The gaze of Jesus from the perspective of Creation

The first aspect of Christ's vision is the creation. From the biblical assumption that everything that exists was created by God (Gen. 1.1), Jesus saw all things as the result of the creative power of the Father, of whom nature reflected the magnitude and perfection. By his gaze, then the world is not the result of chance, governed by immaterial forces and to his fate. In fact, this universe has the digital of his Creator; the heavens declare the glory and the skies proclaim the work of His hands (Psalm 19.1), and all things are under your control.

In the eyes of Christ, wrote Dallas Willard, this is a world imbued with God and imbued with God. It is a world full of a glorious reality, where each element is within the scope of knowledge and direct control of God - although it allows some things, for good reasons, are so far different from what he desires. "It's an inconceivably beautiful and good world for God and for God is always there. It is a world in which God works continuously and in which he continually delights. While our understanding to realize that every visible thing and every event is full of the glory of God's presence, the word of Jesus will not have won in all "(The Divine Conspiracy, p. 81). For this reason, Willard says that the good news of the kingdom will only be a safe guideline for our lives if we see the world in which we live as he sees.

The idea of ​​creation and God's sovereignty over all things is at the base of the lens of Jesus. Taking nature as an example, he says to his disciples avoid anxiety by solicitude of life:

Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

And which of you by with all his thought can add one cubit to his stature?

And as for clothing, for that ye walk solicitous? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; neither toil nor spin;

And I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, will not wear you the more, O ye of little faith?

Walk ye not therefore anxious, saying, What shall we eat, or who shall drink, or we be clothed?

For after all these things the Gentiles seek. Surely your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things;

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added.

You not troubled, for, for tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. (Matthew 6.26-34)

It is interesting to note in this passage how the Master teaches his disciples: "Behold the fowls of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. " In Greek, the word "lo" (emblepõ) means looking fixedly; contemplate; discern clearly (Bible Keyword, CPAD, p. 2184). So Jesus tells us to look at the world in order to discover the wonders of the Creator and his providential power even in the simplest things of nature.

See and understand all things by the focus of creation is not something purely theoretical, but has practical and magnificent consequences for personal life and human history, reaching ethical, cultural and legal issues, as the implications of the values ​​and principles derived therefrom as divine sovereignty, the purpose of life, human dignity and equality between people give absolute standard of truth and intrinsic value to life, thus justifying an adequate standard of existence in society.

Because of this is that Christianity - Christ aware of the teachings of - is the foundation of Western civilization. Dinesh D'Souza points out that Christianity took this continent retrograde and gave her teaching and order, stability and dignity. "Where there was only a desolate place, they produced villages after villages and finally, communities and cities. Over the years, the wild barbaric warrior became a gentle knight, and formed new ideals of civility, behavior and romance that shape our society today "(The Truth of Christianity, Thomas Nelson, p. 64). According to D'Souza Christianity is responsible for the way of life and the organization of our society, with contributions to our laws, our economy, our arts, our schedule, our holidays and our moral and cultural priorities, which led the writer JM Roberts to write: "It is likely that none of us whatever it was today a handful of Jews for almost two thousand years had not believed they had known a great teacher, who had seen crucified, dead and buried, and then resurrected ".

Much of the importance of the Christian worldview to the history of the company arises precisely from the Christian concept of creation, after all, first of all it gives sense and meaning to life, pointing to the purpose of human existence as the result of a perfect design of a God love (John 3:16) and wise. Therefore, we are not accidents, much less live drifting aimlessly and without direction.

Jesus saw people in this light. He valued each person individually rather than their social status, ecclesiastical position or any benefit that could receive, but for its own sake. Their lives made sense and had meaning, not because of something they have done, but because of bring with them the plan of God for their lives. We realized that to see the master approaching marginal, sinners and publicans, to touch and transform their lives.

