THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST
SPREADING THE SOUL-SAVING MESSAGE OF JESUs
(Chapter 17)
Introduction by narrator accompanied by a cappella singing:
THE GOSPEL OF CHRIST. Spreading the soul-saving message of Jesus. And now, Kevin Pendergrass
Welcome to our study of the Book of Luke. This is the sixth lesson in this series. In this lesson we will be examining the relationship between faith and works (or faith and duty). In Luke 17, beginning in verse 5, Jesus is talking about the relationship between faith and works. Today you see some people who say that all it takes to be saved is a mental belief in God. They suggest that if you believe that God exists, then that means you are saved, and that is all it takes to go to Heaven. But is that what the Bible says? Absolutely not! The Bible teaches that works must accompany belief (faith). Faith and works go hand in hand. In Luke 17:5ff. we read that “the apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith.’” The apostles were asking Jesus to help them increase their faith.
“So the Lord said, ‘If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, “Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,” and it would obey you. And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’? Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do’” (vss. 7-10).
Here we see the relationship between faith and works. In this lesson we will be defining what biblical faith truly is. The first point in this lesson that we must understand is that faith is essential. If we want to be pleasing to God and go to Heaven, then we must have faith. It is essential. In Hebrews 11 we read of great men and women of faith—people who followed the Lord and who acted upon their faith. But in Hebrews 11:6, before the writer began speaking about these great people of faith, he said, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Does this say that without faith it is “unlikely” that we can please God? No. It says that it is impossible to please God. If we do not have faith, we cannot please God. We must believe in God. We must believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. In John 14:6 Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Jesus did not say that He was “a way,” “a truth” or “a life.” That is how some people want the passage to read today. This means that people want to say, “Jesus is only one way out of many ways to get to Heaven. We cannot be exclusive and say that Jesus is the only way.” But that is exactly what Jesus Himself said. He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life,” which excludes any other ways of going to the Father or of receiving eternal life. Faith in Christ is not a way, but is the only way if we want to be pleasing to God. In John 8:24 Jesus spoke of how, if we do not have faith in Christ, we will die in lost state: “Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” Jesus told people that they had to believe that He is the Son of God. People must believe in God. And they must believe that Jesus is the One Whom God sent. If people do not believe that, will everything be all right? Will they be covered by God’s grace? No. That is not what the Bible says. The Bible says that if people do not believe in God and His Son, they will die in their sins. In Acts 4:12 we read, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” This does not say by which we “might” be saved or “may” be saved, but by which we “must” be saved. If we are going to be saved, it will be by only one name—the name of Jesus Christ the Lord (and by following God).
But we must not only follow God; we also must follow only God. I once was having a conversation with a woman when she said, “I believe in all gods. I believe that we just need to all get along. I accept all religions. I accept Christianity. And I can believe in it. But I’m not exclusive. I believe in other religions as well.” In 1 John 5:21 the Bible tells us, “Keep yourselves from idols.” When Jesus was being tempted by the devil in Matthew 4, one of the things that He told Satan was that we are to worship only God. It is not enough to say, “I’m going to serve the Lord, but I’m also going to serve all these other gods.” We must keep ourselves from idols and serve only the Lord (Mt. 4:10). We must have faith only in the one true, living God—not a plurality of gods. John 3:16 is a popular verse that seems to have lost some of its significance to certain people. They see it everywhere, and it seems that they almost try to blaspheme this verse. But look at the power found in John 3:16—“God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” This is a beautiful passage. Jesus came to this Earth as “God with us” (Immanuel; Mt. 1:23). What did He do? He lived a sinless life, and went to the cross for sinners, so that He could shed His blood. He died for us, and then was resurrected. We must believe that He did all of those things for us. Faith in God and Christ is essential. We cannot believe in other gods. Rather, we must believe in God alone. That is what will save us.
The next point is that faith alone does not save. Must a person have faith in order to go to Heaven? Absolutely! I don’t know anyone who claims to be a Christian who does not teach that a person must have faith in order to go to Heaven. Every person who considers himself to be a Christian teaches that a person must have faith to be saved. But the Bible teaches that faith alone cannot save. If we are going to have a God-pleasing faith, it must be more than just a mental belief in God or that Jesus is God’s Son. The only time that the phrase “faith alone” occurs in the Bible is when the Bible teaches that faith alone does not save. This is contrary, of course, to what so many people believe and teach. The only time that the phrase “faith alone” occurs in the Bible is when the Bible teaches that faith alone does not save. That is found in James 2:24-26.
“You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only. Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way? For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.”
Faith without works is dead. If a person no longer has a spirit in his body, then he is dead. If a person says he has faith, but he has no works, then his faith is dead. Faith alone does not and cannot save, according to James 2:24-26. The Bible plainly teaches that we are justified by works, and not by faith only.
