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Good Works and Sola GratiaMar 16 '03 Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line Written for my Augsburg Confession course, this essay examines Good Works and Justification by grace alone -- doctrines that do not contradict each other. They walk hand in hand.
“I’m good enough. I’m smart enough. And dog-gone-it, people like me!” This was the catchphrase of Stuart Smalley, a recurring character on the late-night variety show, Saturday Night Live. Smalley, played by comedian Al Franken, was a self-help guru hosting his own show who often found himself on the low end of his own self-esteem and having to repeat this mantra to himself in the mirror. While meant to be humorous, mantras like this are quite popular and can be found in any number of variations on television and bookshelves. People are taught that everyone is basically good and that that is what is important – being good. Similarly, in response to the question, “Why do you think you will be in heaven?” a common answer is, “Well, I’ve been pretty good.” This belies a basic misunderstanding about human nature and man’s relationship with God. The thought patterns of many people and societies are based on this faulty premise: that man is inherently good. He can improve himself and he can put himself into a right relationship with his fellow man, with the world, with his god. Roman Catholic theology teaches that a man must do good works to earn his salvation. Christ started the job by his work on the cross by making “satisfaction only for original sin.” Man must finish the job, and an “offering could be made for daily sins” (The Unaltered Augsburg Confession [trans. Thompson], p 19, 21). In this case the offering was the Mass, but other good works, “satisfactions,” are acceptable and bring man absolution as well. But, a relationship with God is not based on good works. Put a man’s works onto God’s scales, and that man’s works are found lacking. He is found lacking because God demands righteousness, which is sinlessness. This is the truth of Scripture. “’There is no one righteous, not even one’” (Romans 3:10). “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). The punishment for that sin is eternal death in hell (Romans 6:23a). The contrasting truth of Scripture is that God has provided the solution to our problem. He sent his Son into the world to be our Savior (John 3:16). This is his free gift to us (Romans 6:23b). Man receives this gift, as the German Reformers said, sola gratia, by grace alone, and sola fide, by faith alone. There is nothing anyone can do to earn or deserve God’s full and free forgiveness. Martin Luther was clear on that in his explanation of the Third Article of the Creed, “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to him” (Concordia Triglotta p 545, 6). The confessors at Augsburg were clear on this. They confessed in Article XX, “First, that our works cannot reconcile God or merit forgiveness of sins, grace, and justification, but that we obtain this only by faith” (Trig. p 53, XX: 9). That confession became the hallmark of the Reformation, the doctrine upon which the church stands and falls: justification by faith alone. Anything else falls short. Yet, how can the Augsburg Confession in one breath say, “For what in the Church is more certain than that the remission of sins occurs freely for Christ’s sake, that Christ, and not our works, is the propitiation for sins” (Trig. p 339, 79) and in another “[I]t is necessary to do good works” (Trig. p 45, VI: 1)? Are the Reformers confused? Have they contradicted themselves? Does the latter statement in any way undercut justification by grace or limit Christian liberty? The answer is no. There is no fundamental problem with either statement being put side-by-side, when one takes the time to understand the position that the Reformers took on the roles of good works and sola gratia, a position which is really God’s position, as it is based on his clear Word. God’s position is made clear time and again. Above was stated man’s natural state in the world: Man stands before God as sinful, condemned, in need of a Savior. Following this is the Gospel promise: God sent his perfect, sinless Son into the world, to stand in our place, to live an obedient life and die a shameful death, and then to rise again on Easter Sunday. Jesus himself crystallized the sola gratia position when he said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). Paul emphasizes this in his letter to the Ephesians, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast” (2:8,9). And the confessors align themselves with this truth, calling it “a great, yea, everlasting consolation on which the entire salvation of the whole Christian Church depends” (Trig. p 341, 87). And again: “But Christ was given for this purpose, namely, that for his sake there might be bestowed on us the remission of sins, and the Holy Ghost to bring forth in us new and eternal life, and eternal righteousness” (Trig. p 159, 11). Again, “[I]t is certain that we receive remission of sins, neither through our love, nor for the sake of our love, but for Christ’s sake, by faith alone” (Trig. p 163, 26). And should anyone think contrary to this, the Reformers are quick to condemn. “If any one think that he is righteous and accepted on account of his own fulfillment of the Law, and not on account of Christ’s promise, he dishonors this High Priest” (Trig. p 169, 46). There is no room for disagreement. Salvation comes only through the work of Christ. The benefits of this salvation can only be apprehended by faith, created by the Holy Spirit. Scripture is clear on this point