How easy is it ????

[Vanhin]

You are placing conditional requirements upon something freely given, again.

So, if Jesus told the woman at the well do drink of the water, was he telling her that if she drank of the water at the well, she would be saved?

Jesus all throughout his walk and teaching spoke in parallets and symbolisms.....

So I guess you are saying that in order to know Christ, we mush be physically reborn again......He said we ahd to be "re-born" did He not?

Jesus is the one who places conditional requirements to access salvation. To the woman he said, "...whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life." (John 4:14).

The scriptures are full of Jesus teaching that we must do something to gain access to the grace of God.

Based on the teachings of Jesus then, in order to have everlasting life, one must actually drink the water. Wouldn't you agree?

Regards,

Vanhin

[HizWife625]

Vanhin

Jesus was telling the woman to believe in who He is and beleive that He is his Father....His Father is God; thus Jesus and God are one.

Notice, at the well, Jesus never said " in order to drink, you must be baptized"..... All it took was faith.

[HizWife625]

JenaMarie.......

You already said you sin thus, you do not KEEP His commandments....We break those commandments and ask for forgiveness..... We STRIVE to keep, but we do not keep....Do we have the power of overcome, yes.

The fact here is that Jesus told the women to have faith in who he is....He clearly tells the woman that He is his Father.....His Father is GOD....Thus they are one. That is who and what you are to have faith in.....Not three separate !!!

If anyone does not believe that Jesus is the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirt, then they are on a path to the lake of fire..... And, that is what brakes my heart.

Jesus Himself, said " I and my father are one ".........His father is GOD......

You have such a sweet spirit and beautiful smile..... 10,000 hugs and blessings your way.

[Jenamarie]

Yes I do fail to keep his commandments. But when I humble myself before Him, and confess my sins to Him, then He forgives me. His forgiveness doesn't mean I don't have to keep them though. I show my love and gratitude for Him by doing so.

[Vanhin]

Vanhin

Jesus was telling the woman to believe in who He is and beleive that He is his Father....His Father is God; thus Jesus and God are one.

Notice, at the well, Jesus never said " in order to drink, you must be baptized"..... All it took was faith.

I hear you, but think about this a minute.

Notice in John 3:5 he never said anything about drinking... yet you associated "being born of water" with drinking. I think you are just being irrational. :)

In order for us to enter the kingdom of Heaven we must be baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Just like Jesus taught, and just like he showed us. This is what He means by drinking:

Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

Faith is the first and most important principle of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. If all it takes is faith, can a person who does not have faith in Christ be saved?

Regards,

Vanhin

[HizWife625]

Our salvation depends solely upon Jesus Christ. He is our substitute, taking sin’s penalty (2 Corinthians 5:21); He is our Savior from sin (John 1:29); He is the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). The work necessary to provide salvation was fully accomplished by Jesus Himself, who lived a perfect life, took God’s judgment for sin, and rose again from the dead (Hebrews 10:12).

The Bible is quite clear that our own works do not help merit salvation. “Not by works of righteousness which we have done” (Titus 3:5). “Not of works” (Ephesians 2:9). “There is none righteous, no not one” (Romans 3:10). This means that offering sacrifices, keeping the commandments, going to church, being baptized, and other good deeds are incapable of saving anyone. No matter how “good” we are, we can never measure up to God’s standard of holiness (Romans 3:23; Matthew 19:17; Isaiah 64:6).

The Bible is just as clear that salvation is conditional; God does not save everyone. The one condition for salvation is faith in Jesus Christ. Nearly 200 times in the New Testament, faith (or belief) is declared to be the sole condition for salvation (John 1:12; Acts 16:31).

One day, some people asked Jesus what they could do to please God: “What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?” Jesus immediately points them to faith: “This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent” (John 6:28-29). So, the question is about God’s requirements (plural), and Jesus’ answer is, “God’s requirement (singular) is that you BELIEVE Me.”

