God Commands All Believers To Do Good Works

1st Peter 1:15-16, “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.”

As fundamentalist Bible-believing Christians, we hear so much preaching against Lordship Salvation, misunderstood repentance and that you do not have to do “works” to get to Heaven, that it would be very easy to just dismiss the importance and biblical mandate for every born-again believer to “Be ye holy; for I am holy.”

I love the following passage of Scripture, which puts the cookies on the bottom shelf to reach:

Romans 3:26-31, “To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law. Is he the God of the Jews only? is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also: Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith. Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.”

What a Swedish smorgasbord of truth to fill our spiritual belly. I am half Swedish. My biological mother was born in and grew up in the country of Sweden, moving at age 13 with her mother (after my grandfather went to Heaven) to Chicago in the United States. When I learned that the word smorgasbord is Swedish, I started using it more often. The preceding Scripture passage from Romans 3:26-31 is wonderful. Let's look at a few statements, shall we:

1. God justifies whosoever believes (trusts) in Jesus.
2. We are saved by the law of faith, not the law of works.
3. A man is justified by faith without the works of the law.
4. Jews and Gentiles are saved the same way—by faith in Jesus Christ.
5. Whether circumcized or uncircumcizied (as regards ceremonial law), it doesn't matter because both Jew and Gentile are saved by faith alone.
6. Just because we are not saved by keeping the law doesn't excuse us from obeying the law as believers.
7. God still commands every born-again believer to keep the law (morally).

Titus 2:13-14, "Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself 𝗮 𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗿 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲, 𝘇𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀." God desires for all of His children to be ZEALOUS of good works. Ephesians 2:8-9 teaches that we are saved by grace through faith without works; and then verse 10 says that every believer is "𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗝𝗲𝘀𝘂𝘀 𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀, 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝗵𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺" (𝗘𝗽𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝟮:𝟭𝟬𝗯).

Romans 6:1 teaches that if we continue in sin as saints, God's saving grace will abound. Paul asks the question in 𝗥𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝟲:𝟭𝗯, "𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘄𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗶𝗻, 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱?"; and then in verse 2 Paul writes, "𝗚𝗼𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗯𝗶𝗱. 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘄𝗲, 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗶𝗻, 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗻?" The moment that a person gets saved, their life is forever hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 3:1-3). That is because we are bought with a price. 1st Corinthians 6:19-20, “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.” The price is Jesus' precious blood (1st Peter 1:18-19). We literally become God's property, and the Devil knows this means hands off! Our physical body becomes the temple of God's indwelling Holy Spirit (1st Corinthians 3:16-17). Amen and amen.

In The Beatitudes, In Matthew 5:16, Jesus exhorts every believer to, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” No child of God has the Lord's permission to continue in a lifestyle of open sin, blaspheming the Word of God. When God's children live contrary to the holiness which God desires for us to emulate, the Word of God is blasphemed (spoken evil of by the world).

Titus 2:1-5, “But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine: That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.”

When God's children do not live according to the Holy Scriptures, the world speaks evil of the Word of God.

“I’d be a Christian if it were not for the Christians.” —Mahatma Gandhi

Dr. Lester Roloff rightly said: "Jesus saved you so that you WOULDN'T live like that anymore." But if we choose to defy the conviction of the Holy Spirit, and live in terrible sin, then God's grace will still abound (Romans 5:20). Put another way: We fall IN GRACE as believers, but never FROM GRACE! Galatians 5:4, “Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.” I have seen umpteen corrupt preachers try to use this passage of Scripture to teach that salvation can be lost.

Thankfully, they are all wrong! We see directly from the context itself why anyone could ever 'FALL FROM GRACE,' which is because they are attempting to appease God's wrath against sin by keeping the law of works. Romans 3:19-20, “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.” I marvel how any pastor could ever preach the Devil's lie of Lordship Salvation, when the inspired Holy Bible plainly teaches that no one can be saved by doing the works of the law.

In my humble online ministry for Jesus Christ, I often preach against the Devil's lie of Lordship Salvation, because so very few preachers do, and it is a critically important matter of faith; but this in no way means that I do not believe we as God's children are commanded by Him to pursue a lifestyle of holiness, doing good works and living for others (Philippians 2:3-5). 𝟭𝘀𝘁 𝗣𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟭:𝟭𝟱-𝟭𝟲, "𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝘀 𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗵𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗶𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝘆, 𝘀𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝘆𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻; 𝗕𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻, 𝗕𝗲 𝘆𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝘆; 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗜 𝗮𝗺 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝘆."

Good works are not the payment for sin, the payment for sin is death. Yet, billions of religious followers around the world foolishly think that good works are necessary to get to Heaven. Albeit, if you were to pay for your own ticket to Heaven, you would need to burn in Hell forever (Revelation 20:11-15).

Salvation is not a reward for the righteous, it is a gift for the guilty! Salvation is not doing your best, it is having Christ's best put to your account through receiving Him by faith. Turning away from sinful ways would be a work. Faith puts all of the merit where it belongs, on the object of our faith, Jesus and His work. If to “repent” means to forsake our sinful ways TO BE SAVED, but Jesus already paid for our sins by dying on the cross, then what are we repenting from?

The true Gospel always points you to CHRIST; a false gospel always points to YOU.

We must stay true to the simplicity of the Gospel!! Repentance regarding salvation is a change of mind from unbelief to belief!!! We must earnestly contend for the faith (Jude 1:3).