Introduction
The doctrine
of Sola Fide states basically that we are saved by faith or belief in Jesus
Christ alone and not by any of our meritorious works. But it’s not true that we’re
saved by faith alone for the simple reason that we’re not saved by faith. We’re
saved by faithfulness to our Lord Jesus Christ because this is the gospel that
Jesus Himself preached:
“Who
then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his
household, to give them meat in due season?” (Matthew 24:45)
“His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a
few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of
thy lord. ... His lord said unto him, Well
done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things,
I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”
(Matthew 25:21, 23)
“And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward,
whom his lord shall make ruler over
his household, to give them their
portion of meat in due season?” (Luke 12:42)
“He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust
also in much. If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust
the true riches? And if ye have not
been faithful in that which is
another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own?” (Luke 16:10-12)
“And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast
been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.” (Luke
19:17)
The Greek pistis (Strong’s 4102) appears almost
250 times in the New Testament and is almost always translated as “faith” but
should be rendered “faithfulness” instead. The key statement that proves this
is Paul’s quote from Habakkuk, “The just shall live by faith [pistis 4102]” (Rom
1:17; Gal 3:11; Heb 10:38), “but the person of integrity will live because of
his faithfulness” (Hab 2:4 NET), “But the righteous will live by their
faithfulness to God” (Hab 2:4 NLT). Paul was not ashamed of the gospel that
Jesus Christ Himself preached and it was the message of faithfulness, “For I am
not ashamed of the gospel of Christ … The just shall live by faith [faithfulness]” (Rom 1:16-17).
The gospel message from the beginning
In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning
with God. All things were made by him;
and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the
life was the light of men. And the light
shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. … And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt
among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the
Father,) full of grace and truth. (John 1:1-5, 14)
God left us
without excuse as to discerning the true saving gospel message because it was
the message preached in the very beginning. John began his Gospel
by teaching that the message of salvation had been preached in the creation by
the Creator. He called the Person of Jesus Christ the Word or the Message, and the
message preached in the beginning is that darkness would be upon mankind but the
Message would become a man and preach light into the darkness, “And God said,
Let there be light” (Gen 1:3), “And the light shineth in darkness” (Jhn 1:5).
In
the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without
form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And
the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw
the light, that it was good: and God
divided the light from the darkness. And
God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening
and the morning were the first day. (Genesis 1:1-5)
And
God made two great lights; the greater
light to rule the day, and the
lesser light to rule the night: he
made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give
light upon the earth, And to rule over
the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and
God saw that it was good. (Genesis
1:16-18)
The message from the beginning is not Sola Fide. It’s not a belief
that some facts about Jesus Christ are true but rather faithfulness to Jesus
Christ as Lord or Ruler. The Message came into the dark world and spoke “Let
there be light” so that the light would be divided from the darkness and called
either day or night. Those of the day would be ruled by the Greater Light and
those of the night would be ruled by the lesser light, “Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness” (1Th
5:5), “For ye were sometimes darkness,
but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children
of light” (Eph 5:8). Therefore, the true saving gospel message is that we
must be of the day, faithfully serving our Ruler Jesus Christ in obedience to
everything He commanded.
Is the true saving gospel message what scholars and
theologians teach today? Is it what the reformers taught a few hundred years
ago? The Lord Jesus Christ is the Message from the beginning and He taught that
salvation is by faithfulness to Him. Our loyalty should be to Him and His
gospel message, not to scholars, theologians, reformers, or anyone else who
teaches something different. “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him
that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that
trouble you, and would pervert the
gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than
that which we have preached unto you, let
him be accursed.” (Gal 1:6-8).
Obedience of faithfulness
The two statements “for obedience to the faith [faithfulness] among all nations” (Rom 1:5),
“to all nations for the obedience of faith [faithfulness]”
(Rom 16:26), form the bookends of Paul’s letter to the Romans. While most claim
that the theme of Romans is righteousness by faith, my humble opinion is that
it’s obedience of faithfulness among all nations—that all nations are saved by
faithful obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ.
These bookends are also joined by the two statements “For I
am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ” (Rom 1:16), “according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus
Christ” (Rom 16:25). That it was “my gospel” meant that Paul took ownership of
it. Like a homeowner, as opposed to a renter, bears the burden and
responsibility of home maintenance, Paul owned Christ’s gospel message and the
suffering that accompanied it. To not be ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ is
to own it! It’s to stand for what Jesus Christ Himself taught and preached regardless
of any personal consequences. After all, we no longer have personal consequences
now that we’re His slaves.
Jesus Himself taught this same principle, “The hireling
fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep” (Jhn 10:13).
Employees don’t have the same care for a company and bear the same burden as
the owner of the company. When things go south and the company goes out of
business, employees just go and find another job. Paul was not a renter or an
employee but an owner. We also are to not be ashamed of the gospel message but
to own it along with the burdens and sufferings that come with ownership.
It’s not calling Him Lord but obeying Him as Lord
Know
ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves
servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto
death, or of obedience unto righteousness? But God be thanked, that ye were the
servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from
the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made
free from sin, ye became the servants of
righteousness. (Romans 6:16-18)
Further into Romans, Paul elaborated upon “obedience to the
faith [faithfulness]” by teaching
that we’re not servants of whom we confess as Lord but of whom we actually obey
as Lord, “his servants ye are to whom ye obey.” And this is the gospel that
Christ preached, “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I
say?” (Luk 6:46).
When we were “baptized into Jesus Christ” (Rom 6:3), we
“became the servants of righteousness” (Rom 6:18). In other words, baptism is the
point in which we’re committing ourselves to be faithful servants and slaves of
the Lord Jesus Christ for the rest of our lives and to live righteously as He
commanded. We now have a duty to serve Him in righteousness, fulfilling the
commitment we made. That you “obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine” refers
to the pattern of Jesus Christ’s teaching, particularly in the Sermon on the
Mount. What Christ taught was not meant to be exhaustive in that it addressed
every possible situation we might encounter but was an overall form or pattern of
doctrine.
“Go ye therefore, and teach
all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and
of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to
observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you
alway, even unto the end of the
world. Amen.” (Mat 28:19-20). Discipleship has nothing to do with teaching new
converts to memorize Bible verses on index cards. Just try memorizing what your
boss at work told you to do without actually doing it and see how long you keep
your job! It matters not that we hear and even memorize what God said if we’re
not doing it. Discipleship is all about teaching new converts obedience to the
commandments and teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Baptism is our commitment to faithfully serve and obey the commandments
of our Lord Jesus Christ for the rest of our lives and we must live to the
standard of righteousness that he commanded to enter His Kingdom, “For I say
unto you, That except your righteousness
shall exceed the righteousness of
the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in
no case enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Mat 5:20). If righteous living
ultimately doesn’t matter then there was no point in Jesus teaching the rest of
the sermon. The form or pattern of doctrine Jesus taught in the Sermon on the
Mount is the standard of righteousness by which we must live or we will not be entering
His Kingdom.