Unlike the Christian worldview, the naturalistic worldview assumes that there is no purpose for human existence. Soon, life has no meaning, leaving only an empty and devoid of world value, dominated by chaos and hopelessness. For this reason, Ravi Zacharias says that when someone tries to live without God, the answers to morality, to hope and meaning of life send him to his own world to mold itself to an individualized response. He writes: "Outside of Christ there is no law, there is no hope and no point. You, and only you, is one that will determine and define these essential elements of life; and you and only you, is the architect of his own moral law; you and only you, idealizes sense for your life; you, and only you, you risk everything you have based on hope than you think. "

William Lane Craig also expressed the absurdity of life without God as follows:

If God does not exist, both the human being and the universe are inevitably condemned to death. Human beings, like all biological organisms, has died. If hope of immortality, your life just goes to the tomb. His life is but a spark in the infinite darkness, a spark that appears, glitters and dies forever. "

[...] Without God ... the human being and the universe would be mere chance of accidents, thrown into existence without reason. Without God the universe is the result of a cosmic accident, a random explosion. There is no reason why it exists. As for the human being he is a freak of nature - a product of blind plus time plus chance matter. The human being is nothing but a gooey mass that evolved to rationality. There are purpose in life for the human race than to a kind of insect; both are the result of blind chance and necessity of interaction.

It is for this reason that atheism can not explain and give meaning to life consistently. (Contemporary apologetics, p. 28).

Back to our topic, this lack of objective purpose creates what JP Moreland (Triangle United, p. 32) calls "empty self". He said the "empty self" is so widespread in today's culture that sometimes gets to be treated as cultural plague. He cites the psychologist Philip Cushman: the empty self is filled with consumer goods, calories, experiences, political, romantic partners and empathetic therapists. [...] The empty self experiences a significant lack of community, tradition and shared meaning, [...] a lack of conviction and personal merit, and incorporates these shortcomings as a chronic emotional hunger and undifferentiated. " In this social environment where life is devoid of ultimate purpose, people try to make sense of other things such as consumerism, success and hedonism, and generate a desensitized culture, ultrassexualizada, addicted to pornography and promiscuity, which fails to satisfy the longing for the drama we were given by God, as stated by JP Moreland.

Second study by Rush University in the US, have a purpose in life is associated with lower mortality rates among the elderly. "A purpose in life reflects the tendency to measure meaning of life experiences and be focused and planned," said Patricia A. Boyle researcher. The analysis of more than 1200 elderly who did not have dementia indicated that those who reported having major purposes in life had half the risk of death, compared to volunteers with fewer purposes. And the results persisted after researchers consider income, depressive symptoms, disability, neuroticism and number of medical conditions. According to the authors, mortality was more significantly associated with three items of the questionnaire purpose in life, which measured the agreement of the participants the following questions: "sometimes I feel like I've done everything there is to do in life"; "I used to propose goals for myself, but now seem a waste of time"; "My daily activities often seem trivial and unimportant to me."

Perhaps the reader ask: If life has purpose, what would it be? Scripture makes it appear that the meaning of life is not passing things and devised by man himself. As we read the book of Ecclesiastes we realize that the wise Solomon came to the conclusion that the existential meaning was not in vain and temporal things, such as wealth, work, pleasure and power. At the end of the book, after observing what was going on "under the sun", it puts things in proper perspective: "From all you have heard, the end is: Fear God and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man "(Eccl. 12:13).

CS Lewis is who best explains the meaning of life from the biblical point of view. He claims that the reason for our existence on this planet is to establish a relationship with the person who put us here and while this relationship is established, all our attempts to achieve happiness - our struggle for recognition, for money, for power, the perfect marriage or the ideal friendship, all we seek for our whole life - will never be enough, never able to fully satisfy the desire, fill in the blank, calm anxiety, or make us happy. In the sermon "Weight of Glory" delivered at Oxford University Lewis speaks of this desire inherent in man, whose soul longs for something higher and sublime; "A desire that no natural happiness can meet." He writes:

"The physical hunger of a man does not prove that he will find bread; it can starve on a raft in the Atlantic. But certainly the hunger of a man proves that he belongs to a species that restores the body through food and live in a world where there are edible substances. Similarly, although I do not believe (I wish!) That my longing for paradise prove I go enjoy it, I think is a pretty sure sign that there is something and that some men will find it. A man can fall in love with a woman without conquer it; but it would be very odd if the phenomenon of falling in love occurred in a sexless world. "

