mailmandan
Active Member
Confession is a confirmation of faith (which is why we will be saved if we confess) and not a work for salvation that follows believing unto righteousness. Confessing with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believing in our heart that God raised Him from the dead are not two separate steps to salvation but are chronologically together. Romans 10:8 - But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (TOGETHER) that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, (notice the reverse order from verse 9-10) - that if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Confess/believe; believe/confess.Yes, but you must actively confess and believe our Lord Jesus. It is not a passive event. confess and believe are active verbs, not passive verbs.
Rom 10:9 Because if you confess the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved.
1 Corinthians 12:3 - Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except BY the Holy Spirit. There is divine influence or direct operation of the Holy Spirit in the heart of a person when confessing Jesus as Lord upon conversion and after. Hence, actively confess and believe is ongoing. Now this confession is not just a simple acknowledgment that Jesus is the Lord (even the demons believe that), but is a deep, personal conviction from the heart that Jesus is that person's Lord and Savior.
Salvations plural? I do focus on verses that talk about salvation and justification. Ephesians 2:8 and Romans 5:1 are good places to start.Focus on the verses that actually talk about salvations and justification. Why do you wander off to verses that do not? It's obvious why.
We still show our faith by our works. (James 2:18) Show, not establish. Big difference. The absence of evidence can be construed as evidence of absence.Are you still talking about James 2:18? Salvation is not mentioned there. Let's go back to verse 14 where salvation is being referred to:
Says (key word) he has faith and does not have works (to evidence his claim). What kind of faith is that? Empty profession of faith/dead faith. Something that is dead cannot produce anything.(James 2:14) My brothers, what profit is it if a man says he has faith and does not have works? Can faith save him?
It's dead because it is not genuine faith but a bare profession of faith. It has no good works because it's dead. You have it backwards. You have the tail wagging the dog. The cart before the horse. Faith is established first when we are made alive together with Christ and saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:5-9) and good works follow after having been created in ChristJesus for good works. (Ephesians 2:10)Can The Faith that saves save him? No. Why? Because it's dead D E A D. Why is it dead? Because it has no good works.