"IS A MAN SAVED BY WORKS OR BY FAITH?"
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| THE APOSTLE PAUL SAYS WE ARE SAVED BY FAITH |
JAMES SAYS WE ARE SAVED BY WORKS
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EPHESIANS 2
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that [speaking of faith is] not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
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JAMES 2
24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified [rendered innocent], and not by faith only.
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Well, if You've read the scripture above You can see that there seems to be a conflict in the Word Of God: the Apostle Paul says, "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast"; and James (the half-brother of Jesus) says, "Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only"... But wait! how can this be when the Author of the Word Of God is the Holy Spirit? Can the Holy Spirit be at odds or disagree with Himself?... No, and that's why if we are to have a proper interpretation of the Word Of God both the Apostle Paul and James have to be right; and they are, as You will soon see from the following simple excercise. Now to start the exercise, let's read God's Definition Of Faith as it is found in the Word Of God:
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"GOD'S DEFINITION OF FAITH"
| HEBREWS 11
1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
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Good, now that You've read "God's Definition Of Faith (Hebrews 11:1)" let's remove the word "faith" and insert the word [works] in it's place and then read it:
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Hebrews 11:1 Now [works] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
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Do You see how the verse Hebrews 11:1 (God's Definition Of Faith) still makes sense with the word "faith" removed and the word [works] inserted in it's place; and that [works] can be "the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen"?... Can You see from this excercise that works can be faith?... Skeptical?... Don't believe me?... Then take a look at these 5 examples of faith that are found in Hebrews 11:4-11 applied to Hebrews 11:1 in the same way (with the exception of also adding the word [was] for the reason that all these examples of faith happened in the past), and see if they are not all true:
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Hebrews 11:1 Now [Abel's offering of a more excellent sacrifice than Cain] is [was] the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [Enoch's testimony that he pleased God] is [was] the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [Noah's being moved by God to the building of the Ark] is [was] the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [Abraham's leaving of his country and kindred and sojourning in the land of promise when he was called by God to go] is [was] the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [Sarah's judging of God as faithful who had promised] is [was] the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
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As You can see, when replacing the word "faith" in Hebrews 11:1 with these 5 examples of faith found in Hebrews 11:4-11, the verse Hebrews 11:1 (God's Definition Of Faith) still makes sense; because these 5 examples are faith. And also take note of what You can learn from these 5 examples of faith: in the first example we see that works are faith; in the second example we see that words are faith; in the third and fourth examples we see that obedience to God's Word is faith; and in the fifth example we see that believing God is faith... Now let's continue the excercise with some modern day New Testament acts of faith:
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Hebrews 11:1 Now [believing the Gospel] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [repentance] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [calling on the name of Lord] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [confessing our sins to the Lord] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [personally receiving Christ] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [baptism in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [baptism in the name of Jesus] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [reading the Word Of God] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [keeping the commandments] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [praying] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [going to Church] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [tithing] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [preaching the Gospel] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [living according to the New Testament] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1 Now [doing good works] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
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Now as You can see, when replacing the word "faith" in Hebrews 11:1 with all these modern-day New Testament acts of faith we get the same result: the verse Hebrews 11:1 (God's Definition Of Faith) still makes sense; because all these things are faith. Not only that, but You can also see from this excercise that there is no conflict in the Word Of God: neither the Apostle Paul, James, or the Holy Spirit are in conflict - for as You can see from this exercise, both believing and works are faith.
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"DEAD (DAMNING) FAITH AND PERFECT (SAVING) FAITH"
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There are two types of faith mentioned in the Word Of God: Dead Faith and Perfect Faith. Dead Faith is the type of faith that Damns, and Perfect Faith is the type of faith that Saves; and the best way to explain the difference between the two is to use the story of Noah's Ark. In Hebrews 11:7b we read, "Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith"; and this (what Noah did), we know as an example of Perfect Faith: because Noah was Saved... But what if Noah would have only believed God and never built the Ark, would Noah have been Saved?... No, Noah would not have been saved; Noah (even though He believed God) would have drowned with the rest of the people... And that's what Dead Faith is, it's believing God but not doing what He said to do... James tries to explain Dead Faith in James 2:19&20 by saying, "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?"; and what He was trying to get us to understand is that the Devils believe in God too, but they will not be saved because they do not obey Him... True and Perfect, Saving Faith is believing in God, and doing what He said:
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JAMES 2
19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.
20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?
21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar?
22 Seest thou how faith wrought [worked] with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?
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.
