Q20. Works-Righteousness

[Pastor Ralph]

Q20. (Ephesians 2:8-9) How does the idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God distort the essential gospel? With that scenario, what is the need for the cross? How does it affect a sense of self-righteousness? Of pride? Of looking down on others rather than loving them? Why is this kind of works-righteousness so ingrained in people? How does an understanding of salvation by grace change this picture?

[Krissi]

I think the reason why works-righteousness is "ingrained" in people is that Christian faith has an ethical component, not just a salvation component. Even salvation has a "work" element to it -- the saved person must ASK to be saved, HUMBLE himself to want God, and have the FAITH of a mustard seed. In other words, there are behavioral and intellectual preconditions to salvation, which the concept of grace slides over or ignores.

It is true that the faith in itself to be saved comes from the Spirit, so in a sense, it's all from God -- the faith to ask for salvation as well as the gift of salvation. But there has to be a human element in salvation, if only the willingness to be saved, otherwise humans would not be responsible for their sin or for asking to be saved. It's that responsibility ... that volition ... that makes grace such a difficult concept.

So, it's not that people are trying to be "good enough" to get to God, but rather that they're unwilling to do the minimum to be saved. They're unwilling to bend, to admit fault, and to cede self-authority to God. They're not saying they're "good" but rather acknowledging, without knowing it, that God's election has passed them up.

Exactly how do the concepts of grace and election coexist?

Salvation by grace does not "change the picture" of the CHRISTIAN who feels uppity because of his/her good behavior. That's a separate issue, in my opinion. Pride, self-righteousness and social or comparative self-elevation are simply sins apart from and subsequent to salvation. These sins don't negate grace. 

 

[Jen]

Q20. (Ephesians 2:8-9) How does the idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God distort the essential gospel? With that scenario, what is the need for the cross? How does it affect a sense of self-righteousness? Of pride? Of looking down on others rather than loving them? Why is this kind of works-righteousness so ingrained in people? How does an understanding of salvation by grace change this picture?

The idea of being able to earn our own salvation makes the gospel null and void, it makes the need of the cross null and void. There is no purpose for Jesus to have come and died for our sins.

Our already inflated egos get more inflated and we become proud and boastful which leads into looking down on others and also loving ourselves as being better than others.

I believe this works-righteousness  attitude or belief goes with our sin nature.  As our sin nature is ingrained in us so is this works-righteousness attitude which says we don't need God.

Understanding  salvation by grace levels the playing field so that no man can boast and all give glory to God, to Jesus alone.

God Bless!

Jen

Numbers 6:24-26

[Lottie]

Q20. (Ephesians 2:8-9) How does the idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God distort the essential gospel? It says that as long as you do some good works that you will get to heaven. That basically you are good enough to get to heaven on your own merit. It ignores the fact that we are all born sinners. That there is nothing we can do to earn salvation. It is a free gift. With that scenario, what is the need for the cross? There isn't any need for a cross when we think we can earn our own way in. How does it affect a sense of self-righteousness?It makes us proud and think that God will accept us on our own merit because of our good works. Of pride? We become proud and and don't want to listen to the truth. We think we can do things our own way like the Pharisees who made a lot of rules up. So do some of us in various religions. Do this and don't do that. Don't drink, don't smoke, play cards or go to movies. Women should have long hair and wear skirts not pants. Of looking down on others rather than loving them?It makes us think we are better than other people who are worse than we are. Ones who we judge because of their clothes or the way they talk or act or what they do. Why is this kind of works-righteousness so ingrained in people?It is because it is the way people think in society now. That they don't need God as long as they do good works they will be accepted. The churches have allowed them to believe this as well. And others don't want to admit they are sinful they believe they are basically good. They believe that all roads lead to heaven. How does an understanding of salvation by grace change this picture? When people find out that salvation is a free gift and they can do nothing to earn it then they realize they need to accept it and admit they are sinners and need a Savior. Once they know how much Jesus suffered for us then they come to accept it and know it is the only way they will get to heaven. They realize that Jesus paid for their sins and made a way for them to be reconciled to God then they come to Him.
 

[Janzie]

On 10/6/2022 at 7:38 PM, Pastor Ralph said:

Q20. (Ephesians 2:8-9) How does the idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God distort the essential gospel? With that scenario, what is the need for the cross? How does it affect a sense of self-righteousness? Of pride? Of looking down on others rather than loving them? Why is this kind of works-righteousness so ingrained in people? How does an understanding of salvation by grace change this picture?

