Are there things we are to "do" to receive the Lord?

In recent times, I have heard and read statements indicating that we have had no part in obtaining our salvation. Certain men are asserting -"nothing you do has any part in securing your salvation."

I admit that I have not been able to fully receive such assertions although I have weighed them carefully and recognize the sincere attempt to point men to the gracious mercy of all God has accomplished on His own. I recognize and affirm the importance of looking to what God has done through Christ in making atonement, redemption, and freely justifying all who have sinned by His grace.

Does this mean therefore that we should tell men there is nothing for them to do? Are we only to proclaim - "Christ has done it all, there is nothing you need to do or can do to experience His grace fully?" "It's all been done for you!"

Is John the Baptist's ministry still relevant today? Is there a need to "prepare the way of the Lord"? Do people still need a message that will prepare them to receive what Messiah has come to do? Is there anything people need to do to receive the baptism of Spirit and fire that Messiah has come to give?

Do people still need to be told - "Do works worthy of repentance?" John was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he preached that people should repent and do works worthy of that repentance. And when asked by three different groups of people "what should we do", he told them what they should do. Was that a different dispensation? Do people still need the way of the Lord prepared by our preaching a message of repentance? Did Aquilla and Priscilla tell Apollos "stop preaching repentance for the remission of sin"? Or did they help him see there was more that he had not yet seen that men needed to receive? Did Paul preach that there are certain things men must do in order to be saved?

If there is nothing that men are to do to receive Jesus, what are the "first works" that Jesus called the saints in the Ephesian church to do? If men have no need to "DO" anything, what did Jesus mean? "Remember the height from which you have fallen, repent and DO the first works."
That sounds very much like John's message - "repent and do works worthy of repentance"

I would appreciate reading contributions from the saints on SI, so that I can better understand what is meant by "there is nothing we do or have done" to experience saving grace.

Makrothumia

That's a great question. We would first have to understand the biblical definition of 'repentance', 'faith', and so forth.

I believe that John 6:28-29 encapsulates the answer:

"Then they said to Him, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?”

Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”"

Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”"

So then, what is it to believe? Someone has said that faith and repentance are two sides of the same coin. If that is true, what are the implications of "believing in Him whom He sent?"

A.W. Tozer wrote the following;

Faith as the Bible knows it is confidence in God and His Son Jesus Christ; it is the response of the soul to the divine character as revealed in the Scriptures; and even this response is impossible apart from the prior inworking of the Holy Spirit. Faith is a gift of God to a penitent soul and has nothing whatsoever to do with the senses or the data they afford. Faith is a miracle; it is the ability God gives to trust His Son, and anything that does not result in action in accord with the will of God is not faith but something else short of it.

Faith and morals are two sides of the same coin. Indeed the very essence of faith is moral. Any professed faith in Christ as personal Saviour that does not bring the life under plenary obedience to Christ as Lord is inadequate and must betray its victim at the last.

The man that believes will obey; failure to obey is convincing proof that there is not true faith present. To attempt the impossible God must give faith or there will be none, and He gives faith to the obedient heart only. Where real repentance is, there is obedience; for repentance is not only sorrow for past failures and sins, it is a determination to begin now to do the will of God as He reveals it to us.

In Christ,

"Why do you call Me 'Lord, Lord' and won't do the things I tell you?"

Luke 6:46.

So then, what is it to believe? Someone has said that faith and repentance are two sides of the same coin. If that is true, what are the implications of "believing in Him whom He sent?" Ezekiel

And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. Ezekiel 36:27

Once you believe, God puts his Spirit in us, it is that Spirit that will cause us to walk in God statutes and keep his judgments to do them.

What are the implications - we are to be led by the Spirit

But there is the battle for the Christian, does he surrender to the Holy Spirit and his leading or does he try in his own carnal strength to live the Christian life, my view and what I am current walking through is there a crisis the Christian must go through.

In that crisis your confronted with the hopelessness of condition as a born again believer trying to live your life in your own natural strength - you can use Rom 7 or Gal 5:16-18 as a reference..

Carnality - for the believer the self life must be overcome to allow us to come into in the fullness of the Spirit.

We can open the door when He knocks on it!!

