GIG 213 - Faith, Works and Dead Works

"Faith without works is dead," says James. We talked about that a little bit last week, and we'll talk about it a little more this week. We'll dig into the idea of how faith and works work together, so to speak, and we'll show how we believe this phrase from James does not mean that we do works in order to "prove" our faith or in order to make our faith genuine. We'll also talk a bit about how "works without faith are dead works!" (See how we cleverly moved the words around a bit). ;)  Anyone, even people without faith, can do good works.  People can be good imitators, and their imitations can appear very close to the real thing, and yet just as an imitation is not the real thing, in the same way people can do works that appear really, really good, but are nevertheless dead works.

gigcast.graceroots.org

GIG 202 - Identity - How Did I Become Who I Am?

The Bible has a lot to say about the new life that Christians have. Various passages talk about our new identity in Christ. How did we gain this new identity? How did we become who we are? Was it by works? Or was it simply by birth? Are we trying to become something through our behavior, or are we already who we are on the basis of having inherited a new nature and identity, apart from anything we've ever done or will ever do? We'll discuss these questions and more this week on Growing in Grace.

gigcast.graceroots.org

Fallen From Grace

Would I be wrong in saying that in most of the world, including the church world, the phrase "fallen from grace" usually means that a person has been in some sort of "respectable" position, but then has done some bad deed or deeds? As long as I've heard people using that phrase, that's generally what they've meant by it. And I do understand it... because the word "grace" does have several meanings. It can mean "a pleasing or attractive quality or endowment." So in a worldly (and religious, legalistic) sense, to "fall from grace" can mean to fall from such a respectable position.

But thank God that that's not what it means to Him! To be walking "in grace" has absolutely nothing to do with any "respectable position" that we hold among our peers, or even before God, through our own deeds or performance. Walking in grace means to be trusting solely in the finished work of Christ, and in the life of Christ that indwells us. It means that we have trusted in God's grace, not only for justification, but also for the living of our daily lives in Him.

You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace. (Gal 5:4)

It's not those who have "performed well" and then have turned to "performing poorly" who have fallen from grace. It's those who have once trusted solely in grace but have turned to trusting in their own deeds for justification and daily living.

Some would argue that Paul's words to the Galatians (not only the verse above, but the entire passage surrounding it) are only in regards to "getting saved." But Paul is not talking about getting saved here! His whole epistle is written to those who are saved by grace through faith but are trying to maintain their salvation by their works!

Paul goes on to say:

You ran well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? This persuasion does not come from Him who calls you. A little leaven leavens the whole lump. (Gal 5:7-9)

They had been "running well." What, on the basis of their performance? No! Performance set aside, Paul was talking about their living by grace, not by their works or performance. They were now hindered from "obeying the truth." What, on the basis of obeying laws and commands? No! Obeying the truth of lives that are lived solely by grace!

O foolish Galatians! O foolish church! Come back to grace!

Doubt without works is dead

We've all heard it said at one point or another (and probably more often) that James' words "faith without works is dead" (James 2:20) means that faith is a work, or at least that in order for our faith to be legitimate we have to add works to it.

But James doesn't say, "if you say you have faith, then do something to prove it." Rather I believe his sentiment in his words, "Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works" (James 2:18) is simply this: Your actions simply show what is already true and alive in you. If you try to "add" works to faith, then it's not really faith through which the works are produced! It's dead works!

If you truly believe something, your actions will naturally reflect your belief. This applies to all people, regardless of any relationship with the Lord. If a burglar believes (has faith) that he can get away with burglarizing a house, his actions will justify his faith. If a man believes he can get a better job or career by going to college for four years, his actions will show his faith to be genuine. If you believe the bogeyman is under your bed, your feet won't get anywhere near the floor until the light of morning!

On the same token, doubt without works is dead as well! If a person doubts that he is worth anything to God or to other people, his actions will go right along with the doubt. If he doubts that his gas tank has enough gas to get him to the next town, he will put gas in it before driving that far. But it's not as if a person says, "I have doubt," and then he goes about trying to add doubtful actions to try to prove his doubt to be true! You don't add works to doubt in order to prove it. Again, the works (actions) simply go along naturally with what is already true. If you try to "add" works to doubt, then it's not really doubt through which the works are produced! It's dead works!

Do we really understand this?

We don't add works to faith to try to prove it. Our lives in Christ are not a matter of going about trying to prove our faith by doing good works. Our lives in Christ are based upon taking God at His word... believing Him... having faith in Him... and allowing the "works" (accompanying actions) to be worked out naturally as we rest and trust in Him.

