See also: "The Eternal Security Dilemma" | "Why Do We Even Need Church?"

Please see: "The Reasons Today for Keeping the New Testament's Sabbaths"

Four Kinds of Works Needed to Enter Heaven

1 Corinthians 15:58 - "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord."

Hebrews 6:10 - "For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister."

2 Corinthians 5:9 - "Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of Him."

• You are simply curious, or
• You didn't like this web site much anyhow, and now you're fairly certain, or
• You're wondering how such a great web site could be so wrong about grace

When you watch television 'grace-grace-grace-grace' preachers, it's all about what God can do for you; but doesn't the Bible say that "It is better to give, than to receive"??

"I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive." Acts 20:35 KJV

Thirty years ago, many ministries that are currently teaching, "Grace, grace, grace, grace, etcetera"

were teaching a doctrine known as:

• extreme faith
• health & wealth
• health & prosperity
• financial prosperity
• faith and prosperity
• name it & claim it
• blab it & grab it
• kingdom dominion
• kingdom now
• Note: 1 Tim.6:5 - "Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself."

• grace without the law,
• grace without responsibility,
• unconditional grace,
• or "cheap" grace ---
• BUT this Grace cost Father God Everything!

We Have a Responsibility to God, to our Brethren, and to Society

Gal 5:13 - "Ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another."

1Peter 2:16 - "As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God."

Psalms 19:7 - "The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul."

Romans 7:12 - "Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good."

-- Because Jesus is the incarnation of the Word, He is full of grace AND truth [John 1:14]. As you read the longest chapter in the Bible, Ps.119, you see at least eight different phrases for the Word of God, and two of them are "Truth" and "Thy Law". So the Law is Truth. John 17:17 - "Thy Word is Truth."

God is love [1Jn.4:8,16]. By definition, grace is God's infinite love toward us which we did not merit.

Jesus, the full Word, is both the Old Testament [Law and Truth] and the New Testament [Grace and Truth]. When we say Jesus is full of grace and truth, we're saying Jesus, being God, is full of Love AND the Law. You can't have one without the other.

You can't have Grace without the Law. God disciplines His children because as a Father He loves us.

Heb.12:8 - "But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons."

MARTIN LUTHER

Let me make it perfectly clear that I'm totally for the creed that Martin Luther 'revived' in 1517, "justified by faith" / "justified freely by His grace" "without the deeds of the law" [Rom.3:24,28]. And faith is a grace gift "not of yourselves" but from, by, and through the Lord Jesus Christ [Eph.2:8].

But then that rascally Apostle James had to write: "Faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone" [Jam.2:17]. When the Bible was canonized, many scholars wanted to leave the Book of James out of the Bible, but if you believe that God is able to protect the purity of His Word [Psalm 12:6; Prov.30:5], then you know the Bible we have is the correct one with James and Mark 16:9-20, and without the Apocrypha.

Ephesians 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."

What is it then? Answer: Grace is the train engine that pulls us into Heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ is the engineer, and Works is the caboose that follows:

Rev.14:13 - "And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them."

So you get into Heaven by grace, but works will come along with you. You need the engine, not the caboose, but it's there anyway, and it's not a bad thing.

At the side of Jesus on the cross, the one penitent thief didn't have any works, but he had faith. He made it to Heaven without the caboose ... without water baptism or any sacrament.

But less than 1% of us are in the category of that particular thief. Those that have both knowledge and opportunity -- can be damned for the absence of works! Matthew 25:25,28,29,30 ---

"25 And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine."

Through the passage of time, works are the FRUIT that a good tree produces. It is not we ourselves that produce fruit, but Christ working within us:

Philippians 2:13 - "For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure."

Calvinism or Predestination teaches that there is nothing that mankind can do about its own salvation, because God is sovereign and God does whatever He wants when He wants. God needs no helper.

If man were to take part in salvation, then it would be "works" which causes "pride" and "self-righteousness" in man.

Like you, I respect Calvin's idea of giving God supreme glory. The problem with Calvinism is the fact of the existence of "free-will". If everything is pre-determined, then we're no better than robots, and God would be unjust to judge those who are vessels made unto destruction and damnation, when they were created so to be.

FREE CHOICE

The Bible says: "Choose you this day whom ye will serve" [Josh.24:15]

You will notice in 2Thess.2:11,12 that God damns people for being deluded or deceived. Why? - Because deception is a 'choice', not just a happenstance. They love the pleasures of sin instead of righteousness. They exchange the truth for the lie. They run toward darkness, rather than toward the Light. It is a conscious choice.

Without further adieu, here are the ...

FOUR WORKS NEEDED TO ENTER HEAVEN

1.) John 6:28,29 - "Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him Whom He hath sent."

2.) The perfect works of Jesus: Fortunately for you, He did them in your place. He fulfilled 613 Jewish laws, some folks say. I have never counted them. This means Jesus tithed when He was a carpenter. If not, he would have broken the Law and would not have been the perfect sacrifice, the Lamb without blemish and without spot.

3.) Grace is NOT unconditional: the condition to receive grace is that you must humble yourself.

~ James 4:6,7 - "But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."

~ 1Peter 5:5 - "Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble."

~ James 4:10 - "Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He shall lift you up."

4.) Apprehend that for which also I am apprehended [Phil.3:12]

<> Attain unto the resurrection of the dead, not as though I had already attained

<> Seek the Word as a newborn craves milk

<> Embrace the Word; Cling to the Word

<> Treasure the Word within your heart

<> Tend your heart garden: water, move stones, weeds

<> Keep keeping the faith; finish the race

<> Fight the good fight; stay the course

<> Turn that lame foot back onto the path

<> Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together

<> Be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding

<> Hope to the end for the grace ... unto you

<> Study to shew thyself approved unto God

<> Watch ye therefore, be sober, and pray

<> Putting on the whole armour of God

<> Pray without ceasing with all supplication

<> Having done all to stand, stand therefore

<> Holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord

<> When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?

<> Without faith it is impossible to please Him

<> They loved not their lives unto the death

<> They overcame ... by the Blood of the Lamb, and by the Word of their testimony

Phil.3:16 - Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing.

2 Peter 1:9 - But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. 10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: 11 For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

CALVINISM REVISITED

We said up above "How can God judge us if He made us this way?" or "Why doth He yet find fault? For who hath resisted His will?" [Rom.9:19]

Paul answered: "Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?"

Job 42:3,6 - "I have uttered that [which] I understood not; things too wonderful for me, which I knew not ... Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes."

Each day we have a choice to either thank, praise, and bless God; or we can curse Him and complain, murmur, and grumble.

We must be our own 'fruit-inspectors'. The Bible exhorts in several places to judge or examine ourselves; if not, God will judge us:

1Peter 4:17 - "For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?"

1Cor.11:28 - "But let a man examine himself ... 31 For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. 32 But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world."

2Cor.13:5 - "Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?"

Revelation 22:12 - "Behold, I come quickly; and my reward [is] with me, to give every man according as his work shall be."

Gal.5:14 - "For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."

PAUL CROUCH

It was an endearing habit of Paul Crouch to quote from Psalm 34:1, "I will bless the Lord at all times: His praise shall continually be in my mouth."

God bless you and yours in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth, Son of God, Son of David. Amen!

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See also:"The Eternal Security Dilemma" | "Do We Even Need Church?"

Article: "Yes Jesus Did Tithe"

Article: "Messianic Legalism"

Article: "Salvation by Water?"

Article: "Keeping Sabbath Day"

Also: "Denominational or not"

and "Kingdom Dominion Now?"

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