Lordship’s Salvation: Not by Works?

But you neglected to follow up with Jesus' response.

Mat 19:21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go [and] sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come [and] follow me.
Mat 19:22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.
Mat 19:23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Why did Jesus say to His disciples that it is difficult for a rich man to enter heaven? Because the rich young ruler who had just left was a good example of one who wasn't going to enter the kingdom. The ruler went away sorrowful. Why? Because he wasn't willing to pay the price of following Christ. Oh yes, there is a price. You and many others distort the gospel to make it seem easy to be saved. We are saved by grace but our salvation results in our being born again to a new life. The rich young ruler didn't want a new life on earth. He was rich. He just wanted eternal life.

It just doesn't work that way.

 

Yeah! ... Oh, I thought the debate was over.It's getting soo old Lou.

 

And yet there is nothing more important to discuss.

Either salvation is by grace through faith, and that not of works, lest any man should boast, or it is not.

There is no middle way.

And JM clearly teaches a works based salvation.

No argument from me that there is no salvation without regeneration. Therefore, works will most assuredly follow salvation. Key word is FOLLOW.

And if we are going to discuss the rich guy, let's take the whole passage. The disciples then asked who COULD be saved. "With man it is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

The rich dude was sorrowing for he had much. We are NOT told his ultimate outcome. Despite his sorrow, he may well have obeyed.

And consider this: he may have been sorrowing BECAUSE, now a saved man, he knew what he was going to be parting with.

JM makes too many assumptions based on what he reads into the passage,

 

John MacArthur clearly and repeatedly teaches salvation is completely a work of Almighty God and that men can do nothing to earn salvation, that there are no prepatory works to be done to pave the way for salvation, that God alone is the author of salvation.

I urge you to visit John MacArthur's website: grace to you: to discover what he believes and teaches. You may also want to read one of his books.

If he had been "saved" as you suggest, then he would have obeyed his Lord and Savior and he wouldn't have been sorrowful. He would have followed Jesus.

His ultimate outcome is not the point, anyway. The point is, at that moment, when Jesus Christ told him what he needed to do to enter into eternal life, he rejected the words of our Lord and walked away.

You have just speculated the "rich dude" may have actually been saved (even though Jesus said otherwise), and you accuse MacArthur of reading into the passage?

peace to youraying:

 

Emotions are not sinful, rather they are a normal part of human makeup.

Who can honestly say, that as a born again child of God they have never been asked by to part with something precious to them? I know I have sure experienced it.

Remember, this dude came bragging about his works. He WANTED a works based salvation because he believed his good deeds already done had earned him salvation. Jesus shot him down by proving to him that there were works left undone. And Jesus will do that to anyone trying to come to Him on the basis of works.

Remember also that to break the law on any one point is to be guilty of all.

Just as Jesus told the rich young ruler he had not yet attained perfection, He tells it to us in His word. Remember: there is none righteous, no, not one.

Not even John MacArthur.

Look at it this way--suppose I invite you to dinner at my house. You ask if you can bring anything and I reply no, just show up and trust me to feed you. You do so. At the door I lay in to you that you need to bring a dessert, wash your feet, and wear an Armanti suit to come to my free dinner. Is it really a free dinner?

Of course not. So would Jesus, who clearly taught (start with John 3:16 and work your way on) that salvation depends solely on believing in Him tell someone who was coming on that basis to go and do some works to earn that free salvation?

I think not. I think the passage of the rich young ruler is not about total commitment to earn salvation, but showing that we are not capable of doing enough to earn it.

He was not confirming works salvation, He was proving the impossibility of it.

And I have studied JM's books. I am not ignorant of his teachings. I just believe he teaches a false gospel that appeals to human pride.

 

Excellent post! The dinner analogy was a good one :thumbs:

 

I agree. Very good post... And here I was thinking I had made up my mind on this subject. Let's see... maybe Lou will start 75 more threads so that I can be sure. :BangHead:

 

Jhn 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

I'll let the Bible speak for me. How about you?