Grace or Goodness

Chuckle: (church bulletin blooper): "For those of you who have children and don't know it, we have a nursery downstairs."

Quote: "The death and resurrection of Christ is the heart of the Christian faith. Preaching Jesus as merely a good person who is an example of good living falls short of preaching the Gospel." --John Danforth

"God saved you by his special favor (grace) when you believed (had faith). And you can't take credit for this: it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago" (Ephesians 2:8-10 NLT).

In his book, "Faith and Politics," former Senator John Danforth uses the term "protestant liberalism" to describe a disturbing tendency in some Christian churches to preach and teach what I will call a "social gospel," which places major emphasis on living moral and ethical lives based on Jesus' teachings and example. Many of these same preachers seldom, if ever, bring listeners face to face with the stark reality of their sins and the eternal truth that repentance and faith in the atoning blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ is the only way to receive God's forgiveness, His free gift of salvation, and assurance of eternal life in heaven.

There is a place for such preaching and teaching, but not at the expense of the good news (gospel message) that God sent his Son to die on that cruel cross outside Jerusalem so that you and I can be redeemed, reconciled (made acceptable) to God. We all know that Christians and non-Christians alike are capable of living moral lives and doing much for the good of humanity. However, the problem arises when people are misled to depend upon their good deeds to earn God's favor -- trying to earn their way into heaven by being good.

Our passage clearly points out the sequence of experiences that result in salvation and then our doing the "good things" that God has planned for us to do. We are told that God "created us anew" when we accepted his gift of salvation through faith. This tracks with another message: "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" (2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV). James also addresses this faith versus good deeds issue. "But some will say, 'You have faith; I have deeds.' Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do" (James 2:18 NIV). You see, we can say we have faith, but do nothing to show it; or we can do all sorts of good things without having faith. Neither approach will impress God.

Once we have a genuine salvation experience, our good deeds performed for the glory of God will bless the lives of people and ultimately result in our being rewarded at the Judgment Seat of Christ. "For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in our (physical) bodies" (2 Corinthians 5:10 NLT). Here, Christ will reward us Christians for how we have lived. Each of us must give account for how we have lived out our faith. Being a "good" person without a life transformed by faith in Jesus Christ is not enough. But being saved by God's grace through faith followed by doing good deeds for His glory is what God desires for each of us.

Love, Jerry & Dotse