And
being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him … For when for the time
ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles
of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. For
every one that useth milk is
unskilful in the word of righteousness:
for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have
their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. (Hebrews 5:9, 12-14)
Notice that Christ saves all of them that obey Him, and by
implication doesn’t save those who disobey Him. Therefore, mature servants of
Christ are to teach babes in Christ obedience or “the word of righteousness.” We’re
to teach them obedience to Christ’s commandments, “Teaching them to observe all
things whatsoever I have commanded you.” And we’re to teach them righteous living
to the standard Christ commanded, “That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and
Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.”
Paul said later in Romans, “That if thou shalt confess with
thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised
him from the dead, thou shalt be saved” (Rom 10:9). Now, this statement is
often quoted as a formula for salvation—that all we have to do is make a faith
confession and we’re good to go. But in context, however, Paul was teaching
righteousness by faithfulness to the Lord Jesus Christ:
But the righteousness which is of faith [faithfulness]
speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven?
(that is, to bring Christ down from above:)
Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up Christ again from
the dead.) But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith [faithfulness],
which we preach. (Romans 10:6-8)
For
this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off. It is not
in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring
it unto us, that we may hear it, and do
it? Neither is it beyond the sea,
that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto
us, that we may hear it, and do it?
But the word is very nigh unto thee,
in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that
thou mayest do it. (Deuteronomy 30:11-14)
To “confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus” is not a faith
confession but a faithfulness commitment! We’re committing ourselves to
faithfully hear and do everything our Lord Jesus Christ commands. This is what Moses
had prophesied and this is what Paul meant by quoting from him. It’s the word or
message of faithfulness he was preaching, “obedience to the faith [faithfulness]” (Rom 1:5).
Also, the second half of that statement “believe [pisteuo 4100] in thine heart that God hath raised him from the
dead,” is not simply about believing the resurrection happened as a historical
event because Paul had already taught earlier “But for us also, to whom it
shall be imputed, if we believe [pisteuo 4100] on him that raised up
Jesus our Lord from the dead” (Rom 4:24). The Greek pisteuo appears over 250 times in the New Testament and is
translated primarily as “believe” but would be better rendered as “trust.” It’s
not simply about believing that the resurrection event actually happened, but about
living in a trusting relationship with God that raised our Lord Jesus Christ
from the dead.
Paul went on to say, “For with the heart man believeth [is trusting] unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made [is being confessed] unto salvation” (Rom 10:10). In the Greek,
the verbs are in the present continuous tense. It’s not a one-time belief and
confession but a continual trusting relationship with God and confession of Jesus
Christ as our Lord that saves us. This is the gospel, the message of faithful
obedience that Paul was not ashamed to preach.
We must live righteously to be saved
The doctrine of Sola Fide asserts that we’re saved by faith
or belief and not by any of our works. But all three of the main passages used
to support this teaching are actually about Christ’s faithfulness, not our
faith.
For no one is declared righteous before him by the works
of the law, for through the law comes the
knowledge of sin. But now apart from the law the righteousness of God (which is
attested by the law and the prophets) has been disclosed - namely, the
righteousness of God through the
faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no
distinction, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (Romans
3:20-23 NET)
We
are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners, yet we know that no one is justified by the works of the
law but by the faithfulness of Jesus Christ. And we have come to
believe in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by the faithfulness of Christ and not by the works of the law,
because by the works of the law
no one will be justified. … I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no
longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So the life I now live in the body,
I live because of the faithfulness of
the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not set
aside God’s grace, because if
righteousness could come through the law, then Christ died for nothing!
(Galatians 2:15-16, 20-21 NET).
More
than that, I now regard all things as liabilities compared to the far greater
value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all
things - indeed, I regard them as dung! - that I may gain Christ, and be found
in him, not because I have my own
righteousness derived from the law, but because I have the
righteousness that comes by way of Christ’s
faithfulness - a righteousness from God that is in fact based on Christ’s
faithfulness. (Philippians 3:8-9 NET)
There is no such faith versus works issue in Scripture. This
is an artificial distinction necessary for supporting Sola Fide. Paul taught in
these three passages that righteousness or a right relationship with God is based
on Christ’s faithfulness to God in giving Himself as a sacrifice for our sins. The
real issue is that we’re right with God by Christ’s faithfulness to die for our
sins versus trying to be right with God by our works under the Law of Moses.
Because Paul taught that we can’t be right before God by our
works under the Law of Moses, it’s then assumed that we just can’t live up to
the standard of righteous living that God requires. However, Paul also taught
that under the New Covenant we not only can
but must live according to God’s
standard of righteousness to be right before Him.
For
not the hearers of the law are just
before God, but the doers of the law
shall be justified. For when the Gentiles,
which have not the law, do by nature [physis 5449] the things contained in the
law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their
hearts … Therefore if the
uncircumcision keep the righteousness of the law, shall not his
uncircumcision be counted for circumcision? And shall not uncircumcision which is by
nature [physis 5449], if it fulfil
the law, judge thee, who by the letter and circumcision dost transgress the
law? (Romans 2:13-15, 26-27)
The Greek physis
translated here as “nature” is about the natural state in which all male babies
are born—uncircumcised. Therefore, to “do by nature the things contained in the
law,” “keep the righteousness of the law,” and “fulfil the law” means that Gentiles
actually can keep the righteous requirements of the law in their natural
uncircumcised state. But how can they do this? They’re able to do it by “the
work of the law written in their hearts.”
The commandments given by Moses under the Old Covenant were
written on stone tablets but the commandments of Jesus Christ under the New
Covenant are written on our hearts by the Spirit, “written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy
tables of the heart … Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but
of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life. But if
the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones” (2Co 3:3,
6-7). And Paul called this “the ministration of righteousness” (2Co 3:9). In
our human strength we can’t live to the standard of righteousness God requires,
but by the strength of the Holy Spirit in our hearts we can. He went on to say,
“But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from
glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2Co 3:18). It’s
by the Spirit of the Lord in our hearts that we are conformed to the image of
Christ’s righteousness.
Christ saves those that obey Him, “And being made perfect,
he became the author of eternal salvation
unto all them that obey him” (Heb 5:9), and it’s by obedience to His commandments
written on their hearts, “For this is
the covenant that I will make with
the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts:
and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people … In that he
saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old” (Heb 8:10, 13). Both Jews
and Gentiles can live according to God’s standard of righteousness by the strength
of the Spirit in their hearts.
