hOW ARE WE TO CONSTRUE THE WORKS PASSAES IN THE nEW TESTAMENT?

tHERE HAS ALWAYS BEEN SOMETHING OF A PUZZLE FOR ME AND i THINK FOR OTHER cHRISTIANS ABOUT THE FACT THAT WE ARE TAUGHT THAT SALVATION IS COMPLETELY BY GRACE ALONE WITHOUT WORKS OF ANY SORT, WHILE MUCH OF THE TEACHING IN THE nEW tESTAMENT SEEMS TO REQUIRE SOME KIND OF WORKS OF US.  tHE rFORMED cHURCHES AND FOR THT MATTER MOST CHURCHES TEACH SALVATION AS INCORPORATION ALL THOSE PASSAGES WHERE WE ARE TOLD WE MUCST DENY OURSELVES, MUST BE WORTHY OF cHRIST, MUST BER OUR CROSS AND FOLLOW hIM, MUST BEE POOR IN SPIRIT, AND ALL THAT, ALTHOUGH SUCH REQRUIEMENTS CLEARLY SUGGEST WORKS THAT ARE NEEDED TO QUALIFY US FOR SALVATION.  aND NOBODY i'M AWARE OF INCLUDING jOHN mACaRTHUR MAKES AN INCSTINCTION TO HELP US OUT WITH THIS OBVIOUS APPARENTLY DISCREPANCY.

eXCEPT wATCHMAN nEE, OF ALL THOSE i LISTEN TO.  aND SOME OF WHAT HE SAYS SEEMS TO ME TO BE INDUBITABLY CORRECT 3WHILE SOME SEEMS QUESTIONABLE SO i HAVE A PROBLEM WITH HIS TEACHING TOO.  hE EMHASIZES THE PURE GRACE WITHOUT WORKS REQURIEMENT FOR SALVATION AND GOES ON TO TRY TO EXPLAIN THAT THE PASSAGES THAT IMPLY SORKS ARE REFERRING TO A HIGHER LEVEL OF SPIRUTAL LIFE, WALKING WITH cHRIST AS hIS DEIXCIPTLE , WHICH APPARENTLY SOME GO ON TO PRACCTICE WHILRE MANY REMAIN CONTENT WITH MERE SALVATION.  sALVTION IS THE AVOIDALCE OF hELL, THE ACCEPTALNCE INTO THE nEW jERUSALEM, BUT FOLLOWING cHRIST, DENYING SELF, bEARING THE cROSS AND SO ON TAKE US INTO THE kINGDOM OF gOD SOMEHOW WHILE MERE SALVATION DOESN'T.  tHIS IS VERY HARD TO SORT OUT, ALTHOUGH AT LEAST i APPRECIATIOE HIS OBSERVATION THAT SOME DISTINCTION IS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY AND THE IDEA THT ALL THOSE CONDITIONS ARE JUST PART OF BEING SAVED IS CLEARLY A CONTRADITION WITH THE PURE GOSPEL.  

i'M STILL TRYING TO MAKE SENSE OF ALL THOSIS SO iREALLY DON'T HAVE MORE TO SAY ABOUT IT RIGHT NOW, JUST WANT TO SNOTE THAT i THINK IT'S A REAL PROBLEM THAT ISN'T SUFFIDCIENTLY ADDRESSED BY EVEN THE BEST TEACHERS TODAY.

 

