I was converted from Catholicism to Christ at the age of 19.

[geezerbob]

It just occured to me that I have never regreted my conversion. When I was saved, no one told me that I have to leave the Catholic religion, I simply believed that Jesus Christ paid for my sins with his blood and I called upon him to save me: just like the Philipian jailer in Acts 16:31. He asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…” He did, and he was. To the saved believer, the thought of someone trying to administer God’s grace through some ritual is the highest form of idolatry there is. Jesus said, “it is finished”, not ‘it’s begun’.

I just hope that people will see that God’s grace is through faith in Christ and not in some man made rituals. May the Lord truly bless every one who is seeking to know him in truth.

I just hope that you read all of what Christ said is necessary for salvation instead of being duped by those who quote only what reinforces their misguided theology, while ignoring the rest. Praying for the scales to be removed, bro.

 

[sandusky]

dmelosi:

Can either of you that believe once saved always saved explain the following?

Mt 24:13 or
2 Tim 2:12

Perseverance is a necessary component of salvation:**Romans 8:30

and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.**

(cf Is 43:1-3; 54:10; Jer 32:40; Mt 18:12-14; Jn 3:16, 36; 5:24; 6:35-40, 47; 10:27-30; 17:11-12, 15; Rom 5:8-10; 8:1, 35-39; 1 Cor 1:7-9; 10:13; 2 Cor 4:14, 17; Eph 1:5, 13-14; 4:30; Col 3:3-4; 1 Thess 5:23-24; 2 Tim 4:18; Heb 9:12, 15; 10:14; 12:28; 1 Pet 1:3-5; 1 Jn 2:19, 25; 1 Jn 5:4, 11-13, 20; Jude 1, 24-25).

Rom 11:22

That’s a conditional statement: “IF…”

If someone does not continue in faith, that one never had a saving faith (cf Lk 8:11ff).

This is seen in other passages as well; I’ll cite one to begin with:**Colossians 1:21-23

21 And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds,

22 yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach—

23 if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister.**That passage seems to teach the possibility of losing salvation IF one draws the inference “if we do not continue in the faith, we shall be lost.”

However, one has not been saved, if one does not continue in the faith (cf Lk 8:11-14). The past fact of one’s being reconciled to God (v 21, Gk. aorist tense) will be manifest by his continuing in the faith (v 23).

Hebrewes 6:4-6.

Same as above. Earlier in the passage, the writer states:**Hebrews 3:6

6 but Christ was faithful as a Son over His house—whose house we are, if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end.**You will draw the inference, “if we do not hold fast, then we shall cease to be Christ’s house and shall be lost.” But the verse doesn’t say that. It says that, if there is no perseverance of faith in the future, we are not now Christ’s house. Our failure to meet the future condition is due to our not experiencing the past conclusion (cf v14).

Those Jews who return to Judaism, were never members of “Christ’s house” to begin with, as their not persevering makes clear.

 

[dmelosi]

[/indent]Perseverance is a necessary component of salvation:Romans 8:30

and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.

(cf Is 43:1-3; 54:10; Jer 32:40; Mt 18:12-14; Jn 3:16, 36; 5:24; 6:35-40, 47; 10:27-30; 17:11-12, 15; Rom 5:8-10; 8:1, 35-39; 1 Cor 1:7-9; 10:13; 2 Cor 4:14, 17; Eph 1:5, 13-14; 4:30; Col 3:3-4; 1 Thess 5:23-24; 2 Tim 4:18; Heb 9:12, 15; 10:14; 12:28; 1 Pet 1:3-5; 1 Jn 2:19, 25; 1 Jn 5:4, 11-13, 20; Jude 1, 24-25).That’s a conditional statement: “IF…”

If someone does not continue in faith, that one never had a saving faith (cf Lk 8:11ff).

This is seen in other passages as well; I’ll cite one to begin with:Colossians 1:21-23

**21 And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, **

22 yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach—

**23 if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, was made a minister.**That passage seems to teach the possibility of losing salvation IF one draws the inference “if we do not continue in the faith, we shall be lost.”

However, one has not been saved, if one does not continue in the faith (cf Lk 8:11-14). The past fact of one’s being reconciled to God (v 21, Gk. aorist tense) will be manifest by his continuing in the faith (v 23).Same as above. Earlier in the passage, the writer states:Hebrews 3:6

6 but Christ was faithful as a Son over His house—whose house we are, if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end.You will draw the inference, “if we do not hold fast, then we shall cease to be Christ’s house and shall be lost.” But the verse doesn’t say that. It says that, if there is no perseverance of faith in the future, we are not now Christ’s house. Our failure to meet the future condition is due to our not experiencing the past conclusion (cf v14).

Those Jews who return to Judaism, were never members of “Christ’s house” to begin with, as their not persevering makes clear.

So are you saying that you think you are saved now? Or do you know you are saved?