Paul said that we “keep the righteousness of the law … fulfil
the law” (Rom 2:26-27), then later explained, “That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who
walk not after the flesh, but after the
Spirit … And if Christ be in you,
the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness” (Rom 8:4, 10). We all die
because we’ve all sinned, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of
God” (Rom 3:23), “for that all have sinned” (Rom 5:12). But if the Spirit of
Christ dwells in us then the Spirit will raise us from the dead to eternal life
because we fulfilled the righteous requirements of the law, “the Spirit is life because of righteousness.” We’re
not saved from death by believing some facts are true. We’re saved by fulfilling
the righteous standard required by the law through the ability of the Spirit of
Christ in our hearts.
Later he will say “for he that loveth another hath fulfilled
the law ... love is the fulfilling of
the law” (Rom 13:8, 10). Keeping Christ’s one commandment, “Thou shalt love thy
neighbour as thyself” (Rom 13:9), fulfills the righteous standard required by
God. The ability to keep this commandment comes when we “put on the armour of
light … put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom 13:12, 14). In our strength we
can’t live up to this standard. However, when we become servants or slaves of
the Greater Light, “the greater light to rule the day” (Gen 1:16), then we have
His strength as if clothed with His armor. Since we now have the strength to
live according to God’s standard of righteousness then we have no excuses for
living below this standard. Therefore, we not only can but must live
righteously to be saved.
Again, Paul said at the beginning of his letter, “For I am
not ashamed of the gospel of Christ” (1:16), and the gospel of Christ is “That except your righteousness shall exceed
the righteousness of the scribes and
Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Mat 5:20).
Now, if Christ was speaking only of an imputed, reckoned, or counted
righteousness then what’s the purpose of the rest of His sermon? Why teach the Sermon
on the Mount at all if we don’t have to live according to its standard of
righteousness? But Christ ended His sermon with “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them ... And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not” (Mat 7:24, 26). Moses
prophesied that God’s people were to hear the Prophet that would come, “The
LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a
Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken” (Deu 18:15),
“… that we may hear it, and do it? …
that we may hear it, and do it? But
the word is very nigh unto thee, in
thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou
mayest do it” (Deu 30:12-14). Doing what He commands means living to His
righteous standard.
In practical terms, how can we live according to this
standard? How can we raise our standard of daily moral living to what God
requires? The only way we can do this is by becoming spiritually minded, “That the righteousness of the law might be
fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For
they that are after the flesh do mind
the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually
minded is life and peace.” (Rom
8:4-6).
The gospel Jesus taught is “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and
rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for
yourselves treasures in heaven,
where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break
through nor steal” (Mat 6:19-20). A treasure is anything that is of value or
importance to us. And what’s more valuable than living in a right and pleasing relationship
with God? Therefore, to have “treasures in heaven” is to please the Father in
heaven by living righteously according to the commandments of His Son. Being
“spiritually minded” is treasuring what pleases the Father, and what pleases
the Father is faithful obedience to His Son.
What do we treasure?
I suffered from anxiety for over ten years. I was on
medication and received regular counseling that only helped slightly and
superficially. But when all else failed, I found that rather than trying to get
rid of the anxiety, I just needed to change my treasure. God created us with the
capacity to feel anxiety. Therefore, He can take it away from us if He so chooses.
I learned that when I simply focused on pleasing Him above all else and became
content with the anxiety as being His will for me then He eventually took it away.
To fight against the anxiety was to fight against Him. Essentially, my healing
came when I forsook my own self-image and began being conformed to the image of
Christ. My treasure is no longer caring what people on earth think about me but
what my Father in heaven thinks about me, “whose praise is not of men, but of God” (Rom 2:29), “not as pleasing men, but
God, which trieth our hearts” (1Th 2:4).
I’m convinced that the reason Christians keep struggling
with endless personal problems is that their treasure is still here on earth.
They’re trying desperately to solve their earthly problems because they’re protecting
their earthly treasure. The devil is a master distracter. He will be sure that
we have plenty of problems to keep us occupied and not doing God’s will. We say
to ourselves, “If I can just get more time, more money, and get this problem and
that problem out of my life then I’ll start obeying Christ and loving others.” But
if we’re slaves owned by Him then our personal problems are His while His
sufferings are ours! If we’ll just take care of His business, He will take care
of ours, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all
these things shall be added unto you” (Mat 6:33).
“Looking unto Jesus
the author and finisher of our faith [faithfulness]; who for the joy that
was set before him endured the cross,
despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of
God.” (Heb 12:2). We’re to look unto Christ’s example of faithfulness to His
Father of being despised, rejected, falsely accused, beaten, spat upon, flogged,
and put to death. It doesn’t mean necessarily that we will suffer to this same
degree but that we’ll suffer unjustly to a certain degree after the same image.
If we treasure the recognition, acceptance, and praise of men then we’ll try to
portray a skewed image of ourselves to gain the recognition, acceptance, and
praise of men. On the other hand, if we’re being conformed to the image of
Christ, we’re “being made conformable unto his death” (Phl 3:10), “even the
death of the cross” (Phl 2:8). We’re willing to die even the death of a
criminal if it comes to that, not caring about the image we portray to others but
only about Christ’s image and His glory.
Job’s problem was that “he justified himself rather than
God” (Job 32:2). He kept trying to justify himself before his three friends to
protect his own image when he should have just kept his mouth closed and
trusted God to eventually justify him. Because he relished the former days when
people honored him, “My glory was
fresh in me, and my bow was renewed in my hand. Unto me men gave ear, and waited, and kept silence at my counsel.” (Job
29:20-21), and loathed their current contempt upon him, “And now am I their
song, yea, I am their byword. They abhor me, they flee far from me, and spare
not to spit in my face.” (Job 30:9-10), he tried desperately to gain their
approval. He was too worried that they thought his suffering was because of
some sin he had committed so he kept giving longwinded speeches about how good
he had been. But he actually had been good, “Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man” (Job 1:8,
2:3). He was a good and faithful servant but his faithfulness was being tested
and tried, “Knowing this, that the trying of your faith [faithfulness] worketh patience [hypomone 5281]” (Jam 1:3), “Ye have heard of the patience [hypomone 5281] of Job” (Jam 5:11).
Peter said that baptism saves us, “The like figure whereunto
even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of
the flesh, but the answer of a good
conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ” (1Pe 3:21).
However, it’s not getting wet that saves us but what we do after we get dried
off! It’s living righteously thereafter with good conscience toward God:
For
this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief,
suffering wrongfully. For what glory is
it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently?
but if, when ye do well, and suffer for
it, ye take it patiently, this is
acceptable with God. For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye
should follow his steps: Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his
mouth: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he
threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously:
Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live
unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. (1 Peter 2:19-24)
Christ didn’t open His mouth and try to justify Himself when
He suffered wrongfully. He kept quiet and “committed himself to him that judgeth righteously.” He didn’t care what
anyone thought about Him. Now that we are “dead to sins” we also “should live
unto righteousness.” Our sins are forgiven so that we can now live righteously
after the example and image of Christ. We’re to suffer wrongfully with
conscience toward God—to not care what anyone thinks about us or might do to us
because we trust Him to judge righteously and vindicate us.
