Faith or Works?

J.C.Ryle

Moreover, the Scriptures nowhere teach us that faith sanctifies us in the same sense and in the same manner that faith justifies us! Justifying faith is a grace that “worketh not,” but simply trusts, rests, and leans on Christ (Rom. 4:5). Sanctifying faith is a grace of which the very life is action: it “worketh by love,” and, like a mainspring, moves the whole inward man (Gal. 5:6). (Holiness, xviii).

Here are some of my thoughts as I pondered this quote by J.C. Ryle.

1. Justification is by faith alone. 
2. Sanctification is made possible through faith and evidences itself through action. 
3. One ought to question original justification if  there is no outward workings of your sanctification. Saving faith moves your entire body, livelihood, and lifestyle to worship and adorn the gospel to the betterment of Christ’s name. We do not do these things to be saved but because we are saved. The old man is passed away behold and the new has come. Being new requires a turning from something and changing into something else.(alternative lifestyle) Without any change we are viewed as dead for no outward metamorphosis has evidenced itself and therefore no visible witness can be shared to others. 
4. Sanctification should not be considered legalistic but rather the natural out working’s of your changed desires over time.  

 

Faith Without Works Is Dead (James 2:14-26)

14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good[a] is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! 20 Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. 24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

Order Your Faith

Do you really know who God is and what he is like? Sure we all know God is “good” or “holy” or “powerful.” But do you really know him? His attributes? Do you know how those things affect your life? Take a look at these guys and see how they think they can just pick and choose whatever God they want. Obviously, their theology is a little bit off.

Read Galatians

Your reading assignment this week (10/15- 10/21) is to read the book of Galatians.

Comment(click on title) on this post to discuss what you are learning or ask questions on what you don’t understand.

We are on Week 6 :  https://hipfellows.wordpress.com/2012/09/29/link-to-the-document/

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Know your God!

I was challenged deeply this morning in my time with God….hope it can encourage/challenge you all as well.

For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” Romans 1:17

We cannot make any decision in life without having faith in something or someone. What we do privately and publicly shows who we are putting our faith in.

I think all of us would say that our faith is in God and God alone…is it? When life is going really good, (grades are up, getting married, wife is happy) when life is just awesome do we find ourselves ignoring God? Not a hand in His face ignoring, but we don’t acknowledge His hand in our lives as much as when life is not going as well.

If we are not careful we can ignore our God in times of trial. When we have no more answers for why the sickness, disease, agony and pain must continue we can become tired of God. When He seems to be silent and it looks as if our prayers our falling on deaf ears, what then.

So here is the ultimate question in which each of us MUST be completely honest with ourselves when we answer it.

Who is your God?

What do you know about your God. If we put faith in someone it is because we trust them. If a stranger asked for money but promised to return the loan if you just provided your name, number, and home address, you probably aren’t going to give the money or the info. But if a close friend or relative asked the same thing you probably wouldn’t hesitate to provide the funds. Why? Because you have trust in them and in turn have faith in them. (thanks for the illustration Jim Berg)

We will only have faith in God if we trust Him. We learn to trust Him by getting to know Him. We also learn to trust Him by looking at what He is doing or already has done in our lives.

Take some time today and WRITE down the reasons you have to trust our awesome God. Being in God’s Word teaches us about Himself and also teaches more about our amazing relationship with Him.

“…it is much easier to trust someone whom we highly respect since every decision is a trust decision–it reveals whom we trust,” ~Jim Berg

Enable Me

How often do you ask for God’s help? In my prayers, I ask God to be with me but I say that oftentimes just to fill time in my prayer. What should we pray to God about? Do you ask for God to ENABLE you to do whatever is in front of you for that day?

In the book, True Fellowship by Jerry Bridges, (pg. 40-41) talk of sincere Christians who are struggling with fruitful devotions. They say their devotions are dry and mechanical. (we have all been there!) The truth is this happens to all of us but not because the Bible is dry or God is mechanical but because we have been searching in the wrong well for living water. We were seeking renewance in ourselves not from the Holy Spirit. Our flesh is dead and yet Christ’s Spirit gives us the power that we so often neglect.

Bridges puts it like this:

I frequently talk to sincere, committed Christians who admit to a dry and mechanical aspect in their quiet times, for example. This is often a result of a subtle dependence on their own discipline rather than a dependence on Christ. We ought to begin our quiet time with the heartful prayer, “Lord, You must enable me to worship You and commune with You today. Without You my mind is dead and my heart is stone.”

