Things New and Old

Ancient truths revealed in the Scriptures are often forgotten, disbelieved or distorted, and therefore lost in the passage of time. Such ancient truths when rediscovered and relearned are 'new' additions to the treasury of ancient truths.

Christ showed many new things to the disciples, things prophesied by the prophets of old but hijacked and perverted by the elders and their traditions, but which Christ reclaimed and returned to His people.

Many things taught by the Apostles of Christ have been perverted or substituted over the centuries. Such fundamental doctrines like salvation by grace and justification have been hijacked and perverted and repudiated by sincere Christians. These doctrines need to be reclaimed and restored to God's people.

There are things both new and old here. "Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things" 2Ti 2:7.

Monday, February 8, 2010

And this is eternal life!


A brother posted this passage, and some exchanges followed:
"And this is eternal life,
that they know You the only true God,
and Jesus Christ whom You have sent."
(John 17:3)

Taeka
"And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life" 1 John 5:11,12

Schalk
Amen!

Elaine
I love 1 John...all of it! As well as all of John's writings. How blessed we are to know Jesus thru his eyes.

Charles
He was the disciple Jesus loved. :-)

Sing F Lau
Eternal life is given, by God's free and sovereign grace when we were dead in trespasses and sins, SO THAT we may know the good news, THAT IS, God is the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom He sent to save us.

So many insist that one must believe in order to have eternal life. Even the Reformed Baptist churches in Malaysia believe such notion, and defend it vigorously.

See here
http://pruning-deformed-branches.blogspot.com/2008/01/pruning-7-deformed-branches-5-summary.html

Taeka
I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the LORD. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart. (Jeremiah 24:7)

Sing F Lau
"It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me."

"Taught of God" is WITHOUT human instrumentality.
God teaches each elect - "This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them."

Sing F Lau
Heidi - Jesus died for His own people, those that the Father has given to Him - to save them. To tell those for whom Christ did not die to believe that Jesus did die for them to save them WOULD BE telling them a lie and asking them to believe a lie!

Jesus speaks the truth:
"For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day... As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him."

"as many as" - not one more, and not one less!

Many preachers preach lies, and expect some to believe lies!

Sing F Lau
Faith is a fruit and evidence of eternal life that has been given when one was DEAD in trespasses and sins.

Sing F Lau
God does not give faith... faith is a grace worked by the Holy Spirit dwelling in the heart. Some children (regenerated elect) will be able to manifest that grace of faith in believing, many others will not be able to manifest that grace of faith in believing.

"So it appears that we agree that one has to have faith in Christ to get to heaven."

You and I do not agree. Simply: you have excluded from heaven those elect that are not able to exercise that grace of faith...

Mark
Heidi - Eph 2:8 tells us that faith is a gift from God, but the verse you cite is James 1:17 - Sorry Sing

Mark
Don't forget: "He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him." (Jn 3:36) Not the words of man, but the Word of God says so.

Sing F Lau
Faith is NOT a gift of God, salvation is. A gift is from WITHOUT. Faith is one of the many graces worked WITHIN by the indwelling Spirit.

Read a short article on Eph 2:8,9 and see what you think.
http://things-new-and-old.blogspot.com/2008/01/saved-by-grace-through-faith-whose.html

Sing F Lau
"He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him." (Jn 3:36)

Amen, and so let the word of God say what it says; and let not man impose his idea on the word of God. Often man read into God's word more than it says.

"He who believes in the Son HAS-HAS-HAS eternal life." This is a declaration of fact, it is not a statement of offer. It is not, 'whoever WILL believe in the Son SHALL have life.'

So Mark, let the Scriptures says what it says; don't make it say what you want it to say! A statement of fact is stating a fact; it is not a stating a conditional offer. I hope you can differentiate the two!

The fact declared is this: He who believes DOES SO because of the possession of eternal life. Believing is an activity made possible because of the possession of eternal life.
"He who believes in the Son has eternal life..." Believing evidences the present possession of eternal life. He who presently believes does so because of the present possession of ETERNAL life. Eternal life makes possible the activities of that life - like believing the gospel truth.

"He who does not obey the Son will not see life"
- who can obey God but those who possess eternal life. But the reality is that not everyone who possesses eternal life obey the Son.
- also that life that is obtained by obedience or lost by disobedience CANNOT possibly the ETERNAL life that have been freely given at regeneration by God's grace.
- there are those who possess eternal life that fails to see life... fail to experience the abundance of life here on earth because of their disobedience... much like Lot! They make shipwreck of their faith! Only children of God, possessors of eternal life, can make shipwreck of their faith.

And yes, the wrath of God abides on a disobedient child of God. NO doubt about that.

Many people make this equation:
The number of those possessing eternal life is EXACTLY EQUAL the number of those who believe the gospel and obey the Lord Jesus Christ.

Such idea will exclude many elect children of God from their eternal inheritance! They are incapable of believing. Other never has the privilege of hearing the gospel. But all the elect shall be given ETERNAL LIFE, all by God's free and sovereign grace.

Mark
Sing - If faith is not a gift from God, then the Scripture is lying and is not authoritative for any other proposition and is worthless to us. One of the most basic pre-suppositions of reformed theology is the innerency and reliability of Scripture.Re-read Eph 2:8

Sing F Lau
Brother, I have no use whatsoever with 'reformed' pre-suppositions. I do have much use for what the Scriptures DO TEACH. There is a vast difference between the two.

Faith is one of the many graces worked WITHIN the heart of a child of God. A gift is something that comes to a child of God from WITHOUT. There is a vast difference between the two. I hope you do see the difference.

Yes, take off your reformed glasses and re-read Eph 2:8.

The gift there is clearly salvation by God's free grace. And if by God's free grace, the faith mentioned CAN'T possibly be yours in any remotest sense.

The eternal salvation by God's free grace is through the faith of Jesus Christ, i.e. through Christ's faithfulness that secured the righteousness for our eternal salvation.

Roman 3:22, "Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:"

Please note that the righteousness of God's provision for our eternal salvation is not through your faith in Jesus Christ. That righteousness is by the faith of Jesus, i.e by the faithfulness of Jesus Christ in accomplishing the work of redemption.

Your faith has nothing to do with your eternal salvation EXCEPT to evidence and manifest that salvation that has been accomplished, and applied to your by the free and sovereign grace of God.

An instrument is to evidence and manifest the presence of the specific thing the instrument was designed and ordained to do. Faith is to evidence and manifest the justification that has taken place by God's free grace.

I have no used for reformed shibboleth, said with all due respect to an older Brother.

Sing F Lau
Jesus Himself said,
"Except a man be born again, he CANNOT see the kingdom of God."
"Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he CANNOT enter into the kingdom of God."

So very many insist: a man CAN do something IN ORDER to be born again, given eternal life.

Is it not so plain and obvious to any sane mind that LIFE must precede the activities of THAT LIFE.

Repentance and faith are activities of eternal life, bestowed at new birth, all by God's free and sovereign grace.

Man by nature is in rebellion and enmity against God.

Let God be true, and every man a liar.
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