Being conformed to the image of Christ requires
relinquishing our image, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ
Jesus ... But made himself of no reputation” (Phl 2:5, 7). Christ didn’t care
about His image and reputation but only about doing the will of His Father. Therefore,
He was willing to die with the reputation of a criminal. Think about that for a
moment: are we willing to be falsely sentenced and put to death with everyone
thinking we’re a criminal? This is essentially what Paul meant by “Let this
mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” It’s about living and dying in
service to Christ with no regard to our reputation and image. Christ didn’t try
to make a name for Himself, therefore His Father has “given him a name which is
above every name” (Phl 2:9). Are we trying to make a name for ourselves? Are we
trying to get the glory? If we are then we don’t have the same mindset as
Christ. “Nor of men sought we glory, neither of you” (1Th 2:6), “for if I yet
pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ” (Gal 1:10).
Imputed righteousness
Paul taught about imputed righteousness or justification in
Romans chapter four, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness ... Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed
to him; But for us also, to whom it
shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from
the dead” (Rom 4:3, 23-24). However, he had already taught earlier “For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified”
(Rom 2:13). In other words, we must keep the righteous standard the law
requires to be justified before God. But how can these two seemingly
contradictory teachings be reconciled?
When Paul taught about imputed righteousness he said “Now to
him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt” (Rom 4:4).
We can’t work to pay off the sin debt we owe—we must be forgiven of it. God therefore,
imputes righteousness to us by forgiving our sin debt and no longer counts it
to us, “Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works,
Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities
are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord
will not impute sin.” (Rom 4:6-8). But His forgiveness is conditional.
Jesus told the parable of a king that had compassion on one
of his servants and forgave him all of his debt, “Then the lord of that servant
was moved with compassion, and loosed
him, and forgave him the debt” (Mat 18:27). But his compassion toward him
was contingent upon his servant’s own compassion toward his fellow servants, “Shouldest
not thou also have had compassion on thy
fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee?” (Mat 18:33). Therefore, his
master put all of his debt right back on his account, “And his lord was wroth,
and delivered him to the tormentors, till
he should pay all that was due unto him” (Mat 18:35). Although he had been
counted or imputed right before his master, he was once again counted his
debtor. And this is how it is with the righteousness of God, “So likewise shall my heavenly Father do
also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother
their trespasses” (Mat 18:35). We can be forgiven and right with God but then
later no longer forgiven and right with God. This is the gospel that Jesus
Christ Himself preached.
Was the man in this parable forgiven and right with his
master initially? Yes, he was. Was this man still forgiven and right with his
master later? No, he was not! Once Saved, Always Saved (OSAS) is not the gospel
Jesus preached. We can be forgiven but then later no longer forgiven; counted
righteous then later counted debtors. But those who tout OSAS make the claim
that people who fall away never were truly saved or forgiven in the first
place.
“Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words,
subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the
law: to whom we gave no such commandment” (Act 15:24). This
is what John meant by “I write no new commandment unto you” (1Jo 2:7), “They went out from us, but they were
not of us” (1Jo 2:19). This has nothing to do with people leaving their local
church and thus proving they never were saved in the first place. It was about
false teachers that went out from the Jerusalem church, commanding Gentiles to
be circumcised. Though they went out from them—from the apostles and leaders in
the Jerusalem church—they were not sent by them with that message. They were
antichrists and liars. Lifting John’s statement “They went out from us, but
they were not of us” from context to prove OSAS is simply running roughshod
over sound hermeneutics.
God freely gives us righteousness through the precious shed
blood of His Son Jesus Christ. But this imputed righteousness is conditioned
upon our faithful service to His Son in obeying His commandment of love toward
our fellow servants. Therefore, we must live according to the righteous
standard Jesus Christ commanded to be saved. Jesus concluded His Sermon on the
Mount with: “Therefore whosoever heareth
these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man ...
And every one that heareth these sayings
of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man” (Mat
7:24, 26). Christ’s gospel is that we must not only hear but also do what He
said. Imputed righteousness by the shed blood of Christ gets us right with
God—righteous living by serving Christ and repenting when we sin keeps us right
with God.
James wrote about having faithful
obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ, “My brethren, have not the faith [faithfulness] of
our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of
glory, with respect of persons” (Jas 2:1). Christ’s gospel is that unprofitable
servants will be cast out, “And cast ye
the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and
gnashing of teeth” (Mat 25:30), and this is what James taught, “What doth
it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith [faithfulness],
and have not works [ergon 2041]?
can faith [faithfulness] save him?” (Jas 2:14). In other words, what
profit are we to our Lord if we just say that we’re faithful to Him but we’re
not actually faithful to Him? We’re unprofitable servants that will be cast
out.
Now, it’s unfortunate that the Greek ergon was translated here as “works”
because it implies meritorious works or earning salvation apart from Christ. Of
course this passage has fueled the ongoing debate between Protestants and Roman
Catholics about faith versus works for hundreds of years. But recognizing the true
message James was communicating leaves no issue here to debate.
James was simply speaking of our actions,
specifically of doing what our Lord commands, “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves” (Jas 1:22), as our Lord Himself said, “Therefore
whosoever heareth these sayings of
mine, and doeth them ... And every
one that heareth these sayings of
mine, and doeth them not” (Mat 7:24,
26). It’s “deceiving your own selves” to “say he hath faith [faithfulness], and have not works.” In
other words, we’re deceiving one another when we’ve publicly confessed and committed
ourselves to faithfully obey Jesus Christ as our Lord yet we don’t have works
of obedience to Him as our Lord. Saying we’re faithful but not actually being
faithful is a hypocritical deception, “A
double minded [dipsychos 1374]
man is unstable in all his ways” (Jas
1:8). A dipsychos is a man of two
souls or a man living a double life—a hypocrite! And this is exactly what Jesus
preached against, “as the hypocrites do … thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are … be not, as the hypocrites” (Mat
6:2, 5, 16). Hypocrites say they’re faithful and might even appear to be faithful
but are not faithful.
Was
not Abraham our father justified by
works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how
faith [faithfulness] wrought with his
works, and by works was faith [faithfulness]
made perfect? And the scripture was
fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed [trusted]
God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the
Friend of God. Ye see then how that by
works a man is justified, and not by faith [faithfulness]
only. (James 2:21-24)
James was saying that Abraham was “justified by works” or was
in a right relationship with God as long as he faithfully obeyed Him. The
Scripture says “And he believed [trusted]
in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness” (Gen 15:6), but James
said that this was fulfilled many years later when God tested Abraham by
telling him to offer his son Isaac, “when he had offered Isaac his son upon the
altar … And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed [trusted]
God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness.”
