Let me set out my views, and perhaps we'll debate further.
There has not been a generation that has not had the opportunity to get to know and love God. God first spoke to the Jews through the prophets and their leaders. People like Abraham, Moses and others. God taught them who He is and told them He was their Creator, and set rules by which they should live. The Ten Commandments.
When the time was right for humanity to understand and accept, God sent His only Son Jesus to earth. Jesus did not begin to exist when He was born. He always existed as a Divine Spirit, just like God is. When He was born, Jesus took the form of a human being so we could accept Him visually, conceptually, and listen to His teachings and witness His power through the miracles He performed.
By the time of His death, Resurrection and Ascension to Heaven, His disciples had learnt to accept and understand that Jesus is the Son of God. They associated Jesus with God. The two were inseparable.
When Jesus was raised to Heaven He sent the Holy Spirit to His disciples and followers at Pentecost. The Holy Spirit is the very soul of God. A Spirit, just like God is and Jesus always has been since before His birth on earth.
The Holy Spirit lived in/with the soul of the apostles, and gave them courage to preach the Word of God. He does so even today. We can have the Holy Spirit abide within us if we truly and earnestly ask Him.
So ... how about "we are all saved" and "once saved always saved"?
The way I see it is that God loves us all, and His invitation to love Him back and obey Him is open to everyone from the very first generation to all the ones still to come.
We have the choice to accept that invitation, or say, "thanks ... but no thanks!"
Of course we are all saved; that is to say, we all have the opportunity to be saved and to follow God's teaching and to go to Heaven with Him. But God will not force this salvation on us. He will not say "you are saved whether you like it or not!"
He offers us salvation, through His Son Jesus Christ, and through the teachings and guidance of the Holy Spirit; and we have the choice to accept it ... or not.
...choice is an important part of life.
ReplyDeleteYes.
DeleteGod bless.
Dearest Victor,
ReplyDeleteIt for sure is no FREEBIE and we all ought to live accordingly to earning it.
Yes, we do have a choice, at least most of us, with a functioning brain...
Hugs,
Mariette
I tend to agree, Mariette.
DeleteGod bless you.
Truth, we definitely have a choice. God is a gentleman, He loves us and totally desires us to be saved but it's our choice. He never forces us, then we would be robots. Sad but true, some will reject the Lord. I thank God He walks with me and talks with me and I hold on to Him as I would a loving Father because He is the loving Father. I obey His commandments as well, He knows what is best and repent when I fail.
ReplyDeleteI agree that ultimately the choice is ours to accept God's salvation or not. As you say, sadly, many do not.
DeleteGod bless, Amelia.
My view has been this. Jesus is divine and human, but not fifty/fifty divine and human. No, He is one hundred percent divine and one hundred percent human, in some mysterious way we cannot understand.
ReplyDeleteIn the same way, salvation is one hundred percent our choice to believe, and one hundred percent the work of the Sovereign Lord, in some mysterious way we cannot understand.
I think I understand, Mimi.
DeleteGod bless you.
It's all up to us.
ReplyDeleteIndeed it is.
DeleteGod bless, Bill.
And I choose to accept Jesus' offer.
ReplyDeleteBlessings, Victor!
Amen Martha.
DeleteGod bless always.
I've always heard, "ONE baptism for the forgiveness of sins" but not "once saved, always saved." That almost sounds boastful.
ReplyDeleteLike Martha, I CHOOSE to accept His offer.
I never understood "once saved always saved". It seems to imply God saved us so now it's OK!!!!
DeleteI agree with you and Martha.
God bless you, Mevely.
As you wrote, God offers salvation to all and I choose to say yes. Others choose to say no with all that that means.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you say, Terra. It's nice to see you here. Please call again soon and often.
DeleteGod bless.
God would love ALL to be saved but we must make the choice.
ReplyDeleteOnce saved always saved I believe means, once we have accepted Jesus as our Savior, nothing can separate us from God.
John 10:28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
Thank you so much for the explanation, Happyone. Which I understand and accept. However, what about the person who accepts Jesus and then, later on in life, moves away from the faith and no longer believes. I know some people who although at one point were practicing Christians, now no longer believe. Are they still "saved" albeit they separated themselves from God?
DeleteThanx again. God bless.
I believe the Bible tells us they are still saved because of God's promise in John that no one can be plucked out of HIS hand. They have become backsliders but are still saved. It is like a parent, just because a child does wrong they are still your children. If you are truly SAVED, Once you are a child of God you always are.
ReplyDeleteThank you for this explanation, Happyone. That's the bit I don't understand. If people who at one time believed in Jesus, but then have turned their back on God, deny Him, work against Him by encouraging others not to believe ... if they are also "saved"; does it mean they will be forgiven and will go to Heaven? Do all evil-doers go to Heaven because they are saved? If so, who goes to hell?
DeleteGod bless.
Yes, they will be forgiven because at the time they were saved God promised to cleanse them of ALL sin even sin in the future because we all sin even after we are saved.
ReplyDeleteThe people who go to hell are the ones who did not trust in Jesus as their savior.
I think maybe that people who have turned against God in such a dramatic way were never truly saved to begin with.
Thank you Happyone for this further explanation.
DeleteGod bless.