And you are still conflating regeneration and justification. Yes, they believed. It was counted to them as righteousness. But that’s not the same thing as being born again.
Scripture is clear that the natural man cannot please God. It never says that the one and only thing they can do is believe. If so, Paul would have been clear about it in Romans 8.
Those who are living in sin, in the flesh can never please God. Yet God calls all to repent and turn from their wicked ways and believe in Jesus Christ to be saved. This is the theme through the scriptures. Prophets of old preached it, Jesus preached it, John the Baptist preached it, and Paul and all the other apostles preached the same message. I do not believe the words of God are in vain or are so abundantly given if people cannot repent and respond. Nor do I believe you can use one verse here or there without the light of all scripture to continue saying that the natural man cannot repent and be saved. That is what God is about...saving lost men.
I don't believe I am conflating regeneration and justification. In the OT Abraham’s example of faith and justification is the pattern of the justification of all men. God declared him righteous based on his faith and this is the principle on which He declares any man righteous. When God, by a judicial decision, made Abraham a righteous man, He did it on the principle of faith, “that he might be the father of all them that believe” (Romans 4:11). Clearly, in the NT scriptures one who expresses faith in Jesus, is justified by God, and has the righteousness of Christ and His new life imputed to them is also born again. It cannot be otherwise and these cannot be separated as one can't be righteous or have new life in Christ without being justified and reconciled, having peace with God through Jesus' blood (Romans 5)
Paul is clear about this and the need for faith in previous passages in Romans and elsewhere throughout his epistles. He taught and preached to all ungodly sinners, natural men and women, Jew and Gentile wherever he went... For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. Romans 1:16
In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.
Eph. 1:13-14
But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Romans 3:21-26
But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness, just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works:
“Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, And whose sins are covered;
Blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin.” Romans 4:5-8
P.S Thank you for removing all those repetitive posts of mine.
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