I do not want you to think I am singling you out, Bro. DHK, but before I could respond to you, that thread get closed. I want to carry this on a little further, okay?
You said: Your post emphasizes and strengthens my position.
I am not so sure on that Brother....lets see.
You also stated this: This is eisigesis. You have read into the passage that which is not there. What did Jesus say:
YOUR FAITH has made you whole. Jesus did not give her faith. Your preconceived theology made you think that. You had no other choice but to read that into the passage. But it is not there.
Faith is a gift of God. Any gift, when it is given, becomes yours, and therefore Jesus rightly said "your faith has made you whole". She could not see this on her own. It's like reading your bible. You can read it until you turn blue in the face, and if God doesn't enlighten you mind to understand, you can not get the meaning of His written Word. It takes God to remove the veil from your eyes to see, to unplug your ears to hear, etc. God is the author and finisher of our faith.
You also stated this: Again it says my unbelief The belief or unbelief was his. It was not Jesus' It was his faith. In verse 23 Jesus said, "all things are possible to him that believeth, not to him that believeth with God's faith." You are reading into the passage things that are not there. The faith was the father of the son. The context makes it obvious.
We all are in a state of unbelief until God shows us what we were, sinners. I did not realize the sad state I was in until God came and showed me I was a sinner in need of a Saviour. This unbelief is ours, but the belief(faith in action) comes from God.
I posted this: 6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Faith gets stronger through prayer, meditation, studying, seeking His face, etc. When God showed me that I was a sinner, He gave me the faith to believe what He was saying was true, but I didn't want to be saved at that time. That faith was still there, because He called me for years, but in my rebellion, I didn't want to serve Him. When I started listening to what He was saying, and then began calling out, that faith was there, and helped me to understand what He was saying in His Word was true.[/B]
What I was trying to say here was that when God comes to us and shows us lost and doomed for hell, He gives us faith, which is a gift from Him. Now, if we push this gift aside, it will do us no good. Now, when we put this faith into action, then these other additions come along. As faith grows, we grow, as well.
I posted this: Now, here is what happens when people "squander" their gift of faith:
9 But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:
So, according to what His Word has shown me, faith comes from God....or at least that is how I see it.
No, I do not believe one can lose their salvation. But when you don't put your faith into action, these other things don't come about either. Faith is the "starting point" that leads us to the throne of Grace.
Faith isn't something "conjured up" inside of man. As Brother P4T stated in a post in another thread, "Love, Grace, Mercy, Justification, Sanctification, Salvation, and Repentance" are gifts of God. Now, I kinda think that repentance is something that we must do.....but that's a whole other topic altogether.
I am sure we will remain at odds over this, but let's do this in love, okay? May God bless you with a wonderful week!!
i am I AM's!!
Willis
