Salvation by grace or works....

[gslou]

Our Sunday school lesson from last Sunday led us to talk about salvation by grace vs works. As a born again Christian, I fully believe that I am saved purely and solely by the Grace of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Saviour; that there is no amount of "works" that I could do to buy my salvation. However, the Roman Catholic Church holds a dual belief of salvation by grace and salvation by works. I was able to find some biblical references in James 2:14-26 that says faith and works go hand in hand. I know this topic has been debated back and forth since at least the days of Martin Luther, if not before, and probably will until the day our Lord returns for us. However, or at least for now, could you help clarify the difference?

George

[Mike Miller]

I'm glad to, George. First, let me just say that according to Scripture salvation is solely a work of God. We are saved and sustained by His grace alone. One of my favorite quotes is from Jonathan Edwards: "The only thing that man brings to his salvation is the sin that makes it necessary." Anyone who teaches a salvation that adds anything to it is teaching a false gospel. What Jesus did on the cross is everything that needs to be done to secure our salvation. I cannot improve on it in any way, and if it were up to me, I am so totally sinful that I would never have an ounce of hope.

Now, as to the James passage, there are some who like to contend that this text teaches that we must work to be saved, but if it is read in context, that is not the case. Simply, what James is teaching is that if we have true saving faith, it will be accompanied by works. As you know, lots of people call themselves Christians, but there is absolutely no evidence in their lives to support that. James would say, "Can that kind of faith save them?" The answer is no. When we come to Christ, we are born again. We become something new. Salvation never leads us to complacency, but the Holy Spirit, which now dwells within us, will compel us to the joy of serving our Savior. Elsewhere we see that we have been saved to serve. See Ephesians 2:8-10 for example, which clearly states that our salvation is a free gift that will result in good works. See also 2 Timothy 1:8-9 and Titus 3:4-7. Also check out Galatians 1:6-9 to see what Paul says about those who add something to the gospel.

As for Roman Catholicism, it's interesting that when you talk to a Roman Catholic, they talk about the grace of God. You would almost think they believe what we do . . . until you go further with them. They believe that salvation is given by grace as you observe the sacraments (baptism, catechism, confession, communion, marriage or ordination, and last rites). Grace comes through those things, but only as administered through a Catholic priest. Then, righteousness (our right standing before God) is not imputed to them by faith, but it is rather perfected through good works. Then, at the end of life, a good Catholic can get into heaven after having the rest of their sins taken care of in purgatory. The first time I went to a Catholic funeral (a friend who was raised Catholic but had come to trust only Christ in his last days), I was appalled when the priest prayed that my friend would be let into heaven. Yikes! I know this next statement will offend many, but I have to say that what is preached by the Roman Church is nothing less than heresy.

If I can clarify further, please let me know.

[gslou]

Thank you Pastor Mike for the reply and the explanation. I guess that this can be boiled down to what comes first, the horse or the cart. So salvation comes first, which leads us to want to glorify God through good works and not that good works leads to salvation. I understand this and can point to Bible verses to back this point now.

However, this leads me to another related question. Can an unsaved person do good works, or works that God would accept as acts that glorify His name? I understand that even in that case, that person can not purchase his / her salvation by those acts, but still, can good works be performed by them.

George

[Mike Miller]

What an excellent question! Let me begin by saying that God can and will use unbelievers to bring glory to Himself--even through their deliberate wickedness. For example, He used Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, and Pilate to accomplish His perfect will. Therefore, He can certainly use morally "good" acts by unbelievers for His glory as well.

However, from a biblical standpoint, unbelievers cannot do what is truly "good." In John 15, Jesus explains that we can do nothing apart from Him. Obviously, we can do "things," but we can do nothing of Kingdom value unless we, the branches, are connected to Him, the vine. Romans 14:23 says that "whatever does not proceed from faith is sin." This means that even when believers do "good" things for the wrong reasons, it is sin. Therefore, people who have never placed their faith in Christ cannot good things. Every morally decent thing they do is sin because they are doing it in the flesh and for the wrong reasons. Even if they do something to help others, they are not doing it by faith in Christ and for His glory, and that means that to God it is sin. Isaiah 64:6 addresses keeping God's commands with a corrupt heart. He calls those "righteous deeds" a "polluted garment" (in Hebrew, that reads "garment of menstruation").

So, in conclusion, every "good" thing that a person does apart from Christ places them in even worse standing with God because those things are not done by faith and for His glory. They are all sinful. As Romans 3:12 says, "no one does good, not even one" (see Romans 3:9-18 for a description of our condition apart from Christ).