When we ask what to do and He tells, then we can actually obey Him and do it!

When we sin, we can repent.

When we don't know what to do, we can stand and see the salvation of the Lord by trusting Him... whether it goes wrong or right (according to us).

There is a lot that we "can" do!

Yes! I fully agree with you, murrcolr.

Faith without works is dead. But equally true is that faith precedes works, and we cannot get any mileage when we put the cart before the horse.

If there is nothing we need to do to secure our salvation, then 99.99% of all Christian ministry, beginning with the Apostles, has been unnecessary.

A plain reading of scripture makes it clear that there are things we must do, namely repent and believe. And "believe" is not mere mental assent. It is agreeing to the facts, plus enslaving oneself to a Person, a Lord. How do we know He is our Lord? Because we do what He says. Lk 6:46.

it is simple as asking ones self can the flesh produce any thing good ,when the bible declares that ,;;in me that is in my flesh nothing good dwells ;;,, i would say imposable if we believe what paull said ,,he also said somthing like that natural man cannot recieve the things of the spirit ,for it is futile to him ,also the carnal min is not subject to the law of god neither can it be .To have faith is the law of god and it is also a good and righeous thing that neither the flesh nor a carnal mind can produce ..

Also the bible teaches infadicaly that JESUS IS THE AUTHOR AN FINISHER OF OUR FAITH . the producer and the director ,and that itis god who workes in you to will and to do for his good pleasure .

these are all plain facts of the bible weather you use these truths when witnesing should be up to the spirit of god jesus someties did an other times didnot .

For instance he who comits sin is a slave to sin but if the son sets you free you will be free indeed ,here JESUS shows that true repentence from sin is some thing that must be produce in the person by christ he severs the cords of sin and sets the person free ,turning them by his power ,,the bible talks of JESUS giving repentene and god granting repenetence ..

Jesus also said no man can come to me unlesss the spirit draws him . This rules out mans free will to come to god on his own with out god strongly drawing the person .

The context shows jesus was evengleising wile he said this .

Im sure well all no of other verses where jesus didnt uses these methods of truth to preach , buut facts show some times he did ,and facts show that paul also taught about how the grace of god was the soul inisiater of faith and repentence ,buy saying things like the above ,and mirroring what jesus said by say you have been set free from sin ,rather then saying you have set your self free from sin .

GOD works in you to will an to do for his good pleasure .

Faith and repentenece is worked in us by god him self ,through the partaking of devine nature ,it is why paul said ,i live by the faith of the son of god .

Any faith that fallen carnal man can produce in the adamic state ,is flawed and corupt just like nature that is in him ,it not exceptable to a holy and perfect god ,just as all other righteous deeds are as a flithy rag

the bible says we are justafied by his grace through the redemtion that is in jesus christ .
If we are justfied by faith then this faith must be part of gods grace also and if we take the scripture at face value we see that it is all god grace one way or the other and it is ...GOD WHO WORKS IN YOU BOTH TO WILL AND TO DO FOR HIS GOOD PLEASURE ,AMEN

ps ,,and i like it like that ,all praise honer an glory be to him that sits of the thrown and to the lamb ,it makes be happy ,,i just through my self down before him and have no faith or trust in my self ,or no confedence in the flesh in any way shape or form ..........

We shouldn't be so much trying to figure it out, but just speak what the bible speaks.

"Repent" and "Believe", those two things a man must do to be saved. You see it in scripture many times, and if you are more calvinistic of more arminian doesn't matter.. those 2 'things to do' are the same. Just preach the word of God and let God do the rest.

Of course just must explain, because nobody knows anymore what these words mean. But don't say "God must do this" (because in scripture it is never said to an unbeliever). Just preach Christ, Him crusified, Him resurrected.. and that your saved by repenting (turning) and believing (trusting, crying out to Christ who only can save you).

Yes, the ministry of John is still valid. There is a reason why God sent John the Baptist before Jesus. It is the same order even today. Even our Lord preached the same, 'Repent the kingdom of God is near'.

There is no belief without repentance. First make a person acknowledge that he is a sinner. Without that acknowledgment there is no need for savior. Let us not get cleverer than what the Apostles did in Acts, they preached repentance and belief. Let us not separate what God has united.