I'm disappointed in you, Oats. You've come a long way, but you still don't understand the righteousness of faith. I could believe one minute and be beheaded the next. Would the fact that my head fell to the ground fit the bill?
So, are you disappointed or thankful?
Disappointed with scriptures? If you do not do what scriptures say, if you do not believe what scriptures say, are you believing? Will someone who does not take the time to learn scripture, do scripture, do righteousness?
As to beheading, maybe you could explain the relevancy to this subject.
I see you, like others here, cannot explain what you hold to be true.
Did the woman with the issue of blood do works to get to Jesus to touch the hem of his garment? Why did she do that? Because she believed in Jesus' ability as a man of God to heal.
If she said she believed but sat at home, waiting for God to do everything, would she have been healed?
If Peter had not done the work to get out of the boat, would he have walked on water?
If Noah said, God I believe you, but did not build the ark, where would he, or us be today?
Believing God is works.
If you did not do the works it takes to learn scripture, whether by reading or listening,that is, the truths about Jesus Christ being lord and that God raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9-10) and mentally assimilated that to the end you acted, believed on those truths, would you be saved?
No, you would not. Receiving salvation, as Romans 10:9-10 clearly shows, requires your participation in order for you to receive. It takes works to believe to receive. You had to do make the decision to do the work to confess with your mouth the lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead.
That work does earn your salvation, it is simply what it takes to receive the gift of salvation.
Some one could extend a gift to you, the keys to a car a gift to you, but unless you extend your hand, even just one, to receive the gift and the title, you do not have it, let alone put it to good use.
As Paul was clearly teaching in the book of Romans, to whoever wants to know, no man is justified by the deeds, the works of the law
Believers under the law believed God and did the works of the law.
Religious people went through the motions of doing the law, but without believing.
Believing takes work, believing does not earn salvation, it enables us to receive salvation.
Romans 10:9-10
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
