“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
Galatians 2:8,9
Thanks for posting this verse - Paul absolutely nails it in Galatians.
The argument in this post is not what most people believe in any way.
Those who say that faith saves are correct. Those that say that Grace saves are correct. Those that say the Blood of Christ saves are correct. I do not know of anyone who says that works save.
Now, the above is basic and true but there is so much more. What are works? Works are what follows people of faith. It is works that show faith.
So many people believe that they can go to Christ with their sins and ask to be saved with no effort on their part and be saved, but they are wrong.
Works save nobody. Works however are important, how you might ask. If you don’t have works then you don’t have faith. James tells us that faith without works is dead. He also says that if you show him your works he will show you your faith.
Faith is a requirement to be eligible for the Grace that is freely given to those who ask. Placing your sins on the altar of God is the work of our lives. Before Christ people used to place animals on the altar to remind them that one day Christ would come and place himself on the Altar and pay for our sins like we were paying for them with animal sacrifices. We don’t do animal sacrifice anymore, we put our sins away on the altar, we give them away to receive the gift that The Savior wants so give us. We don’t just stop sinning, we feel sorrow for the sins we have heaped upon the Lords back that He had to pay for. So, does sorrow save? No. Sorrow is evidence however of repentance which is evidence of faith. While none of those save, saving doesn’t happen without them.
I’m not Catholic but I have to believe that is what they mean when they talk about works.
Perhaps a good Catholic could school us all on this point.
I’ll put my flame resistant suit on now and see what others have to say.
“Faith without works is dead.” “IF you remain in the Faith...” We can quote verses back and forth until the cows come home. Protestant here, but the more I see the gross excesses of some preachers - I saw the enormous mansion of a certain mega-preacher from Houston - the more I appreciate the Catholic perspective which basically says “If you claim to be a Christian, then your walk must match your talk.” Multiple theology degrees here, including earned Ph.D.
Let me repeat that!
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
Galatians 2:8,9
Says it ALL!