I have never said good works earn salvation. Salvation is a free gift, hence it cannot be earned.
Isn't Grace the free gift? Being reconciled to God for the "Chance" of redemption? Salvation is another matter altogether.
What faith onlyists refuse to admit is that free gifts can come with conditions and meeting the conditions on a free gift earns NOTHING.
There is no conditions or requirements for God's Grace, is there? As it is written, "While we were yet sinners, Jesus died for us". This is God's Grace. Salvation comes to those who repent of their sins, after Jesus died for them. Who "Deny themselves", who "Yield themselves" servants to Obey God, and their body as instruments of righteousness unto God, after they find God's Grace, that Jesus died for them. Jesus died for everyone, everyone now has the opportunity to eat His Flesh and Drink His Blood. This opportunity is God's Free Grace, Yes?
But for those men who Jesus died for, who refuse to follow the instruction given, there is no Life, AKA, no Salvation.
This is Paul's teaching, in my understanding.
Jesus died for Paul, Yes? Paul has received reconciliation to God, Paul has received the Free gift of God's Grace. Now what does Pail do?
2 Cor. 5:
9 Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
This is why there is no example in the BIble where a person's obedience to God is said to have earned God's free gift or that God owed a person for their obedience.
God's Grace, that gave sinners another chance to obey, is not earned. The wage's of sin is death. But Salvation comes to those "Whose refuge is the Lord" as David says, "For God is in the Generation of the Righteous". It's not about "Earning" salvation. This is a philosophy that was started by religious men who promoted the insidious lie that the Pharisees were trying to "earn" salvation by obeying God's Laws. This is widely taught in Mainstream Christianity, but it is a complete falsehood. The Pharisees full well rejected the Commandments of God that they might live by their own religious traditions. They received God's Grace too but refused to give up their precious manmade religion and their manmade judgments and philosophies.
God owed Naaman nothing but graciously offered Naaman free gift of healing for his disease yet GOD PUT CONDITIONS on that free gifts...Naaman had to dip 7 times in the Jordan River. Naaman would NEVER receive this free gift unless/until he met GOD'S conditions and meeting those conditions earned him nothing.
But Seabass, Naaman received God's Grace, the chance to be cleansed, something he didn't earn or deserve. While he was a Leper, Christ died for him. But unless he followed God's Instruction, salvation (cleansing) would not happen. Isn't this the very point of the story?
This is why it cannot be found in the Bible where disobedient, unrighteous people who live in rebellion to God's will UNCONDITIONALLY received God's free gift of salvation.
The example in the Scriptures Paul said was given to us, was the Exodus. The Passover Lamb was slain for them "While they were yet in Egypt". This was the Grace of God, this was the free gift of God. But only those who followed the instruction concerning the "Blood" (The Life of the flesh) were led out of (Egypt) sin. And of them, only 2 men repented to God and didn't live in rebellion to Him. These 2 men received "Salvation", while the rest, who had received God's free gift of Grace, fell in the wilderness.
Paul said not to be ignorant of these Biblical Truths.
This is why the idea of "a sinner saved by grace" is not found in the Bible.
Yes, this is true. "God's Grace" is the Gift that allows us to repent and "Go and Sin no more".
Salvation comes when, as Jesus and Paul teaches, "
we all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
In Rom 6, Paul was addressing Christians and his point was because CHRISTIANS are saved by grace that does not give the Christian a license to sin.
I see Paul's teaching like this,
What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law,(Dead in tresspasses and sins) but under grace? (Alive, reconciled to God) God forbid.
No, we are not to transgress God's Commandments just because God has forgiven our past sins.
Of course not, the wage of Sin is still death, as Paul points out. Instead, Paul teaches men,
that after they receive God's Grace;
12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but "yield yourselves" unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as "instruments of righteousness" unto God.
18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the "servants of (God's) righteousness".
22 But "now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and "the end" everlasting life.
This is the Salvation of the souls of men who received the Grace of God.
23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Who died for us while we were yet sinner)
CHRISTIANS are saved by grace for it is Christians who have CONDITIONALLY, obediently complied to God's will thereby receiving the free gift of salvation. It is sinners who live in disobedience, in rebellion and defiance to God's will thereby do not unconditionally receive the free gift of salvation. The idea of men UNconditionally reveiving God's free gift regardless of how they live is completely foreign to the NT gospel of Christ.
I agree and appreciate your thoughts here. But there is a difference between God's Grace, and Salvation. We have nothing to do whatsoever with God's Free Gift of Grace. But Salvation is directly tied to what we "DO" with God's Grace, once we receive it.
Great topic of discussion, good thoughts Seabass.
