Ephesians 2:8-9 tells us
salvation is by the free grace of God through faith
in Jesus Christ. “For by grace you have been saved
through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the
gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one
should boast.” Salvation is by free grace.
The old way of legalism does
not like that kind of salvation. The legalists do
not like to hear the good news in Jesus Christ. True
salvation is by grace of God through faith in
Christ. There is no hope of salvation by the law
because no sinner can ever live up to the righteous
demands of God’s holy law. Salvation is on the basis
of free grace, and grace alone, through faith in the
person and saving work of Jesus Christ. It is God’s
free gift to the sinner.
The apostle goes on to write in
the next verse the outcome of salvation by free
grace. “For you are His workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared
beforehand, that we should walk in them” (v. 10).
The emphasis is still on grace.
We are “His workmanship.” We are His poem. It is His
creative work, not ours. It is so easy to get the
wagon in front of the horse. Our good works do not
save us. The good works are produced as a result of
His work in us. Our works are a result of
justification by faith.
In Philippians 2:12, the
apostle Paul wrote, “work out your salvation with
fear and trembling.” This clause is not suggesting
work for our salvation. The Philippians were already
“saints.” The idea is to go on to Christ-likeness in
your spiritual growth. “Work out” has the idea to
carry it to its ultimate conclusions, work on to
completion, finish, or manifest. Work out what God
has already worked in when you put your faith in
Christ to save you. Carry on to completion what God
has begun. Let the Holy Spirit produce His fruit in
your daily life.
The legalist believes that
grace is “too risky to be true” because people will
take it to the extreme and use it as an excuse to
sin. But grace does not produce a desire to sin
because it does just the opposite. It creates a
desire within us to pursue holiness.
The apostle Paul tells them not
told to work for their salvation, but to work out
the salvation God had already given them. It is a
work of grace. Only God could enable them to do it
because He is at work within them (v. 13).
C. H Spurgeon said, “The spirit
of free grace is this—if God saves me for nothing,
then I belong to Him forever and ever. If He
forgives me every sin, simply because I believe in
Jesus, then I will hate every sin, and flee from it.
If He grants me forgiveness on no ground but that of
His own absolute mercy and good pleasure, as He has
put it, ‘I will have mercy on whom I will have
mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will
have compassion;’ then I will love Him with all my
heart, and soul, and strength, till time shall be no
more. Now, for the love I bear Him, I will lead a
holy life. I will serve Him with every power of my
being. The virtue I aimed at before, in my own
strength, I will now ask for from His Holy Spirit.
The goodness that I thought I had but never had, I
will seek to have as a gift of His grace wrought in
me: and I, because of His great goodness to me, will
live to Him, and will not henceforth serve myself or
serve sin, but will serve Him who has bought me with
his precious blood. Many will not submit to that;
yet they can never be saved from sin unless they
yield themselves as the blood-bought servants of
Christ. Christ comes to save His people from their
sins, and from their sins will save them: they shall
no longer be in bandage to the powers of evil. The
Lord Jesus accomplishes this salvation by freely
forgiving them, and then moving their hearts to such
a love of Him that they become in love with
everything that is pure and holy, and are filled
with hatred of everything that is unjust, and wrong
and wicked, and their life becomes totally changed.
What the principle of law talked about doing, but
never did, the principle of grace actually does. It
puts a new mainspring into the man . . .” (Sermons
Preached by C. H. Spurgeon of London, vol. xvii, pp.
179-80).
Simple faith brings the soul to
Christ. Christ keeps the faith alive, and that faith
enables the believer to produce good works to the
glory of God.
He gave Himself for us and
redeemed us to “purify for Himself a people for His
own possession, zealous for good deeds” (Titus
2:14).
We are not saved by the merits
of good works, but by the free grace of God. The
fruit of free grace is good deeds of righteousness
that will glorify God. We are saved by grace to
serve.
Selah!
Message by Wil Pounds (c) 2006
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Unless otherwise noted "Scripture quotations taken from the NASB."
"Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE" © Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation Used by permission." (www.Lockman.org)Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NET) are from the NET Bible copyright ©1996-2006 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://www.bible.org/. All rights reserved.
Wil is a graduate of William Carey University, B. A.; New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, Th. M.; and Azusa Pacific University, M. A. He has pastored in Panama, Ecuador and the U. S, and served for over 20 years as missionary in Ecuador and Honduras. He had a daily expository Bible teaching ministry head in over 100 countries from 1972-2005. He continues to seek opportunities to be personally involved in world missions. Wil and his wife Ann have three grown daughters. He currently serves as a Baptist pastor and teaches seminary extension courses in Ecuador.
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