-
I am currently preparing a sermon on 2 Peter 1:1-12. The big idea is that God's work of salvation leads to our obedience.The relationship between God's work of salvation and our obedience and right living can be a confusing one. Most Christians recognize that we don’t EARN our salvation. Most realize that salvation comes by grace.
But the Bible is full of passages about how we ought to live. The Bible is full of commands to do what is good and refrain from what is evil.
How do these commands and calls for moral obedience relate to the fact that our salvation is by grace through Jesus’ death in our place? And if our salvation really does come because of what Jesus did, not what we do, then is it really all that important to live rightly?
My understanding of this has been aided by an analogy I heard from my professor Justin Holcomb. It goes something like this:Sometimes we can think that our part in salvation is like paddling a canoe. We must do all the work or we'll get nowhere. "God helps those who help themselves." This is moralism. We think salvation is dependent on our work. - Other times, we can think that our part in salvation is more like drifting down a river in an innertube. We have no responsibility except to just sit there. We can be disengaged and passive. "It's all by grace anyways, so why work?" The theological term for this is antinomianism.
- The correct view, according to 2 Peter 1 and the rest of the Bible, is this: We are like a water skiier and God is the motor and boat. He supplies all the power and ability. Apart from Him, we could do nothing (John 15). Our attempts to water ski apart from the pull of the boat would be useless. However, as God empowers us, we have a responsibility. We must hold on. We can't be passive. We must put forth "every effort" (2 Peter 1:5). If we don't hold on we will fall. But our ability to do anything good or right is dependent on His strength working in us. We can work good and obey because we are not working by our own strength.
Friday, December 21, 2012
God's work and our work
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
PREACH IT!
ReplyDeleteI like this topic and have been thinking and reading a lot about it lately. Some questions that came to mind: So DO you believe salvation is by grace and does not rely on our actions, therefore nullifying the need to live rightly? Couldn't you say that the last view is still relying on works? Can those who don't have a saving knowledge do good? And how much time and effort should we devote determining what is "good and right" when so often that diverts us from the new commandment of loving others?
ReplyDeleteGalatians 5:13-14
"You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge in sinful desires, rather humbly serve one another in love. For the entire law is filled in this one command: "Love thy neighbor as thyself".
Good thought-provoking questions. I too have been thinking and reading on this topic a lot. Just finished up a study of 2 Peter with our small group and am currently studying 1 John. Both are extremely helpful on this issue.
ReplyDeleteI'd say this: The Bible is clear that no one is good enough for salvation. Yes, salvation is completely by grace! "By grace you have been saved...it is a gift of God, not by works" (Eph. 2:8-9). From cover to cover, salvation in the Bible is a result of God's grace (The Israelites were "saved" from the Egyptians by God's gracious intervention). Jesus' death and resurrection accomplished what we could never.
However, the Bible is also clear that our salvation must "bear fruit" to prove effective. Jesus says, "By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so PROVE to be my disciples." I have been struck by what Peter says in 2 Peter 1:1-11 (esp. 8-11). He says in vs. 10, "Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall." We "confirm" our calling and election (i.e. our salvation) by our actions (listed in verse 5-7). We don't EARN anything by these. We don't reach salvation by these. We simply prove that we are already saved. There must be growth in godly character. There must be fruit. You can tell a tree by its fruit.
Conclusion: God saves by grace. His salvation, when genuine, can't NOT lead to change in our lives. 1 John 2:4 says, "Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him." Pretty bold and clear statement. If I claim to know God and don't show any signs of obedience TO God, I'm deceived and a liar. In a sentence: Our obedience and actions are the RESULT of God's prior work of salvation AND, are completely dependent on his strength and Spirit working in us. I'm not earning anything by my efforts or actions. I'm proving that God is working in me.