In Mere Christianity Lewis writes:

"God created us as a man invents a machine. A car is made to run on petrol. God designed the human machine to be moved by himself. God Himself is the fuel that our spirit must burn, or the food they should eat. There is no other fuel, other food. This is why we can not ask God to make us happy and at the same time not give a damn about religion. God can not give us peace and happiness distinct from himself, because out of it they are not. Such a thing does not exist ". (66).

This means that the human being only understands the reason you live when he turns to his Creator; is like a machine that was designed with a specific purpose and only feels fully realized, sated, when understood and back for this purpose: to glorify God and be loved by Him (John 3:16). Naturally all have this sense of purpose. The psalmist said: "As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God."

According to the doctrine of creation, then we have an internal capacity or even an inner need in the secret of our spirit of relating to God. Reject this reality implies fail as a human being; achieve personal fulfillment is to leave full of God.

Two other implications of Creation are human dignity and equality. In Genesis 1.26-27 we read: "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and rule over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them ". This passage is paradigmatic and establishes the principle that all people should be treated with dignity and equality, since we have the image of God, there is no natural distinction between one person and another.

Again we turn to the eyes of Jesus. He saw each person with special value to God, even those excluded from society of his time. He talks to a Samaritan woman, physically touching lepers and sick, go to the publicans house and forgive even an adulteress. All these things were inconceivable at the time. These people, for one reason or another, were rejected, unworthy to receive equal treatment. Christ removes the barriers of discrimination and treat each person in a special way, establishing one of the key concepts of his ministry: "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself "(Luke 10:27).

Jesus was born in a stable. Had very poor parents. He lived in total obscurity in Galilee. Why Jesus took such a low position in his incarnation? For us to know that no one gets out of his grace. All are important in God's eyes. Jesus identified himself with those who are on the lowest rung of the ladder, which means that everyone has hope because of the incarnation of the verb; because of the descent of God. Whether black or white, rich or poor, beautiful or ugly. All are equal in the eyes of Him.

Human dignity is a universal attribute of the own human being, transcendent origin, which generates a universal claim to recognition, respect and protection having addressed to all individuals and all forms of political and social power. The Portuguese lawyer Jonathan Machado (Constitutional State and religious neutrality, p. 38) notes that for the vision of the Judeo-Christian world, that special dignity of being created in the image and likeness of God manifests itself in the peculiar rational, moral and emotional skills human in its upright physical posture, your creativity and your ability to articulate thought and symbolic discourse, distinct from all animals, no matter how remarkable they are its features. Jonathan also points out that the theology of the image of God (imago Dei) is the basis of the statements of the great thinkers of history, like Francisco de Vitoria, Francisco Suareza, Hugo Grotius, Samuel Pufendorf, John Milton, John Lock James Madison and Thomas Jefferson, on the dignity, freedom and equality, which would come to fruition in the legal world, especially the right to individual freedom and democratic self-determination capacity of the people.

The Jonathan Machado doctor also notes: "The dignity of every human being is not according to their market value, social status, or media professional or the amount earned salary. Similarly, it does not depend on whether the human being has been born or not, you're a kid, man, woman, old, poor, rich, poor, healthy, sick, prison, etc. Whatever your condition, human beings have an intrinsic value and a moral meaning assigned to them by the Creator. "

On equal if all start from the same Creator, there is no reason, much less justification for a human being is considered superior or inferior to the other, hence why all deserve to be treated alike, regardless of color, race, gender, ethnicity or religion. In Christianity, the foundation of equal treatment is God himself who is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34), for whom there is neither Jew nor Greek; there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female; because you are all one in Christ Jesus (Gal 3:28). Christians have always believed that God gives to each human life that creates an infinite value and loves every person equally.

Unlike the Christian worldview, other worldviews do not have a strong enough base on which the defense of human dignity can support. What is the justification why people should be treated with respect and fairness if they are mere biological accident?

