Featured The righteousness of God

I believe James was written to who it says it was written to, the twelve tribes scattered. I also believe the tribes of Judah, Levi and Benjamin scattered among the nations (Ezek 37:16 Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions.) were practicing the religion handed from Sini and the other tribes (Ezek 37:16 then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions.) were practicing whatever beliefs the peoples they were among were practicing. Hosea 8:8,9 Israel is swallowed up: now shall they be among the Gentiles as a vessel wherein is no pleasure. For they are gone up to Assyria, a wild ass alone by himself: Ephraim hath hired lovers.

James is writing to these peoples.

Acts 15:8 “So God, who knows the heart, acknowledged them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us,
Acts 15:14 “Simon has declared how God at the first visited the Gentiles to take out of them a people for His name.

16 ‘After this ---- After what? After taking out a people for his name
I will return
And will rebuild the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down;
I will rebuild its ruins,
And I will set it up;

Why? V 17
So that the rest of mankind may seek the LORD,
Even all the Gentiles who are called by My name,
Says the LORD who does all these things.’[fn]

How many people preach that Christ is returning in order that mankind might seek him?

What is the purpose for the Kingdom of Christ? ---- To send people to Hell? 1000 years?

Matt 19:28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

 

To the father, being nowein Christ means that we have to God now the same law keeping perfection as Jesus had! That is why he can freely justify is as now being found in the Beloved!

 

So you would see a real distinction between Justification and redemption?

 

Then your OP needs a serious rewrite.

That's right. You said it was metonymy.


It's funny that when your feet get held to the fire you start denying you said the very things you said.

 

This is an unkind presumption, since (a) you assume my views are merely derivative from the teaching of others and (b) that they are unbiblical simply because they differ from yours. I invite you to identify any of my posts that lack pertinent scriptural citations.

On this we agree; and if the action of justification is separate from the action of redemption, it would be a conflation to refer to the provision of righteousness to us as redemptive work. Yet your statement was that the righteousness of God is a metonymy "referring to God's redemptive work that provides righteousness of those of His choosing." Providing righteousness is not redemption or redemptive work; the biblical term for that is justification. Justification is "through" redemption, redemption being a necessary precondition for justification in the same way that buying an old car is necessary before painting and restoring it; painting it is not part of the purchasing, if you see what I'm getting at. Paul teaches that God's righteousness is the gift we receive from God through redemption and thus logically after redemption (Romans 3:24, Ephesians 1:7). The forgiveness of sins is obviously necessary prior to our being treated or viewed by God as righteous. Perhaps you have observed that the consistent biblical phrase is "justified by faith" (Romans 3:1, 5:8, Galatians 3:24, etc.) not "redeemed by faith." One can be redeemed without being justified (2 Peter 2:1), but one cannot be justified without being redeemed.

Your statements appear contradictory. You said "when God credits our faith as righteousness, He places us into Christ spiritually, were we are "made" not declared righteous." Being placed into Christ is salvation, is it not? In your view, was Abraham "saved" at the point he believed God's promise about the number of his descendants in Genesis 15:6? In your view is Abraham's faith and obedience in Genesis 12 not a manifestation of his salvation?

As for Hebrews 11:2, the elders (πρεσβύτεροι) there received by faith God's testimony to them about things hoped for and not seen. I am unable to find the notion of being "approved" or "chosen for salvation" in that context, particularly in the light of Hebrews 11:39 where the same description is used of the same individuals. The "receiving of testimony" is something done by the recipients of testimony, it is not presented as an act of approval on the part of God.

Sorry, but this is a bit like quoting Romans 8:28-30 and alleging that to note foreknowledge, predestination, calling, justification, and glorification as separate things is unbiblical. To extend my earlier analogy, paying for the car is separate and distinct from relocating it from the former owner's property to my own.

How else should I understand "I know this is all different from what you have been taught" and "the biblical view is very different from the view you have been taught"? If you do not claim to know what I have been taught, how can you presume to label what I was taught unbiblical? This type of comment is unnecessarily personal and dismissive, as is the implication that I am merely regurgitating past teaching from others and not my own understanding as the fruit of personal study.

 

Jesus redeemed and purchased us back to the Father by the blood of His sacrificial death upon Calvary!

 

We do not have imputed to us then the Moral perfection of Jesus?

 

Are we justified due to what we do then or by what Jesus already has done?

 

Absolutely; I have endeavored to point out the difference elsewhere in this thread. Paying the price (redemption) is not the same as viewing/treating/declaring/crediting the redeemed as righteous (justification). An analogy would be purchasing a distressed property (R), then investing my own capital in it to "perfect" it so I can dwell in it (J).

 

You give Van too much credit.

The best way to show a difference in the works of Christ is to go to the law and see what was prescribed for forgiveness of sin, release of guilt (trespass), to please God (sweet savour), etc, and we do indeed see stark distinctions in the sin, trespass and sweet savour offerings. These were distinctions well-known by the NT writers, and is reflected in their teachings of the work of Christ, which is what the law of sacrifice was foreshadowing.

Van has an idea in his head, and no amount of reasoned exposition will dislodge it.

Anyway. Merry Christmas.

 

Van, in the interest of time, I will go ahead and post your response to my post:

You unbiblical, Calvinist snip! I never said there was no difference in redemption and justification, just that they're the same thing!

 

Justification is God getting us now as the "paid property" purchased by death of Christ!

 

Ah, love among the brethren!

 

Really want to read his Systematic Theology and personal translation!