack" other requirements of salvation is John 10:28

"and I give them eternal life, and they shalt never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand."

( Notice the sequence of events.First Salvation –then later the attempt to “Snatch" the already saved from him. This put a lie to “Judgment”)

If these verses are lies, we are doomed. If these verses mean what they say we are free. We live to please our Father because he has loved us so much, not to gain salvation over and over again.

[Fpimentel]

Believing that Christ is the Son of God is not enough.

[TheBattman]

The problem with antinomianism is that the term is applied by the “gotta work for your salvation” type folks to slander those who believe in salvation by Grace through faith alone (you know, the Biblical description).

But antinomianism, much like Calvinism, has been - at times - carried so far as to justify an immoral life. The problem I have with that is that I don’t believe, and indeed cannot believe, that someone who is truly saved by Grace, through faith in Jesus Christ can willfully act in an immoral way - or at least live life IN such sin. No mechanical “keeping of the law” could ever save anyone. No-one has ever “earned” justification or made themselves fully righteous. It is only the cleansing and covering that comes from the blood of Jesus Christ. On the other hand, Christ did tell His disciples to “take up their cross daily”, and to keep “all that I have commanded you”. In other places we read to “keep my commandments”.

God gave us the 10 Commandments, not as a way of earning salvation, but as a way to measure our lives against His standard, that we might be able to see how short we fall in trying to “live up”. That we might see how much we need The Savior.

We should obey because of our love for Him. Not that we can earn His love or His forgiveness, but because we Love Him and desire to please Him.

[TheBattman]

Romans 10:9

“that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved”

James puts the point to the purpose and source of works - it is a demonstration OF our faith. His statement that “works without faith is dead” clearly means just that - it is of no use. This clearly ties directly back to Jesus’ own words regarding Him being the vinedresser - and the unproductive vines being cut off. If you have true faith, but are unproductive/unfruitful (as in-no works), then you are at a very real risk of being cut off . But as Christ Himself said none can pluck His from His hand, that doesn’t mean undoing or losing salvation - it means we may very well be cut off from this life.

[Benchim]

I agree . You have a wonderful perception . The only place I disagree is that you are saved no matter what sin you commit or we are all doomed.

[Benchim]

I think we need an antinomian caucus. If you agree. just private reply.

[mrsalty]

Salvation comes by grace through faith in the Son of God, nothing anyone can do can earn their salvation, and when the Lord says to keep His commandments, His commandments are to love the Lord your God with all your heart and to love thy neighbor as yourself. All other commandments are hinged on those two.

[narses]

It begins with the grace of God which touches a sinner’s heart, and calls him to repentance. This grace cannot be merited; it proceeds solely from the love and mercy of God. Man may receive or reject this inspiration of God, he may turn to God or remain in sin. Grace does not constrain man’s free will.

Thus assisted the sinner is disposed for salvation from sin; he believes in the revelation and promises of God, he fears God’s justice, hopes in his mercy, trusts that God will be merciful to him for Christ’s sake, begins to love God as the source of all justice, hates and detests his sins.

This disposition is followed by justification itself, which consists not in the mere remission of sins, but in the sanctification and renewal of the inner man by the voluntary reception of God’s grace and gifts, whence a man becomes just instead of unjust, a friend instead of a foe and so an heir according to hope of eternal life. This change happens either by reason of a perfect act of charity elicited by a well disposed sinner or by virtue of the Sacrament either of Baptism or of Penance according to the condition of the respective subject laden with sin. The Council further indicates the causes of this change. By the merit of the Most Holy Passion through the Holy Spirit, the charity of God is shed abroad in the hearts of those who are justified.

Against the heretical tenets of various times and sects we must hold

that the initial grace is truly gratuitous and supernatural;
that the human will remains free under the influence of this grace;
that man really cooperates in his personal salvation from sin;
that by justification man is really made just, and not merely declared or reputed so;
that justification and sanctification are only two aspects of the same thing, and not ontologically and chronologically distinct realities;
that justification excludes all mortal sin from the soul, so that the just man is no way liable to the sentence of death at God’s judgment-seat.

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13407a.htm

[TheBattman]

Huh? Where did I type or imply that it matters what sins we commit?

