| Questions College Students Ask, Part 9 |
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| Written by David Lawrence |
| Monday, March 03 2008 00:00 |
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Question: “Do you think that God uses non-Christians to do His good will?” Answer: Yes, certainly. He used Cyrus, a Zoroasterian, to deliver Judah. He used Pharaoh, an idolater, in His deliverance of Israel from Egypt. He used Balaam, Nebuchadnezzar, Herod, Pilate, Hiram of Tyre, and many others. Some were evil and tried to destroy God’s people, others cooperated with them. God cannot be limited. Question: “’Faith, hope, and love – but the greatest of these is love.’ (1 Cor. 13:13). Is love really greater than faith if faith is what saves us (by His grace), where does that place love?” Answer: Faith is a receiving thing; in fact, it is a gift (Eph. 2:8-9, Phil. 1:29). We are justified by faith (Gal. 2:16) and not by love. God has chosen that the means by which we lay hold on Christ and eternal life is faith and faith alone. However, in terms of the effect that our lives have on others, love is most important, for love is not a passive but an active matter. It is not a receiving thing but a doing thing. Thus in the pursuits of the Christian life, nothing is more essential than love. In that sense, where Paul is speaking of gifts that we should pursue, he would, of course, emphasize the primacy of love. Indeed, we are saved by faith but we live by love! |
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