Indeed, many people fail to understand how the adoption of Darwinian theory can dramatically affect the way we view life. These people are blind before the evidence that the enthronement of Darwin's theory has implications beyond "scientific field", able to play the ground several ethical aspects within the social sphere. I remember the book "The Natural History of Rap", in which two university professors defend the idea that rape is not a biologically speaking pathology but an evolutionary adaptation, a strategy to maximize reproductive success. For the authors, rape is biological, "a natural phenomenon product of human evolutionary heritage" as "leopard spots and elongated neck of the giraffe." In other words, some men may resort to coercion to fulfill the reproductive imperative.

This example shows that the adoption of naturalistic worldview has serious implications on the dignity of the human person, for God to remove the scene, Darwinism also removes the principles which should guide the life of society, leaving only that chance, biological drives and materialism in order to make even the legitimate rape, as a natural product of human evolutionary phenomenon inheritance. Earl Aagaard notes very well that even some evolutionists come to this conclusion. According to him, James Rachels, the book Created from Animals: The Moral Implications of Darwinism (Created How Animal Descending: Moral Implications of Darwinism), concludes that Darwinism undermines the doctrine of human dignity. Humans do not have a special place in the moral order; we are just another form of animal. According to Aagaard, Rachels concludes that Darwinism destroys any foundation for a morally significant difference between humans and animals. If man descended from apes by natural selection, it can be physically different from apes, but can not do so in essential way. Certainly can not be in any way that gives more rights to men than to any animal. In the words of Rachels, "you can not make distinctions in morals where none actually exists." He calls his doctrine of "moral individualism," and rejects "the traditional doctrine of human dignity" along with the idea that human life has no inherent value that non-human beings lack ".

In this sense, the naturalist and secularized world view corresponds to reality, we would not find any moral or rational basis to actually say the special dignity of the human person; because, as stated Jonathan Machado, "a cosmic accident can not found any plausible claim of dignity and recognition for another cosmic accident, no matter how clever you are."

After evaluating the prospect of Creation, now proceed to analyze the second focus of Jesus' vision: the Fall. This aspect responds to human dilemmas: Why is there so much suffering, sickness, disease and death in the world?

The book of Genesis records that, though they were created by God as perfect beings with free will, innocence and purity, the first couple, Adam and Eve, they decided to break the covenant and disobey the divine command (Gen. 2: 15-17; 3.6), by eating of the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil tree. They exceeded the moral limit established by God, causing what theology calls Fall, fallen condition of man in relation to the Creator, due to a spontaneous act of disobedience and rebellion.

The biblical narrative presents the catastrophic effects of the rebellion of the first humans. The Fall brought first separation from God. After sin, Adam was afraid and tried to hide from Him (Gen. 3:10.), Because of the guilt - the alert awareness of having transgressed the law. That is why John Stott says, "Sin not only separates; he enslaves. Besides us away from God, he also holds us captive "(1), fear, anxiety, depression, anguish. Second, the fall caused the removal of the first couple. Adam blamed Eve's sin, which in turn pointed to the serpent (v. 12, 13). Third, the Fall affected all of nature, injecting disorder in the universe; the work has to be made more difficult because the land began to produce thorns and thistles (v.18). Thus, the "work that was originally creative and satisfying, would become a matter of grueling toil and hard work" (2). In other words, all creation was hit by the effects of sin. In the letter to the Romans 8.20-22 Paul explains: "For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected. In the hope that the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and is in travail together until now. "

The most serious consequence of the Fall, however, was the decree of death of the human being, both physical and spiritual. God had already said that if they ate of the fruit of the tree and the science and evil, surely die (Gen. 2:17). In other words, death is the result of divine judgment on disobedience. Physical death, the man returned to the condition of the dust (Genesis 3:19). Paul says that "by one man sin entered into the world, and through sin, death, and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned" (Romans 5:12). Still in the book of Genesis (4.8) we have the account of the first murder, Cain kills Abel. As for the spiritual death, sin put a barrier of separation between God and man, both Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden of Eden, and God placed cherubim and a flaming sword to guard the way to the tree of life (Gen. . 3:24). The wrath of God was released and why humanity is spiritually dead in trespasses and sins (Eph. 2.1).

