Theological Balance: Faith or Works?

God has revealed himself so that we can know the truth. There is such a great balance in God’s revelation. God is peaceful, whole, and balanced.

Comparing the main arguments of Colossians two and Hebrews six represents a prime example of this. In Colossians two Paul is arguing that we are saved from our record of moral debt only by being united with Christ in his death, burial, and resurrection. He says in verse thirteen that God made us alive together with him. There is nothing we could possibly add to this. God does not depend on us to raise ourselves from the dead! In fact Paul is building to the point that if you add anything to simple faith in the completed work of Christ you will be “disqualified.” Persuasive and deceptive people were trying to convince the new gentile believers that they needed to add to faith in Christ a list of dos and don’ts. They were telling them that faith in Christ was a good start but they needed to add certain works. They needed to keep the Sabbath, celebrate the festivals, and keep a special diet. Think of it this way. You smartly go to Starbucks early for a nice bold cup of coffee. When you take that first highly anticipated sip you are horrified. The taste is horribly wrong. You politely say to the barista, “Hey, ah, there is something seriously wrong with this coffee. “ She explains that they have decided that coffee is not enough by itself, so they have added equal parts of tea, chicory, oregano, and thyme. “Humm, I think you have destroyed the coffee!” Trust the coffee alone. If you add to it you destroy it. If you add to Christ you do not trust his sufficiency. If you add anything to faith in Christ you destroy Christ’s salvation for you, because you have a lack of faith. Who is the savior? Is it you or is it Christ? Trust God, the designer, to design a fully sufficient means of salvation, and then to communicate it perfectly.

OK, so here is the question, since this is true, “sola fide”, then why would anyone walk with God? Why would anyone obey God and live a moral self-sacrificial life? This is where the argument of Hebrews six comes in. The author is urging the troubled believers not to fall away from the faith. If they fall away it may be impossible for them to be restored to repentance. So he tells them in verse twelve that they should imitate “those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.” It is not faith without patience. True saving faith declares itself through an enduring patience. This word patience, macrothumia, is the word for long-suffering. It is a strong durable faith. It is a faith that demonstrates itself by a life of perseverance in good works. God is saying that he wants his people to be robust. He is not interested in people who have a fair-weather commitment. Also in Hebrews six verse eighteen it says that “we who have fled for refuge” need to “hold fast to the hope set before us.” What happens to the person who does not hold fast, who does not have an enduring commitment? Well, you do not want to find out. It may well be that their apostasy demonstrates that they never had true saving faith. Saving faith declares itself with a life of obedience. If there has been a birth, then there will be life.

This then is the balance. Yes, we are saved by faith alone, but it is faith that works. We should never try to convince anyone that they are at peace with God because some years ago they confessed faith and were, perhaps, baptized. As Hebrews six verse twelve says, it is those with faith and enduring commitment who inherit the promises. This faith and enduring commitment are not really two things, but it is as James says “…I will show you my faith by my works.” We should, therefore, try to convince a wanderer to return to a life of faithful obedience. If you are a sheep of Jesus you should and will follow Jesus!