The issue about how a person is made accepted by God’s
perfection has been debated throughout the ages. The issue has been if
salvation is by God’s Grace alone or has to do with any human effort. Since it
cannot be done by both it must be either purely by God’s Grace entirely or by some means of man’s work
of righteousness.
Protestants have traditionally been on the side of
“salvation by faith” ever since the break-off from the Catholic tradition.
However, today we see a steady draw toward a change of mind among the
traditional protestants to change back to a message of God’s salvation by good
works.
The Bible requires “repentance”
to have God’s salvation. The question is, however if that term “repentance”
mean a “turning from sins” or just a “change of mind” about sins?” The Greek
word for the English word “repentance” is “change of mind” and nothing more.
Because of this the opponents to salvation by God’s Grace alone point out that
the requirement for salvation must be “repentance
for sins.” In other words, the idea has now changes toward the idea that
man has to “turn from sin” to be
saved.
1.
First of all, no good works can give us eternal life forever with God in Heaven.
We know that from bible verses like Ephesians
chapter 2 verses 8 and 9. The clear teaching of the Bible is that humans
can only be “saved by “God’s Grace”
2.
Secondly, the Scripture is also clear about
gaining God’s salvation is by God’s Grace “through faith” in Jesus Christ.
There are more than 100 bible verses that clearly say that faith is the only
requirement for salvation. Just think of John 3: 16!
Those two points should be enough to settle the score.
However many people cannot accept that simple message of faith alone and
therefore try to do anything to add good works for salvation.
Let’s be clear. Salvation has to do with God’s Grace alone since no person can
produce a human righteousness that is accepted by entrance to Heaven. Our
‘human righteousness” can just do so much, but since “God’s righteousness”
never can be reached by any of us, God decided to put all of us humans on the
same level. None of us can ever reach God’s perfection. We are all sinners
according to Romans 3: 23.
In other words,” repentance of sin”, meaning “ a “turning
from sin” would never cut it.
So, then where do the “good works” fit in the equation of
salvation? It is added after
salvation by God’s Grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Good human works are a result of having received Jesus
Christ as Savor. Too many people put the wagon before the horse here. Good
works will never save us, but it is rather a result of salvation. This is the
clear message of Paul’s letter to the Galatians.
This is why God tells us that we can know that we have eternal life with God here and in Heaven
according to 1 John 5: 13. That is
why a person who trusts in Jesus as Savior can have confidence in his/her Christian life according to the entire first letter of John in the New Testament.
The Book of Hebrews
points this out, too! It’s message to the Christians is to go forward in the Christian walk! Never to go backwards! Don’t try
to lay the foundation of salvation again. It is already laid there, since Jesus
Christ has already died and been raised from the death. It’s message is simply;
The power of sin is broken and
because of that live out your Christian life in a new Christian lifestyle! Jesus
died once and for all and that is it! If a person are able to “lose his/her salvation” that
means that Jesus death was not enough. There is only one salvation done! If there was a chance to lose that
salvation Hebrews chapter 6 tells us
that we can never, again be saved. In other words; “Jesus paid it all. All to
Him I owe”
Paul, the logical
theologian explained this message in the
Book of Romans. He lays the groundwork for the reason of why God Himself
had to provide a salvation for humans. After his clear explanation he asks the
question( Romans 6: 1-); “if God has
done all this for us in and through Jesus Christ does that mean that we should
live as we want”(my own words). And his answer is “No way! That is, how can any person who really
understand God’s Grace in giving us eternal life through simple faith, turn
away from Him in disobedience?” Paul says it is illogical to think that way! If
God died for me, how can I turn away from him? I owe my life to Him. Going
backwards is not the answer! But going forward is the only spiritual healthy response!
So, if Jesus’ death and resurrection is not enough for our
salvation then we have a problem. Calvary and the open grave are the only events
that can save us. It was so terrible hard for Jesus to provides salvation for
us, but, praise the Lord that our responsibility is a simple faith and trust in
Him as Savior.
When we once have become children of God, by faith and
having trusted in Jesus Christ, as our satisfying payment for sins we can
indeed start living as Christians. And it
is essential that we start expressing that Christian life through our words
and actions.
How important it is to be simple in our explaining this
Gospel in simple terms, so that unbelievers understand to trust in God’s grace
rather than to confuse them with a message of God’s grace muddled with good
works that can never and will never save anyone. Too many unbelievers think
that they have to turn from sin to be saved, because they hear it more and more
in our Christian churches. It is a false
Gospel that never saves any one!
www.simplefaith.us