nEE RECOGNIZES THAT THERE ARE THREE PARTS TO THE HUMAN PERSONALITY, BODY , SOU AND SPIRIT, WHILE THE REFORMED TEACHERS SUCH AS jOHN mACaRTHUR AND MOST EVANGELICALS ONLY RECOGNIZE SOUL AND BODY AND SUBSUME SPIRIT UNDER SOUL.  tHERE ARE TWO PASSAGES THAT CLEARLY REFER TO THREE FACULTIES, ONE IN THESALONIANS AND THE OTHER IN hEBREWS.  THERE IS DOUBT, NO DOUBT IN MY MIND THAT THERE ARE THESE THREE PARTS AND IT'S ALWAYS FRUSTRATED ME THAT SUCH GOOD PREACHERS AND AS mACaRTHUR DENY IT.  iT'S RIGHT THERE IN BLACK AND WHITE AND THEY SOMEHOW MANAGE TO GLOSS IT OVER.  iT MAEMAKES A BIG DIFFERENCE TO THIS QUESTION OF THE SEEMING WORKS REQUIREMENTS THAT SHOW UP IN THE GOSPELSZ THAT i'M TALKING ABOUT ABOVE.  iF nEE IS RIGHT, MOST PREACHERS ARE PREACHING A SORT OF CARNAL VERSION OF THE gOSPEL.  i KNOW THAT'S A N OUTRAGEOUS THING TO SAY BUT IT'S UNFORTUNATELY THE ONLY CONDCLUSION i CAN DRAW FROM THESE FACTS.

later:  tHIS IS ALSO RELATED TO ANOTHER FRUSTRATION OF MINE, WHICH i FOUND EXPRESSED BY a q tOZER IN HIS BOOK tHE pURSUIT OF gOD, WHICH IS THAT WE ARE TAUGHT OVER AND OVER AGAIN THE GOSPEL ITSELF AND TAUGHT THAT THIS IS THE SUM TOTAL OF cHRISTIAN TECHING, EXCEPT FOR SOME EXCURSIONS INTO THE TOPIC OF SANCITIFICATION WHICH IS RARE ENOUGH IN ITSELF.sOME OF US HAVE AHAD EXPRERIENCES THAT MAKE US WANT MORE THAN THIS, MORE OF THE SPIRITUAL LIFE, FOR EXPERIENCE OF THE GLORIES OF OUR FAITH, OF gOD hIMSELF, AND EWHENEVER WE SAY THIS WE HEAR BACK THAT THERE IS NOTHING MORE TO BE HAD, IT'S THE GOSPEL OF SALVATION AND THAT IS THAT.    

tOZER'S BOOK IS THEREFORE A GREAT RELIEF AND HELP BECAUSE IT ACKNOWLEDGES OUR DESIRE FOR MORE, AND GIVES US SOME KEYS TO PURSUINT IT, ,WHICH IS PURSUING THE EXPERIENCE OIF gOD hIMSELF.  HICH AFTER ALL IS WHAT SALVATION IS ANYWAY, THE KNOWLEDGE OF gOD AS jESUS PUT IT.  kJOWING GOD IS OBVIOUSLY NO QUICK STUDY BUT A LIFETIME PROJECT, OR REALLY A PROJECT FOR ALL OF ETERNITY.   sOME cHRISTIANS DON'T SEEM INTERETASED,.  i NEVER UNDERSTOOD THAT.  fROM THE BEGINNING i HAD ENOUGH EXPERIENCE OF THE GRT PLAEASURES OF SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE TO KNOW THAT THERE IS A BOTTOMLIESS PIT OF MORE MORE MORE TO BE HADN.  aND i'VE HUNGERED FOR TEACHING ON THE SUBJECT.  nEE IS ONE SOURCE, SO IS tOZDER.  THERE ARE A FEW OTHERS, THE OLD ONES FROM A CENTURY BACK OR SO FOR THE MOST PART, THE ONCE WHO TALK ABOUT THOSE THINGS TODAY SOMEWHOEW DON'T SATISFY, AT LEAST NOT WHAT i'M LOOKING FOR.  iT'S ALWAYS THE OLD GUYS WHO KNOW ABOUT IT.  TODAY'S TEPREACHINGS  SIPREACHERS SEEM LIGHT AND FRIVOLOUS AND NOT WORTH LISTENING TO.  mACaRTHUR IS ERIOUS ENOUGH AND A GOOD EXPOSIOR OF THE SCRIPTURE UP TO A POINT, BUT i THINK HE TOO IS MISSING THE REAL STUFF OF THE cHRISTIAN LIFE.

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