Grace is God’s giving us something we cannot earn or deserve.

According to Romans 11:6, “work” of any kind destroys grace—the idea is that a worker earns payment, while the recipient of grace simply receives it, unearned.

Since salvation is all of grace, it cannot be earned. Faith, therefore, is a non-work. Faith cannot truly be considered a “work,” or else it would destroy grace.

( Romans 4—Abraham’s salvation was dependent on faith in God, as opposed to any work he performed.)

Suppose a unknown benefactor—someone with whom I had no previous dealings whatsoever—sent me a check for $1,000,000. The money is mine if I want it, but I still must endorse the check. In no way can signing my name be considered earning the million dollars—the endorsement is a non-work. I can never boast about becoming a millionaire through sheer effort or my own business savvy. No, the million dollars was simply a gift, and signing my name was the only way to receive it. Similarly, exercising faith is only the way to receive the generous gift of God, and faith cannot be considered a work worthy of the gift.

True faith cannot be considered a work because true faith involves a cessation of our works in the flesh. True faith has as its object Jesus and His work on our behalf.

Matthew 11:28-29 and Hebrews 4:10.

To take this a step further, true faith cannot be considered a work because even faith is a gift from God, not something we produce on our own.

“For by grace are ye saved, through faith; and that [faith] not of yourselves: it [faith] is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8). “No man can come to Me, except the Father which hath sent Me draw him” (John 6:44).

Praise the Lord for His power to save and for His grace to make salvation a reality!

No Faith = Hell.

[lostnfound]

Baptisim and faith is sorta like when you say I do and then walk down the aisle.

If you never walk down the asile (baptisim) then you really never said i do..

do you know what I mean. Baptisim the symbol of your faith it is the outward expression that you said I do in your heart to God.

[VisionOfLehi]

I have oft heard the expression of married couples saying "We are one."

Does this mean they're the same person manifested in two bodies? No.

It means they're united, and that together their purpose is fulfilled.

"And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt."

No translation I've seen ever has it any differently there than Jesus Christ, the SON of God praying to His FATHER, our great Heavenly Father.

Why would Christ have to pray to Himself? How would He not know what His own will is, and why would He try to find another way around His own will, if one existed?

Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.

Why did he have to talk to His Father to say that? Why didn't He just say, "I forgive you, because you don't know what you're doing."

It doesn't make any sense at all to look at those verses and say "God the Father and Christ the Son are the same person in different make up."

It ridiculous, and not scriptural. Now I'm fine with letting you believe what you will, but you have not been able to provide any sort of scriptural evidence of the Trinity. You can't pick and choose with scriptures, and interpret one set how you want while ignoring another that clearly contradicts your claim.

I see it all the time, and it's what put me off to any religion at all for the first 18 1/2 years of my life.

[lostnfound]

Wait -- you're a girl???

(sorry, couldn't resist)

[lostnfound]

I love it when people say things there is no scriptural evidence for that when you give them verse after verse after verse in context only because they do not want to accept it.

[lostnfound]

Our salvation depends solely upon Jesus Christ. He is our substitute, taking sin’s penalty (2 Corinthians 5:21); He is our Savior from sin (John 1:29); He is the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). The work necessary to provide salvation was fully accomplished by Jesus Himself, who lived a perfect life, took God’s judgment for sin, and rose again from the dead (Hebrews 10:12).

The Bible is quite clear that our own works do not help merit salvation. “Not by works of righteousness which we have done” (Titus 3:5). “Not of works” (Ephesians 2:9). “There is none righteous, no not one” (Romans 3:10). This means that offering sacrifices, keeping the commandments, going to church, being baptized, and other good deeds are incapable of saving anyone. No matter how “good” we are, we can never measure up to God’s standard of holiness (Romans 3:23; Matthew 19:17; Isaiah 64:6).

The Bible is just as clear that salvation is conditional; God does not save everyone. The one condition for salvation is faith in Jesus Christ. Nearly 200 times in the New Testament, faith (or belief) is declared to be the sole condition for salvation (John 1:12; Acts 16:31).