Objections to the gospel of grace

I've been discussing the gospel of grace with people for several years, both in person and online, sharing with others my belief and understanding that not only are we saved by grace, but that God's love and grace is the essence of the Christian life. I've consistently shared that our "work" is to rest and believe, and that that's how God works in and through us. Restful trust. Trustful rest. Waiting, abiding, believing. It's not our job to produce fruit, but as we abide in the Vine, the life of the Vine flows through us naturally and produces God's own fruit. We are invited by God Himself to participate in His divine nature, but the work is His, not ours.

Objections arise, of course. I can't tell you the number of times over the years that I've been accused of and/or warned about preaching licentiousness, lawlessness, "cheap grace," "greasy grace," "sloppy agape," and other such idiotic things. People have told me in various sorts of ways that I'm teaching others to sin and to not be true followers/disciples of Jesus. They've told me that demons can "rest" and "believe," and that I shouldn't use those words without adding something about "responsibility" and "effort" on our part to work the works of God. They've told me I need to "balance" grace with rules, works and principles for Christian living. They've said I'm causing harm to the body of Christ.

In my hundreds of conversations (probably even a thousand or more) with people since the mid to late 90's when I began learning and sharing the gospel of peace, I've heard every objection you can think of. Many times I've faced those objections head on and have spent a great deal of time going into deeper conversations to talk out those issues. I've enjoyed that. I've found discussions with others to be a huge part of my own learning and growing process. Many times I feel I've effectively fought off various objections and have helped to change the thinking of some with a more legalistic bent. Other times it's been a fruitless exchange of multiple Bible verses, along with interpretations and opinions, and so I've also learned to pick my battles. :)

And in the midst of all this, I've learned something even greater. Words, discussions, opinions, etc, while often having a great deal of value, never match up to the actual testimonies of lives transformed by God's love and grace (such as mine and so many other people I know).

Let me tell you something about those who have been gripped by God's love and grace, and who don't have a focus on performance, but on a loving relationship with Father, Son and Holy Spirit. All the objections listed above (and more) are not true of them! Nowhere close. Grace, to them, is not cheap. It's Power. It's Life. It's God's strength in their weakness. If God's Agape is sloppy, it's only because He lavishes it around so wastefully! God's love and grace, to them, is not a license to sin. That's not even what crosses their minds! Yes, everyone still falls short in their actions, but it's not because they think, "Hmmm, God's grace is what is calling me to live like this!" Like I said above, that's just idiotic.

In ALL my connections over the years, I've run into only ONE such "idiot." :) About 6 or 7 years ago, someone had been reading various things that I had written in an online forum and he emailed me to say, "Congratulations on your decision to 'do nothing for Jesus!'" At first I thought he was simply agreeing with my overall understanding that it's not up to us to do things for God, but rather that it's God who is at work in us. But further into his email, he (almost gleefully) used multiple swear words and talked as if we might as well do whatever the flesh desires because we're saved by grace. To me, he didn't 'get' it!

But by far, he is the exception, not the rule, in regards to how people respond to the pure gospel of grace. No, he's not even the exception. He's got an entirely different "gospel" going on! Since this is getting long, I'll talk about those who do 'get' it, and how they've responded to God's love and grace, in the next post.

Missing the Point of the Scriptures (video blog)

Exploring the idea of my last video a little further. I take a look at how the wrong premise about what the Christian life is all about leads to skewed views of various scriptures. When the premise is that we're supposed to always be teaching each other "what to do," then we often miss the point entirely. I look at one passage in particular, Hebrews 7, to show how the church has honed in on a certain aspect of "doing" and has missed the point of the passage entirely! My hope in all this is to highlight the love, grace and goodness of God!

"Legacy" - Christ in me

For some reason I've been thinking about the Apostle Paul, and what he said he hoped people saw in him. You know how people talk about leaving a "legacy" - how they want to be remembered, or what they want to be remembered for? Paul, in his writings, did mention various places he had gone and specific deeds he had accomplished --- but I don't think it was so much those specific things that he wanted people to remember. Rather, what he boasted about - and what he hoped people had seen in him - was Christ, the Person, and the power of God that was at work in him.

In essence, I see Paul as saying, "Indeed I've worked hard! But take your eyes off of me and please see that anything and everything worthwhile that I've accomplished hasn't been me and isn't about me but is the result of God's grace and power, and the very life of Christ in me. Don't congratulate me or pat me on the back. Give praise to God!

Same here. No matter what I do in this life here on earth in this body, that's what I hope people see in me as well. The life of Christ. My works are going to be different than somebody else's works. I don't want people comparing my works with other people's works, nor comparing their works with my works. I think it's great for us to share the specific things that Christ's life is doing in and through us, but again, the specific things I do may look totally different than the specific things someone else does. If my works happen to have attention drawn to them, let it be so that it can be said, "Christ is living in and through Joel."

