Works plus faith?

Peter went into great detail about the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus in Acts 2:14-38, his audience Jews from all over. It says they believed “received his word gladly” and were baptized by the Holy Spirit, reborn into Christ, just like we all were including the twelve disciples John 20:20-22 rebirth in Christ just as in the Garden, book of Genesis.

Genesis 2:7.
Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.

The apostles just before in Acts Ch. 2 were empowered as the church, baptized in the Holy Spirit speaking in tongues.

But many say the apostles taught a works plus faith salvation. Repentance and water baptism can be confused with works…but only to a non-Jew. Jews clearly understood covenant. Abraham believed and was saved (unto righteousness). Peter in Acts 2:41 had 3000 new Christians entering in the same way. They gladly believed first.

Acts 2:41

“Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.”

Repentance is simply acknowledging wrong, unrighteousness or unholiness. Paul taught repentance in

Acts 17:30

“And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent:”

The job of the Mosaic Law, the teacher was added. It’s the same thing. Sin needed to be labeled, to label the sinner. That old covenant addition, the Law was never tossed away, but fulfilled. It remains a teacher in that we can only know and acknowledge sin, this way. A town has no lawbreakers without written law…nothing is imputed.

And the Jews understood what covenant was. It didn’t need explanation, that salvation was a free gift…because they understood it as a solemn oath, partnership, a marriage. They failed to see the Law fulfilled by Christ alone, because they failed to recognize Jesus. The gentiles in Corinth though, were bound to add works to salvation. They couldn’t possibly understand initially, blood covenant. Paul preached his revelation of grace-alone to them 1 Corinthians 15:1-4. But it was always a gift by faith alone. The Law ended and the dispensation of grace began at the cross. Gal 3:17. The new covenant between God and God Hebrews 9, where by faith anyone could enter in marriage partnership. You receive everything that’s Christ’s legally, because it’s between the Father and the Son, not you. The new law in the new covenant is love your neighbor, love God with all you have, and love your enemy. It could only be done with God living in you. It was that plan all along.

Is there anything to be added, once we understand marriage IS a covenant? It’s all legally ours, a gift of salvation.

Isn’t it all grace alone?

tamisaburo