Faithful Works

What about lukewarm and dead faith? Going through the motions out of requirement thinking that God will bless you because you show up at church on Sunday and then act like a lap dog of the devil the rest of the week? That you try to force God’s hand for what you think His will should be in your life? How prideful is that? Do you reward your own children if they are disobedient? Why should God? The lack of love, lack of forgiveness, lack of putting God's Word first that shames the unity of Christ’s body of believers as a whole.

Or those like Diotrephes in 3 John who is on a power trip and tries to bend everyone to their wishes because they want to be supreme dictator and ruler of their church? How are you treating your brothers and sisters in Christ? What good works can come from Christians tearing down other Christians? Nothing, because Christ told us that a house divided will not stand. We are Christians saved by mercy and we are to tell others about God’s mercy, about His grace and about His love towards them through the work of His Son Jesus Christ on the cross at Calvary. This is not rocket science. Preaching the Gospel, telling people what Jesus has done for us and then showing them by our works; our faith in action for Jesus Christ our Lord. We give and live and love, preaching and reaching for Christ! But without being submissive, being trusting and being in fellowship with God it will lead us to failure.

Matthew 5:13-16: “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. 14 “You are the light of the world.” A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; 15 nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” Well, what about works based religions? Every other religion is based upon what the person has to do to gain heaven or enlightenment, nirvana, etc...Christianity is the only relationship built on faith without works. The works that Christians put forth come after the indwelling and motivating of the Holy Spirit. Those are Godly works; Ephesians 2:10: “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” Remember church, we are to work out what God works into us.

I saw Ray Comfort interviewing a Mormon and he went straight to the heart of the matter about salvation being a gift from God. There was nothing that we could do to earn it. After everything was explained to this young man he still felt he had to “do” to be deserving. His unfinished works were yet to be fulfilled. He does not understand that it is already finished. Christ finalized it when He was crucified on the cross and rose from the tomb on the third day. To this young man and others who follow other religions, Jesus is not enough. Ephesians 2:8-9: “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Truly and total faith in the Person and Work of Our Lord Jesus Christ saves us and nothing else.