When Paul said, “(As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed
[trusted]” (Rom 4:17), he had
this passage in mind, “I am the
Almighty God; walk before me, and be
thou perfect … Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name
shall be Abraham; for a father of many
nations have I made thee” (Gen 17:1, 5). He was saying that Abraham
continued to be counted righteous so long as he continued to walk “before him
whom he believed [trusted].” He had
to continue to trust and obey God to maintain a right relationship with Him, “And
he believed [trusted] in the LORD;
and he counted it to him for righteousness” (Gen 15:6).
Paul went on to say, “He staggered [contended] not
at the promise of God through unbelief [unfaithfulness]; but was strong in faith [faithfulness], giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded
that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.” (Rom
4:20-22). Abraham was faithful to God because he didn’t contend or argue with
Him about what He had promised. Rather, he was “strong in faith [faithfulness], giving glory to God.”
Faithful obedience to God glorifies Him. Paul’s conclusion was “And therefore
it was imputed to him for righteousness.” In other words, Abraham’s continued righteousness
before God was contingent upon his continued faithfulness to Him without
disagreeing with Him. Imputed righteousness is not a one-and-done deal so to
speak but a daily walk before God in relationship with Him.
This is also what James concluded, “And the scripture was
fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed [trusted]
God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness.” But this fulfillment was within
the event of God testing him in offering his son Isaac. He had been counted
righteous up to this point and was continued to be counted righteous by his obedience
at this juncture, “And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be
blessed; because thou hast obeyed my
voice” (Gen 22:18). What if Abraham had disobeyed God and not followed
through with this? Would he have continued to be right with God? Would God have
said to him, “Well, that’s okay. It was just a test. No big deal!” A right
relationship with God is contingent upon trusting Him and being found
trustworthy by Him because relationships are not one-sided. If we’re not doing
what He said, why should He do anything for us?
Also, we learn from this event that God even counts willingness as obedience because Abraham
was said to have obeyed even though he was stopped short of actually doing it,
“because thou hast obeyed my voice.” This is why obedience is from our hearts,
“but ye have obeyed from the heart
that form of doctrine which was delivered you” (Rom 6:17).
Now
it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; But for us also, to whom it shall be
imputed, if we believe [trust] on him
that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; Who was delivered for our
offences, and was raised again for our justification. Therefore being justified
by faith [faithfulness], we have
peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith [faithfulness] into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in
hope of the glory of God. (Romans 4:23-25, 5:1-2)
Imputed righteousness is a position “wherein we stand”
before God, and a position or a standing can be compromised. That our standing
before Him is contingent upon continued trust in Him is seen “in the steps of
that faith [faithfulness] of our
father Abraham” (Rom 4:12). As God tested Abraham, He tests all of us regularly
by putting us in difficult situations where we’re forced to trust Him, to
either obey or disobey. This is the imputed righteousness by which we stand
before Him. It’s a daily walk before Him, “walk before me” (Gen 17:1), “before
him whom he believed [trusted]” (Rom
4:17).
We are debtors
Because we’ve all sinned against God the Father, we owe Him a
sin debt we can never repay. This is what Paul meant by “Now to him that
worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt” (Rom 4:4). Trying to be righteous or right before God
by our works is impossible because all of our efforts are like paying interest
on a loan without ever paying down a penny of the principal.
God gave His Son Jesus Christ who paid-in-full our sin debt
on the cross. When we make Jesus our Lord and Master, He purchases us as His
slaves along with all of our debt and frees us from it. For example: when someone
purchases a company, they not only purchase all of its assets but also assume
all of its liabilities. Christ purchased us and freed us from all of the sin
debt we owed. We rightfully rejoice in Christ that we’re now forgiven of our
sins and didn’t do anything to earn it. It’s in that sense we’re not saved by
our works.
However, what’s not emphasized or even realized by many is
that although we’re no longer indebted to the Father, we’re now completely
indebted to His Son! Jesus Christ purchased us as His slaves and it’s now our
duty and obligation to obey whatever He commands, “So likewise ye, when ye
shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have
done that which was our duty to do”
(Luk 17:10). This is what Paul meant later in Romans, “Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to
live after the flesh” (Rom 8:12). We owed a sin debt we couldn’t pay but now
owe a righteousness debt we must pay! We’re now completely indebted to love, “Owe
no man any thing, but to love one another” (Rom 13:8). Because we’re indebted
to our Lord, and our Lord commanded us to love, we’re now indebted to love one
another. This is not optional for salvation but essential.
Lowering God’s standard of righteousness
In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said “That except your
righteousness shall exceed the
righteousness of the scribes and
Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” (Mat
5:20). He then repeatedly quoted what the scribes and Pharisees had been saying
followed by His own sayings or commandments: “Ye have heard that it was said by
them of old time … But I say unto you …” (Mat 5:21-22, 27-28); “It has been
said … But I say unto you …” (Mat 5:31-32); “Again, ye have heard that it hath
been said by them of old time … But I say unto you …” (Mat 5:33-34); “Ye have
heard that it hath been said … But I say unto you …” (Mat 5:38-39, 43-44). The
righteous standard being taught by the scribes and Pharisees was lower than
what God requires.
In Luke 16:1-8, Jesus told the parable of the unjust servant
who gained favor with people by writing-off his master’s debts for pennies on
the dollar, “Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty … Take thy
bill, and write fourscore” (Luk 16:6-7). This was illustrative of the Pharisees
teaching a lower standard of righteousness than what God requires, and they
knew that this story was about them, “And the Pharisees also, who were
covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him” (Luk 16:14). Jesus then
spoke to them sarcastically, “And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that,
when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations” (Luk 16:9). In
other words, make people your friends rather than being faithful to your
master!
As Jesus Christ’s servants, we’re indebted to Him and must live
according to the standard of righteousness He commanded. Unfortunately, the
doctrine of Sola Fide lowers His standard as if selling His debts for pennies
on the dollar. When we think we’re saved by only believing some facts are true,
we don’t have a compulsion to faithfully obey Jesus Christ as Lord. Why try to
pay a debt that we don’t even know we owe?
The doctrines of Sola Fide and OSAS lower God’s standard of
righteousness and diminish the fear of the Lord because when the consequences
of sinful living are removed, there’s no longer a fear of God’s wrath. This is
why many Christian men have no urgency to turn from pornography. Why should
they when they’re supposedly saved by believing some facts are true and that
they can never lose this salvation? People don’t want to hear the standard of
righteousness Jesus Christ preached to be saved—they want to hear Sola Fide and
OSAS. Unfortunately these doctrines sell Christ’s debts and make friends.
