Gtcotr/ss011923
There has been a dilemma throughout history concerning the doctrines of grace and works. One camp relies heavily on the words of the Apostle Paul while the other often quotes from James or the elder John. These two doctrines however are not contrary to one another but are rather complimentary.
There is a presumption however in the collective mind of the holy scriptures, that a person who is born-again will and will not do certain things. This is accepted due to the transformation which takes place in a person’s life when they first believe and receive Jesus into their heart as Lord and Savior.
Let’s allow the scriptures to speak for themselves.
2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
Ephesians 2
8 For by grace you have been
saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone
should boast.
2 Corinthians 6:1 We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain.
James 2:26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
1 John 3:10 In this the children of God and the children of the devil are manifest: Whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he who does not love his brother.
The
Bible clearly teaches two complimentary truths:
1. Works are not the roots of our salvation.
2. Works are the fruits of our salvation.
From the volume of scripture we clearly understand that: We are saved by grace to work for God.
There is a strong and growing belief among various groups today that we are nearing the end of this age and the return of Christ. The increase of the awareness of devastating earthquakes, floods, fires, and pestilence along with the social violence, sexual depravity, and political turmoil, leaves us as A world filled with conflict and crisis. Senseless killings, war, famine, and the injustice of it all reveals we are positioned in a generation that is out of control.
There is no doubt in heaven or on earth that the end of the world is closer today than it has ever been. If Jesus does not come soon, I will be surprised. And, if He comes for no one else in my lifetime, He is still coming for me!
I hope and I pray that we will be the generation to see the return of the Lord in all His glory. The question I want to answer today is:
What will happen when Jesus comes?
No one makes the answer to this question clearer than Jesus Himself. Why should I try to preach it when we can hear it straight from His own words. Let’s simply read what He said as recorded by Matthew in:
Matthew 25 NKJV
31 ¶ “When the Son of Man
comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the
throne of His glory.
32 “All the nations will be
gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd
divides his sheep from the goats.
33 “And He will set the sheep
on His right hand, but the goats on the left.
34 “Then the King will say to
those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom
prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35 ‘for I was hungry and you
gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you
took Me in;
36 ‘I was naked and
you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to
Me.’
37 “Then the righteous will
answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or
thirsty and give You drink?
38 ‘When did we see You a
stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You?
39 ‘Or when did we see You
sick, or in prison, and come to You?’
40 “And the King will answer
and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one
of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’
41 “Then He will also say to
those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire
prepared for the devil and his angels:
42 ‘for I was hungry and you
gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink;
43 ‘I was a stranger and you
did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you
did not visit Me.’
44 “Then they also will
answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger
or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’
45 “Then He will answer them,
saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one
of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’
46 “And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Jesus gives us a clear picture of faith and works. By faith we become a child of God. Jesus characterizes the righteous as sheep and the unrighteous as goats. The righteous are blessed and enter heaven to inherit the kingdom which was prepared for them from the foundation of the world.
In contrast, the unrighteous will be cursed and will be sent away into an everlasting fire as punishment prepared for the devil and his angels.
The
volume of scriptures confirms the same two truths we spoke of earlier:
1.
Works are not the roots of our salvation.
2. Works are the fruits of our salvation.
Matthew 7:20 “Therefore by their fruits you will know them.”
When we are born-again and become a child of God, our life goals become more about others than only about ourselves. More about our spouse, our children, our parents, our friends, and even our enemies. We are all destined to be fruitful … it’s in our DNA. We inherit this nature from God.
You know, it takes less than 3 seconds to get saved.
It takes less than 3 seconds to get right with God.
It takes less than 3 seconds to be forgiven of your sins by God.
But feeding the poor, clothing the naked, giving water to the thirsty, visiting those sick and in prison, takes a lot longer … it will somehow be a part of the rest of your life. You will never get to the end of the line. All we can hope to do is to be like Jesus and help the next one we find.
A person does not have to help others to be saved, however a person does have to help others to hear “well done” from the Master.
Today I encourage you to take 3 seconds and give your life to Jesus.
Then, take a portion of the rest of your time on planet earth to make a living, make a life, and make a difference.
You can begin making a difference today by helping us to feed the hungry, giving water to the thirsty, clothing to the poor, providing lodging to people you may never know in this life, and ministering to the medical and emotional needs of those who feel afraid and alone.
The
best way to help is to give. Give of your time, your strength, and your money. If
you are saved, God is expecting you to help. When you help even one of the
least, you are meeting the personal needs of Jesus. And when He comes,
He will not forget what you have done!
