I guess this is sort of my public diary post....but hey...it's my blog, so...whatever.
How freeing it is to realize that salvation is given freely and that I do not have to work at becoming the best person in the world to receive it. That, my friends, is the beauty of grace. It's unfathomable and incomprehensible, but it's there and it's amazing and I am grateful for it.
I just finished reading James 2:14-26 and for the longest I was confused. I couldn’t comprehend why James would say that faith without works was dead. Every church service, every overly quoted bible verse would harp on the fact that it was believing in Christ that brought salvation, having faith that Christ was the only way to reconcile with God and receive everlasting life. In fact, works would be preached against. It was agonizing to me that that passage would even suggest a necessity for works!
It wasn’t until today, just a few moments before I decided to write this, that it clicked in my head what is being said. It’s not the works that save us; this hasn’t changed. However, once we have the faith and receive the saving grace, that faith is evident by our works. Works, then, should be a product of faith. In other words, if I profess to be a Christian and I am not doing the work of my Father, something is not right.
I think it comes down to this. Works without faith is empty just as faith without works is dead. Am I loving God with all my heart, mind, and soul? Am I loving those around me like I love myself? I believe, as a Christian, if we are loving God and loving eachother, the way we are supposed to, the works come automatically.
How freeing it is to realize that salvation is given freely and that I do not have to work at becoming the best person in the world to receive it. That, my friends, is the beauty of grace. It's unfathomable and incomprehensible, but it's there and it's amazing and I am grateful for it.
I just finished reading James 2:14-26 and for the longest I was confused. I couldn’t comprehend why James would say that faith without works was dead. Every church service, every overly quoted bible verse would harp on the fact that it was believing in Christ that brought salvation, having faith that Christ was the only way to reconcile with God and receive everlasting life. In fact, works would be preached against. It was agonizing to me that that passage would even suggest a necessity for works!
It wasn’t until today, just a few moments before I decided to write this, that it clicked in my head what is being said. It’s not the works that save us; this hasn’t changed. However, once we have the faith and receive the saving grace, that faith is evident by our works. Works, then, should be a product of faith. In other words, if I profess to be a Christian and I am not doing the work of my Father, something is not right.
I think it comes down to this. Works without faith is empty just as faith without works is dead. Am I loving God with all my heart, mind, and soul? Am I loving those around me like I love myself? I believe, as a Christian, if we are loving God and loving eachother, the way we are supposed to, the works come automatically.
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