“Faith without works is dead.” – James 2:26
I go to a lot of Christian conferences…A LOT. And it always perplexes me a bit to hear “you will go to heaven because you are already saved by the blood of Jesus.” Or that His cross and resurrection assure your eternal life. Yes, I know these are true statements, but looking at the Bible teachings, I think they are only part of our salvation story. I believe with all my heart that if I don’t do the work God has cut out for me, do His will for me as He’s called me to do according to His plan and purpose for me, I will probably not get into heaven, at least not right away. Yes, my belief and faith in Jesus will save me a place. And my works alone will not open the door…but I believe without them, the entryway may be very narrow indeed.
Jesus on Getting into Heaven:
Here are just a few things Jesus said in the Gospels that make me realize I also need to do work to keep my faith alive:
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” (Matt. 7:21-23)
“For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.” (Matt. 16:27)
“Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.” (John 5:28-29)
“Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God” (Matt. 19:24)
No One Said It Would Be Easy.
Work is hard. Whether you’re taking care of kids, teaching, preaching, acting, writing, financing, creating, coaching, selling…even if you are serving God and others through your job, work is hard. When Adam and Eve were cast out of the Kingdom for being disobedient, part of their penalty for eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil was to have to fend for themselves by working. Still, joy can be had in what you do if you have faith it is God’s will for you to be doing it, and if you are somehow spreading his Word through your words and actions and serving Him and others. (Take a look at St. Paul for example, who wrote more than half the New Testament from a jail cell.) These are good works. I now know my purpose is to spread God’s messages in the Bible through my modern-day novels, teaching others to write for His Kingdom and to fulfill His purpose in them, and now, making The Jealous Son Movie. All I’ve done and continue to do is a learning process where I’ve fallen and gotten back up to keep running my race. The key word is running.
Don’t Wait ‘Til It’s Too Late.
Jesus admonishes us through several parables…about the ten virgins having enough oil for their lamps, about separating the sheep and goats, and my personal favorite, the parable of the talents…don’t dilly-dally in our daily ministry and mission. The time to act is always now. Some say the world is falling apart more every day and that the end times are near. No one knows…Jesus told us not even He knows, only God. The end of the world might not be near. But it might.
There’s Still Work To Do.
I heard Stan Jantz, founder and CEO of the “Come and See” Foundation which funds and helps produce “The Chosen” series, speak at the annual ICVM Conference and say there are 3 billion people in the world out of 8.142 billion that still don’t know about Jesus Christ. Yet, that’s still a lesser percentage than ever before, he said, and the gap between those who know Jesus and those who don’t is rapidly closing with the Internet, social media, and all of the Christian “works” being done. Look at the late Charlie Kirk. In life, he was doing good works, and in death, people are passing the torch he lit. Stan said the works we are doing through movies, TV shows, books, podcasts, speaking, preaching and more are getting the Word out. He said perhaps God is waiting for the very last one to know. And it’s up to each and every one of us to reach them, just like Jesus reached out to the “one.”
Dear Lord, help me to use my faith to do good works for you and others, and help my works to show my faith in You.