 The idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God distorts the essential gospel because it is depending on oneself, not on the mercy and grace of God.  We cannot save ourselves no matter how good we are.  Paul tried it - it didnt work!  

If we think we can earn salvation there is no need for the cross.  But indeed there is....Our sins need to be nailed to the cross, crucified with Christ that we may receive His freedom and live unto Him.

It affects our thinking that we are good enough and can keep ever law to please God  - we cannot.  It only makes us feel self righteous, prideful, we think we are better than someone else.  We need to love others, have compassion on them, not in competition with them.  It is a gift, by His mercy He rescued us.

Works-righteousness is ingrained in people because we were taught if you do this, you will get that, but you always have to do something first. We never think we should  get a gift we don't deserve.  We have also learned a lot about being independent, and depend on ourselves alot.

Understanding that grace is a gift of God, not of any works that we have done or by anything we have done to earn it, but by His unconditional love and mercy and favor.

[Diane D.]

• God writes the rules and controls the game.  He is the ultimate one who has created and rules the universe.  By trying to earn salvation, we are in essence saying that God is not necessary;  or at least, we can create the most perfect version of ourself and present ourself to him and get judged righteous. This splinters the body of Christ into those that are rich (and can afford to do good works) and those who are poor (and cannot afford to do them) .  Your righteousness may become a different righteousness than my own.  We become righteous in our own eyes.  Ultimately, relying on ourselves for this detracts from the divine Godly essence put in each of us and blinds us to God's truth (which is the only one that counts).
• If we could make ourselves righteous on our efforts, then the Cross is not needed.  It was simply another Jewish murder.
• Self-righteousness is never good.  In fact, it is a flag that we need to do a major readjustment to our attitudes. When what we do and think is not relevant, but only faith is and our trust in God, we are following the path that He wants us to follow. It is also the SAFEST and best path for us, because He who gave us this gift has the power and desire for us to keep it.  For some reason, God wants a close relationship with us!  Marvelous!

[BoazNigel]

The idea that we can earn salvation by being 'good enough' runs counter to the Gospel because we are not 'good enough'! - we are sinners ... only Jesus is 'good enough' to die in our place

Such a view negates the power of the Cross - the Cross is essential we cannot earn our salvation!

Thinking we can earn our salvation artifucially inflates our ego, our sense of 'self righteousness', our pride & causes us to look down on those we consider to be 'not good enough'

This false idea of works-righteousness is rooted in self effort & pride ... & is 'flipped' by the truth of God's grace

[hanks]

Q20. (Ephesians 2:8-9) 
How does the idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God distort the essential gospel? With that scenario, what is the need for the cross? How does it affect a sense of self-righteousness? Of pride? Of looking down on others rather than loving them? Why is this kind of works-righteousness so ingrained in people? How does an understanding of salvation by grace change this picture?
The gospel teaches us that our salvation is not based on good works, and that we cannot earn or merit it. Good examples are: Rom 3:20; 4:4-5; 11:5-6; Gal 2:16; 3:11; Eph 2:9, but there are many more. We distort the gospel if we believe that it is good people who go to heaven. Rather it is sinners who have been saved by God's grace who will spend eternity with Him. Good works do not earn salvation, they are the result of salvation. We cannot save ourselves by good works, since all our righteous deeds are like filthy rags in God’s sight (Isa 64:6). So, we need a Saviour, we need the cross. It is through the redemptive work of Christ Jesus on the cross that God reckons us righteous by an act of amazing grace. This is a righteousness that saves and comes directly from God the Father through divine grace. Not a self-righteousness that comes from our own deeds. Today we are wary of anything that is free or at a cheap price. The more expensive an item is the better it must be; think of cosmetic and perfume manufacturers who exploit this idea. So, it is with us, we would rather trust our own righteous deeds than the free gift God offers us. The moment we add works of any kind salvation it is no longer by grace (Rom 11:6). Saved by works is open to abuse, resulting in boasting and prideful behaviour, even considering others inferior to ourselves. Work-righteousness dilutes the reason for the death of Christ. We know that the reason He died was because there was no other way by which guilty sinners could be saved. Salvation by grace is not based on a human standard of righteousness but only on the absolute perfection of God. Only the righteousness of divine perfection can meet this standard. In grace God gives His own righteousness to us who receive Jesus Christ as Saviour. And it is when we are in Christ that we are clothed in His righteousness. 
 

[Irmela]

Q20. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

How does the idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God distort the essential gospel?