and the Augsburg Confession and Apology are clear on this point. On the position and importance of sola gratia there is no doubt, nor disagreement. And so it is time to deal with the issue of good works. What is their role? What is to be said about them? What do the Reformers say and what does God say? In Article VI, quoted above, the position of the confessors concerning good works is made clear. “It is necessary to do good works.” What does this mean? Are the Reformers assigning any merit to good works? No. Time and again the Augsburg confessors put good works into their proper relation with the doctrine of justification by faith alone. Good works are not meritorious. As was quoted above, “[O]ur works cannot reconcile God or merit forgiveness of sins, grace, and justification, but…we obtain this only by faith when we believe that we are received into favor for Christ’s sake, who alone has been set forth the Mediator and Propitiation” (Trig. p 53, XX:9). Again, the Reformers make clear what happens to the one thinking otherwise. “Whoever, therefore, trusts that by works he merits grace, despises the merit and grace of Christ, and seeks a way to God without Christ, by human strength” (Trig. p 54, 10). What then are the Reformers teaching about good works? “Also they teach that this faith is bound to bring forth good fruits” (Trig. p 45, VI:1). Here is the position of the Reformers on good works – they are a fruit of faith, a sign of sanctified life. Works do not merit any grace from God. They do not better man’s position with his Creator and Judge. Rather, good works flow freely from faith. They are an evidence of a living and active faith, and they are “the will of God” (Trig. p 57, 27). In the Apology to Article III, Melanchthon wrote “faith precedes and love follows” (Trig. p 161, 20) and that the love of God cannot be “sundered” from faith (Trig. p 161, 20). Later in the same article of the Apology it is written concerning James 2:24: …here such works are spoken of as follow faith, and show that faith is not dead, but living and efficacious in the heart. James, therefore, did not believe that by good works we merit remission of sins and grace. For he speaks of the works of those who have been justified, who have already been reconciled and accepted, and have obtained remission of sins. Wherefore the adversaries err when they infer that James teaches that we merit remission of sins and grace by good works, and that by our works we have access to God, without Christ as Propitiator. (Trig. p 189, 125) And in the Apology to Article XX, when the Catholics scholars try the same ruse with 2 Peter 1:10 (“Therefore, my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never fall.”), the Reformers call them on it and make the same case. “For Peter speaks of works following the remission of sins, and teaches why they should be done, namely, that the calling may be sure, i.e., lest they may fall from their calling if they sin again. Do good works that you may persevere in your calling” (Trig. p 341-343, 90). This is nothing but a call to sanctified living. Good works flow from faith. They are God’s will for his Christians. “[B]ecause when by faith we have received the Holy Ghost, the fulfilling of the Law necessarily follows, by which love, patience, chastity, and other fruits of the Spirit gradually grow” (Trig. p 343, 92). This is the clear position of the Reformers. They see no contradiction between commanding good works and the doctrine of sola gratia. What about Scripture? There is the James passage to which reference was made above. The last portion of chapter two of James’ epistle (vss. 14-26) is dedicated to this theme of the relation of faith and works. “What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?” The reply: “Show me your faith without deeds and I will show you my faith by what I do….You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone” (vss. 14, 18b, 24). James draws the distinction between intellectual faith that knows there is a God (the faith which even demons possess), and faith that is living and active, that proves itself by fruits. In no way does James put works before faith, for that would be putting the cart before the horse. James makes reference to the patriarch Abraham, and quotes Genesis 15:6, “And the scripture was fulfilled that says, ’Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness’” (James 2:23). To say that James advocates work righteousness would be to pervert the clear message of Scripture. John the Baptist, the apostle John, and Jesus himself preached the same message. To the Pharisees and Sadducees the Baptist preached, “Produce fruit in keeping with repentance” (Matthew 3:8). In his first epistle John wrote, “If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth” (1 John 1:6). Jesus used a similar message to warn his disciples about falses prophets, wolves in sheep’s clothing. “By their fruit you will recognize them….Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them” (Matthew 7:16, 19, 20; cf. the parallel account in Luke 6:43-45). Neither John nor Jesus were preaching a works-first message. Both of them were stressing the concept of the living and active faith, a faith evidenced by good deeds. Paul agrees. The verse that follows the famous Ephesians passage quoted above states the same truth. “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10). This is not the only spot where Paul laid out such a doctrine. Consider these words to the Philippians, “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed…continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose” (2:12, 13). Think also of Paul’s exhortation in 1 Corinthians 13, where he shows the Corinthian Christians “the most excellent way” (12:31). Or there is the famous “fruit of the Spirit” portion of Galatians. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. (5:22-25) Is Paul here advocating works meriting salvation? By no means. He is saying the same thing James, John the Baptist, the Apostle John, and Jesus said, and the same thing that the Reformers said. Good works flow from faith. They are a result of faith. They merit nothing in God’s eyes towards our forgiveness. In fact, any work worked before faith is present is not properly a good work. “We can, however, offer nothing to God unless we have first been reconciled and born again” (Trig. p 207, 189, 190). “From these facts it is apparent that the Law cannot be kept without Christ and the Holy Ghost” (Trig. p 159, 14). All the “good works” of unregenerate man are glittering vices. “[W]ithout faith it is impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6a). How does this affect man’s Christian liberty? Does it bind him to do things he would rather not do because he has to prove his faith? Certainly not. The last clause of the Galatians passage above provides the answer when Paul writes that a Christian is to “keep in step with the Spirit.” As newly born and redeemed children of God the Christian loves God, because he first loved us (1 John 4:19). Without faith man cannot fear God, or love him. With faith, man loves God, fears him, and desires to please him. Man’s heart is truly changed. The heart of man is “renewed and endowed with new affections, so as to be able to bring forth good works” (Trig. p 57, 29). More importantly, man actually has the ability to please God. “We begin to love our neighbors, because our hearts have spiritual and holy movements” (Trig. 157, 4). “[W]hen the Holy Ghost is given, the fulfilling of the Law follows” (Trig. p 173, 61). Antinomians might contend that because of Jesus’ full and free forgiveness of our sins that man is free to be dissolute, to corrupt the body and soul because salvation has already been assured. He might also contend that the law is abolished, gone, disappeared, vanished. Why bother doing good works? We have salvation by faith and grace alone! But this is not the truth of Scripture. The truth of Scripture is that because God has placed his full and free forgiveness into the laps of all mankind (objective justification), the believing man responds with good works that please God. This truth is only made more certain by Scripture. “Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law” (Romans 3:31). “What shall we say then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin, how can we live in it any longer” (Romans 6:1, 2)? Catholics, concerned that abolishing the ability of the Law to save undermines any hope that man might have, may contend that it is foolish to pin all one’s hopes on Jesus. After all, what he did was important, but it surely did not wipe out all the sins of all men for all time. It merely starts man on the way, man has to finish the job with good works, by doing what is in him. Upon this foundation no man should build, for it is not the “foundation already laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 3:11b). Those who try to fulfill the law to earn salvation will always “quake with doubt” and be filled with “uncertainty,” “disquietude,” “torture and anxiety,” and “horrible fear and doubt” (Trig. p 211, 212). God is gracious. He promised a Savior in the garden of Eden. He worked out all of history to fulfill that plan on the cross of Calvary. He provided the Means of Grace, the gospel in Word and Sacrament, to spread that message to all the world. He sends the Holy Spirit into hearts to create faith and build it up. He watches over and protects the crown of his creation. He did everything. Man does nothing. This is the truth the Reformers confessed, the truth of Scripture, the truth that saves. We believe and teach that by faith, for Christ’s sake, we are accounted righteous before God, that we are not accounted righteous because of works without Christ as Mediator, that by works we do not merit the remission of sins, grace, and righteousness, that we cannot set our works against the wrath and justice of God, that works cannot overcome the terrors of sin, but that the terrors of sin are overcome by faith alone, that only Christ the Mediator is to be presented by God. (Trig. p 179, 93) Because of God’s amazing grace, encapsulated in the above confession, and because of the faith implanted in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, we can and will do good works. Because of justification by faith we will live sanctified lives. Because of what God did sola gratia, we do good works. This position lines up flawlessly with the Word of God and in no way takes any honor away from Christ. Man is not good enough or smart enough on his own. God hates the sin and the sinner. But by grace alone God has made it possible for mankind to be saved. He sent his Son into the world when the time was right, and his Son fulfilled everything man could not. Man, powered by faith, responds to this love of God with his own love of the law, with good works that flow freely and wondrously from his faith. Good works and sola gratia. The two do not contradict. The two walk hand in hand when one properly understands the truth of Scripture, the sanctified life that flows from God’s justification by faith. It is because of Jesus Christ that man is good enough. It is because of Jesus Christ that man is smart enough. It is because of Jesus Christ that, dog-gone-it, God loves us!  |
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