Bible Highlighter said:
They are indeed denying the Lord as it says in
Jude 1:4.
It is interesting that you admit to that,
Unlike most in popular Christianity, I don't try to explain away the plain words of Scripture (even if I don't like what it says). You may not have considered the way they deny the Lord. By what means? I would propose to you Titus 1:16.
Titus 1:16
"They profess that they know God; but in works they deny
him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate."
So here we see an example of a believer who professes to know God yet they deny Him by being disobedient and reprobate unto every good work. This means that they deny God not in the sense that they know Him but by their wrong conduct. It is odd how many today believe that sin does not keep you out of God's Kingdom.
but imagine not having Christ but offering your filthy rags,
Again, the Bible teaches two aspects of salvation.
We are initially and foundationally saved by God's grace through faith (a belief in Jesus as our Savior, and believing the gospel message in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 in that Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and risen on the third day). Any believer who says you have to do a work (like baptism) to get saved, like the Church of Christ, is trying to make it about "Works ALONE Salvationism." Also, if a believer were to happen to stumble into sin on rare occasions, they don't do a good work of absolving that sin, but they seek forgiveness of that sin with the Lord Jesus Christ. They seek His mercy and grace. This means they boldly come before the throne of grace and confess their sin to Jesus to be forgiven of it. Ephesians 2:8-9 describes how you GET SAVED. The context tells us this. You were quickened (made alive). How many times were you made alive? You receive Grace like a gift. How many times have you received a gift? One time, right? So it is talking about how you GET SAVED.
The secondary aspect of salvation is described to us in 2 Thessalonians 2:13, Romans 8:13, and Galatians 6:8-9 (Which most in Christianity today denies). Yes, they may say they believe these verses. But they have devised a workaround to enforce a different meaning upon them. They have rejected the plain meaning of what they genuinely say.
Also, the popular version of Christianity misquotes Isaiah 64:6 regarding filthy rags.
Look at the whole context. Nothing is said of the belief you hold to in trusting on the finished work of the cross while refusing to do the righteous acts of God.
Isaiah 64:5-7 says:
5 "Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways: behold, thou art wroth; for we have sinned: in those is continuance, and we shall be saved.
6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
7 And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee: for thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities."
Verse 5 says God meets with the person who rejoices and works righteousness.
Verse 6 is talking about a person's righteous acts that God did not call them to do. Remember when Jesus condemned the Pharisees for their man-made traditions like the washing of hands, etcetera? These would be like the filthy rags.
Verse 7 refers to how nobody is calling upon the name of the LORD, seeking forgiveness with Him, and they hide their face from God and are consumed because of their iniquities (sins).
it doesn't get more disgusting than that, notice the ones that crept in unaware, they crept in unaware they pretend they are in Christ, believe in grace but what works would they be doing that deny Jesus, If salvation is by grace through faith not of works, and people slip in and say there works save them that would be denying the reason Jesus died on the cross and instead offering their carnal behaviour. Think.... who do you see flaunting their works in place of God's grace
The problem is that you have not shown any context or cross-references showing this type of thinking.
You immediately jump to conclusions without any evidence of this being said in the text.
This is why I asked to offer a word-for-word commentary on these verses in the first place.
You are not reading each word plainly here and drawing out meaning in what they say regardless of what you believe. You are trying to insert an outside belief into this chapter: eisgesis.
try a word for word Commentary on this verse
Galatians 2:21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.
I asked you for a word-for-word commentary, and you did not truly give one using Scripture.
Galatians 2:21
"I do not
frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness
come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain."
The word "frustrate" means to reject or despise. At BlueLetterBible, one can see the word "
frustrate" in Greek is used elsewhere for the English words "
reject" or "
despise." So one can reject God's grace. The church of Christ, Catholics, and other "
Works ALONE Salvationists" groups do this. There is never a point in their life they can say they were saved by God's grace without works. They redefine a work (usually baptism) as a part of one having initial faith or a belief.
To address the words "
for if righteousness come by the law":
This would be the Jews at that time who trusted in a system of "Works ALONE Salvationism."
As we learn in Acts 15:1, Acts 15:5, and Acts 15:24, there was a certain sect of Jews who were trying to deceive Gentile Christians into thinking they had to be initially saved by being circumcised first. First, we are not under the Laws of Moses. In fact, this chapter tells us that we Gentile believers do not have to keep the Laws of Moses (the 613 Laws as a whole). The council was merely recommending that they keep certain laws, like not eating things with blood, etc. They were not saying to go back to the Laws of Moss.
So think. If a person thought they had to first be circumcised to be saved, then they would be making salvation based upon a "work" and not God's grace through in their Initial Salvation.
Read Galatians 5:2 and compare it with Galatians 5:4 and Acts 15. If you were to read these verses, it becomes clear that Paul was fighting against the heresy of those who thought they had to initially be circumcised to GET SAVED (vs. being saved by God's grace through faith without works in our Initial Salvation).
As for the words: "
then Christ is dead in vain."
Christ died for our sins. This is a part of our belief that the gospel message in 1 Corinthians 15:1-4 is to be initially saved. It is also something we continue to believe to be saved, as well. However, that is not the only requirement as a part of our faith or instructions from God in the New Testament. 1 Corinthians 15 talks about those who deny the bodily resurrection of believers, and Paul makes it a point that if you falsely believe that, then you are denying the resurrection of Jesus Christ. A person who denies the resurrection, their faith is in vain (See 1 Corinthians 15:14 and 1 Corinthians 15:17). So believing the gospel message is how we get saved, and this belief continues throughout our Christian life. But again, you also need to believe verses like 1 Thessalonians 2:13, Romans 8:13, Galatians 6:8-9, and 1 Timothy 5:8. As I said before, you are not accepting what these verses plainly say. You may say you believe them, but the words in these verses speak against your current belief.
or this one
2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
My time is limited. But to answer, you can prove that Christ is in you, or you can examine yourself to see He is in you if you find you are keeping His commandments (See: 1 John 2:3-4).
