Since the beginning, those within the church have discussed and hashed out the roles of works and faith in justification and salvation. One side asserts that works are not involved in our salvation, while another asserts that works keep us saved, and another claims we are saved by faith but thereafter we are to work. Oddly enough, each side claims to base its beliefs on Scripture. Yet, surely, just as there is one God, and one way to Him, there must be one answer to the question: just how are we justified in God’s sight, and how can we truly know we are “Christians?” This answer can most certainly be ascertained, by a thorough look at God’s word as a whole, particularly what He has revealed in the New Testament. If this work is inspired of God, it will say the same thing all the way through, regardless of the different human authors.
To begin this topic of justification, there is one place we must begin: our sin. Truly, it is undeniable that all have sinned, and thus fallen short of the glory man once had with his Maker
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
Because we have broken His Holy standard, no good deeds we do could make up for this, for we are convicted as lawbreakers, worthy of condemnation.
“For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.” (James 2:10).
Every human being falls into this helpless state, very literally separated from our God. Yet here is where the mercy and lovingkindness of God comes in: He sent His Son down in the form of a man to live a perfect life, never faltering into sin, ultimately to serve as the innocent sacrifice for all the sins of men. He was the ransom– the fine paid for what we owed. When Jesus died and descended to the lower parts of the earth, justice was done and our offenses were paid for. But this was only the first step; Jesus was resurrected just as it had been prophesied, and when He rose, He granted us justification. Now by faith, if we decide to throw ourselves on His grace and receive justification based on what Jesus did, not on any good thing we’ve done, we are saved. This is our salvation.
After Jesus ascended, He sent the Holy Spirit down to live in us, so that we can live clean, free from sin, just like Jesus did. You see, it was our sin that separated us from God in the first place, so it’s not good enough for us just to have a free ticket to heaven, that is, to “accept” Jesus and forget how we live. Jesus’ death gave us a new start in life– our rebirth is the time of surrender, and from then on we must accept the Holy Spirit and live in His power over sin. This is our sanctification.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:8-10)
(see also Romans 8).
Now the Scripture also makes it clear that if we sin, that does not instantly rob us of our salvation, because we were not saved by our works in the first place! Rather, when we realize something wrong in our lives, we repent before God, and He forgives us and helps us to live as He wills.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)
Again, this does not mean that we may sin willfully, because though our works didn’t save us, now that we are made clean, we are to live clean. If a believer rebels against God by continually practicing the things that He hates, he is no longer justified.
“Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end…” (Hebrews 3:12-14)
“For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?” (Hebrews 10:26-29)
Philippians 2:12-13 tell us, “…work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.” Thus we see that our faith, which led to salvation, is evident by what we do, and we must be careful to keep in step with the Spirit who dwells in us, so we don’t fall back to destruction. Throughout the whole New Testament it is clear that we are saved by faith in Jesus Christ, and that we are sanctified by the Holy Spirit living in us.
Now I also know that some have asserted that two books of the Bible, James and Romans, speak of justification in two different senses– that Romans tells of justification before God and James tells of justification before man. Yet truly this is absurd, for starters, because what good is justification before man? Was our problem that we were not justified in man’s sight?
The reason for this belief seems to be that James covers the topic of works, of the things that man does on the outside, while Romans speaks extensively on faith. The reason for this: Romans is a thorough explanation of the gospel, showing that all men have broken God’s law, that God offers a righteousness that comes by faith alone, and that believers are enabled to live in righteousness. For if we have been made righteous (justification), we live righteously (sanctification) until we see the Lord and we shall be made like Him (perfection).
James covers for the most part the topic of sanctification; it seems to me that he is refuting a pervasive idea that we are saved by faith and therefore don’t have to do anything afterward. James shows that faith is not faith if it is not accompanied by action, for whatever is truly in the heart comes out. To hear and not do is to not believe; faith is evident by works, just as a tree is evident by its fruit. It doesn’t do the demons any good to merely believe that God exists, for they do not obey Him! James shows us the fruit of righteousness– belief in God evident by our obedience to His ways (not works unto salvation, as some have supposed). There is no difference between the God of Romans and the God of James, nor between the faith explained in both epistles.