If we can earn salvation by something that we do, then why did we need Christ to die in our place.  The gospel is the good news that our sins have been paid for and we have salvation as a gift.  We need just accept and allow Christ to change us into His image

With that scenario, what is the need for the cross?

If it was by works then the cross was not needed.  Then Christ died in vain.  The question that would come up then is, when is works good enough?

How does it affect a sense of self-righteousness? Of pride? Of looking down on others rather than loving them?

Very quickly the ideas would flourish that one set of works was better than another set.  No surety whatsoever.  Pride, jealousy, malice etc., would rule over these issues. No love for the next person but rather fear that one was not good enough or alternately the thinking of I am much better than you.  So there would come the pride and looking down on the next person. 

Why is this kind of works-righteousness so ingrained in people?

We need to feel that we had something to do with it.  We feel we cannot just accept a gift, so easily we take it to be begging and that is a pasttime frowned upon by most people.   Here we don't need to be dependent on the giver.   By nature being, self- centered,  works-righteousness has an appeal to it that one can gain it oneself.  We don't need to rely on anyone.

How does an understanding of salvation by grace change this picture?

It is the same for everyone. Works has nothing to do with it.  One cannot outdo the other one in earning salvation.  No one has earned this salvation, it is completely and utterly a gift, for kings and paupers alike.  Christ died for all.   He took our place.   It is by grace and grace alone   .   .  .  unmerited favour.

 

[Rob Mc.]

He declares, “I am a Christian.  I attend church every Sunday.  I look out for others (and usually stay out of their way).  I give money to the needy, well, at least I give money to some charities. I do, I’m doing, I will continue to do; see God, I am a good person.  Because of what I do for myself, my family, and others, I know that I am going to heaven.”  In this man’s mind he is a God supporting person and DESERVES Heaven.  It is the common mindset of many, but as we know, inherently wrong. 

God came to Earth through His Son, Jesus Christ, He lived as a man, felt what a man feels, experienced the daily trials that man faces, and then, when he better understood the reasons why man would NEVER be successful in loving God first, He showered his love (grace) onto us.  His Son gave his life, HIS LIFE for us, dying a horrible death so that we could finally have a foolproof way to get to heaven.  This is Love, Grace and Salvation.

"But wait," he says, "I am doing all the right things!  Why isn’t that enough?  I proudly do everything right, looking around to see how much more I am doing that everyone else.  I give more, I pray more, I am a pillar in the community.  Aren’t I the true believer and shouldn’t I automatically get into heaven?"

I was raised in the Catholic church, and the two things that always puzzled me were (1) Purgatory, where you wait, and wait some more, to see if you will be granted a ticket to get into heaven, and (2) that other people could pray you into heaven, meaning by THEIR actions, you can be granted salvation.  WoW!

[Katy]

Q20. The gospel teaches ‘All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God’ Romans 3v 23. We cannot do anything which will solve our sin problem. That is why Jesus came into this world to die on the cross. Only He was sinless and therefore good enough to satisfy God and save us from our sins. Nothing we can do will make us able to pay for our own sins. ‘All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags’. To believe otherwise is a distortion of the gospel. 
If we could earn our own salvation there would have been no need for Jesus to come into this sinful world and be tortured and crucified.

If we are under the allusion that we can earn our way into Heaven, we will be filled with pride, and self righteousness. This May then in turn make us feel superior and we may look down on others who aren’t so ‘ knowledgeable’! Instead of having this attitude we should be loving those around us just like Jesus. Our whole lives must be lived out using Jesus as our example. We never hear or read of Jesus being proud, self righteous or haughty. I am not sure where this ides of a works based righteousness comes from but I know for me it was taught both at home and school. When we learn about Jesus and His salvation we learn that Jesus did everything for us by dying on the cross because He loves us. He gives us eternal life as a gift . All we need to do is believe in Him and entrust our lives to Him.

[haar]

Q20. (Ephesians 2:8-9) How does the idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God distort the essential gospel?

Earning salvation by being good distorts the gospel because the gospel teaches that salvation is not by works but by God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ.

With that scenario, what is the need for the cross?

The cross is necessary because the shedding of the blood is necessary for the remission of sin-our sin. However, God’s grace and mercy made Jesus to die on our behalf and all we need to do is to put our faith in Christ to avail ourselves our salvation.

How does it affect a sense of self-righteousness? Of pride? Of looking down on others rather than loving them?

The finished work of Jesus on the cross paid the penalty of our sin. There is therefore no place for our self-righteousness, pride or any reason for anyone to look down on others.