I guess we could delve into “blasphemy of the Holy Spirit”... considering the language Jesus used says that this is unforgivable. But I believe that is a whole other argument, directly related to rejection of Jesus as THE Savior.

[JaneNC]

Amen. We are saved by faith thru grace...and not of works, lest any man should boast.

[Mind-numbed Robot]

No need for me to offer anything else, I believe as you do.

[CottShop]

[[“works without faith is dead]]

A lot of people get confused with this verse, thinking that if they aren’t producing great works, their faith must be dead, or never existed i nthe first place- and therefore they begin to doubt their salvation.

God gave His commandments not so that we can ‘acheive holiness’ by ‘our efforts’ and therefore become ‘more favourable’ in the eyes of God, but rather, so that we can ENJOY a life of holiness with God as He itnended- many many of us will never reach those levels of fellowship wigth God, for there are many commands, many God given suggestions, that we simpl,y don’t care to follow if we’re really honest with ourselves-

Does that make God love those of us who are saved any less? NOPE!

It’s unfortunate, but there seems to be a ‘values system’ sort of hting that goes on behind the scenes in Christians lives- we tend to always comapre ourselves with super saints, and I guess can get prettyy depressed because we don’t measure up- thinking perhaps that there’s somethign wrong with us-

In life, picture a typical family- father, mother, sons and daughters- some sons are closer to their father, some, not as close, some daughters close, some not so close- BUT, the father and mother don’t love ANY of their children any less regardless of how close they may be (or at least they shlouldn’t love any less ideally)

Thoswe children who are closer to their parents of course enjoy beign with their parents more, enjoy family time with htem, enjoy benifits that those who aren’;t as close dont’; get to enjoy on a daily bassis, but whe the oens who aren’t close come to be with hte family, everyone is joyous and enjoy there time together

I guess what I’m satying is that there are soem called to be the spiritual giants who minister to the rest of us who will never be the s[piritual giants we guilt ourselves into thinking we must be because we tend to compare ourselves to those spiritual giants who minister to us.

Think also of the fact that there are rich Christians, and there are poor ones- I mean, dirt poor- I just think there are people ‘called’ to be certain class of Christians- and I think we must fully accept whatever class we have been handed by God- and perhaps even learn to accept it happily at some point in time, and to stop trying to guilt oursdelves into being somethign we were never meant to be just because we see other classes of Christians who ‘seem’ to have it better (whether financially, or spiritually) than we do

I kinda went off topic- but wanted to point out that hte verse I quoted I think really throws people for a loop- and they get this guilt complex because they aren’t the sjuper Christians like Paul, Peter, Matthew, Mark etc were- and I get pretty upset when I see televangelists tickling hte ears of their flocks and telling them that they ‘just don’t have great wealth and health, and spirituality’ because ‘they just don’t have enough faith’. Their ‘pray it and claim it’ sermons have really given Christianity a bad name, and caused many a good folks to come to doubt their salvation, causing unneeded frustration and even depression.

[CottShop]

[[“blasphemy of the Holy Spirit”... ]]

This is another one that REALLY throws peopel for a loop thinking htey ‘might have’ committed this unforgiveable sin. Ilearned awhile ago, that this particular sin can ONLY be committed by an apostate- someone who has come very close to being saved, someone who has ‘seen hte light’ so to speak, but never taken that final step, and who then goes on to turn their back on the gospel of Christ and reject Him- These folks, these apostates, were NEVER saved- they came very close to being saved by finally gettign to the point where they fell on their knees before Christ and Asked Him to truly forgive them, but they never made that last final act of salvation. ONLY those folks are capable of blasphemign hte Holy spirit- Christians can not- their past present and future sins are ALL pardoned (this doesn’t mean we won’t suffer the consequences of sin, ie: Rob a bank- get caught and go to prison).

Gods laws and commandments are really, when Yuo think about it, meant to prevent us from having to suffer the consequences of our OWN sin, and to live exemplary lives close to Him enjoying the benifits of life without consequences- but God knows fukll well many of us will never get that far spiritually, and I’m sure His heart breaks when we mess up, but He will NEVER abandon us when we do mess up- like a Good Father, He is alwaus there for us, all we have to do is go to Him, as humbling as it may bwe.