Someone may object: the Fall was originally caused by the disobedience of the first couple, for all mankind is guilty ?. This is where the theological concept of original sin (originale peccatun); that is, through one transgression (sin) stemmed judgment upon all men to condemnation (Romans 5:18). Because of the Fall man became prone to sin, corruption and evil. Paul expressed as follows: "There is none righteous, not even one" (Romans 3:10). "All have sinned and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). The apostle John also confirms: "If we say we have not sinned, we are liars."

Christian theology calls the total depravity of man's inability to alone, do what is good. In their sinful and fallen state, wrote the Dutch theologian Jacobus Arminius, the man can not, of and by itself, either think, or want to do what is, in fact, good; but it needs to be regenerated and renewed in if intellect, affections or will and in all its tasks by God in Christ through the Holy Spirit, to be able to properly understand, stimulate, consider, and do what you want it to be truly good (3).

The idea of ​​the Fall and original sin in the Garden of Eden seem sound absurd - and even children - for many people. But it is vital to the understanding of human nature and the interpretation of all reality. The optimism of some philosophical theories, based on the assumption that humanity is inherently good, and that it is caused by ignorance and lack of education, has been shown to be illusory and dangerous. Stott reminds that educational opportunities have spread rapidly throughout the Western world and many social projects have been created, however, atrocities, corruption, conflict and oppression insists on escorting humanity. What about the everyday examples of young people and adolescents in the upper middle and rich class, that despite the access to quality education in the best schools and universities around the world commit barbaric crimes, and the involvement in the corruption of politicians and professionals with good academic background?

The authors Charles Colson and Nancy Pearcey say the face of evil is alarmingly common. They say that after quoting barbaric crimes committed by seemingly "normal" people, without any appearance of evil, as Susan Smith, the woman who drowned her two children leaving the car fell into a lake with the children inside the vehicle; an 11-year-old and another 13 that after acionarem the school fire alarm shot on school students and teachers in studying, as they left the building; or the case of the three young Datmouth, Massachusetts, surrounding a colleague of serious ninth and killed him with a knife, and after the act, smiled and exchanged greetings beating the palms of each other in mid-air, as basketball players celebrating a good buried in the basket. Colson and Pearcey still say the mainstream media coverage of these crimes offers all conventional answers: poverty (but most of the killers was the middle class), race (but most are white), complicated childhood (but millions of children around the world come from circumstances of desaforáveis ​​and never committed crimes) (4).

In Brazil, at least two cases illustrate this grim reality. The first involving young Suzane Louise von Richthofen that along with the brothers Daniel and Christian Cloves Cloves, planned with the cruelty of death refined his parents Albert Manfred von Richthofen and Marísia while they slept on the night of October 31, 2012. The Another case occurred on March 28, 2008, involving the death of Isabella de Oliveira Nardoni girl, five years old, thrown from the sixth floor of London Building in São Paulo, the father, Alexandre Nardoni, and by the child's stepmother, Anna Carolina Jatoba. In both episodes the crimes were committed by middle-class people with good education and without any psychological problem.

The reason to dodge the Christian explanation for all these problems is the dreaded word sin. The post-modern society, relativistic, hedonistic this time, rejects altogether the idea of ​​moral responsibility. Nonetheless, it needs to return to the biblical assumption of original sin and the tendency to evil, as Paul says in Romans 7:15 ("Because I do not approve of, because what I do not do, but what I hate it do), in order to provide order and security to society. One example is that modern states run the basic concept that man, of course, is fallible and prone to corruption, hence the need for limitation of power and control by third parties and by society itself. The social, legal and economic structure should be established so that power is not centralized or remain in the hands of a small group of people, claiming absolute power. Jonathan Machado emphasizes that the problem of moral corruption of mankind has not been overlooked or underestimated in the legal world and, more specifically, it has been an element in the republican thought since ancient times, with the defense of a limited government for fundamental rights, principle of separation of powers and the existence of internal and external controls to state action on the basis of the Christian doctrine of the Fall. Even the fundamental rights must be limited by supra-individual values ​​because they do not mean the right to create their own moral standards and conduct in accordance with them at all times, otherwise anarchy and anomie (5).