One day, some people asked Jesus what they could do to please God: “What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?” Jesus immediately points them to faith: “This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent” (John 6:28-29). So, the question is about God’s requirements (plural), and Jesus’ answer is, “God’s requirement (singular) is that you BELIEVE Me.”

Grace is God’s giving us something we cannot earn or deserve.

According to Romans 11:6, “work” of any kind destroys grace—the idea is that a worker earns payment, while the recipient of grace simply receives it, unearned.

Since salvation is all of grace, it cannot be earned. Faith, therefore, is a non-work. Faith cannot truly be considered a “work,” or else it would destroy grace.

( Romans 4—Abraham’s salvation was dependent on faith in God, as opposed to any work he performed.)

Suppose a unknown benefactor—someone with whom I had no previous dealings whatsoever—sent me a check for $1,000,000. The money is mine if I want it, but I still must endorse the check. In no way can signing my name be considered earning the million dollars—the endorsement is a non-work. I can never boast about becoming a millionaire through sheer effort or my own business savvy. No, the million dollars was simply a gift, and signing my name was the only way to receive it. Similarly, exercising faith is only the way to receive the generous gift of God, and faith cannot be considered a work worthy of the gift.

True faith cannot be considered a work because true faith involves a cessation of our works in the flesh. True faith has as its object Jesus and His work on our behalf.

Matthew 11:28-29 and Hebrews 4:10.

To take this a step further, true faith cannot be considered a work because even faith is a gift from God, not something we produce on our own.

“For by grace are ye saved, through faith; and that [faith] not of yourselves: it [faith] is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8). “No man can come to Me, except the Father which hath sent Me draw him” (John 6:44).

Praise the Lord for His power to save and for His grace to make salvation a reality!

No Faith = Hell.

And this is the most IMPORTANT THING TO UNDERSTAND IN THIS LIFETIME..THANK YOU HIZWIFE.. I ALMOST STARTED TO CRY READING YOUR POST because I am so passionate about people understanding this.

[VisionOfLehi]

"17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone."

[Vanhin]

No Faith = Hell.

Alrighty... Well Mormons are covered then, and you don't have to worry about our souls any more. We have faith in Jesus Christ and in His Atonement.

Since a person must have faith to be saved, that means Salvation is dependant on the something we do. In otherwords, we must have faith.

So the only difference between us and you guys is the quantity of things we must do to be Saved. For you it is only faith, for me it's keeping the commandments of God by my faith. No matter what though, it seems Salvation is up to us in the end; we must choose it. You get what I mean?

Sincerely,

Vanhin

[lostnfound]

Alrighty... Well Mormons are covered then, and you don't have to worry about our souls any more. We have faith in Jesus Christ and in His Atonement.

Since a person must have faith to be saved, that means Salvation is dependant on the something we do. In otherwords, we must have faith.

So the only difference between us and you guys is the quantity of things we must do to be Saved. For you it is only faith, for me it's keeping the commandments of God by my faith. No matter what though, it seems Salvation is up to us in the end; we must choose it. You get what I mean?

Sincerely,

Vanhin

nope not covered this is why..When a person is clinging to other things other then Jesus they still don't get it. True saving faith is not a head knowledge it is a repentant heart that says Lord, I need you and you alone..Come into my life be Lord of my life. I know that i am sinner going to hell. I put my total faith in you Lord.

It is also understanding who He is. He is not our brother, sister, good man, prophet..He is our creator NOT THE CREATED ,savor, alpha, omega, he is Lord of Lord, King of Kings...

Once you understand WHO HE IS THEN YOU CAN UNDERSTAND A TRUE SAVING FAITH.

[VisionOfLehi]

21 ¶ Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

[Vanhin]

Now, if we ever get to the point to where we don't have faith in Jesus Christ, then come back and save us. We'll need it then.

