The churches of Christ Greet You (Romans
FACT: Salvation
is by grace through faith, not of yourselves, it is the gift of God,
and
is not of works!
Our studies of Ephesians 2:8-9 and the topic of Salvation by Grace
through Faith have brought us to the point where we must consider the
phrase, "Not Of Works." The expression "not of works" has caused
millions of people to reject simple obedience to God's word. They think
that works have nothing at all to do with salvation. Have you ever
wondered just why this erroneous concept is so wide spread? This lesson
will delve deeper into the action
of “works” and their relation to Salvation by Grace through Faith.
The words of Paul
are, "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" (Eph.
2:8-10). This is one of the most love passages in the New Testament. It
tells us of God's gracious salvation offered to those who have
sufficient faith to submit to His will. It also says something about
works.
Works and salvation
is much like saying oil and water to some people. Most people in the
religious world say they do not mix. What do “works” have to do with
salvation? You must agree that nearly the entire so-called protestant
world would say,
"NOTHING." They ask, "How can a man work his way to heaven?" It is
commonly
believed that it is absurd to think that any kind of works are even
considered
in reference to salvation. After all, Paul clearly said, "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" (Ephesians 2:8-9).
His statement in
Romans chapter four seems to fortify the common view that no works of
any kind are involved in salvation from sin. The Bible says, "Now to
him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. But to
him who does not work
but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted
for righteousness" (Romans 4:4-5). We then read: "And if by grace
(speaking of
salvation), then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer
grace.
But if it is of works, it is no longer grace, otherwise work is no
longer
work" (Romans 11:6).
From all we have
read so far, do any of these passages sound like Paul was saying that
obedience to God is excluded? None of them can correctly be construed
to mean that
one who truly believes must do nothing at all to be saved – or do they?
Well, the apostle also wrote, "But God be thanked that though you were
slaves
of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which
you
were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of
righteousness" (Romans
The fact is, the
expression "not of works" in Ephesians 2:9, does NOT exclude faithful
obedience to the
Gospel commands. Rather, acts of obedience to God are definitely
included. Ephesians 2:8 says salvation is "through faith." Faith must
be seen in works and faith that has no works is of no value - it saves
no one or nothing.
Works done through faith are a very integral part of man's duty in
being
saved from sin.
There are obviously
some works that have nothing to do with salvation, that in fact hinder
salvation. Salvation is not "of works" of some sort. What are they?
First, Paul says in the text that the works that do not save are the
sort about which man
can boast. He says, "not of works, lest any man should boast." Boasting
is precluded in the salvation of sinners. If a mere human could devise
some
system by which he could obligate the Almighty to give him salvation,
he
would boast of it to high heaven. Let a person devise a means of making
millions
of dollars and see how quickly he brags to the world of his
accomplishment.
But such is neither possible nor permitted in salvation from sin. Does
anyone
really think that faithful obedience to the commands of the Gospel is
in
the category of works "of which a man may boast?" How, in the name of
sense
and reason could such a conclusion be reached?
Galatians
Remember the young
man who came to the Lord and told Jesus that he had kept the Ten
Commandments from his youth? The incident is recorded in Luke 18:18-23.
Jesus told him that one thing was still lacking. The Law of Moses was
still in force at
the very time Jesus spoke to this young man. The man was told to sell
his
possessions and give to the poor. He went away sorrowful. But think
back
at what he said. No doubt his pride swelled when he knew he had the
opportunity
to tell Jesus how well he had kept the Law of Moses. The point is, he
boasted
of his accomplishments. Works of the Law of Moses are in no way
connected
with salvation in the Gospel of Christ. The Gospel is Christ's New
Covenant
(Heb.
Notice also that
Paul said, "Even we believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be
justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law" (Gal.
2:16). There are works
of the law that are excluded, but by the same token there are works of
faith
that justify. Justifying works are included in salvation by grace
through
faith. Paul said clearly that those who believed did so in order that
they
might be justified by faith. Notice also the faith is in Christ. The
simple
solution to this matter is that works of faith are obedience to Christ
and
that is what saving faith in Christ is all about.
Those of you who
have been led to think that “works” (any kind of works) nullify saving
grace
have been misled. Think about it a moment. The overall teaching of the
Bible
is that a believer "might be justified." However, most denominational
doctrinal discourses affirm that the believer "is justified" not "might
be justified." The unwholesome doctrine of "justification by faith
only" does not agree with the word of God.
Again, Paul says in
Galatians 2:16 that sinners are justified by "faith in Christ." This is
so because the personal faith of a sinner leads him to obey the Gospel
of Christ. That faith is saving faith and leads one who believes the
Gospel to be baptized into the sacred name of the Father, of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit, for
the remission of sins. Why? Because very simply, Jesus said, "Go into
all
the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and
is
baptized shall be saved; but he who does not believe shall be
condemned" (Mark
Think about the
words "he who believes" for a minute. Believes what? Naturally, he must
believe the Gospel. What does he believe about the Gospel? He believes
what the
Gospel reveals about Christ, His death, burial and resurrection (1 Cor.
15:1-4). The Lord said he who believes the Gospel and IS BAPTIZED shall
be saved. Being baptized in obedience to the Gospel is certainly not
what
Paul had in mind when he said salvation is "not or works, lest anyone
should
boast." The works that are of no value in salvation are works of the
Mosaic
Law or those of which some man might boast. Works of faith make one
acceptable
to God and justify one who believes.
We leave you with
these verses of divine inspiration to consider. "In truth I perceive
that God shows
no partiality. But in every nation whoever fears Him and works
righteousness is accepted by Him" (Acts