Works or faith save us?

Question

I have a question about people who believe we need works for our salvation. The way I have always seen it is this. Christ paid the price for us. The price was so great there was no way we could afford it. Imagine the price as a pile of coins. The pile of coins would be bigger than the Earth. If we try to add to this by our works it is like flipping 1 penny onto the pile. It makes no difference. Our works can never be even close to enough. They do not even make the smallest dent in the debt we owed. Do you agree?

Please do not quote me verses from James. I know what he has to say. I do not deny we will have works. I just disagree with works saving us.

tebone0315 - for once I do agree with you. I do not hold to once saved always saved. I believe we need to repent daily and try our best to live a life pleasing to Christ. Being saved is not a license to sin. Paul makes that clear in Romans. But I just do not believe it is the works that save us.

Father K - Salvation to me is when one accepts Christ as their savior. Their sins are forgiven. They are now a Christian. As I said I don't believe you get saved and can go on and do what you like. I believe you need to give up sin and in my mind that is the process of sanctification.

Father K - First can you not use words like soteriology. As I do not know what they mean it is no fun for me. lol. Second yes I believe you can turn your back on God. You can give up your salvation.

Also I confused you say that baptism is the irreducible minimum. Do you mean after baptism you cannot be lost? Cannot go to hell?

preacherluv66 - I never denied we will have works if we are saved. Faith and works go together. But it is faith that saves and not works. And please do not tell me Luther added the word alone to the below verses. It means the same with or without that.

Ephesians 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

candi_k7 - I agree with you we will have works if we are saved. We will want to do things to please Christ. It is just believing that these works save us that I have a problem with.

Answer 1

Dear Edge,

Seems like you know what God's word says.

We are saved by Grace. Although Ephesians 2:8-2:10 reminds us that we are saved by grace, so that no one can boast- although 2:10 tells us that we are created in Christ Jesus for good works, whichGod prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Works do not save us- but are a natural overflow of being filled with the Holy Spirit.

Kindly,

Nickster

Answer 2

Why work toward a goal in which you dont believe you can not meet or why believe you can win a race in which you do not run in?This is a simple question but will you miss the saving point in it.Note that eachquestion require work and faith connecting togather as a unit to finish a called out job.If you knew so much about what James says then you would not disagree with its call for our works as being an agent in our saving grace.The bible tells us that"Ye shall reap what you sow". That lets me know that to reap, there has to be some king of work involved.(yes) good or bad.The 1 penny added to the wealth does matter it adds just a little more to the kingdom of God.Why take a chance that the little works if it will aid us be left undone.Then what?What if we beleive all of our lives and never try to do anything about our belief, whaere would that leave us?Son let some one teaCH YOU.The word of god is never the way we see it.So stop seeing it your way.

Answer 3

Ephesians 2:8-9
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.

James does tell us that faith without works is dead, but I don't believe that to mean that the works are what saves us. The works are an evidence of our salvation.
James 2:18b
I will shew thee my faith by my works.

The grace of God is the only thing sufficient enough to save us. If our works could do it, then Christ would not have needed to be crucified.

Answer 4

if you read Ephesians 2:8-10 you will see that it is true that we are not saved by our works, BUT God also established "good works" for us to do before we were saved, so they kind of go together. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do....plus if you read more we are to "work out" our salvation (Philippians 2:12)
and we have a debt of love that we owe and that is the only debt we are to pay (Romans 13:8)
...see if we are indeed saved, all these good things will follow kind of as evidence of our "new nature"

Answer 5

Again....define your terms, Bro. Edge. "Salvation" - L. for "health" from the word "salus"....

or....

"sancitfication" ???

I daresay that Scripture is clear that we will all face the judgment where our deeds (works) will be judged. Salvation is an active process...not an "event".

Why else would Saint Paul say: "Work out your salvation with fear and trembling" ??

We have been saved (Golgotha)
We are being saved (Sacramentally)
We will be saved (at the Last Trump)

[Edit] I see. "decision based" soteriology. Well then...how much "acceptance" is enough? Do doubts cancel out salvation?? What if you stop believing? Does God grade on the "curve"??

That's why the church has always taught that Baptism is the irreducible minimum. And no, Baptism is not a work that we do. It's something that God does...

Answer 6

The bible said (Works without faith is dead). Anybody can do work but it u do not have faith in the work u are doing is to glorify the Lord it is useless. Some people do work for the wrong reason. When u do work for God your heart is right and u believe u r doing good works for God. God will bless u when your heart is line up for him while u are doing his work. Works alone without faith and the wrong motives will not pleases or move God. Our salvation come from accepting Jesus Christ as our Lord and savor.

Answer 7

Salvation only comes thru Jesus Christ. But one must realize also that our salvation is a daily process of seeking forgiveness and repentance, it is not a one time thing just saying a prayer and believing.One must also realize that salvation can be lost on our behalf. No, Jesus will never take that gift from us, but we can throw it away.



"As the Bible says, I am already saved (Rom. 8:24, Eph. 2:5–8), but I’m also being saved (1 Cor. 1:8, 2 Cor. 2:15, Phil. 2:12), and I have the hope that I will be saved (Rom. 5:9–10, 1 Cor. 3:12–15). Like the apostle Paul I am working out my salvation in fear and trembling (Phil. 2:12), with hopeful confidence in the promises of Christ (Rom. 5:2, 2 Tim. 2:11–13)."


Catholic Christian

Answer 8

I believe that works are required to build the faith necessary for salvation.
If you think of it as a process of hope, works, and faith. We hope the gospel is true. We act upon that hope, and receive a witness of the Spirit, that builds our faith. As we repeat this process over and over, our faith builds in different aspects of the gospel, eventually reaching the point necessary for salvation.
The Atonement of Jesus Christ was infinite and eternal. I like your analogy of the coins. To be able to have "access" to them, we need to develop our faith.

Answer 9

Our works save us in that they allow the Atonement to have effect in our life.

Our faith IS our works...at least the outward appearance thereof.

In the end, it is the grace of Christ that saves us. Nothing we can do will be able to save us. We work as hard as we can but the only thing that saves us in the end is Christ's Atonement...

What most people miss is that Christ wasn't a magician - He is the creator. One cannot create something out of nothing.

We give Him our penny and He makes an eternity out of it.

Answer 10

No Christian religion, not even Catholicism, claims the works are the source of Salvation.

There is a distinction between Justification and Salvation.