We are the disciples of Jesus Christ. We try to learn his teachings and his ways, and we try to emulate them. He is our Master. He is my Lord and my God, and I worship him with all my might. Check out this favorite hymn of mine by Bruce R. McConkie from our Hymnal:

I Believe in Christ

1. I believe in Christ; he is my King!

With all my heart to him I’ll sing;

I’ll raise my voice in praise and joy,

In grand amens my tongue employ.

I believe in Christ; he is God’s Son.

On earth to dwell his soul did come.

He healed the sick; the dead he raised.

Good works were his; his name be praised.

2. I believe in Christ; oh blessed name!

As Mary’s Son he came to reign

’Mid mortal men, his earthly kin,

To save them from the woes of sin.

I believe in Christ, who marked the path,

Who did gain all his Father hath,

Who said to men: “Come, follow me,

That ye, my friends, with God may be.”

3. I believe in Christ—my Lord, my God!

My feet he plants on gospel sod.

I’ll worship him with all my might;

He is the source of truth and light.

I believe in Christ; he ransoms me.

From Satan’s grasp he sets me free,

And I shall live with joy and love

In his eternal courts above.

4. I believe in Christ; he stands supreme!

From him I’ll gain my fondest dream;

And while I strive through grief and pain,

His voice is heard: “Ye shall obtain.”

I believe in Christ; so come what may,

With him I’ll stand in that great day

When on this earth he comes again

To rule among the sons of men.

That pretty much sums up how I feel about Jesus Christ as well.

Regards,

Vanhin

[lostnfound]

21 ¶ Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

Thank you for writing that because thAT IS EXACTLY IT LEHI..The book of James talkes about this..Now its not that Paul and James disagreed but together they make sense. A true believer will do the Will of the Father.

I have heard people confess to be believers and they have nothing to do with Gods commandments..do you think they are christians? I don't think so. They don't get it ethier.

[lostnfound]

Now, if we ever get to the point to where we don't have faith in Jesus Christ, then come back and save us. We'll need it then.

We are the disciples of Jesus Christ. We try to learn his teachings and his ways, and we try to emulate them. He is our Master. He is my Lord and my God, and I worship him with all my might. Check out this favorite hymn of mine by Bruce R. McConkie from our Hymnal:

I Believe in Christ

1. I believe in Christ; he is my King!

With all my heart to him I’ll sing;

I’ll raise my voice in praise and joy,

In grand amens my tongue employ.

I believe in Christ; he is God’s Son.

On earth to dwell his soul did come.

He healed the sick; the dead he raised.

Good works were his; his name be praised.

2. I believe in Christ; oh blessed name!

As Mary’s Son he came to reign

’Mid mortal men, his earthly kin,

To save them from the woes of sin.

I believe in Christ, who marked the path,

Who did gain all his Father hath,

Who said to men: “Come, follow me,

That ye, my friends, with God may be.”

3. I believe in Christ—my Lord, my God!

My feet he plants on gospel sod.

I’ll worship him with all my might;

He is the source of truth and light.

I believe in Christ; he ransoms me.

From Satan’s grasp he sets me free,

And I shall live with joy and love

In his eternal courts above.

4. I believe in Christ; he stands supreme!

From him I’ll gain my fondest dream;

And while I strive through grief and pain,

His voice is heard: “Ye shall obtain.”

I believe in Christ; so come what may,

With him I’ll stand in that great day

When on this earth he comes again

To rule among the sons of men.

That pretty much sums up how I feel about Jesus Christ as well.

Regards,

Vanhin

Did you actually read my post vanhin..i did like this poem. Also understand the correct Jesus! NOt just any Jesus..Many reglions try to paint a different Jesus then the Jesus in the bible.

[Misshalfway]

nope not covered this is why..When a person is clinging to other things other then Jesus they still don't get it. True saving faith is not a head knowledge it is a repentant heart that says Lord, I need you and you alone..Come into my life be Lord of my life. I know that i am sinner going to hell. I put my total faith in you Lord.

