To Howie
Just as God has remained faithful to undeserving Israel, so will He be faithful to undeserving believing sinners. God will never annul His promise or cast out those who have come to Him through Christ (Jn 6:37; 17:2).
Yes, God will always be faithful and we will always be undeserving of His goodness because while we were in sin He gave the gift of salvation. Through one man sin entered into the world and we inherited that sin and were separated from God. It is this sin that we could not be cleansed of unless another Adam were to come and live a sinless life and offer His blood to pay for mankinds redemption. This is the sin that is payed for that allows us to be in relationship with God once more. If we had lived a sinless life, this sin would still separate us from God, which is why a second Adam was necessary. Anybody is allowed to partake in this gift. As you know God’s desire is that NONE perish but have everlasting life. It does not ever say that because God desires it, it will be done. The opposite in fact is spoken because all of our existance hangs on our decisions as free moral agents.
If we are not free to choose, choices would not be presented. But choices have been presented all over the Bible. Everything God offers comes with a condition. It’s a divine law. Grace has it’s conditions, salvation, justification, sanctification, all have conditions. All of nature operates under the same law as it should. Everything is dependant upon the actions of something in the natural and the spiritual. The coexist together. To take away this law that is widespread throughout the bible, is like taking away the effects of gravity. When you throw the rock up, it falls down.
When you disobey God, there are consequences. It has nothing to do with grace as it has to do with a divine law preordained and set into place before the foundation of the world.
You cannot say you believe and not obey. The bible says your a liar if you do say this and do not obey. Obeidience alone cannot save you. Faith alone cannot save you. You well know that it is faith accompanied with works that demonstrates salvation in it’s entirety.
God is not a respector of persons. We are also children of God. What applies to Israel applies to us in respect to God’s laws of salvation though they were delivered at different times and in different ways, the underlying law is the same. Faith with obedience. You CANNOT have one without the other or else your faith is DEAD. None existant, null and void. Faith is believing, and if your belief is dead, it doesn’t exist, THEREFORE…you can say your saved all day long, but unless you produce fruit in keeping with your claim, you are a liar and the truth is not in you.
God does not lose you, you lose God. God loses no one for He is always faithful and never changing. We, however are not. Nobody can take us from God’s hand. But God does not hold us beyond our wills either.
God’s promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and be guaranteed to those who have faith (Rom 4:16).
Yes God’s promise comes by faith, and it is guaranteed to those who ACCEPT JESUS. To accept Him is not just a verbal contract but a contract of obedience.
Justification is assured when one believes.
This is only true for those who believe. And the Word of God clearly demonstrates that those who believe or have ‘faith’ also have works that reflect that faith. If you do not, your faith, your belief is a lie. So yes, only those that ‘believe unto repentance’ are truly justified. The rest honor God with their lips but their hearts are far from Him. These profess to be His children but in fact these will be told, ‘depart from me, I never knew you’.
Those who think justification can be earned or maintained by human faithfulness nullify God’s grace and His promise of eternal security.
Justification is a result of obedience unto faith. I’m not sure what your not understanding. We cannot be justified by works alone. But our faith with our works is what justifies us. As is given the example in
Jas 2:21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?
Jas 2:22 Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?
Jas 2:23 And the Scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.
Jas 2:24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.
Jas 2:25 Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way?
Jas 2:26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
Anyone who counts on attaining and preserving justification can have no assurance.
This is simply not true. I have assurance that if I remain faithful to God and follow Him, that I am saved. My assurance is firm. I know that He WILL DO exactly as He promises to those WHO OBEY and to those WHO DO NOT.
Which is why there is a hell.
