John, I think NOT. You say that there is salvation in none other than Christ, but also that someone whose god is Buddha is saved. This is very confused reasoning. Either you are IN Christ or you are NOT. Christâs âfaithâ does not save you. (His faith in what???) Your faith in Christ is what saves youânot His faith in you. Who is worshipping whom??? Izzy
How do you know that the Gentile without the law in Romans 2 did not have a faith of his own -- he certainly is not pictured as being Jewish or Christian. If he can be saved because he was a doer, why not the Buddist who does the same? Again, it is not their god that saves -- it is Christ.
The faith of Christ? When Bill first wrote of this some time ago, I did not agree either -- but I did not understand. As I understand this biblical teaching today, it is the faith of Christ, Himself, that saves me because I do not have the degree of faith that allows me to do it for myself. As I see it, there is no choice to this teaching. It was Christ's faithfulness to His assignment that works the working of God in my life. Linda, ask yourself this question -- why didn't God do all this saving of man from the comfort of His throne room? I do not believe there is anything arbitrary about the administration of the Plan. If that true, then God did what He had to do and in the way it was done.
In an earlier post, I spoke of "eternal" life as opposed to "spiritual" life. If the life that awaits us is truly "eternal," it is a life force without a beginning. It is the very force that "makes" God eternal. Our final destiny is in that Life - His life. So Christ, God Eternal, empties Himself of that circumstance and suffers for us. In so doing, He reconciles that which is eternal with that which is not yet. It is more than fitting that the Creator God is also the Author and Finisher of the Faith. Izzy, that makes so much sense to me, now , that I am somewhat startled that I did not see it the moment Bill introduced the idea.
You write Your faith in Christ is what saves youânot His faith in you. The first part of this statement, ignores the Gentile in Romans 2 who had no faith in Christ, was neither a Jew or a Christian but simply accomplished ( to a degree) those things in the law that could be known "instinctively." I cannot get by this. Now, I do not deny the importance of our faith. I can say that personal faith "saves" to the same degree that anything we do saves - caring for the poor, visiting widows and fatherless, confession for some, repentance for others, selling all that we own for still others, knowing brokenness and contrition, water baptism, leaving off adultery ("go thy way and sin no more") and so on. My faith in Christ does not save me as a condition of "getting " saved, but as result of being saved by the response of Christ to His Father [hence -- the "faith of Christ].
I do not believe you think differently? What I do believe, here, is that I am not doing a good job in making my case. but the lights have gone on for me, in more ways than one this past week. Time will tell if I am any kind of teacher ( read: witness).
John
