T
thelasttrumpet
Guest
Just some more thoughts.
In Titus 3:5-7, Paul writes that God "saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewel of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life." The Holy Spirit is "poured out" on those who believe on Christ (hence Paul adds, "through Jesus Christ our Savior"). It is through the gospel of Christ that we are "born anew," or "regenerated," by the Spirit of God. This agrees with what Paul writes in 1 Cor 6:11: It is "in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ" (that is, it is by faith in him) that the Spirit of God washes (regenerates) us, sanctifies us and justifies us. Because the Spirit by which we are "born anew" is received by "the hearing with faith" when the gospel is proclaimed (Gal 3:2), Paul could thus tell the Corinthians that, in Christ, he had "begotten" them "through the gospel" (1 Cor 4:15; cf. Philem 10).
James 1:18 adds further support that the "new birth" is both the effectual work of God (and therefore not of our own will) AND is the result of hearing the gospel when it is proclaimed:
"Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creation."
Again, the vocabulary is slightly different from that of Peter's and John's, but the concept appears to be the same. I submit that they're all describing the same spiritual change effected by God's Spirit in the heart of those who believe, but simply each in his own way. I believe the burden of proof is on anyone who would argue otherwise.
In Christ,
Aaron
In Titus 3:5-7, Paul writes that God "saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewel of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life." The Holy Spirit is "poured out" on those who believe on Christ (hence Paul adds, "through Jesus Christ our Savior"). It is through the gospel of Christ that we are "born anew," or "regenerated," by the Spirit of God. This agrees with what Paul writes in 1 Cor 6:11: It is "in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ" (that is, it is by faith in him) that the Spirit of God washes (regenerates) us, sanctifies us and justifies us. Because the Spirit by which we are "born anew" is received by "the hearing with faith" when the gospel is proclaimed (Gal 3:2), Paul could thus tell the Corinthians that, in Christ, he had "begotten" them "through the gospel" (1 Cor 4:15; cf. Philem 10).
James 1:18 adds further support that the "new birth" is both the effectual work of God (and therefore not of our own will) AND is the result of hearing the gospel when it is proclaimed:
"Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creation."
Again, the vocabulary is slightly different from that of Peter's and John's, but the concept appears to be the same. I submit that they're all describing the same spiritual change effected by God's Spirit in the heart of those who believe, but simply each in his own way. I believe the burden of proof is on anyone who would argue otherwise.
In Christ,
Aaron
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