Live 4 The LORD

​READ

 And you he made alive, when you were dead through the trespasses and sins 2  in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience. 3 Among these we •all once lived in the passions of our flesh, following the desires of body and mind, and so we were by nature children of wrath, like •the rest of mankind. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love •with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up with him, and made us sit with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8  For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God—9 not because of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.  (Ephesians 2:1–10, RSV2CE)

REFLECTION

I was dead In trespass and sin 

I walked following the world 

I followed the prince of the power of the air

I followed the spirit that is at work in the sons of disobedience

I lived in the passions of my flesh

I followed the desires of body and mind

I was a child of wrath as is the rest of mankind

God who is rich in mercy loved me

Even though I was dead God made me alive together with Christ

By Grace I was saved from: death in sin, following the world, following the prince, following the spirit of disobedience, living in passions, following desires of mind and body, and wrath of God)

I am raised into the heavens in Jesus sitting with Him

In the coming ages I will be shown immeasurable riches of God’s grace and kindness toward me who are now in Christ. 

I am saved from all that harm by Grace through faith, a gift of the Almighty. 

Faith: a free submission of my intellect and will to God, entrusting my whole self entirely to him, and assenting to all he has revealed because God is truth itself.

I am a workmanship of God created in Christ for good works prepared for me to do. It was nothing I did or worked. 

RESOLUTION 

God who is rich in mercy, loved me and changed me. I did not do anything to receive this, He gave it to me by His Grace. I am to entrust myself to God. Believe all He has said. Walk in the Spirit, fighting the old man of flesh and evil renewing my mind and body in God’s ways. I am to let God have his direction for my life I am now recreated to do good works he prepared for me. 

Justification is the acceptance of God’s righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ.

REST

I have the righteousness of Jesus! I will to walk in Faith! I will to submit my intellect and will to God, entrusting my whole self entirely to him, and assenting to all he has revealed because He is truth itself! God, I trust in you!!

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I did not justify myself. God justified me and now I can cooperate with sanctification by the Holy Spirit. It’s a gift I received not something I earned. God does not give everyone justification. Those who do can cooperate after by submitting to the Spirit. We cannot cooperate with justification, it is a gift, we cooperate with sanctification after justification. Those who are not justified can never cooperate because they have no knowledge of God, except disobedience.

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The 1997 Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification states that God’s forgiving grace “remains independent of human cooperation.”

• Justification happens solely by God’s grace, not by human merit. 

• Justification is granted through faith/response that is itself grounded in God’s gracious action (faith is received; works follow as the faith is active in love).

So justification is God’s grace then I respond by faith (also grace enabled-or rejected)

Justification is at the same time the acceptance of God’s righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ.

Justification… is granted by the Holy Spirit.

• Justification is not automatic: it is God’s saving act that reconciles and transforms the person, but it is received as acceptance of God’s righteousness through faith. 

• Faith is required for justification: the Joint Declaration states explicitly: “For without faith, no justification can take place.” 

• Sinners cannot “self-generate” justification/faith: the Joint Declaration also confesses that, as sinners, people are incapable “of turning by themselves to God… of meriting their justification… or of attaining salvation by their own abilities,” and that justification takes place solely by God’s grace. 

So if someone does not have faith (and faith is what justification requires), then they are not justified