I HAVE ONE QUESTION FOR MYSELF AND MY EVANGELICAL BROTHERS IN CHRIST! We say, and I affirmed it on FB that we do not have any merit in our salvation because our Lord has done everything for us 1Co 1:27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; 1Co 1:28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: 1Co 1:29 That no flesh should glory in his presence. 1Co 1:30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: 1Co 1:31 That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord. We say that the works that are emerging out of our faith, the works which God has beforehand prepared that we should walk in them are not our merits because God has given us everything and these works are done by the Lord working and living in us. 1Co 4:7 For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it? Gal 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. Eph 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. Jas 2:24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only. So the works that justify us with our faith are not our merit at all. OK, but we say that our works are only for our reward Mat 16:27 For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works. 1Co 3:5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man? 1Co 3:6 I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. 1Co 3:7 So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. 1Co 3:8 Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour. 1Co 3:9 For we are labourers together with God: ye are Gods husbandry, ye are Gods building. 1Co 3:12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; 1Co 3:13 Every mans work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every mans work of what sort it is. 1Co 3:14 If any mans work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. 1Co 3:15 If any mans work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. So if our works are only for reward, that means that the Lord will reward those who work harder with a greater reward. It means that the Lord will reward the works accordingly because having more works means more effort. And the Lord will reward the labour, 1 Cor 3:8. But that contradicts what we just said, that the works are not our merit at all , they are exclusively the merit of our Lord working in us. So to have more works compare to have less works is not our merit because the Lord works the works. Two hundreds works compare to one hundred works should be the same, it is not our merit, it is all the Lord’s merit, we cannot boast in any way. So if the rewards are different then it is because the Lord worked more works in somebody. It means clearly that the Lord rewards Himself because we do not have any merit in our labor. That is not the case. So the hypothesis that we don’t have any merit in our works leads us to a false conclusion. Then maybe the hypothesis is not right. Paul is saying in 1Co 3:9 ‘For we are labourers (sunergos-Greek) together with God’, which means that we also labour. The Lord said John 5:17 But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work. So even though we receive everything from God, the will and the power to do it Php 2:13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. we are co-workers with God, the new persons we are in Christ, not our flesh 2Co 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new 2Co 6:1 We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain. I just want to be honest to myself and to the Scriptures. Noah built the ark which saved him. It was God’s plan, all the provisions were from God, the initiative, the plan, the materials, the power and continual guidance and protection. But yet, Noah was co-worker with God, but as the Scripture says he boasted in God, because he received everything from God, so nothing from his own flesh, but that did not exclude his participation. Let’s say now that the works from our faith are justifying us before the Lord because they are the will of the Father for us Mat 7:21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Mat 25:21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. The question that some will ask, OK but these verses 1Co 3:14 If any mans work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. 1Co 3:15 If any mans work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. say that some will have works rejected by Christ and still be saved. In other works some would not do the Father’s will but still be saved as by fire. Isn’t that a contradiction? Is that saying that some can have a faith that did not have works as in James 2? I believe that what Paul is saying is that some would have faith with works, so a living faith but their works would not be with eternal purposes, for the salvation of people –building God’s building. So those people would not hear from the Lord Mat 7:23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. Because they did not work iniquity but only fulfilled partially the Father’s will with fulfilling His plan. But they still worked, and they worked with God but not accepting harder tasks. Those people would have been sunergos with God and having works but not works that God would reward them. So we are labourers with God but we are not anything because God who gives the increase. But being labourer is not nothing- ‘faithful over few things’, it’s nothing compare to God but it’s good enough to hear these words Mat 25:21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.
Posted on: Thu, 13 Mar 2014 07:23:42 +0000
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