Now I want us to look at some examples of people who believed, but who did not act upon their faith—thus showing us that faith alone does not save. The first example is Satan and the demons. They believe in God. They believe that Jesus Christ is Lord. But that does not mean that they are saved. How many people do you think would be willing to say, “I believe that Satan is going to go to Heaven because he’s a wonderful follower of the Lord”? That’s ludicrous and ridiculous. But Satan believes in God. And he believes that Jesus is the Son of God. James 2:19 says, “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!” James is using some sarcasm here. He says, “You think you are ‘good to go’ because you believe in God? Who cares? If that’s all you do—believe—then you are no better than the demons and Satan, because they believe and tremble.” Satan surely believes that Jesus is Lord. That is why he did everything in his power to try to stop Jesus. But he failed miserably. Yet he still believes in Him. So do the demons. But they are not saved.
Another group is the Jewish rulers in John 12:42-43. They heard the things that Jesus was teaching, and they even believed them. But the Bible teaches that they still were lost because they did not act upon their faith.
“Nevertheless even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.”
Did the Jewish rulers believe in Jesus? Did they believe the things He was saying? Absolutely. But they still were lost. Why? Because of their fear, they did not confess Him. They did not finish the process demanded by God’s Word in order to be saved. They believed —but they were lost. When people say, “All you have to do to be saved is believe,” that is contrary to the plain teaching of Jesus in the New Testament. Why does the Bible teach in John 12:42-43 that these Jewish rulers were unwilling to confess Christ as Lord, and act upon their faith? It was because of their fear. They were afraid that if they started acting upon their faith and following the Lord, they would be put out of the synagogues. They would lose friends or family members. A lot of controversy would occur. Their comfortable lives wouldn’t be comfortable any more. Because of that, they kept their mouths shut. How many people today do the same thing? They know what the truth is. .They read God’s Word. They realize they need to do more. But because of fear, they end up not acting upon their faith. We need to learn this lesson, and be sure that we are not allowing fear to rule our lives, but instead are allowing faith to rule our lives so that we are truly following the Lord. Faith alone does not save. The same problem existed when Jesus was on Earth. People wanted to say that Jesus was their Lord, or talk about how He was their Lord. But they were not willing to do what He commanded. In Luke 6:46 Jesus asked, “Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do the things which I say?” It’s one thing to say, “I love the Lord, and I love God.” But then that same person turns around and refuses to do what God has commanded. If a person claims to love God, then he must keep His commandments. In John 14:15 Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” In John 15: 14 Jesus said, “You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.” People say, “All you have to do is love God and call upon His name.” But in 1 John 5:3 the Bible says, “This is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.” What is the love of God? It is following His will. It is keeping His commandments. We must not say that Jesus is our Lord if we are going to refuse to do what He has commanded us to do. People say, “I know what you’re saying, but my preacher said that I just have to call on the name of the Lord by saying, ‘Lord, Lord”—and if I do that, then I’ll be saved.” In Matthew 7:21 Jesus addressed that very point when He said, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.” A person may say “Lord, Lord,” all he wants, or talk about how much he loves God. But those things do not matter if that person is not doing the Father’s will. Hebrews 5:9 teaches that the Lord is the “the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him.” There are conditions that must be met.
We must have faith in Christ, which is essential. But faith alone cannot save. I want you to imagine that you are baking a cake, and one of the ingredients of the cake is flour. We understand that if you are going to make the cake according to the recipe, you must have flour. But if the only thing in the cake is flour, how good do you think that cake will taste? Would you want to invite your family and closest friends to eat that cake with you when it’s made only of flour? You needed flour. But you didn’t need only flour. Flour alone will not make a cake. In the same way, a person needs faith in order to go to Heaven. But faith alone will not get you to Heaven.
That brings us to the third and final point in this lesson. Biblical faith includes works. If we are going to be pleasing to God and go to Heaven, there are certain works that we must do. I know that this may seem contrary to what you have heard. You may be used to listening to people who tell you that you do not have to do anything because God’s grace will cover you if you simply say, “Lord, Lord.” But we have already seen that is not what the Bible teaches. The Bible teaches that true, biblical faith includes works. In James 2:14 we see where James is talking about this very thing. The people in James’ day had the same problem that we see today. People wanted to simply believe in God, and then let that be it. James asked, “What does it profit if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?” The answer is “No.” A person can say he has faith, but if he does not have works to go along with it, then that person’s faith cannot save him. James went on to say,
“If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,’ but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit?” (vss. 15-16).
Notice the first illustration that James uses. He says, “If someone comes to your house because he needs food, and he says, ‘I’m starving; I haven’t eaten in four or five days. I need some food.’ And you can tell by looking at the person that he is poor. He does not have good clothing. And it’s cold outside. And you say, ‘Well, I see you. I believe what you are telling me. Now go, be filled and warmed.’ And you shut your door and don’t do anything to help the person, what good will it do you?” It will do no good at all. Did you believe the person? Sure. Did you believe that he needed food and clothing? Yes. But you did not act upon your belief. You did not do anything about it. You did not help the person. If we claim that we love God, but we do not do what He says, then that is the same thing that James is condemning. We are simply saying, “I believe it,” but we are not doing anything about it. This is why James went on to say,
“Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. But someone will say, ‘You have faith, and I have works.’ Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works” (vss. 17-18).
How do we exhibit our faith? It is by our works—the things we do. James concluded, “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?” James says that a person is foolish if he does not understand that faith without works is dead. In verse 21 he gives yet another illustration.
“Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.’ And he was called the friend of God” (vss. 21-23).
What did Abraham have to do before he could be called “the friend of God”? What did Abraham have to do before he could be considered righteous before the Lord? He had to act upon his faith. He had to have works to accompany his faith—which is why he could be called “the friend of God.” According to John 15:14, we are the friends of the Lord only if we do what He has commanded us to do. People say, “I’m Jesus’ friend. I love Jesus, and He loves me.” Are you sure about that? Are you sure that Jesus is your friend? Are you sure that you really love Him? John 15:14 says, “You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.” Every person wants to think that he is a friend of the Lord. But Jesus said that there is a condition to being His friend. Just as Abraham was not called “the friend of God” until after he was obedient, the same is true of us today. We cannot be called a friend of God until we are obedient to what He has commanded us to do. One of the greatest descriptions of biblical faith is found in Galatians 5:6. The Galatian Christians had had some issues regarding trying to go back to the Old Law to be justified. Paul was trying to get over to them that they no longer were under the Old Law, but instead were under the New Law (as Hebrews 7-10 plainly teaches). Romans 3:27 teaches that they were under the law of faith. Here is how Paul describes a biblical God-pleasing faith in Galatians 5: 6—“In Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love.” It is only a faith that works through love that is pleasing to God. That is the type of faith by which we are saved. Even those who claim that all a person has to do to be saved is to have a belief in God have to admit that some types of works must be required because belief itself is referred to as a work. Some people claim that all a person has to do to be saved is to believe in God, which precludes any type of work. But they are inconsistent. The Bible teaches that when we believe, that is a considered a “work of God.” John 6:28-29 teaches this very thing: “Then they said to Him, ‘What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?’ Jesus answered and said to them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.’” The second you believe in God, you have started to have “works of God.” Belief is a work of God. Of course, that is not where faith ends; it is only where it begins. But if someone claims that all a person has to do to be saved is believe—without any works—that is inconsistent with what John 6:28-29 teaches. Belief itself is a work of God.
Now I want to look at a couple of passages to be sure that we understand the relationship between faith and works. People say, “What about Ephesians 2:8-9? I believe Ephesians 2:8-9. The Bible plainly teaches that we are saved by grace through faith. Paul wrote, “By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” People say, “Well, it says, “not of works.” What kind of works is under discussion here? The word “works” can mean several different things in the New Testament. Sometimes it can mean works of the Old Law. Are we saved by those kinds of works? Of course not. That Law has been done away with. No one can be justified by the Old Law (Acts 13). Are we saved by works of merit—things that we do in order to “earn our way to Heaven”? No. In fact, that is the type of works of which Ephesians 2:8-9 is speaking. A person cannot be saved by any type of works of which he can boast. But we are saved by the types of works that we must carry out in order to be obedient to God. Jesus provided a good explanation of this very principle in Luke 17:10—“So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’” Are there works that a person must do? Absolutely. But when a person has done those works, can he then boast? No. After a person has carried out such works, all he can say is, “I am an unprofitable servant. I have done what it was my duty to do.”
If you are not a Christian, what does the Bible teach is your duty? The Bible teaches that you must obey the Lord. You must hear what the Bible teaches (Rom. 10:17). You must believe that Jesus is the Son of God (Jn. 3:16). You must repent of your past sins (Acts 17:30). You must confess that Jesus Christ is the Lord (Rom. 10:10). And you must be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins (Mark 16:15-16). If you have yet to obey the truth, we pray today that you will obey the Gospel of Christ.
Narrator accompanied by a cappella singing:
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1. According to Hebrews 11:6, what must a person have in order to be pleasing to God?
2. According to passages such as John 3:16 and John 8:24, what composes part of a person’s faith?
3. How important, according to Acts 4:12, is faith in Christ?
4. When, in 1 John 5:21, the Bible tells us to “keep ourselves from idols,” what “broader message” is it giving us regarding our belief in the God of the Bible? [HINT: See Matthew 4:10.]
5. According to James 2:24-26, by what is a person justified before God?
6. According to James 2:24-26, by what is a person not justified before God?
7. What important point is found in James 2:19 (“You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!”) which proves that “faith alone” is not able to save a person?
8. What important point is found in John 12:42-43 about the Jewish rulers which proves that “faith alone” is not able to save a person?
9. What important point did Jesus make in John 14:15 which proves that “faith alone” is not enough to save a person?
10. What point did Jesus make in John 15:14 which proves that there is more to “faith” than “mere belief”?
11. What important point did Jesus make in Matthew 7:21 about “just believing” in Him as Lord?
12. According to Hebrews 5:9, for whom is Jesus “the author of eternal salvation”?
13. What important question did James ask in James 2:14?
14. Name the three types of works discussed in this lesson.
15. Of the three types of works mentioned in question #14 above, which one is required of Christians in order to be saved?
16. What challenge did James issue in the latter part of James 2:18?
17. According to Galatians 5:6, what type of faith “avails” (that is, can save a person)?
18. According to John 6:28-29, is “belief” actually a type of “work”?
19. According to the New Testament what must a person do to become a Christian?
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