Salvation by Allegiance Alone by Matthew W. Bates

Author:Matthew W. Bates [W. Bates, Matthew]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Salvation—Christianity, REL006220, REL006100, REL067100
ISBN: 9781493406739
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2017-02-09T16:00:00+00:00

This chapter has sought to clarify the salvation-by-allegiance-alone proposal. Grace is a multifaceted concept, but construing pistis as allegiance does not violate Paul’s understanding of grace. Quite the opposite: for Paul, acceptance of the Christ gift demands embodied allegiance (obedience) as an obligatory return. Meanwhile, Scripture is clear that we will be judged, at least in part, on the basis of our works. “Faith” and works are not unrelievedly opposed to one another, but rather Paul’s pistis-not-works polemic seeks to undercut any rule-based system—and the law of Moses is Paul’s premier example—that enshrines an alternative system of worth and preempts allegiance to the king. Rule-based systems ally with sin by exciting the flesh, making the sin problem worse, not better. But living in allegiance to Jesus means walking in step with the Holy Spirit as the Spirit is present in the midst of the people of God. Through the Spirit a person practices allegiance—that is, she or he embodies the good works toward which the law was aimed. Initial declared allegiance (pistis) to Jesus the king forges a union with the king and his body (the church), and this union is upheld subsequently through embodied allegiance, an enacted loyalty that is inclusive of good deeds. Our allegiance to Jesus the king is not perfect, but our imperfect but maintained allegiance is sufficient to sustain a union with Jesus the king, so that we are forgiven “in him” as we are joined to his death and resurrection. Allegiance cannot be quantified, but Scripture does give us general measures to help us weigh whether our imperfect allegiance is genuine.

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