Thursday, December 15, 2011

Justified by Faith?

It's been a while and if you got here through our Facebook page, you've already read our apology. Now, this topic is one that needs to be covered and is of high importance.

Throughout scripture there seems to be several verses that imply the fact that we can receive salvation by merely believing, or having faith in God. This ideology has brought forth newly popularized claims about heaven, hell, and even life on earth. The claim gaining the most popularity amongst my generation is the claim of Universal Reconciliation, or in simpler terms, the theory that EVERYONE will get into heaven.

Is this true?

Universalists claim that in scripture there are over six-hundred verses that support their claim. Let's take a look at a few, starting with justification by faith.

First, what is justification by faith? To be justified with something or someone means to be made right with said object. So if you kill someone out of self defense you are legally justified by the fact that they were trying to harm you. Justification by faith simply means we are made right with God by believing in Jesus' death and resurrection being the only means of our salvation. The Apostle Paul speaks of this justification in many of his writings, but especially in Romans.

If his good deeds had made him acceptable to God, he would have had something to boast about. But that was not God's way. For the Scriptures tell us, "Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith."
When people work, their wages are not a gift, but something they have earned. But people are counted as righteous, not because of their work, but because of their faith in God who forgives sinners. (Romans 4:2-5 NLT)

So we shouldn't work for, toward, or on our salvation? We just have to believe? Hmmm...

Now, notice how James speaks of the same man that the Apostle Paul spoke of in the above verses and even quotes the same ancient scriptures.

You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. How foolish! Can't you see that faith without good deeds is useless?
Don't you remember that our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: "Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith." He was even called the friend of God. So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone. (James 2:19-24 NLT)

I do believe that we are justified by our faith and doing good works can't earn us grace, but I also believe that we cannot be justified by something that is dead.

Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works. (James 2:26 NLT)

Now these verses may seem like a contradiction upon a quick read until we see that the Apostle Paul wrote several verses that also state we need to live out what we profess. Remember.. Context.

Well then, if we emphasize faith, does this mean that we can forget about the law (ten commandments, laws of Moses, God's rules)? Of course not! In fact, only when we have faith do we truly fulfill the law. (Romans 3:31 NLT with my notations added)

Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? (Romans 6:1, 2 NLT)

I think the easiest way to sum this up is to say that we cannot earn grace, but we can choose to deny it.

Always remember to look at the context of a quoted scripture before believing the theory it is tied to. We'll take a further look into universalism in later posts.

For now I'll leave you with a quote from a good friend and of mine and a fellow GoFM leader...

"He said your faith has made you well, go and sin no more. How much more clear could He have been? First your faith (in Christ) will make you well. Repentance is a part of that, we can't 'just believe' and think everything is ok. Because, then He said go and sin no more. That is were we need to continue to try and live right and repent. If I get saved and right away go back to my own ways I have not done what He asked." -Joe Lanza

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