Are you trying to predict the future that you will never under any circumstances stumble? And if you do stumble, does that mean that you really weren’t saved in the first place?

 

[jmcrae]

I’m just glad that the blind man didn’t have to be healed again and again. When Christ restored his sight, it was once for all.

And that’s also when he stopped living the life of a street beggar, and began to work at a job for his living.

Being healed by Jesus does not mean that we have no work of our own to do - rather, what it means is that we are now capable of doing the work that Christ requires of us, just as the man whose sight was restored was now capable of getting a job and making his living.

Do you think Jesus would have been pleased, if he had returned to his begging, even after being given his sight?

Rather, the whole point of the exercise was to give the man what he needed to become a productive member of society.

 

[jmcrae]

It interests me that when some people hear “ritual,” they instantly think “empty ritual,” as if an event must lack personal meaning if it is a ritual. I wonder how they felt about their own wedding rituals?

I agree. Life is full of rituals. Most of us would lose our health if we stopped performing certain rituals, such as eating certain foods at certain times of the day, or brushing our teeth, or exercising our bodies, or sleeping for a minimum number of hours every night.

Rituals are important - they take the guesswork out of knowing what we are supposed to do.

 

[Mannyfit75]

I became a convert to the Catholic faith when I was an infant. I was baptized hence “BORN AGAIN.”

 

[sandusky]

So are you saying that you think you are saved now? Or do you know you are saved?

Are you trying to predict the future that you will never under any circumstances stumble? And if you do stumble, does that mean that you really weren’t saved in the first place?

You got it.

 

[dmelosi]

You got it.

I thought only God could see the future.

 

[jmcrae]

You got it.

So, now that you are perfect in every way, what are you going to do with this great gift? What miracles will you do for those who are less fortunate than you?

Will you do something even greater than what Mother Teresa did or than what Jean Vanier is currently doing?

Or will you just bask in your perfection, and leave the world to rot?

 

[reen12]

It just occured to me that I have never regreted my conversion. When I was saved, no one told me that I have to leave the Catholic religion, I simply believed that Jesus Christ paid for my sins with his blood and I called upon him to save me: just like the Philipian jailer in Acts 16:31. He asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved…” He did, and he was. To the saved believer, the thought of someone trying to administer God’s grace through some ritual is the highest form of idolatry there is. Jesus said, “it is finished”, not ‘it’s begun’.

I just hope that people will see that God’s grace is through faith in Christ and not in some man made rituals. May the Lord truly bless every one who is seeking to know him in truth.

Welcome to CAF, vichlopet http://bestsmileys.com/waving/5.gif

Well said. I never heard it more clearly stated.

quote:vichlopet

Jesus said, “it is finished”, not ‘it’s begun’.

I tried to express this, as follows.

quote: reen12, from another thread

“I have accepted Jesus as my personal savior.He has done the work of our salvation.
He is my justification before his father. He is my righteousness. In Him I am safe and saved.”

“To Him be glory everlasting.”

Do you think that this is clearly and accurately stated?
I posted that in a thread entitled

What does “I accepted Christ as my savior” mean?

reen12

 

[sandusky]

I thought only God could see the future.

Your point?

 

[jmcrae]

Your point?

You claim that you will never sin again for as long as you are alive on the earth.

He is wanting to know how you know this.

I believe you, though. I’d like to know what you are going to do with your perfection - what gift or miracles will you gift the world with, now that you are perfect?

 

[sandusky]

So, now that you are perfect in every way, what are you going to do with this great gift? What miracles will you do for those who are less fortunate than you?

Will you do something even greater than what Mother Teresa did or than what Jean Vanier is currently doing?

Or will you just bask in your perfection, and leave the world to rot?

I live a quiet live to the Lord.

 

[dmelosi]

Your point?

You are claiming to see the future.

 

[sandusky]

jmcrae:

You claim that you will never sin again for as long as you are alive on the earth.

Where have I claimed that?

jmcrae:

He is wanting to know how you know this.

ISTM, that you and God know the future, and that you both know dmelosi’s heart.

jmcrae:

I believe you, though. I’d like to know what you are going to do with your perfection - what gift or miracles will you gift the world with, now that you are perfect?

I live a quiet live to the Lord.

 

[sandusky]

You are claiming to see the future.

I am? Where?

 

[dmelosi]

I am? Where?

Post # 27 of this thread.

 

[jmcrae]

Where have I claimed that?

When you claim that your salvation - that is to say, your being made perfectly sinless so as to enter into Heaven - is a past and irrevocable event, rather than an ongoing process that continues until death.

 

[sandusky]

Post # 27 of this thread.

What I said in post #27 is, "You got it."

 

[sandusky]

When you claim that your salvation - that is to say, your being made perfectly sinless so as to enter into Heaven - is a past and irrevocable event, rather than an ongoing process that continues until death.

That’s what you “read into” my words.