Doctrine II Final Flashcards
Doctrine 7
We believe that repentance toward God, faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and regeneration by the Holy Spirit are necessary to salvation.
Doctrine 8
We believe that we are justified by grace through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and that he that believeth hath the witness in himself.
Regeneration
“Literally ‘re-birth’ the renewal by the Holy Spirit which comes with the acceptance of Christ.”
regeneration in a short answer
Repentance and faith lead to regeneration “The doctrine (7) points to the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit which brings people to salvation and transforms and renews their life…Through faith in Jesus, we can be led into a free, open and growing relationship with God. We are freed by the Spirit to become our true selves. This process is never completed in this life, but it grows and develops as the Holy Spirit reveals to us more of our own need of the power of Christ.”
Salvation is not only concerned with personal freedom from sin,
but is also marked by right relationships within the Christian Community.”
Justification
“Although we are sinners, God declares us righteous because of our faith in Jesus Christ. (Romans 3:22) We are accepted by God as we are. We do not deserve…earn…or can repay it. We can only experience the joy of forgiveness and reconciliation with God.
Grace
The persistent loving favor of God towards underserving humanity
Atonement – How it relates to the subject of justification.
“However, we cannot presume upon God’s forgiveness. He does not provide an automatic pardon for unrepentant sinners. It is by his grace that we are awakened to our need of salvation, and the necessary response is our repentance.”
Repentance
“However, we cannot presume upon God’s forgiveness. He does not provide an automatic pardon for unrepentant sinners. It is by his grace that we are awakened to our need of salvation, and the necessary response is our repentance.”
Justification by grace
“God seeks us before we even desire to seek him. His grace is totally unmerited (Hosea 11:3-4, 8-9) this is a characteristic of God’s dealing with us at all times, seen supremely in Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 1:4). It awakens us, convicts us of sin, convinces us of hope, enables us to respond and leads us to new life.”
Justification by faith
“Faith is our personal response to the grace of God…Though faith in Christ requires the use of our minds, it is possible to assent to a creed without trusting the Savior. Justifying faith involves heart, mind and will, and is made possible by God himself who bestows faith on those who desire it
The means of human salvation is through justification by grace through faith in Christ (Romans 3:21-26). This concept is developed in Romans and Galatians, where Paul’s concern is to explore the demands that should be placed on Gentile Christians with regard to the Jewish law.
Should they have to obey the law in order to be counted as righteous? Paul argued that this is not a condition of Christian faith or living. We are justified, that is restored to a right relationship with God, solely by faith in Jesus, the crucified and risen Messiah
Church teaching-
Paul’s teaching on justification was taken up in early Christianity by Augustine whose teaching centered around the primacy of God’s grace. Augustine believed human beings to be by nature morally frail and susceptible to evil therefore our salvation comes to us only by the grace of God.
However, Augustine followed this to its logical conclusion, suggesting that we cannot choose whether to be justified, nor do we reject the salvation that is offered. God’s grace leads us to faith in Christ. It is then that we are free to love and choose the good and are restored to a right attitude towards God.
We are made right and justified by grace. Thereafter, we live in this new relationship wholly by the grace of God. In contrast to Augustinian theology, Salvation Army doctrine, while affirming the necessity of God’s grace in human justification, is consistent with the Arminian viewpoint that salvation is also conditional on human response
faith and works work in tandem
“Faith is not a human achievement that wins or earns reward. It is the God-given channel through which grace flows. It is an attitude rather than an action…Those who attempt to win acceptance with God by their own performance are doomed to continual frustration and unease because the greatest human effort can never fulfil all the requirements of true righteousness… confidently resting on God’s mercy, we discover the new way of righteousness, based not on human striving but on the life-giving grace of God
Impartation
The word “impart” means to “give.” Also called “infused” righteousness, imparted righteousness thus declares that Christ’s righteousness is given to, or infused within, the believer such that he or she actually becomes righteous.
imparted righteousness is what God does in Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit after justification, working in the Christian to enable and empower the process of sanctification
Imputation
The word “impute” means “ascribe” or “credit.” Imputed righteousness thus carries the theological weight of being “counted” or “considered” or “reckoned” righteous.”
Imputed righteousness is the righteousness of Jesus credited to the Christian, enabling the Christian to be justified;
Sanctification
the process of change in a believer’s life from sinfulness unto holiness. It is also the process of becoming “more dead to sin” while we become “more and more alive to God.”
