Is Believing in Jesus Considered "Working For Salvation"?
Calvinists define "believing" as a "working for salvation" thing. And since we can't earn or work for our salvation, they say we can't choose to believe in Jesus on our own because that would be "working for salvation."
(This is why they say the elect have to be regenerated by the Holy Spirit first, before they believe, so that they can believe. Essentially, in Calvinism, the elect are chosen for salvation first, before the beginning of time, then they get the Holy Spirit and He regenerates them so they can believe, and then they believe in Jesus. So they are saved before they get the Holy Spirit, and they get the Holy Spirit before they believe in Jesus. They are saved before they believe! So very backwards from what the Bible says! "Oh," they say, "but the Bible says faith is a gift God gives us, meaning He only gives it to those who get saved, the elect." But is that really what the Bible says?)
Yes, I agree we can't work for our salvation, but according to the Bible, their thoughts about "believing" are WRONG!
They say belief is a work we can't do to be saved .. but God says it's the work we must do to be saved:
"Then they asked him, 'What must we do to do the works God requires?' Jesus answered, 'The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent [Jesus].'" (John 6:28-29)
But Calvinism says that believing is considered "trying to work for salvation, trying to save yourself" ... but God does not consider belief "trying to work for salvation, trying to save yourself":
"'Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.' Now when a man works, his wages are not credited to him as a gift, but as an obligation. However, to a man who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness. David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:" (Romans 4:3-6)
Do you see how "believing in/trusting God" is not considered a "working to earn salvation" kind of works? God is contrasting Abraham's belief/trust with those who "work" for their justification and righteousness. God is saying that believing and trusting are different than the other kinds of "works" people do to try to earn their way with Him.
Also, it's helpful to look at what the concordance says about the word "believe" in verses like these:
“Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes ... Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:4, 13)
“And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, ...” (Ephesians 1:13)
When I first looked it up, I was afraid I would find out that "believe" meant something like "An action God causes you to do."
But “believe” in these verses does not mean “to believe, as though God has caused you to believe, with no effort or thought on your part.”
In the concordance, “believes” is active, not passive. It involves a conscious and willing action on our part. It is being persuaded by something, choosing to commit to it, and placing our confidence and our faith in it. You can only be "persuaded" by something if you have the ability to think about it, to reason through it, and to choose to believe in it, to accept it as truth. If God forces you to believe, there is no "being persuaded" by it. It would be "being forced into it."
The word “believe” is used in a way that implies that we allow ourselves to be convinced of the truth, to be convinced that Jesus is the truth. This supports the idea that we are responsible for being willing to believe in Him or not.
This is why no one will have an excuse for why they didn’t turn to God (Romans 1:20). Because God has made Himself clear to all, in His creation and deep down in our hearts. And we will be held responsible for our refusal to respond to this knowledge, for refusing to be persuaded by it.
And "receive" is along the same lines.
“Through him and for his name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship . . .” (Romans 1:5)
“through whom we have received reconciliation.” (Romans 5:11)
“For if, by the trespass of one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:17)
The concordance says that the word “receive” involves the idea of deliberately grabbing ahold of something, of consciously accepting what is offered. Like the word “believe,” it’s active, not passive. It is intentionally reaching out and grabbing something, as opposed to passively acquiring something. There is a responsibility on our parts to grab ahold of grace and salvation, to not let it pass us by.
Let’s say you are sitting in a room with lots of people, and someone walks in and places a golden ticket into the hands of 10 of them. Then they say, “If you have received a golden ticket in your hand, you are going to the chocolate factory.” This is like predestination, the idea that God decides who gets the tickets and who doesn’t. And in this case, “receiving” is passive. It involves no effort or decision on your part to get that ticket.
But “receiving” in these verses (according to the concordance) involves the idea of reaching out and grabbing, of willfully and deliberately accepting what is offered. It would be more like someone walking into the room, placing a golden ticket down on the desk before each person, and saying, “Anyone who reaches out and grabs the ticket in front of them - who receives this gift - is going to the chocolate factory.”
This is more like the kind of “receive” we read in these verses. It is active. It involves a response on our part, our willingness to reach out and take hold of the gift that is offered to us. This is free-will. We choose to accept or we choose to reject. And when we choose to believe that Jesus is the Truth and to commit to Him, we receive God's grace and eternal life. It is offered to all, but we have to accept it. We have to ... believe!
And so on both counts - that belief is a work we can't do and that belief is "trying to work for salvation" - Calvinists are WRONG. At least according to the Bible.
And I'd rather side with the Bible on this one.
If God said He's given us the work of believing, He meant it's our job to believe. If He said belief/trust-in-God is not the same thing as the other types of work we do to try to get to God, He meant that belief/trust is not the same as the other ways we try to "work" to get to God. If He said belief/trust is how we are "credited with righteousness" and "justified," He meant belief/trust is the way to be saved, not that being saved (elected) is the way to belief.
We can't do anything to earn our salvation, to work our way to heaven. But God does require one thing of us in order to be saved - to accept the work He did on our behalf to get us to heaven, to accept the gift of salvation He offers to us all, to consciously, willingly believe in Jesus, making Him our Lord and Savior.
And if God said it, I believe He meant it. I believe He knows what He's talking about when He tells us it's our responsibility and choice to believe.
