"If when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life" (
Romans 5:10).
I am not saved by believing--I simply realize I am saved by believing. And it is not repentance that saves me--repentance is only the sign that I realize what God has done through Christ Jesus.
The danger here is putting the emphasis on the effect, instead of on the cause. Is it my obedience, consecration, and dedication that make me right with God? It is never that! I am made right with God because, prior to all that, Christ died. When I turn to God and by belief accept what God reveals, the miraculous atonement by the Cross of Christ instantly places me into a right relationship with God. And as a result of the supernatural miracle of God's grace I stand justified, not because I am sorry for my sin, or because I have repented, but because of what Jesus has done. The Spirit of God bring justification with a shattering, radiant light, and I know that I am saved, even though I don't know how it is accomplished.
The salvation that comes from God is not based on human logic, but on the sacrificial death of Jesus. We can be born again solely because of the atonement of our Lord. Sinful men and women can be changed into new creations, not through their repentance or their belief, but through the wonderful work of God in Christ Jesus which preceded all of our experience (see
2 Corinthians 5:17-19). The unconquerable safety of justification and sanctification is God Himself. We do not have to accomplish these things ourselves--they have been accomplished through the atonement of the Cross of Christ. The supernatural becomes natural to us through the miracle of God, and there is the realization of what Jesus Christ has already done--
It is finished!' (
John 19:30).
Sometimes folks speak the truth throught the inspiration of the Holy Spirit without realizing the fullnes of what they speak. In other words, I did not know that Oswald Chambers believed in the greater hope of all mankind.
Threaded Mode
