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Blessings and Spiritual Growth

Discussion in '2004 Archive' started by davidgeminden, Nov 18, 2004.

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  1. davidgeminden

    davidgeminden Member

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    Is it Biblical to seek blessing from God and spiritual growth by doing the good works commanded in Scripture?
     
    #1 davidgeminden, Nov 18, 2004
  2. donnA

    donnA Active Member

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    We don't earn our blessings from God, they are free, they can't be bought, it's called grace.
    Spiritual growth depends on us allowing God to work in us and our lives, through bible study, prayer, service, worship, and the events us our lives, which may or may not be good at the moment, but casue growth none the less.
     
    #2 donnA, Nov 19, 2004
  3. baptisttg

    baptisttg New Member

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    I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.
     
    #3 baptisttg, Nov 19, 2004
  4. donnA

    donnA Active Member

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    Anything earned is not by grace.
    Nowhere does it give us instructions to earn anything from God.
     
    #4 donnA, Nov 19, 2004
  5. davidgeminden

    davidgeminden Member

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    Hi donnA,

    Seems like I remember reading some Scriptures that say justification and righteousness necessary for salvation could not be earned from God. But I do not remember any Scriptures that says that there is not anything that can be earned from God. I do not remember any Scriptures that indicate that all blessings from God can't be earned. Would you please post those verses that indicate that there is not anything that can be earned from God.

    David Geminden

    [ November 19, 2004, 11:43 PM: Message edited by: davidgeminden ]
     
    #5 davidgeminden, Nov 19, 2004
  6. Dr. Bob

    Dr. Bob Administrator
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    We mix up "salvation" by grace and then "living" by works! I wrote a Gospel song that was published a dozen years ago.
     
    #6 Dr. Bob, Nov 20, 2004
  7. graceb2u

    graceb2u New Member

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    I am only speaking for myself here but I do things for God because I love him. Also, because I like to be obedient to him. If we only do his will because we are hoping for blessings then we don't form a fellowship with him. I can't find the scripture passage but somewhere in the Bible it says he blesses whom he blesses.
     
    #7 graceb2u, Nov 20, 2004
  8. donnA

    donnA Active Member

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    Blessings are either by grace or by works.
    Which sounds more biblical? Grace or works?
     
    #8 donnA, Nov 21, 2004
  9. graceb2u

    graceb2u New Member

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    I would always go with grace.
     
    #9 graceb2u, Nov 21, 2004
  10. davidgeminden

    davidgeminden Member

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    Hi donnA,

    You wrote:
    <<<Blessings are either by grace or by works.
    Which sounds more biblical? Grace or works? >>>

    My response:
    I have heard many Christians say the justification and righteousness necessary for salvation could not be earned from God, but is obtained by Gods grace through faith without works. They also say that the other blessing we receive in this life from God, after being saved, are obtained also by God's grace, which is His response to our obedience to His Biblical commands (such as, for example, our abstinence from sin and our doing good works). They also say that if it was not for God's grace, Christians could not receive blessing from God in this life by obedience to God's commands in the Bible.


    David Geminden
     
    #10 davidgeminden, Nov 21, 2004
  11. Dr. Bob

    Dr. Bob Administrator
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    David, I agree with your friends! It's all grace.
     
    #11 Dr. Bob, Nov 21, 2004
  12. davidgeminden

    davidgeminden Member

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    Hi Dr. Bob,

    Over the years, I have become cautious of using short phrases like “grace only”, “of grace only” and “all of grace”. I have often found that those short phrases do not tell me exactly what the person is trying to say. Those phrases often do not express the entirety of what a Christian, including myself, really believes on the subject. I usually use those phrases only a discussion starters, knowing that I will need to explain later in more detail what is really going through my mind. I usually will have to ask more questions of other Christians to find out exactly what they really mean when they use those short phrases.

    I have met some Christians that indicate, that “of grace only” obedience to God’s commands, after salvation, is not the result of our will, or desire, to be obedient to God’s commands. They indicate that “of grace only”, after salvation, means that our will, or desire, is in idle mode, doing nothing and that the Holy Spirit has taken over total control of our mind and body; thus, only the Holy Spirit is actually doing the obedience to Gods commands. I suspect that is also what they really mean when they say “walking in the Spirit”, being led by the Spirit and “work of the Spirit” in the life of a Christian after salvation. Therefore, they conclude that after being saved a Christian that wills or desires to please God by being obedient to God’s commands is a legalist or a Pharisee because their will, or desire, is not in idle mode, doing nothing, and that the Holy Spirit is not actually doing the obedience to Gods commands by having taken over total control of their mind and body.


    David Geminden
     
    #12 davidgeminden, Nov 22, 2004
  13. graceb2u

    graceb2u New Member

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    suspect that is also what they really mean when they say “walking in the Spirit”, being led by the Spirit and “work of the Spirit” in the life of a Christian after salvation. Therefore, they conclude that after being saved a Christian that wills or desires to please God by being obedient to God’s commands is a legalist or a Pharisee because their will, or desire, is not in idle mode, doing nothing, and that the Holy Spirit is not actually doing the obedience to Gods commands by having taken over total control of their mind and body.

    _________________________________________________

    In answer to this reference what I believe is that the Holy Spirit works within us. So it will convict us when we are out of Gods will. This in turn wants us to do Gods will. We can squash the Holy Spirit which the Bible tells us not to do. So I think walking in the Holy Spirit is letting the Holy Spirit guide us to do God's will. We have the free will to choose whether or not we will do this.
     
    #13 graceb2u, Nov 23, 2004
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