It is also understanding who He is. He is not our brother, sister, good man, prophet..He is our creator NOT THE CREATED ,savor, alpha, omega, he is Lord of Lord, King of Kings...

Once you understand WHO HE IS THEN YOU CAN UNDERSTAND A TRUE SAVING FAITH.

So, to you, the belief in Jesus has to be 100% correct....meaning understanding his nature in its absolute correctness, before the Atonement will take effect in someones life??? Sounds like to me you are saying that there are perhaps more requirements for becoming saved than faith.

Which confuses me because I thought it was faith you were talking about.....not a perfect knowledge. I thought it was faith in Christ and recognizing that we needed his help.

It sounds like you are saying that only the people who absolutely understand Him correctly and completely will get into heaven. Yet, and I don't know if this is you, but other protestants have explained to me that God is something that can't be understood....that God is so vast and amazing that his true nature is beyond our human capacity to understand.

So, according to you it is NOT enough to believe that Jesus is our Savior, Alpha and Omega, Creator, Lord of Lord, King of Kings. Cuz, that is precisely what Mormon's believe.

I am also curious about all the Christians in the world. There are quite a few. You really believe Christ will dismiss the majority of them, because they don't understand him in precise perfection?

[Misshalfway]

Did you actually read my post vanhin..i did like this poem. Also understand the correct Jesus! NOt just any Jesus..Many reglions try to paint a different Jesus then the Jesus in the bible.

So painting Jesus in a different light eliminates one from salvation. Please show me where this is a biblical teaching.

[HizWife625]

Jesus was not some "send me to the earth prophet and let me see if I can get back to god or become a god..... Nor is anyone on this earth a spirt-child sent by god to do good works on this earth to hopefully earn a god0like status in the afterlife. Nor do women have to rely on a false hope of entering into a kingdom by way of a man ( and yes, this is a belief of the LDS as given straight from the mouth of a former LDS of five generations)

Jesus WAS, IS and IS to come..... He is God, HE is man and He is the Holy Spirit...... If you do not believe this, then yes you are condemned to hell.....Remeber, ignorance is no excuee......Those who have been exposed to the true gospel of Jesus Christ have knowledge.....Those who do not accept it are cast into the lake of fire.

I would be very leary of any self proclaimng "prophet" who can tell you who is or who isn't going to enter God's kingdom...... There is only one who knows this...........

The hard core fact that I see, is that those who have little faith on God's innerrant word being complete for us today, live without hope and live in fear...... Having faith in Pure Grace is freedom in Christ........

[HizWife625]

Misshalfway

You now say Jesus is the CREATOR............How can that be when others in the LDS believe GOD is the CREATOR?

[Misshalfway]

What if they read the bible and understand it differently than you do?

What if they read that Christ prayed to his father on many occasions? What if it doesn't make sense to you that he would pray to the same person?

What if you believe, feel the spirit, and want to follow the Lord? What if you abandon your sins and move your life into harmony with the teachings of the savior?

If your above post, Hizwife is suppose to illustrate mormon doctrine, I think you are missing it.

[Vanhin]

Did you actually read my post vanhin..i did like this poem. Also understand the correct Jesus! NOt just any Jesus..Many reglions try to paint a different Jesus then the Jesus in the bible.

Yes I did. I haven't replied to that post yet. :) But here is my reply.

I cling to all the words and teachings of Jesus Christ, and I don't ignore some of his words. You know that I have quoted the words of Jesus of Nazareth. That is the Jesus I have placed my faith in. What other Jesus are you talking about?

Sincerely,

Vanhin

[Misshalfway]

Misshalfway

You now say Jesus is the CREATOR............How can that be when others in the LDS believe GOD is the CREATOR?

Here is a verse from the BofM in Mosiah 3.

8 And he shall be called Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning; and his mother shall be called Mary.

We very much do believe that Jesus is the Creator. He created under the direction of the Father. That is our doctrine.