G
Grace Accepted
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God created us to do good works. Being Christlike is being righteous even as He is righteous. This fundamental truth is often lost in the arguing but the controversy is not really about whether a born again Christian should do good works at all. All lovers of God will perform good works but not be that aware of it. When confronted with their good works by Christ they will ask, "When did we do these great things?" (Matt 25:40)
As Stephen Crane wrote in his great poem, "In Heaven"
In Heaven,
Some little blades of grass
Stood before God.
“What did you do?”
Then all save one of the little blades
Began eagerly to relate
The merits of their lives.
This one stayed a small way behind
Ashamed.
Presently God said:
“And what did you do?”
The little blade answered: “Oh, my lord,
“Memory is bitter to me
“For if I did good deeds
“I know not of them.”
Then God in all His splendor
Arose from His throne.
“Oh, best little blade of grass,” He said.
The real issue is where good works belong and just what they are. Legalism is just a shorter way of saying that someone thinks that they must do some or all good works in order to be saved. They place Good works as a prerequisite for salvation. If I do these things then God will possibly save me.
Grace reverses this paradigm and states we are saved by grace unto good works. The first part of Eph 2 demonstrates the proper order.
Eph 2 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,
We all start out dead to God, having no possible discourse with him or ability to hear, see or understand him. Dead is dead.
2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh[a] and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.
The results of our dead condition brought forth certain works. Like a decaying body brings forth foul gasses, attracting carrion eaters from far and wide so the acts of disobedience emanates from the decaying spiritual corpse of the spiritually dead.
4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
God saved us from that dead state by making us alive. And why did He do it? Good works? Obedience? Our potential? Our sincerity? No, none of these. His motivation was to do it because of his great love for us. Let that sink in. He saved us simply because of His great love for us!
6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—
After He saved us, what did He do? He raised us up with Christ, His only begotten son. And why did He do it? Good works? Obedience? Our potential? Our sincerity? No, none of these. He did it to demonstrate just how much He loved us. You see love without works would also be dead but God's love is shown by His works in and for us.
9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
We are not save by works but we are saved to do good works in Jesus Christ. God has prepared these in advance for us to do and the greatest single work that is the key to all other works is this: John 6:29 Jesus replied, “The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent."
So in short. Works are not the issue, it is their place in the plan of salvation that is the issue. Before we do any good of any kind God must bring us to life, raise us up with Christ and recreate us unto good works and even then we will be unaware of our own goodness only looking to Christ's goodness.
As Stephen Crane wrote in his great poem, "In Heaven"
In Heaven,
Some little blades of grass
Stood before God.
“What did you do?”
Then all save one of the little blades
Began eagerly to relate
The merits of their lives.
This one stayed a small way behind
Ashamed.
Presently God said:
“And what did you do?”
The little blade answered: “Oh, my lord,
“Memory is bitter to me
“For if I did good deeds
“I know not of them.”
Then God in all His splendor
Arose from His throne.
“Oh, best little blade of grass,” He said.
The real issue is where good works belong and just what they are. Legalism is just a shorter way of saying that someone thinks that they must do some or all good works in order to be saved. They place Good works as a prerequisite for salvation. If I do these things then God will possibly save me.
Grace reverses this paradigm and states we are saved by grace unto good works. The first part of Eph 2 demonstrates the proper order.
Eph 2 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,
We all start out dead to God, having no possible discourse with him or ability to hear, see or understand him. Dead is dead.
2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh[a] and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath.
The results of our dead condition brought forth certain works. Like a decaying body brings forth foul gasses, attracting carrion eaters from far and wide so the acts of disobedience emanates from the decaying spiritual corpse of the spiritually dead.
4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
God saved us from that dead state by making us alive. And why did He do it? Good works? Obedience? Our potential? Our sincerity? No, none of these. His motivation was to do it because of his great love for us. Let that sink in. He saved us simply because of His great love for us!
6 And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—
After He saved us, what did He do? He raised us up with Christ, His only begotten son. And why did He do it? Good works? Obedience? Our potential? Our sincerity? No, none of these. He did it to demonstrate just how much He loved us. You see love without works would also be dead but God's love is shown by His works in and for us.
9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
We are not save by works but we are saved to do good works in Jesus Christ. God has prepared these in advance for us to do and the greatest single work that is the key to all other works is this: John 6:29 Jesus replied, “The work of God is this: to believe in the One He has sent."
So in short. Works are not the issue, it is their place in the plan of salvation that is the issue. Before we do any good of any kind God must bring us to life, raise us up with Christ and recreate us unto good works and even then we will be unaware of our own goodness only looking to Christ's goodness.
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