CAN FAITH WITHOUT WORKS SAVE?

CAN FAITH WITHOUT WORKS SAVE?

By:  LEVI M. CASTRO

“HE WHO BELIEVES and is baptized,” the Lord Jesus Christ Himself attests, “will be saved” (Mark 16:16, New King James Version).  “… Without faith,” Apostle Paul teaches, “it is impossible to please God” (Heb. 11:6, New International Version).  Faith, indeed, is of utmost importance.  Without it, one cannot properly serve God and be saved.

    But is it right to reduce faith to mere profession of belief in the Lord Jesus Christ? Marvin Galbreath, a Protestant pastor answers:  “Man can be saved only by faith in Christ, not by good works” (20 Centuries of Christianity, p. 32).  Salvation is gained “by faith alone,” echoes J. Leslie Dunstan (Protestantism, p. ix).  But are they correct?  Let’s find out.

FAITH THAT SAVES

According to the Bible, what kind of faith must we possess?  Apostle James teaches that faith must be coupled with works:

     “Do you see that faith was WORKING TOGETHER WITH HIS WORKS, and BY WORKS FAITH WAS MADE PERFECT?

     “What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works?  CAN FAITH SAVE HIM?  (James 2:22, 14, NKJV)

     Faith is “made perfect,” hence, beneficial, only when it is coupled with works.  And by works that go with faith, man is justified or put right with God:

     “MAN IS JUSTIFIED BY WORKS, AND NOT BY FAITH ONLY.”  (James 2:24, Ibid.)

     In contrast, one cannot benefit—hence, will not be saved—if his faith is without works.  Such faith is “DEAD” (James 2:17, Ibid.) or “BARREN” (James 2:20, Revised Standard Version).

     In spite of this biblical truth, proponents of the “faith-alone” doctrine insist that they can prove by means of biblical verses that faith alone is enough for one to be saved.  They point out the following:

     “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,  not of works, lest anyone should boast.” (Eph. 2:8-9, NKJV)

     After quoting Apostle Paul, they conclude that inasmuch as salvation is a grace from God, therefore, it is not attained through works, failing to see the next verse—Ephesians 2:10—which states that Christians ought to “walk in” or follow good works thus:

     “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for GOOD WORKS, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”  (NKJV)

     They also point out Apostle Paul’s assertion, thus:

     “Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith APART FROM THE DEEDS OF THE LAW. ” (Rom. 3:28, Ibid.)

     Again, they FAILED TO SEE that “THE DEEDS OF THE LAW” through which man CANNOT BE  JUSTIFIED in the Christian Era is “THE LAW OF MOSES” which “IS ONLY A SHADOW OF THE GOOD THINGS THAT ARE COMING—not the realities themselves.  For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship” (Heb. 10:1, NIV).

     “So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths,  which are  A SHADOW OF THINGS TO COME, but the substance is of Christ.” (Col. 2:16-17, NKJV)

     In the Christian Era, it is no longer through the observance of the law of Moses—like the religious regulations regarding food, drink, Jewish festivals, Sabbaths, or circumcision—that man could be justified (Gal. 4:9-10; Acts 15:1-2).  In fact, the law of Moses was effective only “UNTIL JOHN [THE BAPTIST]” (Luke 16:16), which is why Romans 3:28 states that “A MAN IS JUSTIFIED BY FAITH APART FROM THE DEEDS OF THE LAW” (NKJV).

OTHER WORKS THROUGH

WHICH MAN CANNOT

BE SAVED

What else are the works through which man cannot be saved?  The works of righteousness that he has done on his own.  Apostle Paul says:

“NOT BY WORKS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS WHICH WE HAVE DONE, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, ...For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another.” (Titus 3:5, 3), Ibid.)

     A person cannot be justified through works that he believes are righteous BASED ON HIS OWN STANDARDS.  Man, indeed, cannot be justified nor saved on merits of his own works, no matter how good they may appear to be.  This is the reason Apostle Paul asserted that “… those who have believed in God SHOULD BE CAREFUL TO MAINTAIN GOOD WORKS” (Titus 3:8, Ibid).

     They have a SPECIFIC LAW TO FULFILL—“THE LAW OF FAITH” or “THE LAW OF CHRIST”:

     “Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law.  Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by LAW OF FAITH.” (Rom. 3:31, 27, Ibid.)

     “BEAR ONE ONOTHER’S BURDENS, AND SO FULFILL THE LAW OF CHRIST.” (Gal. 6:2, Ibid.)

JOINING CHRIST’S FOLD OR FLOCK

One of Christ’s commands that anyone who truly wants to be saved should fulfill is to enter the fold or flock through Him:

     “I AM THE DOOR; ANYONE WHO COMES INTO THE FOLD THROUGH ME WILL BE SAFE. …” (John 10:9, Revised English Bible)

     The FOLD or FLOCK in which those who have entered through Christ are gathered is the CHURCH OF CHRIST which He has purchased with His blood (Acts 20:28, Lamsa Translation).  One should be purchased or redeemed by the blood of the Lord to be justified or forgiven of sin and be save (Heb. 9:14, 22; Rom. 5:8-9).  And one can join the true Church by LISTENING TO THE PREACHING OF THE GOSPEL BY THE MESSENGER, BY BELIEVING IN IT, AND BY BEING BAPTIZED (Mark 16:15-16) “INTO ONE BODY” (I Cor.12:13, NKJV; Col. 1:18) or into the CHURCH OF CHRIST (Acts 20:28, Lamsa Translation.)

    Therefore, in order for one to fulfill the law of Christ and to benefit from His redemption, HE MUST JOIN OR BECOME A MEMBER OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST.  Hence, membership in the true Church Of Christ is EXTREMELY NECESSARY for the attainment of salvation NOT BECAUSE THE CHURCH IS THE SAVIOR BUT BECAUSE IT IS THE ONE THAT CHRIST WILL SAVE (Eph. 5:23, Today’s English Version).

     In order to truly value Christ and possess true faith in Him, one should also understand and believe in the INDISPENSABILITY of His Church to man’s salvation through Him.  Man should respond accordingly by becoming a part of Christ’s body or member of the Church Of Christ.  He should acknowledge the truth that the Savior would not have built His Church (Matt. 16:18),  and would not have given his life for it (Eph. 5:25) were it not important.  Hence, FAITH in the Lord Jesus Christ is ALL-IMPORTANT and NECESSARY but that alone is NOT SUFFICIENT for man to attain salvation.  *

Copied from:  PASUGO GOD’S MESSAGE | JULY 2015 | VOLUME 67 | NUMBER 7 | PAGES  40-41

Emphasis:  Admin.

E-mail:  pasugo@iglesianicristo.org.ph or

pasugo@inc.org.ph