GIG 187 - God's Work In Us

Most would agree that the Christian life is not a passive lifestyle. But just how is the life of the Christian animated? Where does the "action" come from? We know we're saved by the grace of God, but then is it up to us - and our own striving - to hop into action for God and His kingdom?

The Apostle Paul said he "labored abundantly." What was it that was working so mightily in him that caused him to spring into action? Was it a sense of duty to "work for God?" Was he compelled by a sense of obligation to serve God and to labor and strive for the kingdom? Or did he simply yield to God and trust His work to work mightily in Him?

The religious system is good at burdening people with heavy labor and wearing people out! Jesus told those who labored and were weary to come to Him for rest! And He said the work of God is to believe. Since we do trust God's grace to save us, can't we also trust His grace to animate us and to accomplish all that He wants to accomplish in and through us - as we simply believe, and rest in Him and trust Him!

gigcast.graceroots.org

Gotta get busy!

Hey all... I've been seeing some things lately about grace that I've been keeping inside me, but I just need to share. Grace is a wonderful thing, but there just has to be more to it, and here's what I've been thinking. If we can just look at Hebrews 7 and see that Abraham tithed to Melchizedek, and Melchizedek is a type of Christ, and grace is so much better than Melchizedek, then shouldn't we give our ALL to Jesus?

We have grace, but don't we need to put forth our efforts to make this grace thing actually work? It's nice to talk about grace, but the kingdom needs its worker bees to take care of producing the honey! I mean, if we don't follow the rules set forth in the Bible how are we ever going to be blessed and grow into the people who God will one day finally be satisfied with, and will be able to look upon with happy eyes and not stern or angry eyes.

We must put on that heavy yoke every day, bearing the weight and becoming stronger and stronger in the process, and then we'll finally be able to start doing great things for the Lord. But if we relax for just a minute our spiritual muscles will begin to shrivel up and dry out, and grace will be ineffective. I hope you'll join me in this radical way of thinking and living. We'll start something new in the grace community! We'll be bigger and better than all the rest! I'm excited. I'm pumped! But I have to get going now. Not much time for talk. Gotta get busy!!!

Oh, and I have a very special impartation for all who will receive it. A very special word for you. It's for you only if you feel you've been putting forth enough effort in this walk. To see it, scroll down.

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April Fools!!!!!

Faith Itself - Not Works - Is What Pleases God

The Old Testament Bible characters listed in Hebrews 11 did some very wonderful things. But what was the root of all that they did? Were they credited for doing great things because they were such great, godly people? Or is there something deeper that is the root of what they did? Join us this week as we take a look at the foundational truth in their lives that caused them to do the things they did - the foundation of simple faith and trust in God. We look at how Abraham had been credited with faith, and how God had justified him by faith, before he had ever done a thing, and we look at a few more of the men and women mentioned in Hebrews 11, showing how it was faith itself that pleased God - not what they did. The things they did were simply the outflow or result of their foundational belief in God.

gigcast.graceroots.org

Faith - What You Trust, Not What You Do

Latest GIGCast is up! Looking into Hebrews 11, often called the "Hall of Faith," we look at what the "faith" means. It was "by faith" that the people listed in this chapter did the things they did, but it wasn't "what they did" that gave them their testimony of righteousness. Rather, it was their Trust in God - their faith. We've got to keep in mind that faith shows itself by what we do, but what we do is not what makes us righteous! If what we do is what makes us righteous, and we call that "faith," then faith is nothing more than self-righteousness! Faith is trusting in God, not in ourselves or our works.

gigcast.graceroots.org

Doing Doesn't Make Us Who We Are - It Flows From Who We Are

Latest Growing in Grace program is ready for downloading/listening. The good works we do - the "doing" of the Christian life - are not done to score points with God or to maintain our good standing with God. Our good works don't make us who we are (and they don't disqualify us from who we are). Rather, in Christ we are a new creation - righteous and holy - and as we become more and more established in this truth, our "doing" becomes the natural outflow of who we are.

gigcast.graceroots.org

Works - Part 4 of 4

I really think that our life in Christ is a life that doesn't look like what many Christians today see it as. For many, it's a life that revolves around "church." Many of the works that Christians are exhorted to do seem to be centered around church programs, ministries, outreaches, etc. Not that any of them are necessarily bad in and of themselves, but how often do Christians get wrapped up in those things and don't really live out the life of the person God has truly made them to be.

