Merited or not merited

But our faith is the condition of our new birth.

Rom 1:16
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,
for it is the power of God to salvation
for everyone who believes

Joh 3:14-15
14 “so must the Son of Man be lifted up
15 so that whoever believes
will in Him have eternal life

Only God can save and He chooses to save those that believe. That is not a hard concept to grasp but some do struggle with it.

 

That is only a contradiction in your mind. Since God {Christ Jesus} says we have to believe
Joh_6:29
"This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent."
and God {Holy Spirit} via Paul tells us that we are saved because we believe the gospel message
Rom 1:16
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ,
for it is the power of God to salvation
for everyone who believes

And we know that faith is not a work but it is a requirement for our justification
Rom_3:28
a man is justified by faith
apart from works of the Law

So for all those that insist that faith is a work, well as you can see it is the work God requires.

I do not understand why you struggle so much with this Austin, as you can see the bible is clear. Just trust what the bible tells you and stop your twisting of the text.

 

Do you always answer a question with a question?

 

Come on, Silverhair, just go to the poll and select "merited salvation." Every post you tell us it's merited so just do the poll and be the first person to actually admit it.

 

I trust what God tells me in His word. I just don't think your interpretation of what God says is worth a hill of beans. You teach merited salvation, that God cannot save until humans will themselves to believe. You lift up humans and make God subordinate to men. It is your interpretation of God's word that is awful. You just cannot see how badly you mangle what you read.

 

Our salvation is merited. Not by us, but by Christ,
I have therefore voted accordingly on the basis that the 'One' mentioned is indeed the Lord Jesus

 

That truth was never in dispute here. Romans 10:13-15. Faith is how we receive what God does, John 1:12-13.

 

He (@Silverhair) did here too, lol.

[add]

Disregard, he wasn't responding to a question, he began his post with a question, which we all do.

 

I voted that it is not merited in any way.

Scripture tells me that I was saved by grace through faith...
and that my faith was not "of" myself, but is and was the gift of God ( Ephesians 2:8 ), authored and finished by Jesus Christ ( Hebrews 12:2 ) which makes it not of my own works, lest I should boast ( Ephesians 2:9 ) in anything other than the Lord's mercy on me.

Because of God's choosing me in Christ before the foundation of the world and predestinating me to the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself ( Ephesians 1:3-5 ), and having obtained an inheritance by His predestinating me to it ( Ephesians 1:11 ), I believed and was sealed by His Spirit to the day of my bodily redemption ( Ephesians 1:13-14 ) after I heard the word of truth preached in 1978.

Even the privilege to believe on Him was given to me in the behalf of Christ, as was the privilege to suffer for His sake ( Philippians 1:29 ).


There is no merit of any kind when He acts upon a person who is deadened in their hearts and in their minds towards Him...
When He does the necessary work which leads to a person believing on His Son.

Eternal life is a gift ( Romans 6:23 ) accompanied by a person's trust in Christ, it is not not a reward for our belief or any other action that we take.

 

No where does scripture say that faith is not of ourselves. It does say that salvation is not of ourselves. However, scripture does say that faith comes from hearing the gospel. Romans10:17

that the word of God (to include the gospel) Is quick and powerful and shaper than a two edged sword. Being presented with something so powerful is itself the grace of God and the very thing that enables faith in God. 2Timothy 3:16

 

That is just your understanding not mine. You just will not trust what the bible says will you. We do not earn our salvation we just have to meet the condition set by God.

 

Well when you start to trust what the bible says instead of adding your own interpretation then perhaps you will see what God is telling you to do. I trust scripture, you may not like what I say but your not in disagreement with me just with scripture.

 

We believe and God saves, just simple logic there.

 

That is just what I have been saying, we can not earn our salvation we just have to believe the gospel message.

 

Again, I trust what the Bible says. You don't teach what the Bible says. You teach your interpretation of the Bible from the assumption that you are the ultimate ruler of your destiny.

 

I trust the Bible. I distrust you.

 

Funny how you think that your interpretation is the right one and yet you disagree with the scriptures that I have given you. As I said I will trust the bible. That is not a matter of interpretation that is just reading the text.

 

" For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God:" ( Ephesians 2:8 ) and:

" knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.
17 But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is therefore Christ the minister of sin? God forbid.
18 For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.
19 For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God.
20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." ( Galatians 2:16-20 ).

Does it not state right here that we as men are not justified by the works of the Law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ?
Paul tells us that Christ lives in him, and he lives his life by the faith of the Son of God, which other Scriptures tell us that He authored and finished it ( Hebrews 12:2 ) for us.

In other words, Scripture does indeed say that the believer's faith is not of ourselves.