Walk after the Spirit
“For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. But if ye bite and devour one
another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another” (Gal 5:14-15).
Snakes bite their prey with venom then devour them whole. When we don’t serve
the Lord Jesus Christ by obeying His commandment of love, we’re like serpents
devouring dust, “upon thy belly
shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat
all the days of thy life” (Gen 3:14), “for
dust thou art, and unto dust shalt
thou return” (Gen 3:19). Since we’re all dust, when we’re not walking in love
toward one another, we’re moving on our bellies like snakes and eating dust—devouring
one another.
Paul continued, “This
I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye
shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh” (Gal 5:16). The key to overcoming
the works of the flesh, “Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions,
heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like” (Gal
5:19-21), is not by trying to overcome these sinful works in our strength but
by walking in the Spirit. When we truly walk in the Spirit we won’t have
problems with our flesh. We won’t!
“For this, Thou shalt
not commit adultery, Thou shalt not
kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is
briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Love worketh no ill to
his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.” (Rom
13:9-10). Except for a few positive commandments such as “Remember the sabbath
day … Honour thy father and thy mother” (Exo 20:8, 12), the laws of the Old
Covenant consisted primarily of negative “Thou shalt not” commandments. It was
mainly about what not to do. But the
law of the New Covenant written on our hearts and minds is embodied in the one
positive “Thou shalt” commandment. Living righteously before God isn’t
accomplished by striving to not do
what we shouldn’t but by striving to do
what we should! “Thou shalt love thy
neighbour as thyself.”
The wretchedness Paul experienced formerly under the law was
that “for what I would, that do I not ... For the good that I would I do not”
(Rom 7:15, 19). And this is what he meant by “so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of
the Spirit, ye are not under the law”
(Gal 5:17-18). The law written on stone tablets didn’t give him the ability to
do what he would—it only told him to stop doing what he shouldn’t. The
indwelling Holy Spirit, however, is like having the law written in our hearts
because now we actually can do the things that we would. And by doing the
things that we would, we won’t do the things that we wouldn’t.
“Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself … let us therefore
cast off the works of darkness, and
let us put on the armour of light … But
put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make
not provision for the flesh, to fulfil
the lusts thereof” (Rom 13:9, 12,
14). Faithfully keeping the one commandment of love is what clothes us in His
armor so that the lusts of the flesh have no place or provision to operate. Christ
strengthens us by His Spirit when we faithfully obey Him, “to be strengthened with might by his Spirit
in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith [faithfulness]”
(Eph 3:16-17), “Finally, my brethren, be
strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to
stand against the wiles of the devil.” (Eph 6:10-11). When we’re striving to be
faithful to Him, He gives us the strength and ability we need to be faithful to
Him.
Christ’s commandment of love is not the family and friends
plan—it includes our enemies as well, “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that
hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you” (Mat
5:44). We don’t have the natural strength and ability in ourselves to sincerely
and consistently love our enemies from our hearts. But something wonderful and
amazing happens when we have the Holy Spirit in our hearts and we’re truly
striving to walk in love toward others—Christ gives us the strength supernaturally
to do it.
It’s by our love that we’re known, “By
this shall all men know that ye are
my disciples, if ye have love one to another” (Jhn 13:35). And this love is the
example of love Jesus showed to Judas Iscariot. Day and night for over three
years He had never treated him any differently than the other eleven because
when He said “one of you shall betray me” (Jhn 13:21), they had no clue who it
would be, “Then the disciples looked one on another, doubting of whom he spake”
(Jhn 13:22). That all men will know we are His disciples isn’t so much by washing
the feet of our eleven friends but the feet of our one enemy.
Jesus taught, “Let your light so shine
before men, that they may see your good
works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Mat 5:16). The good
works that they see which glorify our Father are primarily the things that they
can’t do—sincerely love our enemies. “Love your enemies … That ye may be the
children of your Father which is in heaven” (Mat 5:44-45). We’re truly one of
God’s children when we sincerely love our enemies from our hearts.
When we focus on Christ’s commandment “all things whatsoever
ye would that men should do to you, do
ye even so to them” (Mat 7:12), we won’t have problems with our flesh. I’ve
come to learn in my walk with God that when I’m struggling with my flesh it
indicates that I’m neglecting something in my walk of love toward others. Therefore,
my flesh has become the gauge of my love walk. Once I correct the deficiency in
what I’m neglecting to do to others then I find that the problems in my flesh subside.
The reason it works like this is that since God knows the thoughts and motives
of our hearts and minds, then when our hearts and actions please Him, He cuts
away the works of the flesh from our lives by His Spirit. And there’s actually a
Biblical term for this—the circumcision of Christ, the circumcision made
without hands.
The circumcision of Christ
“In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the
sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ” (Col 2:11). This
circumcision is “in putting off the
body of the sins of the flesh” which he later says “put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication
out of your mouth” (Col 3:8). Circumcision in the flesh is a literal cutting
off or putting off of flesh from our body. The circumcision of Christ, on the
other hand, has nothing to do with our literal flesh or body being cut—it’s a cutting
off or putting off of the works of
the flesh, “Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry,
witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like” (Gal 5:19-21).
How is this possible? How do we get the works of our flesh
cut off from us? We must “walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit” (Rom
8:1, 4), “But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the
flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof” (Rom 13:14), “Walk in the
Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh” (Gal 5:16). If we’ll
just focus on pleasing the Father by keeping His Son’s one commandment, “Thou
shalt love thy neighbour as thyself” (Gal 5:14), He will cut off from us the
works of our flesh! This is the circumcision made without hands.
“For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward
in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and
circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose
praise is not of men, but of God”
(Rom 2:28-29). The name Jew means “praise.”
Therefore the Jew being praised by God is truly a Jew, or truly living up to
his name. What exactly is this circumcision that is of the heart?
The gospel Christ preached is: “Blessed are the pure in heart”
(Mat 5:8), “But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after
her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart” (Mat 5:28), “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Mat
6:21). Again, the reason many Christian men are addicted to pornography is
because their treasure is on earth and not in heaven—they love the pleasures of
sin more than pleasing God. But if they don’t repent and begin living
righteously then sadly they will perish as Christ said, “and not that thy whole body should be cast into
hell” (Mat 5:29-30).
Our hearts will be wherever our treasure is. Therefore, to
change our hearts we must change our treasure. We must treasure pleasing God above
all else. But if we’re supposedly saved by only believing some facts are true
then why turn from sin and live right?
