Embracing New Covenant Theology as Your Only Means of Salvation

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Danthemailman

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So you believe salvation is by a person’s choice?
Yes. We must choose to believe the gospel. Acts 15:7 - And when there had been much dispute, Peter rose up and said to them: “Men and brethren, you know that a good while ago God chose among us, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel and believe. 8 So God, who knows the heart, acknowledged them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us, 9 and made no distinction between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.

Romans 10:16 - But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our report?” 17 So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
 
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Danthemailman

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Yes the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation for everyone who believes.

Amen!
Amen!

The command of the Gospel is repent.

Repent means “turn to God”.

If we are called to turn to God, then we by default are called to “turn away” from Satan as our lord.

This is what Jesus commissioned Paul to go and do.

Words of Christ in red —

But rise and stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you. I will deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, to whom I now send you, to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’
Amen! We must first repent (change our mind) before we choose to believe the gospel.

Mark 1:15 - “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.”
Acts 20:21 - testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

Repentance actually 'precedes' believing the gospel/faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and is not is not a totally separate act from faith. It is actually the same coin with two sides. Repentance is on one side, what you change your mind about and believing the gospel/faith in Christ is on the positive side, the new direction of this change of mind.

When we repent (change our mind) and place our faith in Jesus Christ for salvation, we turn from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God and receive forgiveness of sins. (Acts 26:18)

“Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance.
Acts 26:16-20
We are to repent and turn to God in faith, and doing works befitting repentance demonstrates or proves that we have truly repented and these works are the fruit of repentance. (Matthew 3:8)

Therefore the way we obey the command of the Gospel to repent, is to confess Jesus Christ as Lord.

Which is what Paul teaches.

that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Romans 10:9-10
  • with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
I've heard certain people misinterpret Romans 10:9,10 in such a way which means we can believe unto righteousness today, but are still lost until we confess Christ, which may be next week and then we are finally saved next week, but that is not what Paul is talking about here. Also, someone who is moot (unable to speak) would remain lost according to that interpretation of Romans 10:9,10 for failing to "verbally" confess with their mouth.

Confessing with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believing in our heart that God raised Him from the dead are not two separate steps to salvation but are chronologically together. Romans 10:8 - But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (TOGETHER) that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, (notice the reverse order from verse 9-10) - that if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. Confess/believe; believe/confess.

1 Corinthians 12:3 - Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except BY the Holy Spirit. There is divine influence or direct operation of the Holy Spirit in the heart of a person when confessing that Jesus is Lord. This confession is not just a simple acknowledgment that Jesus is the Lord (even the demons believe that), but is a deep personal conviction, from the heart that Jesus is that person's Lord and Savior. So simply believing in our head (and not in our heart) that God raised Him from the dead does not result in righteousness and simply reciting the words/giving lip service to the words "Jesus is Lord" not by the Holy Spirit is not unto salvation.
 
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JLB777

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Repentance actually 'precedes' believing the gospel/faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and is not is not a totally separate act from faith.

Repent is the command of the Gospel that each of us must obey, in order to believe and therefore obey the Gospel.

This principle is called the obedience of faith.

But now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: Romans 16:26




JLB
 
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Dan Perez

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Jesus said, "Few there be that find it" Matthew 7:14. He was speaking of the strait gate, which is himself. What most have found is religion. Religion is appealing, because it is about us, but it is not the way that leads to eternal life. Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no one can come to the Father, but by me" John 14:6. Salvation is by faith alone, because it is by Christ alone.
And where in the bible , with a verse are you saved by The NEW COVENANT , that can study it ?

Reading your OP , I would have many questions as to there place in the heavenlies ?

dan p
 
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Clare73

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And where in the bible , with a verse are you saved by The NEW COVENANT , that can study it ?

Reading your OP , I would have many questions as to there place in the heavenlies ?

dan p
After the resurrection of Jesus, there was no salvation under the Mosaic Covenant.
Salvation then and now is only by faith in the person (Eph 2:8-9) and work (Ro 3:25) of Jesus Christ for the remission of one's sin, which saves one from the wrath of God (Ro 5:9) on that sin.
 
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bbbbbbb

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After the resurrection of Jesus, there was no salvation under the Mosaic Covenant.
Salvation then and now is only by faith in the person (Eph 2:8-9) and work (Ro 3:25) of Jesus Christ for the remission of one's sin, which saves one from the wrath of God (Ro 5:9) on that sin.
It is extremely difficult to provide evidence that many of the Old Testament saints actually knew much, if anything, about faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ for the remission of their sin.
 
