The call to become a disciple of Christ entails having a genuine belief in His message. When we wholeheartedly embrace the entirety of the gospel, it will naturally manifest in a faith that leads to obedience. This obedience is rooted in the principles of evangelism and revolves around the gospel. It is important to note that the gospel precedes obedience in this context because faith serves as the means by which we attain salvation, rather than being the actual cause. By possessing a saving faith, we enter into a covenant with God, which necessitates certain conditions for entry, namely, repentance. In order to repent, we must turn to Christ and acknowledge Him as our substitute for sin. He willingly took upon Himself the burden of our transgressions and bestowed upon us His righteousness. It is this realization that Christ is the catalyst for our belief that allows us to develop a proper understanding of biblical faith, where faith acts as an instrument rather than a causative factor. We can also refer to our faith as justifying faith, as it is through justification that we are declared righteous in the heavenly court. The attainment of justification is not contingent upon any actions or deeds that we can perform to earn it; rather, it is a result of divine grace, where we play a passive role while God takes the active lead. It is through faith, serving as the instrument, that we come to know and understand our justified status. However, it is important to note that faith itself is not the cause of our justification, but rather the means by which we apprehend it.If there were a prerequisite for being justified, it would create a sense of duty. However, the righteousness of Christ is a righteousness that does not originate from within ourselves. It is not within our capability to obtain His righteousness through obligation; rather, it is credited to our account through grace alone, without any dependence on our obedience. Our justification does not hinge on our need to persevere in faith, as this would imply that we are unable to truly receive justification without the ability to acquire His righteousness through obligation.Repentance entails redirecting our allegiance from our sinful ways to Christ. It involves placing our trust solely in His righteousness. Rather than relying on our own abilities to earn His justification, we instead choose to embrace His righteousness through faith and entrust ourselves to Him. This type of repentance, known as evangelical repentance, shifts our focus away from our own efforts and towards embracing the work He has done on our behalf. By doing so, we demonstrate our repentance. It is imperative that we turn solely to Him. By recognizing that He has accomplished the necessary work on our behalf, we can have the confidence that we truly know Him and can rely on His work rather than our own. Thus, saving faith encompasses repenting from our sins and embracing Christ.
No comments:
Post a Comment