Grace Emerges

Friday, April 20, 2012

a question for the current generation of Christians

Does salvation come through either faith or works, where God is passive and provides it to those that meet a standard of faith and/or works, but where God is active to condemn those that fail to do so?

Is it possible that instead, salvation comes from an active God who rescues us and gives us life, but where God is passive in that he allows us to condemn ourselves if we choose to do so. 


16God loved the world this way: He gave his only Son so that everyone who believes in him will not die but will have eternal life.17God sent his Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but to save the world. 18Those who believe in him won’t be condemned. But those who don’t believe are already condemned because they don’t believe in God’s only Son.
19This is why people are condemned: The light came into the world. Yet, people loved the dark rather than the light because their actions were evil. 20People who do what is wrong hate the light and don’t come to the light. They don’t want their actions to be exposed. 21But people who do what is true come to the light so that the things they do for God may be clearly seen. (John 3, God’s Word).
What do you think? Are we saved by faith and/or works?  Or are we saved by God's love?

What do you think? If we are condemned, is it that we have chosen a life where we don't want our actions to be exposed because they are selfish, maybe even evil?  Or is it that God actively condemns us for our lack of faith and/or works?

The going theory: God is active to condemn, passive to save. The proposed theory: God is active to save, passive to condemn.

Any thoughts from the blogosphere?

2 comments:

  1. I believe that God is active to save and we decide if we will follow Him or not. Is that passive? I think there are many mysteries with the gospel--how Jesus is fully human and fully God, does he choose us or we choose him, is it grace or works? I think the answer is, Yes. 100% and 100% mingled together to be a full complete new thing that we cannot fit nicely into a box as we humans would so like. God is just bigger than that.

    ReplyDelete