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Soyeong

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Before one can embrace New Covenant theology, they will have to renounce their Old Covenant theology of works, laws and religion. Under the New Covenant Christians are justified by faith alone, works, laws and religions have been abolished and count for nothing, Ephesians 2:15 also Colossians 2:14. This is one reason why Paul said, "The just shall live by faith" Romans 1:17. Living by faith does not include laws, works and religion.
In Jeremiah 31:33, the New Covenant involves God putting His law in our minds and writing it on our hearts, and in Ezekiel 36:26-27, the New Covenant involves God taking away our hearts of stone, giving us hearts of flesh, and sending His Spirit to lead us to obey His law. In Psalms 119:29-30, he wanted to put false ways far from him, for God to be gracious to him by teaching him to obey His law, and he chose the way of faithfulness by setting God's law before him, so this has always been the one and only way of becoming justified by grace through faith alone. God is trustworthy, therefore His law is also trustworthy (Psalms 19:7), so the way to have faith in God is by having faith in what He has instructed while it is contradictory to have faith in God while not having faith in what He has instructed. In Habakkuk 2:4, it says that the righteous shall live by faith, and this was written by people under the Mosaic Covenant, so it is not a depart from it, but rather it is the way to live under it, which is in accordance with the context of the rest of the chapter. Furthermore, in Isaiah 51:7, the righteous are those on whose heart is God's law, so the righteous living by faith does not refer to a manner of living that is not in obedience to it.

Every other time that the Greek word "dogma" is used by the Bible outside of Ephesians 2:15 and Colossians 2:14 it refers to something other than God's law, so you need to give justification for why it should be interpreted as referring to God's law in those verses, especially in light of the fact that all of God's righteous laws are eternal (Psalms 119:160). In addition, in Matthew 5:17-19, Jesus specifically said that he came not to abolish the law and warned against relaxing the least part of it or teaching others to do the same. Likewise, in Romans 3:31, Paul confirmed the our faith does not abolish our need to obey God's law, but rather our faith upholds it.

Under the New Covenant Christians will be focused on Jesus Christ and his Gospel, because Jesus is the end and the fulfillment of the Old Covenant. Paul said, "Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believes" Romans 10:4. Without the law there cannot be an Old Covenant. All religions are based upon law. Where there is no law, there is no sin, Romans 4:15.
Christ is God's word made flesh, so it is contradictory to focus on him instead of focusing on obeying God's word. In Matthew 4:15-23, Jesus began his ministry with the Gospel message to repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand, which was a light to the Gentiles, and God's law was how his audience knew what sin is (Romans 3:20), so repenting from our disobedience to it is a central part of the Gospel of Christ.

In Matthew 7:23, Jesus said that he would tell those who are workers of lawlessness to depart from him because he never knew them, so knowing Jesus is the goal of the law. In Romans 9:30-10:4, they had a zeal for God, but it was not based on knowing Him, so they failed to attain righteousness because they misunderstood the goal of the law by pursuing it as through righteousness were earned as the result of their works in order to establish their own instead of pursing it as through righteousness is by faith in Christ, for knowing Christ is the goal of the law for righteousness for everyone who has faith. In Romans 10:5-10, the faith references Deuteronomy 30:11-16 as the word of faith that we proclaim in regard to saying that God's law is not too difficult for us to obey, that the one who obeys it will attain life by it, in regard to what we are agreeing to obey by confessing that Jesus is Lord, and in regard to the way to believe that God rose him from the dead. So nothing in this passage has anything to do with Jesus ending God's law, but just the opposite.

Under the New Covenant Jesus has ALREADY defeated sin, death and the devil and now sits in heaven as "The King of Kings and the Lord of Lords" Revelation 19:16.

Under the New Covenant, Jesus has ALREADY reconciled us and the world unto God, 2 Corinthians 5:18-19.

Under the New Covenant, Christians are new creations in Jesus Christ, 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Under the New Covenant, Christians are not subject to laws or rules, because there is no condemnation for those that are "In Christ" Romans 8:1. There is no condemnation because there are no laws.

Under the New Covenant, God sees his people as perfect and complete "In Christ" Colossians 2:10. No laws, rules or religion needed.

Under the New Covenant, salvation is by grace (God's goodness) through faith, Ephesians 2:8. Plus nothing.