Bobby talked about in the post below on Paul’s challenge for us to endure suffering. This word stuck out to be because to ENDURE we need God to ENABLE us to do so. God gives power. Stop trying to do it on your own. Call on God for help!

Just because we have been saved for a long time or because we went to Bible college does not mean we can just have a good devotional “experience” or find God for ourselves without His help. God enables us to see Him. Without His electing us to be his adopted son we were blind in our trespasses and sins.

Act 17:24-28  The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man,
nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.
And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place,
that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us,
for “‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “‘For we are indeed his offspring.’

Love One Another

I was reading I Thessalonians 4: 13-18 today when I found verse 18 so simple and yet so challenging.

1Th 4:18  Therefore encourage one another with these words.

The Holy Spirit enlightened my eyes in a different way this morning to the phrase “one another.” The phrase “one another” is a community phrase. It’s a phrase that demands social interaction. It is a phrase that implies communication between believers. But yet how often do we really “encourage one another.” Lately, my family has been in the hospital more than I can remember. Lately, my Dad is going through some tough times in the hospital right now. God’s people have been encouraging to me and my family through this time. They have communicated in a variety of ways to me that they are praying for Dad and even in some cases praying for me knowing that I and my family has a burden to bear. That is True Fellowship at its best. True Fellowship rears up and fights back. It plants hope in the hopeless. It allows us to “NOT grieve as others do who have NO hope.” We have a hope and we often have to be reminded that by our Christian brothers and sisters.

Take some time guys to look up a few of these passages and do a study on ONE ANOTHER passages of the Bible. For we ought to be helping, praying, and caring for ONE ANOTHER.

The “One Another” Passages

Bible passages essential for us to understand and develop healthy relationships by knowing we are called to One Another:

• Love one another: John 13:34-35; 15:12, 17; Romans 12:10; 13:8; 14:13; 1 Thessalonians 3:12; 4:9; 2 Thessalonians 1:3; 1 Peter 1:22; 1 John 3:11, 3:22; 4:8; 23; 4:7, 11-12; 2 John 1: 5
• Serve one another: Galatians 5:13; 21; Philippians 2:3; 1 Peter 4:9; 5:5
• Accept one another: Romans 15:7, 14
• Strengthen one another: Romans 14:19
• Help one another: Hebrews 3:13; 10:24
• Encourage one another: Romans 14:19; 15:14; Colossians 3:16; 1 Thessalonians 5:11; Hebrews 3:13; 10:24-25
• Care for one another: Galatians 6:2
• Forgive one another: Ephesians 4:32; Colossians 3:13
• Submit to one another: Ephesians 5:21; 1 Peter 5:5
• Commit to one another: 1 John 3:16
• Build trust with one another: 1 John 1:7
• Be devoted to one another: Romans 12:10
• Be patient with one another: Ephesians 4:2; Colossians 3:13
• Be interested in one another: Philippians 2:4
• Be accountable to one another: Ephesians 5:21
• Confess to one another: James 5:16
• Live in harmony with one another: Romans 12:16
• Do not be conceited to one another: Romans 13:8
• Do not pass judgment to one another: Romans 14:13; 15:7
• Do not slander one another: James 4:11
• Instruct one another: Romans 16:16
• Greet one another: Romans 16:16; 1 Corinthians 1:10; 2 Corinthians 13:12
• Admonish one another: Romans 5:14; Colossians 3:16
• Spur one another on toward love and good deeds:  Hebrews 10:24
• Meet with one another: Hebrews 10:25
• Agree with one another: 1 Corinthians 16:20
• Be concerned for one another: Hebrews 10:24
• Be humble to one another in love: Ephesians 4:2
• Be compassionate to one another: Ephesians 4:32
• Do not be consumed by one another Galatians 5:14-15
• Do not anger one another: Galatians 5:26
• Do not lie to one another: Colossians 3:9
• Do not grumble to one another: James 5:9
• Give preference to one another: Romans 12:10
• Be at peace with one another: Romans 12:18
• Sing to one another: Ephesians 5:19
• Be of the same mind to one another: Romans 12:16; 15:5
• Comfort one another: 1 Thessalonians 4:18; 5:11
• Be kind to one another: Ephesians 4:32
• Live in peace with one another: 1 Thessalonians 5:13
• Carry one another’s burdens: Galatians 6:2

Faith

I had tweeted this a few days ago, but this is from Streams in the Desert. In response to a young man’s question of how to obtain the Lord’s help for his needs an elderly black lady firmly answered “You just have to believe He’s done it and it’s done”. Now there’s an simple and applicable definition of faith for ya.

Commit your way to the Lord, trust in Him and He will do this – Psalm 37:5