The Seven Steps of the Christian Walk (1)
What is it that we must do as Christians after we have been called by God, believed the Gospel, been baptized, given the Holy Spirit and have the promise of eternal life?
Paul gives us direction in the book of Romans about the relationship between belief and righteousness: “If you confess the Lord Jesus, and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved.” Once we believe what do we do? “For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth one confesses unto salvation.” (Rom 10:9-10). The believer “believes unto righteousness”, but what is righteousness? It is different to confession of what God has done to us.
James is not as difficult to understand as Paul and he tells us very bluntly what the impact that belief should have on our actions. He tells us that righteousness is not automatically achieved nor is it imputed to us just because we confess a belief in Christ. “My brothers, what profit is it if a man says he has faith and does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and if one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled’, but you do not give them those things which are needful to the body, what good is it? Even so, if it does not have works, faith is dead, being by itself.” (Jam 2:14-17).
The rest of the second chapter of James confirms that if you have faith without works it is useless faith because it is void of the righteous actions which are necessary to demonstrate and complete your original faith. For if “You believe that there is one God, you do well; even the demons believe and tremble. But will you know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?” (James 2:19-20). So while belief in God is fundamental it is also essential that we do good works in order to be saved.
Working For Our Salvation?
Do we indeed need to do good works in order demonstrate to God that we are worthy of the gift of eternal life? Surely isn’t this just doing works in order to obtain the gift of life? Not at all. The reason we do good works is our love for our fellow man, and we have developed this love as a result of being saved. The good works are an expression of the Holy Spirit which was given so as to enable us to love our fellow man.
Paul had to prompt Timothy about not forgetting his responsibility to do good works: “For this reason, I am reminding you to fan into flames the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of timidity but one of power, love, and self-discipline.” (2 Tim 1:6-7 ISV). Gods Spirit needs to be worked with in the same way we work with a fire to make it roar into flames. Similarly Paul alerted the Thessalonians that it is possible to quench the Spirit of God (1 Thes 5:19) just like it is possible to put out a fire through neglect. What these, and many other scriptures, are telling us is that while it is not possible for our works to force God to initially grant us salvation, we can through neglect undermine the salvation we have been given and thereby loose it.
Paul again encouraged Timothy to work very hard in order to achieve the end of his salvation: “Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you through prophecy, accompanied by the laying on of the elders' hands. Think on these things. Devote your life to them so that everyone can see your progress. Pay close attention to your life and your teaching. Persevere in these things, for if you do this, you will save both yourself and those who listen to you. (1 Tim 4:14-16). By thinking, devoting, paying attention and persevering do you think he was expending a significant amount of energy? Would you therefore call that ‘working’? And all this work he was expected to do was in order to ‘save both yourself and those who listen to you’. But were they and he not already saved? Yes indeed, but they could also lose their salvation if they neglected the gift that was in them and did not continue to work at growing and changing and developing the mind of God in them.
Paul was similarly at pains to spell-out to the Philippians to hold on to their salvation: “Therefore, my dearly-loved friends, as I have always found you obedient, labour earnestly with fear and trembling--not merely as though I were present with you, but much more now since I am absent from you--labour earnestly, I say, to make sure of your own salvation. For it is God Himself whose power creates within you the desire to do His gracious will and also brings about the accomplishment of the desire. Be ever on your guard against a grudging and contentious spirit, so that you may always prove yourselves to be blameless and spotless--irreproachable children of God in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you are seen as heavenly lights in the world,” (Phil 2:12-15 WNT).
We need to beware that if we don’t use the Spirit of God it will be taken away from us, along with the salvation that it brings. We must continue to work with the Holy Spirit to enable it develop in us the very mind of Christ.
Paul is encouraging the Philippians to make sure of their salvation, which, if his admonitions are to be believed, is obviously not something particularly easy to achieve. While it is Gods power that creates in you the desire and brings about the accomplishment, from these scriptures it is clear that we also must expend a considerable amount of our energy. He tells them that we must use self control to labour earnestly and be on guard in order to prove to God that we are blameless and spotless.
We need to beware lest we don’t fool ourselves and think we are pure when we are not. It is our works that will help us to be aware of how we are going as our works reflect the depth of our minds desires: “Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled. They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.” (Titus 1:15-16) Do your works deny God or are they a light for others to see unto God by reflecting His way of life in your life?
Paul tells us plainly enough in Titus chapter 2 that it is essential to both be righteous and do good works in order to make certain about our salvation: “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that having denied ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live discreetly, righteously and godly, in this present world,” How do we “live discreetly, righteously and godly, in this present world”? … “looking for the blessed hope, and the appearance of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us that He might redeem us from all iniquity and purify to Himself a special people, zealous of good works. (Titus 2:11-14).
What therefore are these good works that we must do? The book of James is again the most clear and blunt on this issue. “You must make it your habit to speak and act like people who are going to be judged by the law of liberty. For merciless judgment will come to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment. What good does it do, my brothers, if someone claims to have faith but does not have any works? This kind of faith cannot save him, can it? (James 2:12-14). He then continues to show that mercy is essential in our relations with others in order for us to gain mercy from God, and good works are an essential part of showing mercy.
Despite James’ bluntness the words of Christ’s are even more succinct, and are able to summarize in one sentence the above discussion: “let your light shine before people in such a way that they will see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." (Mat 5:14-16). Christ tells us very simply that we need to appreciate that it is not miracles, or doctrine, or understanding of prophecy, or anything else that is to be the sign to others: it is our works that demonstrate our love. “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. As I have loved you, you should also love one another. By this shall all men know that you are My disciples, if you have love one to another.” (John 13:34-35)
This is the process: A) Your love shown by your good works will shine out of you B) people will see it and C) will be drawn toward you as a light in the world D) they will then thank God for what you have done and E) in the process they will want to know God F) and if God determines to call them G) and if they accept the calling they will be converted and A) they will also demonstrate their love by doing good works and B) people will see it etc.. This cycle fulfills the Christian process of growth for both the individual and the church, for as the individual grows in righteousness, as demonstrated by their good works, the church grows in new people who are attracted by the examples of good works.
The next blog in this series will look at the process and how it works.