Many are living under the New Covenant, but they want to bring Old Covenant things with them, which is a perversion of New Covenant theology.
While it is true that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ (Romans 8:1), those who are in Christ are obligated to walk in the same way he walked (1 John 2:6), so verses that speak about those who are in Christ only speaking about those who are walking in obedience to God's law. Moreover, in Romans 8:4-7, those who walk in the Spirit are contrasted with those who have minds set on the flesh who are enemies of God who refuse to submit to God's law. In Ephesians 2:8-10, we are new creations in Christ to do good works, as while we do not earn our salvation as the result of our works lest anyone should boast, doing good works in obedience to God's law is nevertheless a central part of our salvation. Our salvation is from sin (Matthew 1:21) and sin the transgression of God's law (1 John 3:4), so while we do not earn our salvation as a wage as the result of having first obeyed it, living in obedience to it through faith in Jesus is nevertheless intrinsically part of the concept of him saving us from not living in obedience to it. The NT authors quoted or alluded to the OT thousands of times in order to support what they were saying, so it is absurd to think doing that it is a perversion of New Covenant theology.
 
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bbbbbbb

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In Jeremiah 31:33, the New Covenant involves God putting His law in our minds and writing it on our hearts, and in Ezekiel 36:26-27, the New Covenant involves God taking away our hearts of stone, giving us hearts of flesh, and sending His Spirit to lead us to obey His law. In Psalms 119:29-30, he wanted to put false ways far from him, for God to be gracious to him by teaching him to obey His law, and he chose the way of faithfulness by setting God's law before him, so this has always been the one and only way of becoming justified by grace through faith alone. God is trustworthy, therefore His law is also trustworthy (Psalms 19:7), so the way to have faith in God is by having faith in what He has instructed while it is contradictory to have faith in God while not having faith in what He has instructed. In Habakkuk 2:4, it says that the righteous shall live by faith, and this was written by people under the Mosaic Covenant, so it is not a depart from it, but rather it is the way to live under it, which is in accordance with the context of the rest of the chapter. Furthermore, in Isaiah 51:7, the righteous are those on whose heart is God's law, so the righteous living by faith does not refer to a manner of living that is not in obedience to it.

Every other time that the Greek word "dogma" is used by the Bible outside of Ephesians 2:15 and Colossians 2:14 it refers to something other than God's law, so you need to give justification for why it should be interpreted as referring to God's law in those verses, especially in light of the fact that all of God's righteous laws are eternal (Psalms 119:160). In addition, in Matthew 5:17-19, Jesus specifically said that he came not to abolish the law and warned against relaxing the least part of it or teaching others to do the same. Likewise, in Romans 3:31, Paul confirmed the our faith does not abolish our need to obey God's law, but rather our faith upholds it.

Christ is God's word made flesh, so it is contradictory to focus on him instead of focusing on obeying God's word. In Matthew 4:15-23, Jesus began his ministry with the Gospel message to repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand, which was a light to the Gentiles, and God's law was how his audience knew what sin is (Romans 3:20), so repenting from our disobedience to it is a central part of the Gospel of Christ.

In Matthew 7:23, Jesus said that he would tell those who are workers of lawlessness to depart from him because he never knew them, so knowing Jesus is the goal of the law. In Romans 9:30-10:4, they had a zeal for God, but it was not based on knowing Him, so they failed to attain righteousness because they misunderstood the goal of the law by pursuing it as through righteousness were earned as the result of their works in order to establish their own instead of pursing it as through righteousness is by faith in Christ, for knowing Christ is the goal of the law for righteousness for everyone who has faith. In Romans 10:5-10, the faith references Deuteronomy 30:11-16 as the word of faith that we proclaim in regard to saying that God's law is not too difficult for us to obey, that the one who obeys it will attain life by it, in regard to what we are agreeing to obey by confessing that Jesus is Lord, and in regard to the way to believe that God rose him from the dead. So nothing in this passage has anything to do with Jesus ending God's law, but just the opposite.

