God created man (1st) "to serve Him on the
basis of love", but in order for man to serve God on the basis of love,
man must also (2nd) "be holy and blameless before God" (Eph. 1:4).
But, God's
plan require that man must be holy and blameless according to God's will
and not according to man's efforts. Let us study the scheme behind God's
plan.
16D.1
Why God does not want man to attain holiness by himself or by his own
effort?
In Ephesians 2:8-9, this is
written:
For it is by God's grace that you have been
saved through faith. It is not the result of your own
efforts, but God's gift, so that no one can boast about
it. (TEV)
The same verse in another version
of the bible:
You were saved by
faith in God, who treats us much better than we deserve.
This is God's gift to you, and not anything you have done
on your own. It isn't something you have earned, so
there is nothing you can brag about. (Ephesians 2:8-9,
CEV)
God does not want man to boast or
brag about attaining holiness by himself or by his own effort.
16D.2
What
does God wants man to understand about becoming
holy and blameless?
The same verse Ephesians 2:8-9, it is
explained;
For it is by
God's grace that you have been saved through faith. It
is not the result of your own efforts, but God's gift, so that no one can boast about it. (TEV)
God wants man to understand that
becoming holy and blameless is a "Gift from God".
16D.3
What is "God's gift" to man for being holy and
blameless?
The same verse Ephesians 2:8-9, it is
written;
For it is by
God's grace that you have been saved through faith. It
is not the result of your own efforts, but God's gift, so that no one can boast about it. (TEV)
God's gift to
man for being holy and blameless is "salvation or being saved".
16D.4
How then, can man be
saved or receive God's gift of salvation, if it is not through his own effort?
The same verse Ephesians 2:8-9, in
the Contemporary English Version, this is written:
You were saved by
faith in God, who treats us much better than we deserve.
This is God's gift to you, and not anything you have done on
your own. It isn't something you have earned, so there is
nothing you can brag about. (Ephesians 2:8-9, CEV)
Man can only receive God's gift of salvation
"through faith in God".
In Romans 1:17, this is also written:
This Good News
tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is
accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures
say, "It is through faith that a righteous person has life."*
(New Living Translation)
As the
scriptures says: It is through faith that a
righteous man has life (eternal
life). And this is accomplished from start to finish by faith.
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God's plan require that man must be holy and blameless according to His
will and not according to man's efforts, because God does not want man to boast or
brag about it. For that reason, God wants man to understand that
becoming holy and blameless is a "Gift from God", and that, God
is giving him "salvation or being saved" as his gift.
How then, can man be saved
or receive God's gift of salvation, if it is not through his own effort?
Man can only receive the gift of salvation
"through faith in God". As the scriptures says: It is
through faith that a righteous man has life (eternal life). And this is
accomplished from start to finish by faith(Rom. 1:17).
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