Question: If Calvinists say that we can't do the one thing God requires us to do to be saved, then how in the world can anyone be saved the Calvinist way?
(This is why they say the elect have to be regenerated by the Holy Spirit first, before they believe, so that they can believe. Essentially, in Calvinism, the elect are chosen for salvation first, before the beginning of time, then they get the Holy Spirit and He regenerates them so they can believe, and then they believe in Jesus. So they are saved before they get the Holy Spirit, and they get the Holy Spirit before they believe in Jesus. They are saved before they believe! So very backwards from what the Bible says! "Oh," they say, "but the Bible says faith is a gift God gives us, meaning He only gives it to those who get saved, the elect." But is that really what the Bible says?)
Yes, I agree we can't work for our salvation, but according to the Bible, their thoughts about "believing" are WRONG!
They say belief is a work we can't do to be saved .. but God says it's the work we must do to be saved:
"Then they asked him, 'What must we do to do the works God requires?' Jesus answered, 'The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent [Jesus].'" (John 6:28-29)
But Calvinism says that believing is considered "trying to work for salvation, trying to save yourself" ... but God does not consider belief "trying to work for salvation, trying to save yourself":
"'Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.' Now when a man works, his wages are not credited to him as a gift, but as an obligation. However, to a man who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness. David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:" (Romans 4:3-6)
Do you see how "believing in/trusting God" is not considered a "working to earn salvation" kind of works? God is contrasting Abraham's belief/trust with those who "work" for their justification and righteousness. God is saying that believing and trusting are different than the other kinds of "works" people do to try to earn their way with Him.
Also, it's helpful to look at what the concordance says about the word "believe" in verses like these:
“Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes ... Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:4, 13)
“And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, ...” (Ephesians 1:13)
When I first looked it up, I was afraid I would find out that "believe" meant something like "An action God causes you to do."
But “believe” in these verses does not mean “to believe, as though God has caused you to believe, with no effort or thought on your part.”
In the concordance, “believes” is active, not passive. It involves a conscious and willing action on our part. It is being persuaded by something, choosing to commit to it, and placing our confidence and our faith in it. You can only be "persuaded" by something if you have the ability to think about it, to reason through it, and to choose to believe in it, to accept it as truth. If God forces you to believe, there is no "being persuaded" by it. It would be "being forced into it."
The word “believe” is used in a way that implies that we allow ourselves to be convinced of the truth, to be convinced that Jesus is the truth. This supports the idea that we are responsible for being willing to believe in Him or not.
This is why no one will have an excuse for why they didn’t turn to God (Romans 1:20). Because God has made Himself clear to all, in His creation and deep down in our hearts. And we will be held responsible for our refusal to respond to this knowledge, for refusing to be persuaded by it.
And "receive" is along the same lines.
“Through him and for his name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship . . .” (Romans 1:5)
“through whom we have received reconciliation.” (Romans 5:11)
“For if, by the trespass of one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:17)
The concordance says that the word “receive” involves the idea of deliberately grabbing ahold of something, of consciously accepting what is offered. Like the word “believe,” it’s active, not passive. It is intentionally reaching out and grabbing something, as opposed to passively acquiring something. There is a responsibility on our parts to grab ahold of grace and salvation, to not let it pass us by.
Let’s say you are sitting in a room with lots of people, and someone walks in and places a golden ticket into the hands of 10 of them. Then they say, “If you have received a golden ticket in your hand, you are going to the chocolate factory.” This is like predestination, the idea that God decides who gets the tickets and who doesn’t. And in this case, “receiving” is passive. It involves no effort or decision on your part to get that ticket.
But “receiving” in these verses (according to the concordance) involves the idea of reaching out and grabbing, of willfully and deliberately accepting what is offered. It would be more like someone walking into the room, placing a golden ticket down on the desk before each person, and saying, “Anyone who reaches out and grabs the ticket in front of them - who receives this gift - is going to the chocolate factory.”
This is more like the kind of “receive” we read in these verses. It is active. It involves a response on our part, our willingness to reach out and take hold of the gift that is offered to us. This is free-will. We choose to accept or we choose to reject. And when we choose to believe that Jesus is the Truth and to commit to Him, we receive God's grace and eternal life. It is offered to all, but we have to accept it. We have to ... believe!
And so on both counts - that belief is a work we can't do and that belief is "trying to work for salvation" - Calvinists are WRONG. At least according to the Bible.
And I'd rather side with the Bible on this one.
If God said He's given us the work of believing, He meant it's our job to believe. If He said belief/trust-in-God is not the same thing as the other types of work we do to try to get to God, He meant that belief/trust is not the same as the other ways we try to "work" to get to God. If He said belief/trust is how we are "credited with righteousness" and "justified," He meant belief/trust is the way to be saved, not that being saved (elected) is the way to belief.
We can't do anything to earn our salvation, to work our way to heaven. But God does require one thing of us in order to be saved - to accept the work He did on our behalf to get us to heaven, to accept the gift of salvation He offers to us all, to consciously, willingly believe in Jesus, making Him our Lord and Savior.
And if God said it, I believe He meant it. I believe He knows what He's talking about when He tells us it's our responsibility and choice to believe.
Question: If Calvinists say that we can't do the one thing God requires us to do to be saved, then how in the world can anyone be saved the Calvinist way?