Why is this kind of works-righteousness so ingrained in people? How does an understanding of salvation by grace change this picture?
 

The human nature is inclined to thinking of salvation by merit and works. We however need the help of the holy spirit to help us remember always that salvation is by the grace of God and by faith in Jesus alone.

[Zanele Tlhakanelo]

It distorts the essential gospel because we must all understand that salvation is a gift from God and not a reward for having done good deeds because if it were a reward, we will all be boasting for the good works that we continue to do. That is why the Word of God says "let your right hand not know what your left hand is doing".

If salvation were because of our good works, the Cross would have been in vain. We must understand that there is nothing that would have rescued us from eternal death had it not been of Jesus Christ saying "Yes to the will of God". Absolutely nothing. We needed Christ to rescue us and give us eternal life.

We do not have any sense of self-righteousness nor pride because we could not save ourselves. No matter how big we can go doing good to others, it just cannot take away what God has done for us. The good that we do for others is but temporary but what God has done for us is eternal therefore, we cannot look down upon others and think that we are better than them.

There is nothing wrong in doing good for other people but that does not make us righteous. It is only the Holy Spirit that works in us to understand that salvation comes through grace and faith. God does not impose Himself to us by allows the Holy Spirit to do His work for us to understand His favor upon us.

[lighthouse2014]

The idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God has completely annulled the gospel. The gospels teach us that Jesus taught that by faith you are saved and that is a gift of God, not by works or obedience to the law.

By this scenario we are spiritually dead, relying on law or our own idea of worthiness before God, thinking that would be good enough to earn our into heaven. By contrast Jesus has taken our unworthy sinfulness upon himself by giving his life for us, that those who come to faith in him will receive salvation from his works on the cross.

Realizing and receiving the work of Christ on the cross our salvation changes our perception of self righteous, pride and instead of looking down at others we love them as Christ has loved us. 

Works righteousness is so ingrained in a lot of people because they believe there is a God, but believe there is no way God would condemn them if they did good works and helped others.

The understanding of salvation through grace helps us realize that we cannot be justified before God for our own righteousness, only by faith we understand what God has done for us. It is only through faith that salvation by grace has been granted to us.               

[Debra Grant]

Q20. (Ephesians 2:8-9) How does the idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God distort the essential gospel? With that scenario, what is the need for the cross? How does it affect a sense of self-righteousness? Of pride? Of looking down on others rather than loving them? Why is this kind of works-righteousness so ingrained in people? How does an understanding of salvation by grace change this picture?

1. Jesus did not die on the cross for us to earn salvation because we can not earn it. No matter what we do, it is a good work for our grace that has been given to us by God. Salvation is a gift from God and not of our so called good deeds. We are saved and received grace from God not because we were good, therefore, we cannot boast, but be thankful to God.

2. The cross was a way of us receiving salvation through Jesus dying for us and having mercy and grace for us. We would be in sin continuously if Jesus did not shade his powerful blood and die in our place.

3. The need for the cross is for us to realize the love Jesus has for us by dying on the cross and being an example that we can do the will of God. Therefore, we must understand that we are no better than anyone by expressing our love and not being prideful.

4. We learn that receiving God and living for him we must obey, love, and do what is necessary to accomplish getting closer to him spiritually.

5. Realizing that we are saved by the love, grace, and mercy of God. We must have true faith in God always.

[t-c]

Q20. (Ephesians 2:8-9) How does the idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God distort the essential gospel? With that scenario, what is the need for the cross? How does it affect a sense of self-righteousness? Of pride? Of looking down on others rather than loving them? Why is this kind of works-righteousness so ingrained in people? How does an understanding of salvation by grace change this picture?

It takes the focus of Christ’s work on the cross for our salvation and puts it on us. It’s a gift we can’t earn it; we can only accept or reject it.

If we could ever be good enough, (we can’t) then there was no need for Christ’s sacrifice on the cross.

If we could be good enough we could rely on our own righteousness; but only Christ was sinless so we have to depend and rely upon Christ’s righteousness. No other standard is good enough.

On pride; we’d be full of it, saying look how good I am!

We look down on others because we are good enough but maybe they aren’t. Maybe we think they are not working as hard as we did so they don’t even deserve salvation. So they get our pity rather than our love.                            
 

It’s a hard concept for us, free gift of salvation. “For by grace you have be saved through faith.” That’s a tough concept; how do you measure faith. Work I can measure but faith… We are by nature doers and prideful. Grace and free gifts humble us. So good works come after our salvation, not before. Gratitude and humility.