While it is true that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ (Romans 8:1), those who are in Christ are obligated to walk in the same way he walked (1 John 2:6), so verses that speak about those who are in Christ only speaking about those who are walking in obedience to God's law. Moreover, in Romans 8:4-7, those who walk in the Spirit are contrasted with those who have minds set on the flesh who are enemies of God who refuse to submit to God's law. In Ephesians 2:8-10, we are new creations in Christ to do good works, as while we do not earn our salvation as the result of our works lest anyone should boast, doing good works in obedience to God's law is nevertheless a central part of our salvation. Our salvation is from sin (Matthew 1:21) and sin the transgression of God's law (1 John 3:4), so while we do not earn our salvation as a wage as the result of having first obeyed it, living in obedience to it through faith in Jesus is nevertheless intrinsically part of the concept of him saving us from not living in obedience to it. The NT authors quoted or alluded to the OT thousands of times in order to support what they were saying, so it is absurd to think doing that it is a perversion of New Covenant theology.
Do you believe that the Old Testament prophets were addressing Gentiles?
 
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bbbbbbb

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The people that they addressed included Gentiles.
How do you know that? Granted, that many of the prophets mentioned Gentile nations in the prophecies, the prophecies themselves were written in Hebrew, which Gentiles were unable to read, unless highly educated. We have no indication of any Gentiles having received prophecy, with the exception of Jonah and, at that, the prophecy did not come to pass.
 
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Soyeong

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How do you know that? Granted, that many of the prophets mentioned Gentile nations in the prophecies, the prophecies themselves were written in Hebrew, which Gentiles were unable to read, unless highly educated. We have no indication of any Gentiles having received prophecy, with the exception of Jonah and, at that, the prophecy did not come to pass.
In Exodus 12:38, there was a mixed multitude that went up out of Egypt with the Israelites, so there were Gentiles at the foot of Sinai, and in Joshua 8:33, Israeli was inclusive of both the foreigner and the native born, there have always been Gentiles who have sought to learn how to believe in the God of Israel by obeying the Torah. Moreover, this means that the things that the Prophets said to Israel were inclusive of Gentiles. What Jonah prophesied eventually did come to pass.
 
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bbbbbbb

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In Exodus 12:38, there was a mixed multitude that went up out of Egypt with the Israelites, so there were Gentiles at the foot of Sinai, and in Joshua 8:33, Israeli was inclusive of both the foreigner and the native born, there have always been Gentiles who have sought to learn how to believe in the God of Israel by obeying the Torah. Moreover, this means that the things that the Prophets said to Israel were inclusive of Gentiles. What Jonah prophesied eventually did come to pass.
That was centuries before prophets came on the scene. There had been provisions made for Gentiles to convert to Judaism. A notable example is Rahab. The particular prophets you quoted from do describe God's judgement on various nations, both Gentile and Jewish, but their writings are in Hebrew and are directed to a Hebrew audience, not a Gentile audience.

Jonah prophesied that in forty days Ninevah would be overthrown.

Jonah 3:4 Then Jonah began to go through the city one day’s walk; and he cried out and said, “Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”

That did not happen and Jonah got totally bummed out with God.
 
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Soyeong

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That was centuries before prophets came on the scene. There had been provisions made for Gentiles to convert to Judaism. A notable example is Rahab. The particular prophets you quoted from do describe God's judgement on various nations, both Gentile and Jewish, but their writings are in Hebrew and are directed to a Hebrew audience, not a Gentile audience.

Jonah prophesied that in forty days Ninevah would be overthrown.

Jonah 3:4 Then Jonah began to go through the city one day’s walk; and he cried out and said, “Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”

That did not happen and Jonah got totally bummed out with God.
Israel was given the role of being a light to the Gentiles, is it has always been intended to bless Gentiles by turning the from their wickedness and teaching them how to walk in God's way in accordance with the promise and with the Gospel. God's time table is dependent on repentance. Nineveh repented, so they they were not destroyed at that time, but they did not hold to that repentance, so they were later destroyed.
 
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bbbbbbb

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Israel was given the role of being a light to the Gentiles, is it has always been intended to bless Gentiles by turning the from their wickedness and teaching them how to walk in God's way in accordance with the promise and with the Gospel. God's time table is dependent on repentance. Nineveh repented, so they they were not destroyed at that time, but they did not hold to that repentance, so they were later destroyed.
That was not my question. Where in any of the prophets you quoted, is their message addressed to Gentiles?
 
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Soyeong

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That was not my question. Where in any of the prophets you quoted, is their message addressed to Gentiles?
Gentiles are welcome to join Israel and thus a message addressed to Israel is inclusive of them.
 
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It is extremely difficult to provide evidence that many of the Old Testament saints actually knew much, if anything, about faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ for the remission of their sin.
Actually, they knew nothing.

They were saved by faith in the promise (Ge 15:5, seed; Jesus Christ, Gal 3:16).
 
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