Posted on 07/23/2014 9:24:10 AM PDT by xzins
Faith without works is dead.
(James 2:14-26)
What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.
But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder. Do you want to be shown, you senseless person, that faith apart from works is barren? Was not our ancestor Abraham justified by works when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was brought to completion by the works. Thus the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,” and he was called the friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. Likewise, was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by another road? For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead.
“Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.” John 6:28-29
A great example of God’s grace from the Old Testament is Hosea.
God asked Hosea to marry Gomer the prostitute, knowing full well that Gomer would dishonor Hosea and cheat on him.
When Gomer did what she was expected to do, namely leave Hosea and cheat on him, God asked Hosea to pay the price to win her back.
We sinners are Hosea’s wife (with all due respect to Brooke Fraser’s song). And God payed a steep price in Jesus’ death to buy us back.
Thanks, VT. Excellent illustration.
The writings of CS Lewis are steadily being released at the Canadian Project Gutenberg site this year. They have published all of the Narnia series, and are now starting on some of his apologetics works, like “The Screwtape Letters”, and “The Problem of Pain”. Google Gutenberg Canada. Thank God there are some countries on this planet with semi-sane copyright laws.
I will. Thanks zeugma.
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Ping.
Indeed. :)
I’ll go back and read this after I answer the question.
1. It is true.
2. It is the only religion that has God saving man, not man working his way to God.
That.
Good guesses, both of them.
The 2nd is because of grace, so I’m not sure if I should give you a prize or an ‘almost there’. :>)
Grace is there. How else would He save us?
Old Testament=Faith.
New Testament=Faith.
Faithfulness is a work.
Rev.17:14 “These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful.”
Test of Faithfulness | My Utmost For His Highest
utmost.org/test-of-faithfulness/
The goal of faithfulness is not that we will do work for God, but that He will be free to do His work through us.
Amen, Brother!
The underlined could be taken to justify an attitude of I'm saved, so I don't have to do anything
— while it's true there's nothing for you to do WRT salvation, it is because you are saved that you should be impelled to do good works and, moreover, if you are saved then there will be fruit from it.
(John 15:2)
He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.
Bears repeating.
“I think they could probably do better, and -— I don’t think I’m alone in saying this -— I’d like to see them try.”
If we refrain from sinning because we are afraid of the fires of Hell, that is acceptable to God. Not optimal, perhaps, but acceptable.
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