When we treasure praise from men, “before men, to be seen of
them” (Mat 6:1), “that they may be seen of men” (Mat 6:5), “that they may
appear unto men” (Mat 6:6), then the motives of our heart for the things that
we do will not be right. But when we treasure receiving praise from God then we’ll
have pure motives in our hearts toward others, “Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the
truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned
love of the brethren, see that ye
love one another with a pure heart
fervently” (1Pe 1:22). Our love will be warm and genuine care for others. Jesus
said, “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold” (Mat
24:12). Sin is the reason we’re not genuinely warm and caring toward one another.
The circumcision of the heart comes by getting our treasure
right so that our hearts will be right. Once we’re doing what’s right from a
pure heart then God will cut off the works of the flesh from our lives.
Therefore, the result of seeking praise from God is being circumcised by Him, “circumcision
is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.”
The world teaches self-help and self-improvement. There are
enetire sections in book stores filled with hundreds of books dedicated to
teaching us how to improve ourselves. But this is exactly the problem!
Self-help and self-improvement are simply selfish. Christ commanded us to love
others not ourselves. When we stop trying to improve ourselves and just focus
on obeying Christ’s commandment of love, God performs the necessary
self-improvement on us by His in dwelling Spirit. I came to learn that rather
than using my introverted personality type as an excuse for not loving others,
that if I just began sincerely striving to walk in love from my heart and
trusting God to help me do it, He began circumcising the works of my flesh and
improving myself. Of course I continue to fail many times but I repent and keep
striving to move forward.
The Father of lights
When James said, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the
Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning” (Jas 1:17), he was referring to the two
great lights, “And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the
night: he made the stars also.
And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth” (Gen 1:16-17). The Greater Light came
down from above, from the Father.
This is the gospel Jesus taught, “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that
curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully
use you, and persecute you; That ye may
be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth
rain on the just and on the unjust” (Mat 5:44-45). The Father doesn’t just
shine sunlight upon the crops of good people but then leave evil people in the
darkness of shadows—He shines equally upon all without turning the sun away
from anyone, “with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” Thus we’re
to treat all people, including our enemies, the same. If we’re ruled by the
Greater Light and treating everyone without partiality or favoritism then we’re
living like children of our Father.
James will go on to say, “But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not,
and lie not against the truth. This
wisdom descendeth not from above, but is
earthly, sensual, devilish” (Jas 3:14-15). Those who are bitter against others
and envying them are not serving the Greater Light from above but are serving
the lesser light which is “earthly, sensual, devilish.” The wisdom from above
is the Greater Light that came down from above and taught us to be wise, “Therefore
whosoever heareth these sayings of mine,
and doeth them, I will liken him unto a
wise man, which built his house upon a rock” (Mat 7:24). The wisdom from
above is hearing and doing what the Greater Light taught and commanded.
Be doers and not hearers only
But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving
your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word,
and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his
way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso
looketh into the perfect law of liberty,
and continueth therein, he being not
a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the
work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. (James 1:22-25)
James illustrated the law of loving our neighbor as
ourselves by the analogy of looking into a mirror. Who do we see when we look
into a mirror? We see ourselves! Since we’re all created after the image of
God, in a sense we’re seeing ourselves when seeing our neighbor. The image of
God in other people reflects upon us so that we know how to treat them simply because
we know how we also would want to be treated. Since we’re all equal in value
and all have the same needs, struggles, and desires, when we see our neighbor
in need, we’re seeing ourselves in need.
To answer the question “And who is my neighbour?” (Luk
10:29), Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan, “And by chance there came
down a certain priest that way: and when
he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he
was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.”
(Luk 10:31-32). This is what James meant by “beholdeth himself, and goeth his
way.” The priest and the Levite were beholding themselves when they saw this
man yet went their way. But the one who was “a doer of the work” was the
Samaritan, “Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said
Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.” (Luk 10:36-37). The mercy this
Samaritan showed is the gospel Jesus preached.
James will go on to define the “law of liberty” as the law
of love, “If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself,
ye do well ... So speak ye, and so do, as they
that shall be judged by the law of liberty. For he shall have judgment
without mercy, that hath shewed no
mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment.” (Jas 2:8, 12-13). God shows
mercy to us if we’ve loved our neighbor and shown mercy. On the other hand, we’ll
be judged without mercy if we’ve shown no mercy.
Showing mercy is prompted by recognizing the reality that
people behave the way they do because they’re in bondage to sin and serving
evil spirits, “For we wrestle not
against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers,
against the rulers of the darkness
of this world, against spiritual
wickedness in high places” (Eph
6:12). People are not ultimately the problem but their rulers—the lesser lights
depicted in the night sky. Mercy recognizes this reality and loves sincerely
expecting nothing in return, “Recompense to no man evil for evil … Be not
overcome of evil, but overcome evil with
good” (Rom 12:17, 21). Mercy does to others all things we would want done unto
us without any thought of what they might do in return.
Charity
suffereth long, and is kind; charity
envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave
itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh [logizomai 3049] no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but
rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things,
endureth all things. (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)
Finally,
brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are
just, whatsoever things are pure,
whatsoever things are lovely,
whatsoever things are of good report;
if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think [logizomai
3049] on these things. (Philippians 4:8)
The Greek logizomai
means to “impute,” “reckon,” or “to take into account.” It’s the same word used
for God counting or imputing righteousness to us, “For what saith the
scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted [logizomai 3049] unto
him for righteousness.” (Rom 4:3). As God’s children, we’re to be following
the Father by counting and imputing righteousness to others as He is to us.
Therefore, to “think [logizomai 3049]
on these things” is to count to others what we know to be true, honest, just,
pure, lovely, of good report, virtue, and praise. We’re to “thinketh [logizomai 3049] no evil” or to not
impute anything to anyone that we don’t know to be true, but always assume the
best.
God gives us right standing with Him through the precious
shed blood of His Son Jesus Christ then has confidence in us to walk worthy and
live up to that righteousness before Him. He puts the burden on us to prove Him
right or wrong, and this is how we are to be in our relationships with others.
We’re to count others as righteous before us, sincerely assuming the best about
them unless they prove us wrong.
Of course God knows our hearts and minds. He knows how we’re
thinking about people when we’re around them and when we’re not around them.
Therefore, Christ’s commandment of love is not just how we treat people with
our words and actions but with our every thought and intention about them all
the time. This is God’s standard of righteousness in which we must live or we
will not make it in according to the gospel Jesus Christ preached, “For I say
unto you, That except your righteousness
shall exceed the righteousness of
the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in
no case enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Mat 5:20).
Conclusion and Summary
Christ
preached His gospel message in the beginning when He said “Let there be light:
and there was light” (Gen 1:3). But this was prophetic of Him coming into this
dark world to say “Let there be light” again when He preached the saving gospel
message. The message from the beginning is NOT Sola Fide. It’s not a belief
that some facts about Jesus Christ are true but faithfulness to Jesus Christ as
Lord and Ruler. This was seen in the creation of the sun and moon, “the greater
light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night” (Gen 1:16). None
of us lives to ourselves but we are all ruled by either the Greater Light or
the lesser light. Salvation, therefore, is by keeping our commitment to
faithfully serve the Greater Light in obedience to His commandments.
