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To: Turtlepower
You are contradicting yourself and trying to have it both ways.

No, I'm not. Salvation is God's free gift. However, it is a process God is working through us, not a single event. We are still sinners in need of forgiveness and it is ongoing as we live our lives.

Protestants like to tell us that we need to say the "sinner's prayer" and then we are "regenerated" into a new creation and it's "once saved, always saved." If a man should fail, well... he was never really regenerated to begin with. I say that Protestantism is contradicting itself with this view... is it a free gift? If so... why are some not truly gifted?

Rather, Christ didn't command us to say a "sinner's prayer"... He commanded us to baptize in the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit to make men sons and daughters of God. As sons and daughters, God is raising us up to know Him through the works He accomplishes through us. Refusing to cooperate with God is rejecting the salvation He gives.

132 posted on 03/09/2011 10:31:07 AM PST by pgyanke (Republicans get in trouble when not living up to their principles. Democrats... when they do.)
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To: pgyanke

“...why are some not truly gifted?”

That, my FRiend, is a whole other question and deals with the doctrine of the elect. Better discussed on another thread.

In the meantime, salvation IS a free gift, and no, Protestants don’t say “all you have to do is say the sinner’s prayer”. I don’t know of ANY Protestant who says or has said such a silly thing. Clearly it is God who regenerates the heart. It is God’s work, not ours and nothing we can do to earn it or lose it. He does the work in us. He puts His Spirit into us (hence regeneration). Just because one does an action: be it Baptism, confession, Lord’s Supper/Communion, and yes, even recites the Sinner’s Prayer, doesn’t mean they are saved. God alone can save. We cannot save ourselves or hope to do so.


137 posted on 03/09/2011 10:42:11 AM PST by JLLH
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To: pgyanke

I explained earlier that some who claim the “sinner’s prayer” and fall away are like those in the parable of the soils whose hearts aren’t pure and whose faith withered away. It is a free gift - some just don’t receive the gift with a true heart.

“He commanded us to baptize in the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit to make men sons and daughters of God.” You have mixed up the sequence of commands....We are to first make diciples (new believers in Jesus); then they are to be baptized. we weren’t commanded to baptize unbelievers then teach them about Christ.

You seem hung up on the command to make disciples and baptize. What about Jesus’ statement that unless one is born again (or born from above) they cannot enter the kingdom of Heaven. You can teach people and baptize them all you want, but unless that person has been born again, they will not enter the kingdom of Heaven.


141 posted on 03/09/2011 10:55:01 AM PST by Turtlepower
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