by Terry Wane Benton<\/p>\n
The Calvinists are often heard making of “the finished work of Christ” something that was never intended. They say there is nothing <\/b>we can do to be saved. They say all doing is “finished” by what Christ did on the cross. But that is a misuse of the verses.<\/p>\n
Sure, Christ finished the necessary provisions for salvation, but He does not force it on us so that we are all saved. Since God “would have all men to be saved<\/em>” (I Timothy 2:4) and “is not willing that any <\/b>should perish<\/em>” (II Peter 3:9), would it be true that all men will <\/b>be saved because Jesus “finished” the work? No! Jesus did not hear the gospel for us (Romans 10:17) and believed for us. We have to do <\/b>that in order to cash into the finished payment of Jesus. We can’t say that “no man needs to repent” (Acts 17:30-31) because Jesus “finished” all that needs to be done. Repentance is necessary on our end in order to benefit from Jesus’ payment for sin on the cross (Luke 13:3; Acts 2:38). A billionaire may stipulate conditions for his paying all our house notes. He does the work of paying the cost, while we may be required to sign some legal papers. His requirement that we sign a document does not mean we paid the note. It means he paid the note on the condition of our signing of the paper. Signing the paper does not earn <\/b>anything. It is simply a condition required to receive the benefits desired.<\/p>\n When the 3000 Jews asked Peter “What shall we do<\/strong>?” (Acts 2:37), Peter did not say, “Jesus finished everything so that there is nothing <\/b>for you to do.” He told them what was expected of them in order to have “the remission of sins” Jesus paid for on the cross. Jesus “finished” the payment, but they had to sign up for the payment to be received. They believed, repented, and were baptized in Jesus’ name “for the remission of sins.”(Acts 2:38-41) They would not have received it if they did not sign up in this way. Jesus gave conditions<\/strong>. He pays our debts on the condition of a faith that repents and is baptized in His name. If we don’t meet the conditions, we don’t get the remission of sins. He finished H<\/strong>is <\/b>work on the cross to pay our debts, but we must meet His conditions. Meeting the conditions does not pay the debt. Jesus did that. Meeting the conditions meets the requirements for the reception of the payment. Grace provides the payment and offers the conditions, and we are required to meet the conditions through faith.<\/p>\n Do not allow someone to twist the meaning of “the finished work of Christ” so that you swallow the lie that there is nothing <\/b>you must do to be saved. Peter was guided by the true Holy Spirit to speak the conditions that were necessary to receive the remission of sins. Those who teach the opposite of Peter are causing people to miss out on the free gift Jesus offers on His <\/b>terms. Do not be deceived!<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Terry Wane Benton The Calvinists are often heard making of “the finished work of Christ” something that was never intended. They say there is nothing we can do to be saved. They say all doing is “finished” by what Christ did on the cross. But that is a misuse of the verses. Sure, Christ…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[59,47,55],"class_list":["post-57378","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-calvinism","tag-salvation","tag-works"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":94539,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/adding-to-the-finished-work-of-the-cross\/","url_meta":{"origin":57378,"position":0},"title":"Adding to the Finished Work of the Cross?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 14, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"by Terry Wane Benton Check out this statement: \"I don't have to do anything for His blood to cover my sin because I can't add to the finished or perfect work of the Cross.\" This idea of \"adding something\" to the \"finished work of Christ\" sounds appealing, and it has\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":92651,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/finished-work-of-jesus\/","url_meta":{"origin":57378,"position":1},"title":"Finished Work of Jesus","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 17, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Terry Wane Benton Argument: \"Baptism is an act of obedience, not a means of salvation. To tie baptism to salvation is to add our own works to the perfect, finished work of Jesus.\" Answers: Mark: But Jesus did tie baptism to salvation (Mark 16:16), and so did Peter (Acts\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":95111,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/work-because-god-is-working\/","url_meta":{"origin":57378,"position":2},"title":"Work Because God Is Working","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 15, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"by Edwin Crozier Text: Philippians 2 Jesus established the example. He left the throne of heaven and lived among us as a servant. God highly exalted Him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name because He was obedient even to the point of death on the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":36297,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/if-jesus-work-is-completed-does-that-mean-our-salvation-is-assured\/","url_meta":{"origin":57378,"position":3},"title":"If Jesus’ work is completed, does that mean our salvation is assured?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 29, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I stumbled upon your website while searching for answers to a lot of burning questions. I like your answers because they are biblical. May God richly bless you. I have some questions: When preachers teach about the completed work of Jesus or the finished work of Jesus, does this\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":12683,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/when-christ-spoke-it-is-finished-and-died-on-that-cross-is-that-moment-when-the-new-covenant-took-place\/","url_meta":{"origin":57378,"position":4},"title":"When Christ spoke, “It is finished” and died on that cross, is that moment when the New Covenant took place?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 4, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: When Christ spoke, \"It is finished\" and died on that cross, at that moment is when the New Covenant took place? His death paid the penalty correct? Answer: \"So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, \"It is finished!\" And bowing His head, He gave up His\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":66504,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-is-federal-headship\/","url_meta":{"origin":57378,"position":5},"title":"What is “federal headship”?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 11, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I really enjoy the content you put out. Very straight and to the point. What do Calvinists mean when they talk about \"federal headship?\" I've heard someone mention this in a podcast in an episode on Calvinism. I had not heard the expression until listening to the podcast. 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