JAMES 1
22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
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"NOW FOR THE MOST IMPORTANT PART:
SAVING FAITH IS NOT YOUR OWN, YOU CANNOT ATTRIBUTE IT TO YOURSELF; FAITH IS A GIFT FROM GOD THAT IS GIVEN TO US THROUGH THE WORD OF GOD, AND THE WORD OF GOD ALONE!"
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There is not one thing that You can contribute to Your Salvation. If You have a boast or brag about what You've done to be saved other than "I was saved by grace through faith that God gave me through the Word Of God", or "God through Christ Jesus saved me - He did everything, and I did nothing other than believe with the faith that He gave me through the Word Of God", You are in great error concerning Your Faith, and Your Salvation. It is God and God alone that saves; and there is nothing that we ourselves can contribute to our salvation... And any faith whether it be in the form of believing or works outside of the bounderies, inspiration, and ordination of the Word Of God (the New Testament) is not saving faith and is totally worthless and vain, and will not save You:
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EPHESIANS 2
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that [speaking of faith is] not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
ROMANS 10
17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
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"IN CONCLUSION: SAVING FAITH IS HEARING GOD'S WORD, BELIEVING GOD, AND DOING WHAT GOD SAYS; WHICH IS A GIFT FROM GOD, THAT COMES THROUGH THE WORD OF GOD. THERE IS NO CONFLICT IN THE WORD OF GOD: WE ARE SAVED BY GRACE THROUGH GOD'S GIFT OF FAITH THAT HE GIVES UNTO US THROUGH THE WORD OF GOD AND BY NOTHING ELSE."
"SO, YOU'VE READ THIS MESSAGE ON FAITH, AND YOU ARE NOT SAVED? IF THAT'S SO, PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING SCRIPTURE FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT AND RECEIVE GOD'S GIFT OF SAVING FAITH THROUGH THE WORD OF GOD TODAY"
JOHN 3
16 ¶ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten [divinely sired] Son [Christ Jesus], that whosoever believeth in him should not perish [in Hell], but have everlasting life [in Heaven].
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
18 ¶ He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
JOHN 6
37 All that the Father [God] giveth me [Christ Jesus] shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
ROMANS 10
13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord [Christ Jesus] shall be saved.
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"IF YOUR DESIRE IS TO SAVED BY GRACE THROUGH GOD'S GIFT OF FAITH (THAT ONLY COMES THROUGH THE WORD OF GOD),
MAKE THIS PRAYER YOUR OWN"
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Dear God, I am truly sorry, please forgive me for breaking Your Laws (¹sinning against You); I change my mind from my way, to Your Way, and will live my life according to that change of mind (²I repent). Jesus, I believe that You are the Christ (Messiah) the Son Of God; that You died on the Cross as payment for my sins; that You were buried, and rose again the third day according to the scriptures. Jesus, I put my faith in you; please cleanse me with Your Sinless ³Blood; reconcile me unto God the Father. Have the Holy Spirit enter into my body and become one with my spirit: cause me to be 4Born Again. I now personally receive You Christ Jesus as my Lord, and Savior. Thank You Lord Jesus for Saving me. Amen.
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¹1-John 3:4b Sin is the transgression [breaking] of the law.
²Luke 13:3 I [Christ Jesus] tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish [in Hell].
³Hebrews 9:22b & 1-John 1:7d, "Without [the] shedding of blood [there] is no remission [forgiveness]"..."The
blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin [broken laws]".
4John 3:3e Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
"HOW TO READ THE BIBLE"
"THERE ARE TWO MAJOR SECTIONS IN THE BIBLE: THE OLD TESTAMENT AND THE NEW TESTAMENT; THE LOCATION OF
THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS CAN BE FOUND AT THE FRONT OF THE BIBLE IN THE TABLE OF CONTENTS.""THE BIBLE/WORD OF GOD SAYS IN JOHN 12:48 ON JUDGMENT DAY WE WILL BE JUDGED BY
THE WORDS OF JESUS RECORDED/WRITTEN IN THE NEW TESTAMENT:
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JOHN 12
48 He that rejecteth me [Christ Jesus], and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken [recorded in the New Testament], the same shall judge him [You] in the last day.
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"THE NEW TESTAMENT IS GOD'S AGREEMENT (COVENANT) WITH YOU!""THE OLD TESTAMENT WAS FOR THEN; THE NEW TESTAMENT IS FOR NOW;
WE ARE GRAFTED INTO THE OLD TESTAMENT BY WAY OF THE NEW TESTAMENT"
"READ THE NEW TESTAMENT FIRST"
"MORE BIBLICAL REVELATIONS"
"IF JESUS IS GOD, HOW CAN HE BE THE SON OF GOD?"
"THE WAY"
~ BIBLICAL REVELATIONS ~
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