by Jonathan Cariño
Synopsis: Refuting the Calvinistic concept of salvation by grace alone, brother Cariño reviews examples from the Old and New Testaments showing that obedience is an essential element of saving faith.
There is much confusion about the relationship of grace, faith, and works. Some argue that if a man obeys God's conditions, he does not depend on the grace of God; that man has nothing to do except believe only—that "grace is all of God and none of me." However, the Bible teaches that compliance is required; otherwise, it is not obedience.
What is obedience? It involves willing submission to rightful authority. It is not based on pressure from other men, nor the result of human reasoning that suggests it is the proper thing to do. Rather, we are servants to whom we obey. "But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you" (Rom. 6:16-17). There is no neutral ground: "He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad" (Matt. 12:30).
In this lesson, we emphasize that grace has two parts: God's part and man's part. God provides the grace and set forth the conditions that man must meet to receive the grace. Man's responsibility is to believe (Heb 11:6) and comply with all the terms that are required by God (Heb. 5:8-9). Man has something to do. He must work the works of God—an example of which is believing: "Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent" (John 6:28-29).
Some works cannot save. These include meritorious works by which man vainly attempts to "earn" salvation independent of God's will (Eph. 2:8-9), and also works of the Law of Moses (Gal. 2:16, 21). What works, if any, can save us? The works which God prepared before the foundation of the world are works that can save, and we should walk in them (Eph. 2:10). To do the works of God, we must know and understand His will. When a man does God's works, he renders obedience to God. In the three periods of Bible history, we observed various divine requirements in these three different dispensations. While specific requirements may vary, the principle is the same—obedience.
To illustrate, consider the crossing of the Red Sea (Exod. 14:21-30). God's part was to save His people and divide the sea. God's condition for them is to cross the Red Sea. Man's role was to believe and to pass over. If grace is "all of God and none of me," who will cross the Red Sea? God? Absurd. It is not God who will cross the Red Sea. It is man who crossed the sea. We see man has to do something—He must work. Who saved them? God! When did God save them? After they obeyed. In other words, the power of God to save them worked after their obedience. Israel believed but was not yet saved. They still had to cross over to the other side. Is this not work?
Consider the destruction of the walls of Jericho (Josh. 6:1-21). God's grace was giving the city of Jericho into the hands of Israel. Did they receive Jericho at the point of belief after they heard about it and learned God's conditions? No. It was not given on a silver platter because they had to work for it. What were God's conditions? They were commanded to march around thirteen times for seven days without saying a word. After the last round, they had to blow the trumpets and shout. If grace is "all of God and none of me," who will go around the walls of Jericho? Obviously, the people of Israel. If grace is by faith only, then marching around the walls, blowing the trumpet, and shouting were not necessary. Who caused the walls to collapse? Was it the sound of the trumpets and their shouts? No! Divine power caused the walls to fall after Israel obeyed by completing all of God's conditions. In other words, the power of God worked after their obedience.
We see the same pattern in the case of Naaman (2 Kings 5:1-14). Naaman believed but was not cleansed; faith alone is not enough. Did he do something more? Who went down into the water? God or Naaman? Naaman dipped seven times in the Jordan river. Was it the water that cleansed Naaman of his leprosy? No. God's power cleansed Naaman after he obeyed by meeting the conditions set forth by Elisha the prophet.
Is salvation "all of God and none of me?" Are we saved by believing only, or by faith only, without works? How were the first converts saved in Acts chapter 2? Did they do something to receive the remission of their sins? What was God's part? He provided grace—the remission of sins. Only God can forgive sins and save us. This is God's part. To this end, He gave His only begotten Son. He gave the gospel, the power of God unto salvation (Rom. 1:16).
What are God's conditions for man to find forgiveness? God required repentance and baptism. What is man's part? Man's part is to believe, repent, and be baptized. What happened after they heard the gospel? They understood and believed the message (Acts 2:37). Were they saved at the point of belief? No! They still needed to repent and be baptized for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38). 3,000 souls all did the same thing—believing, they repented and were baptized (Acts 2:41). Is it the water that saves? No. What saved them? Their obedience to the truth (1 Pet. 1:22-23). God's power to remove our sins, takes place after we render obedience to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Salvation is not by faith only; neither is it "all of God and none of me."
Jesus is the Savior of all those who obey the gospel. He set the example of obedience when He suffered death on the cross (Heb. 5:8-9; Phil. 2:9).
Those who are disobedient to the gospel, the unrighteous, the lost, the ungodly, the sinners are outside the church. Where then, do you find those who are obedient to the gospel of God, the righteous, the saved, those who are godly, and counted as saints? They are found inside the church.
Jesus is the Savior of the church (Eph. 5:23). The Lord adds those who are saved to His church (Acts 2:47; 5:14). Since judgment will begin at the house of God, which is the church (1 Tim. 3:15), what will be the end of those who obey not the gospel of God (1 Pet. 4:17-18)? Just as obedience saves, the disobedient will be lost. When Jesus comes back, He will take vengeance on those who do not know God and on those that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ (2 Thess. 1:7-9).
As we have seen, the Israelites worked by crossing the Red Sea. Later, they worked by marching around the walls of Jericho, blowing the trumpets, and shouting. Naaman worked by dipping himself in water. 3,000 worked out their own salvation when they obeyed the Lord in baptism. Thus, grace is not "all of God and none of me." Grace is not by faith only. Faith without works is dead (Jas. 2:20-24). The works they performed were the works that God made and commanded. Doing the works of God requires obedience. Will you not obey God, and receive His grace?
Author Bio:
Jonathan Carino preaches the gospel in Cebu City which is located in the Central Visayas region of the Philippines. He can be reached at jrcarino2@yahoo.com.
