Redemption Through Faith Alone

Yesterday we read Jesus' words 'It is finished'. It is ‘perfectly perfect.’ Everything that ever needed to be done to pay for the punishment for the sins of all people and to receive forgiveness and redemption for all mankind, is fully accomplished through Christ's suffering and death on the cross. In the light of this, any attempt by any man to earn salvation by his own good works is in effect an insult both to God the Father and to God the Son. It carries the implication that the work of atonement and salvation, planned by the Father and carried out by the Son, is in some sense inadequate or incomplete. This is contrary to the unanimous testimony of the entire New Testament.

Paul continually and emphatically teaches this. For example, in Romans 4:4-5 he says:

“Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness.”

Notice the phrase “to him who does not work but believes.” In order to obtain salvation by faith, the first thing any man must do is to stop “working” – to stop trying to earn salvation. Salvation comes through faith alone, through doing nothing but believing. So long as a man tries to do anything whatever to earn salvation, he cannot experience the salvation of God which is received by faith alone.

This was the great mistake which Israel made, as Paul – himself an Israelite – explains.

“But Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it. Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works.” (Rom. 9:31-32, NIV)

Again Paul says concerning Israel:

“For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God.” (Rom. 10:3)

Why did Israel fail to obtain the salvation God had prepared for them? Paul gives two reasons, which go very closely together: 1) “they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works,” 2) they sought to “establish their own righteousness.”

In other words, they tried to earn salvation by something which they themselves did in their own righteousness. As a result, those who did this never entered into God’s salvation.