We’re not servants of whom we confess as Lord but of whom we
actually obey as Lord, “his servants ye are to whom ye obey” (Rom 6:16). This
is the gospel Christ preached, “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the
things which I say?” (Luk 6:46). Discipleship is teaching new converts by word
and example to obey the commandments of Jesus Christ, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in
the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things
whatsoever I have commanded you” (Mat 28:19-20). Getting wet in baptism
doesn’t save us but it’s living with a good conscience toward God after getting
dried off, “The like figure whereunto even
baptism doth also now save us (not
the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the
resurrection of Jesus Christ” (1Pe 3:21).
Jesus Christ’s gospel is that we must live to the standard
of righteousness He taught and commanded or we will not be entering His
Kingdom, “For I say unto you, That
except your righteousness shall exceed the
righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven” (Mat 5:20). If
all we must do is believe some facts are true then why teach righteous living
in this sermon?
Paul’s statement, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth
the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from
the dead, thou shalt be saved” (Rom 10:9), is not a formula for salvation
because within the context of what Moses said it’s about hearing and doing what
our Lord Jesus Christ commanded, “that we may hear it, and do it? … that we may
hear it, and do it? … that thou mayest do it” (Deu 30:11-14). Confessing Him as
Lord means that we’re making a public commitment to hear and do everything He
commands.
Paul taught that with the Spirit of Christ in our hearts we
not only can but must live according to God’s standard of righteousness to be
justified and saved. We can do this by “the work of the law written in their
hearts.” Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be
also” (Mat 6:21). People’s hearts are not right because their treasure is not
right. For people to do the right things with the right motives in their
hearts, they must first treasure pleasing God above all else. A treasure is
anything valuable or important to us. Pearls are not valuable to pigs, “neither
cast ye your pearls before swine” (Mat 7:6). The problem, therefore, is not the
pearls but the pigs. People’s hearts need to be changed by the Spirit of God so
that they’ll no longer be a “dog” or a “pig” but one of God’s people,
treasuring a right relationship with Him and pleasing Him above all else.
Jesus said, “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true
worshippers shall worship the Father in
spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him” (Jhn 4:23).
The Father is seeking those who truly worship Him for who He is, not for what
He can do for them. Nobody, including God, wants to be used. Genuine
relationships involve sacrifice. Therefore, God is constantly testing our love
for Him with difficulties and hardships that compel us to make sacrifices and
prove our love for Him. After all, it’s easy to love someone and stay faithful
when everything is going well. He is seeking those whose hearts sincerely want
whatever He wants—to genuinely submit to His will and be content in any
circumstance. He proved His love for us by His sacrifice. When we prove our
love for Him by our sacrifices, He will move heaven and earth for us so to
speak.
God gave His Son Jesus Christ who paid-in-full our sin debt
on the cross. When we make Jesus our Lord and Master, He purchases us as His
slaves along with all of our debt and frees us from it. Although we’re no
longer indebted to the Father, we’re now completely indebted to His Son! Jesus
Christ purchased us as His slaves and it’s now our duty and obligation to obey
whatever He commands. We owed a debt we couldn’t pay but now owe a debt we must
pay, “Owe no man any thing, but to love one another” (Rom 13:8). We don’t owe
anything to anyone except one thing—to love them. As servants indebted to our
Lord, He made us indebted to love each other. Therefore, we must pay this debt
of love or we’re not serving the Lord Jesus Christ and we won’t be saved.
The Pharisees taught a lower standard of righteousness than
what God requires as illustrated by the parable of the unjust servant who
gained favor with people by writing-off his master’s debts for pennies on the
dollar, “Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty … Take thy bill,
and write fourscore” (Luk 16:6-7). They were making people their friends rather
than being faithful to their master. The doctrines of Sola Fide and OSAS are
similar in this regard.
Paul said, “Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the
lust of the flesh” (Gal 5:16). The key to overcoming the works of the flesh is
not by trying to overcome these works in our strength but by walking in the
Spirit. When we walk in the Spirit we’ll not have problems with our flesh. When
we focus on doing “all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them” (Mat 7:12), we won’t have
problems with our flesh because when our hearts and actions please God then He
cuts away the works of the flesh from our lives. This is called the
circumcision of Christ, the circumcision made without hands. “In whom also ye
are circumcised with the circumcision
made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the
circumcision of Christ” (Col 2:11). Circumcision in the flesh is a literal
cutting off or putting off of the flesh but the circumcision of Christ is a figurative
cutting off or putting off the works of the flesh.
God imputes righteousness to us by forgiving our sin debt
and no longer counts it to us. However, this forgiveness is conditional. The
gospel Jesus preached was about a king that had compassion on one of his
servants and forgave him all of his debt. But his compassion toward him was
contingent upon his servant’s own compassion toward his fellow servants. This servant
was forgiven and right with his master initially but his master put all of his
debt right back on his account. He was forgiven but then no longer forgiven.
James taught that the gospel message was preached from the
beginning, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom
is no variableness, neither shadow of
turning” (Jas 1:17). These “lights” are the “two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the
lesser light to rule the night” (Gen 1:16). The Greater Light came down
from above and taught us, “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that
hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father
which is in heaven: for he maketh his
sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and
on the unjust” (Mat 5:44-45). The Father shines the sun equally upon all with
no variation or shadow of turning away. Christ’s commandment of love is not the
family and friends plan! As God’s children, our love is to shine upon all
whether they’re our friends or our enemies.
Paul quoted from Psalm 19 concerning the gospel, “And how
shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the
feet of them that preach the gospel of
peace, and bring glad tidings of good things! ... But I say, Have they not
heard? Yes verily, their sound went into
all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.” (Rom 10:15,
18). This Psalm is about the Greater Light ruling over the day and the lesser
light over the night, “Day unto day
uttereth speech, and night unto night
sheweth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. Their line is gone out through all the
earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a
tabernacle for the sun” (Psa 19:2-4).
Every day and night for 6,000 years—that’s almost 2.2 million times—the gospel
has been preached to all people of all languages. Everyone is serving one of
two masters but not both, “No man can serve two masters” (Mat 6:24). Salvation
is a change of master, from serving the lesser light to serving the Greater
Light.
Many Christians think they’re secure in their salvation
because they believe some facts about Jesus are true yet they’re not striving
to keep Christ’s commandment of love—they’re hearers but not doers. I consider
this the greatest problem in churches today. The gospel is obeying Christ as
Lord yet Sola Fide has convinced many Christians that obedience isn’t that
important and even that it’s unnecessary.