Salvation Not By Works
Salvation is not by works.
“For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift — not from works, so that no one can boast.”
Ephesians 2:8-9 HCSB
“He saved us — not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to His mercy — through the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit.”
Works is a difficult subject. We are not saved by what we do. We are saved by faith in Jesus and His works on the cross. But deeds are essential to a Christian to give an outward expression of our faith.
“For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.”
That is why Jesus may deny knowing some “christians”.
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord! ’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven. On that day many will say to Me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in Your name, drive out demons in Your name, and do many miracles in Your name? ’ Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you! Depart from Me, you lawbreakers!’”
Matthew 7:21-23 HCSB
But then in Revelation, we see that the dead are judged by their works when the Book of Life is opened.
“I also saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the Book of Life, and the dead were judged according to their works by what was written in the books. Then the sea gave up its dead, and Death and Hades gave up their dead; all were judged according to their works.”
Revelation 20:12-13 HCSB
So how can we reconcile our works? We are saved by faith but judged by our works. I have said previously that our actions prove to God who we follow. So first, we are saved and second, we work for God to make life better for the people around us. There is still work for Christians after salvation. There is something beyond Jesus being Savior. That is we must make Him Lord! Obey Him in all He has said to do.
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. “The second is: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other command greater than these.”
Comments
Post a Comment