It puts the focus back on Christ, where it belongs and what He has done. We did nothing to deserve this amazing grace!

[Dixter Kaluba]

Q20. It is in our culture to seek credit for doing something. This is also an extension of the Hebrew religion most of whose teachings are followed in the new old testament. in this context, the cross and its purpose will appear as thought it is valueless. However, the Gospel is that, "for God loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life" This changed the narrative because Christ stood not only for our sins but for sin offerings.

The cross changed the narrative for everyone. We no longer require to do something to be saved but only to believe in Him who came from heaven to come and die for us even when he was without blemish. The cross still has relevance in my salvation.

People by nature always want to outshine others. The sense of self righteousness has been devalued by the Gospel of Mercy and Grace. No one can equate the action of God of sending his begotten son who came to be a ransom for the wickedness of the world and its reconciliation to God. There is no more levels of sin, every person just needs to believe

It brings humility in believers because now to access salvation; the playing filed has been levelled to that of Mercy through Grace.

 

 

[pickledilly]

The central message of the gospel is that there is no way for sinful humanity to make ourselves acceptable to God with attempts to be righteous through our works and self-effort rather than through faith in what He has already done to provide a righteous cover and pardon for us. That cover and pardon were eternally secured on the cross, as the innocent blood of Jesus was offered in our place for atonement and redemption. This truth is distorted by the worldly view of humanism (from subtle satanic influence) that elevates man to supremacy over God at its core, thinking that we are capable of defining what is virtuous and guiltless as well as how to attain it. (I like Pastor Ralph’s labels of “works-righteousness” and “gift-righteousness”.)

I think our God-given responsibility to choose (or, as most people say, our “right to choose”) has been corrupted into a self-centered mindset that elevates mankind into his own god who thinks we can define our own version and method of securing righteousness by our works, which is humanistic and utterly futile. Our pride in self is a barrier to the humility required to acknowledge our sin and transgression before God, confess our need for redemption, and accept the gift of the righteousness of Christ that God has provided for us through the cross and empty tomb of Jesus.

Understanding grace changes everything. Once we grasp the truth that we are corrupt and unholy by nature with no capacity to make ourselves good enough for God’s forgiveness, we are finally in a position to discern the truth and value of His merciful grace. He provided what is impossible for us to do – pardon and redemption – and it is freely given but can only be gained by faith. Thank You, thank You Jesus!

[JOLLAM BANDA]

The idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God distort the essential gospel because God saves us, not because of righteous things we have done, but because of his mercy, having been justified by his grace. To think that we could earn salvation on our own is an insult God the father and Jesus Christ who died for us on the cross. We are saved by God's favor and not by our own goodness. A works-righteousness puts us in control; a gift-righteousness makes us utterly dependent upon the God the Giver. Saying you have faith isn't enough. Your faith needs to be evidenced in your actions, your deeds, your lifestyle. If it isn't, it probably isn't genuine faith. If it isn't, you're probably kidding yourself about really trusting God with your life. Faith that hasn't affected our lives, then it probably isn't real but "dead.

[Old Jerry]

The idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God distorts the account that Jesus died for our sins and that we could never be good enough to face God on our own. If we could do it on our own then that would be self-righteousness. We think that we can do all thing by ourselves and we don’t need any help. If we work had enough, God will be obligated to us. That isn’t true because salvation is by grace and has nothing to do with what we have done.

[Lisa Wolf]

Q20. (Ephesians 2:8-9) How does the idea of earning salvation by being good enough for God distort the essential gospel? With that scenario, what is the need for the cross? How does it affect a sense of self-righteousness? Of pride? Of looking down on others rather than loving them? Why is this kind of works-righteousness so ingrained in people? How does an understanding of salvation by grace change this picture? 

The essential gospel is that salvation is God's gift -- free to us--He did all of the work. The cross is pivotal to our salvation. The cross and the resurrection give us forgiveness and new life.  Colossians 2:14 states, "When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross."  Further Colossians reminds us in 3:1, "Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God," and  Romans 5:1 reminds us, "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God."

How does all of this affect a sense of self-righteousness? Truly, if you understand what a sinner you are and you know you need Christ's salvation - the cross and resurrection, God's grace and mercy, --how can we EVER consider ourselves better than anyone else.  Works-righteousness is ingrained in humans.  We would rather rebel against God and figure things out our own way than to admit our shortcomings and our need for a Savior.