[CottShop]

[[It begins with the grace of God which touches a sinner’s heart, and calls him to repentance. This grace cannot be merited; it proceeds solely from the love and mercy of God]]

It prioceeds from the Soveriengty of God- A very deep subject- in which unmeritted mercy, and also righteous wrath are wrapped up in- God is NO respector of men- a VERY humbling statement if ever there was one- God didn’t ‘choose me’ because of anything I did to deserve it- He chose me because He is a Soveriegn God who created man to have fellowship with Him- which we promptly threw aside as htough it were nothing, by eating hte apple in the garden.

There is a great theological debate about whether God caqn love htose He knew before they were even born will reject Him- some say No- God did not mean those when He said ‘For God so loved the world’ Some say yes- God means everyone- I think the statement that God is no respector of man plays heavily into htis myself- Jacob hath He loved, Esau hath He hated- and it is His priviledge, as a Soveriegn God, to love and Hate Whom He will- Some clay vessels He creates for glory, some for destruction but htis is a whole other subject

[aruanan]

Some say yes- God means everyone- I think the statement that God is no respector of man plays heavily into htis myself- Jacob hath He loved, Esau hath He hated- and it is His priviledge, as a Soveriegn God, to love and Hate Whom He will- Some clay vessels He creates for glory, some for destruction but htis is a whole other subject

You do know, don't you, that those verses about Esau and Jacob are referring to them as nations and don't have anything at all to do with the individual salvation of either of those two persons?

What a tangled web Calvin and those who followed him have weaved. The sovereign God has called all to repentance, not a select few. The grace of God has appeared unto all men, not to all of a select few. God's grace and love and mercy are poured out through Jesus Christ on all of humanity, not on a select few chosen arbitrarily before the beginning of creation.

[mrsalty]

That’s right, all means all!!

[Principle Over Politics]

Three men die on the cross. Two go to paradise. One was sinless. The second had FAITH. We can’t be sure what happened to the third.

[CottShop]

one hting I would point out in those tenants you listed- A man is justified upon Salvation, and THEN, Sanctification happens over time, THROUGH the Holy Spirit- whose job it is to sanctify us— Sanctification does not bring salvation- and hte Holy spirit can not work God’s sanctification in someone who is unsaved.

A man is first re-generated- or given a whole new life- only God can create, only God can give new life, a new life for an old life that has passed away at the very point of salvation- At that point of Salvation, a new child is fully justified in the Eyes of the Lord, as the new man’s sins have all been washed away, and the child, sinless through the justification of salvation, can now stand before the Holy God- Sin and sinlessness in God can not sahare the same space in heaven- only the justified who are sinless through the blood of the sinless One, can stand i nthe presence of God

The Holy Spirit works His sanctification in those who are already set apart frrom sin- there are two sanctifications- one is ‘positional sanctification’ or the ‘drinking into one Holy spirit’- At the point of salvation, we are ‘positionally sanctified’, but there is another sanctification after salvation- the practical, or ongoing sanctification, which, we as Christians participate, or fail to participate in- but even failing, we do not lose our salvation, our regenration, our justificaiton, or our initial sanctification- our ‘set-aopertness’ We, as Christiansd, will ALWAYS be ‘set apart’ from the judgement of sin that will befall a fallen world.

[TheBattman]

I also believe that some try to define “works” and “fruit” too narrowly. That older lady that is not a door- knocker, and who may not be a Sunday School Teacher... but always has a kind word for the pastor, is a faithful prayer warrior, and shines her own Christian light to those who get to know her... she is bearing fruit as well - it may not be the “big glamorous” fruit that some seem to set their sights on... but it is none the less.

God’s Word says that there are many “jobs” within God’s kingdom work - in fact, He describes it by comparing Christians to the vessels used in the Temple - some were earthen, some Silver, some Gold - yet all are important, even if they don’t all appear to be equal. Even the lowly “jobs” within a church are important and demonstrate fruitful work when done with a glad heart to Glorify God.

[CynicalBear]

>>(as in-no works),<<

“Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.” John 6:28-29