Anyway this is going to be a continuation of my last post. Didn't finish the second part that discussed faith/works cos I was too tired then! haha.
3 We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. 4 The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. - 1 John 2:3-6
First thing to note, in this context, it discusses the Gnostics, who claim that "inner spirituality" is divorced from the physical. So what John is saying here is that essentially countering these claims, and reinstating that faith and works are both important, and one cannot just look at works alone as a judgment of faith. He is NOT talking about believers vs non-believers (eg. the Hindu Gandhi, Catholic Mother Theresa, and countless Buddhist do-gooders), which is another level altogether.
This passage can be quite difficult to explain and I may not be able to explain it fully in all its glory, so before proceeding, I would highly encourage you all to read John chapter 13-15, and James 2:14-26. These will give you much insight into what John is really saying!
Historically, this question of whether faith or works (ie. obeying God's commandments) is the primary component of our "salvation" grade has great value. It is the reason our church is here today. This was one of the bones Martin Luther picked with Roman Catholic church, which caused the breakaway Protestants to form. The 5 main things that his theology differed was:
1. Sola Fida - "Faith Alone"
2. Sola Scriptura - "Scripture Alone". Even today, the Pope has the last say on many issues, such as abortion or gay marriages.
3. Sola Gratias - "Grace Alone"
4. Solus Christus - "Christ Alone"
5. Soli Deo Gloria - "For the glory of God alone"
But our focus here is only on Sola Fida, Faith alone.
Basically, our faith is fundamental to everything. If we personally have no faith, we would not even be discussing this right now. the difference is what you do with this faith!
For us Protestants, our faith should lead to us (in no order of merit) 1. loving God and/or 2. obeying His commands. Many times in the Gospel of John Jesus is recorded saying "If you love me, you will obey my commandments." It is not a threat, but it is only natural, and therfore a sign of whether one is walking right with God! For example, if someone professes to be a Christian, but revels in luxury and has no heart for charity - basically the antithesis of all Christ teaches - you would say that he is "not really a believer" right?
So, our faith (step 1) leads to a love for God and obedience (step 2a) to His commandments (step 2b), and these two mutually feed each other (as in love --> obedience and obedience --> love). Step 3 is when, out of the outflow of the Spirit's working in us, we produce fruits, of which one aspect may be the works that we do. All this is pretty clear cut, and I can analogize it to the growth of a tree, where our faith is a seed, that grows into a fruitful tree when watered with love and obedience, and the result are the fruits which spring forth from the branches!
But, for other fellow believers with whom we do not agree with doctrinally (Catholics, East Christians, Mormons) in this aspect specifically, I would kind of liken their spiritual growth to that of a seed that is dormant (unable to grow/ not growing), but these people show their fruits by plucking them from other trees, putting them in a basket, and treating them like their own. (If I sound contemptuous or accusatory here, I don't mean it! Just an analogy!) They skip the whole of step 2 and jump from 1 to 3!
But in the end, we all know that we are going to have to account for our fruits. How did it come about? If it didn't come from our faith, then it doesn't matter to God. It's not like taking exams - God doesn't look at the end-product only, He also sees the whole process, right from the planting of the seed to its growth.
Once, a famous tightrope walker walked a tightrope across Niagara Falls and back again. The crowd cheered. Then he asked the crowd if they believed he could walk across pushing a wheelbarrow. “Yes! Yes!” the crowd shouted. So he pushed the wheelbarrow across the falls and back again, and the crowd cheered.
Once again, he asked the crowd if they believe that he can do it again, and the faithful crowd shouted "Yes! We believe you can do it!"
Then, the walker pointed to the most enthusiatic person in the crowd and asked, "Then why don't you come up here and sit in the wheelbarrow?"
Faith is the primary thing, but works are necessary to make the seed grow. Do you believe God can wheel you across the Falls on a tightrope?
No comments:
Post a Comment