I personally had the guilt laid on me (perhaps mostly self-inflicted) because I quit working all the works I was expected to work in "the church," including but not limited to joining in on all the church activities and outreaches. None of them seemed to be appealing to my heart, and I felt guilty because I felt as if I was neglecting the "doing" of some very good things, including things that many people felt "needed" to be done. But I had come to the conclusion that all I was really doing was going through the motions with a lot of the stuff. The good news was that, since I'd come to have a strong foundation of who I am in Christ, I had an understanding within myself that I actually was a "doer" in so many other ways that simply didn't have the appearance of "church activity," but were really a result of walking in who I am in Christ. I've all too often found that what I'm called to do isn't what everyone else expects of me! It's been a struggle to truly discover that, but I think I'm finally free in that respect.

The "instructions" I had received implied that the work I needed to be involved in centered around Church Activity A, B and C, and then I was to sacrifice myself some more and also be involved in Activities D, E and F as well! But I discovered that God has many different "members" in Christ's body. We are all unique, and we walk in the works that God created for us to walk in, individually and as a body. Sometimes those works may indeed be "church activities," but so much of life is lived apart from the assembling of the saints - far away from whatever building we may have met in - and we walk as who we are wherever we are!

Look at the good works (the works of faith) that the saints mentioned in Hebrews 11 walked in. How much of it was forced or contrived? How much of it was "church work?" How much of it was based upon biblical instructions??? Heck, look at the work Paul and the apostles did! Look at what the people of the early church did. They didn't have "New Testament instructions" to follow. Wasn't it as simple as walking in the new life they'd been given, and encouraging one another and spurring one another on toward love and good deeds? There's plenty of room for instructing and correcting one another, but is that really the basis of the Christian life?

Works - Part 2 of 4

I don't believe that God created Adam and Eve (the first humans) and the rest of the human race for the purpose of living by instructions. In fact, wasn't it the tree of the knowledge of good and evil that God told Adam not to eat from? We all know what happened (sin entered the world, and death through sin), but as we fast-forward to the Cross, and the Resurrection of Jesus we see that Christ came to take away sin, and through faith in Christ, man can be restored to LIFE. Through faith, man now has righteousness, holiness, completeness, goodness. God has taken away the sinful spirit that we were born with in Adam and has given us a new spirit that is alive together with Christ. By faith, we can walk according to this newness of life.

Rom 6:4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

The "baptism" above isn't water baptism, but it's a death and burial of our old sinful nature - the spiritual person we were in Adam. It's now dead and gone, and we've been raised together with Christ into new life! The natural result of growing and maturing in who we now are in this new life is a life of goodness. And the growing process is lifelong. It's by no means instantaneous.

This new life - which is nothing less (or more) than the very life of Christ in us - is where holiness and goodness and righteousness and good works flow from. This new life - Christ-in-me - is the foundation of the Christian life.

Works - Part 1 of 4

This was drafted as one long post (too long), so I'm simply breaking it up into smaller chunks and scheduling them to post in 12 hour intervals...

I've been growing in grace since sometime in the mid 90's, and from then till now I've been discussing the message of grace with people wherever I go. I've discussed it one-on-one with people. I've discussed it in groups. I've discussed it online in Christian chat rooms, forums, blogs, etc. Over the years I've run into a lot of opposition from people - mainly in the online chat rooms and forums (boy have I been ganged-up upon!). I've been called lots of names and I've been accused of heresy. Some people have been kinder, and have simply expressed "concerns" about what I say. :)

One of the many "concerns" I've heard from people is that I'm teaching people to "do nothing." In other words, that I'm teaching people to abstain from good works. Many, many times I've simply had to tell people, "scroll back up and look at what I actually said!" "Look at where I'm actually coming from, and I think you'll see that I'm building a foundation of grace that leads to a natural life of good works."

If you've read this blog for any amount of time, you know I talk about this a lot. It's the difference between an outward/external life of living by "biblical instructions" and living by the life of Christ that indwells us. In other words, far be it from me to be against works, but rather I heavily emphasize the true source of works. I do think that the various New Testament "instructions" can be a marvelous aid in showing us what our life in Christ looks like when it's lived out, but I don't believe for a minute that they are the foundation or essence of the Christian life.

The answer is always B - 2/9/08

Which is the correct wording of Romans 11:6?

A. And if by grace, then you must add some works; otherwise grace is not complete. But if it is of works, it is supplemental to grace; otherwise grace will no longer work.

B. And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work (NKJV).

C. And if by Grace, then it is no longer of Sally; otherwise Grace is no longer Grace. But if it is of Sally, it is no longer Grace; otherwise Sally is no longer Sally, and Sally is very confused about who she is.