Indeed, in reality the test only the Christian worldview can satisfactorily answer the problem of humanity. The doctrine of original sin, someone said, is the only philosophy validated by 35 centuries of recorded human history.

Meanwhile:

By contrast, the worldview of "enlightenment" proved to be totally unreasonable and intolerable. The denial of our sinful nature and the consequent utopian myth does not lead to a charitable social experience, but to tyranny. The confidence that humans are perfectible provides the justification for having perfect them ... no matter what you need. And with God out of the picture, those in power do not feel accountable to any higher authority. They can use any means necessary, will not impose how brutal or coercive, to remodel people to adjust to their perfect society notions. (6)

JESUS ​​VISION

But will He also faced humanity that perspective Fall and original sin? The answer is yes, because on several occasions of his life and ministry we see the alert for the wickedness of man, your sins and pains, not as fruit of the environment, but of the fallen human nature and away from God. In chapter three of John's gospel the Bible records the story of Nicodemus, elevated position of man in Israel who, after hearing and seeing the miracles performed by Jesus, went to meet him, saying, "Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher from God, for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him. " And Jesus answered him, "Most assuredly, I say to you man be born again he can not see the kingdom of God." Doubtful, Nicodemus asked, "How can a man be born when he is old? Shall he enter the womb of his mother and be born? ". But Jesus said, "Except a man be born of water and the Spirit can not enter the Kingdom of God; what is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. "

Jesus' emphasis on the need to be born again is very clear: "one is born again he can not see the kingdom of God." The word "that" indicates that the new birth is a universal need for all people without distinction, as a condition to see the Kingdom of God. Now you only need to be born again if the first birth - natural - have a serious problem. So the Scriptures call those who have not (re) born natural man (1 Cor 2:14), not the things of the Spirit. In teaching his disciples the Master said that the spirit is what gives life; the flesh profits nothing (John 6:23).

The term used to refer to this new birth is regeneration, the new life in Christ that can only be achieved by the grace of the Spirit. Charles Spurgeon remember that no one is regenerated by their own efforts. "A person can change a lot, and this is very good; that all do. One can reject all bad habits, addictions forget that walked and control their misdeeds; no one in the world, however, can be born of God. As you strive, you'll never accomplish what transcends its power .... the greatest effort of the meat will not reach this level, being born of the Spirit of God. " (7)

Without regeneration, therefore, man is still far from God and subject to the effects of sin and divine judgment arising fall. In chapter three of John's gospel, even in explaining to Nicodemus, Jesus says:

For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world might be saved through him.

Whoever believes in him is not condemned; but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. (John 3.16-20)

The passage shows that the conviction was already decreed and not the result of something the person does. He that believeth not is condemned already, it said. This same idea is found in John 5:24: "Verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life" . Because of this is that on several occasions Jesus talks about hell (Matthew 5:22; 11:23; Luke 12.5) and the fiery furnace where there will dish and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 8:12; 13:42; 22:13).

This leads us to understand that the vision of Jesus man is not romanticized, but realistic. He considers the incompleteness, the sinfulness and corruption inherent to the human being. So he says: Without me you can do nothing (John 15.5); I am the way and the truth and the life; No one comes to the Father except through me (John 14.6). Belief in Jesus changes, as it were, the status, condition of the person before God, bringing you salvation, as we will see later, when dealing redemption.

References

1. STOTT, John. Cristiano basics. Lush, MG: Ultimatum, 2007, p. 98

2. COLSON & Pearcey. And now how we will live. Rio de Janeiro: CPAD, 2000, p. 240.

3. See Olson, Roger. Arminian Theology: Myths and Realities. São Paulo: Editora Reflection, 2013, p. 185.