“For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.” (James 2:26)
“But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life.” (Romans 6:22)
I believe that one thing is important to remember while we are in this discussion: that salvation comes through Jesus Christ only. To inherit your place in heaven, you must enter through the narrow gate, and walk on the narrow path. There are many in the Christian church today who are just living the culture. They try to start living the Christian life, and as they go along, try to understand the ways of God and get their theology straight.
They mentally assent that Jesus truly did live, that He died for our sins (though inwardly are a little unsure as to what that means), that He rose again, that He sent the Holy Spirit, and that He wrote the Bible. But they have not entered through the narrow gate! They have not realized the heinous crime they’ve committed by breaking God’s law, been filled with the shame of being responsible for the punishment of God’s blameless, Holy Lamb. They have not let go of everything that would hold them back from surrendering to the awesome love and power of the mercy of God through Jesus Christ. They have not, in a time and place, repented and trusted in Jesus for their own salvation; they have not been born of God, nor been regenerated upon receiving the Holy Spirit.
Today, people who try to walk the walk without first coming to that place of repentance will answer the question, “Have you been born again?” with something like, “Um, yeah…”, “Well…” or even “A few times.” Those who have been truly born again will answer with something akin to “Oh, yes! Do you want to talk about it?” This is because it is the biggest thing that has ever happened to them; they realize how lost they were without the grace of God, and are more than grateful to finally be alive.
Ultimately, the source of confusion on this topic is a misunderstanding of the differences between salvation and sanctification as revealed in the New Testament. The beginning factor must never be disregarded: because we have sinned, we could not do any works to get us right with God. So it is obvious that only Jesus Christ’s sacrifice grants us justification. But the greatest thing about grace is that we do not just get a free ticket to heaven; we receive a new nature, a clean slate, just as if we had never sinned. Even better, we don’t have to do it on our own, because by receiving the Holy Spirit we are empowered to live in communication with God, as He planned for us in the beginning. Just as there is a narrow gate, there is a narrow way that leads to life; no one can be reconciled to the Father but by Jesus Christ (John 14:6).
If we stray, we have the chance to repent and come back, but if we keep going off to the path which leads to death, we will surely meet it in the end. Through this temporary life on earth– just the beginning of our eternal life– we believers learn to say with the apostle Paul,
“Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.” (Philippians 3:8-12)
Salvation is a once-in-a-lifetime event, just as is physical birth, and I believe and know that every person, even those already in Christianity, must seek salvation. What’s different about salvation is that that one can only receive it. Jesus said, that unless one has been born again, he cannot enter the kingdom of God, no matter how well he lived, no matter if he worked miracles, no matter how much he believed he was a Christian. There must be a point when the person is convicted deeply of sin, empties himself of all he takes pride in, comes before Jesus Christ, humbles himself, and simply receives God’s work of faith in him. Henceforth, sanctification is the lifelong process of conforming more and more to Him; thus the believer shall live until He calls us to the place He dwells, with no corruption, and he shall be perfected at last!
One last word: to anyone, anywhere, whether they have been ignoring God or living in the form of Christianity, and knows they are not saved, I would implore them to drop every devotion or duty they may have been doing previously and simply start reading the Gospels through- even if it’s just a little bit every day. Do not read them to learn how you should approach God or live before men, do not read them to learn about what it means to really be saved or to really live for God. Read them simply to observe Jesus. Examine His character. Watch how He speaks, how He lives, how He relates to people. STUDY the life of Jesus as it is. If necessary, read through all four of them over a few times, until you know what “holy” is. If you see dimly, approach the Light and all will be made clear!
You cannot claim the promises of God until you are His own! But once you are His own, you will finally see Him as your Father! Anyone reading this who has been born of God knows what that means! Dear people, do this one thing, and God will take care of you! He will look after the rest. For once you get a glimpse of His holiness, the word becomes as a mirror, and one is convicted of his wretchedness, his sin, his guilt of crucifying the son of God. He realizes his desperate need for the forgiveness of God, and comes before God emptied, with a repentant heart. A heart in this state is the heart God can work with! But it can only come with the realization of sin, which follows the wonder of Holiness Incarnate. Seek Him out; He wants to be found!
Good post!