You may have found a tension in the Bible between being told that you do not have to be perfect to be saved, yet, if you have saving faith, your life should be increasingly perfect as God is.  This can be very troubling, to try to walk both lines, because as Christians we draw great peace from the assurance of our salvation.  Unfortunately, this is in part how legalism, to try to be saved through your works, can creep in, and be appealing to some.  How then, can we enjoy the full assurance of our salvation, without legalism?

Here are some verses juxtaposed against each other, to hopefully illustrate this tension:

Jesus Came to Save Sinners from Judgment
John 12:47-48  ⁴⁷If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. ⁴⁸ The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day.

Jesus Will Judge Sinners
Hebrews 10:26-27 – “For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries.”

We are Saved Apart from Works
Ephesians 2:8-9 – “⁸For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, ⁹ not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

We are Saved For Works
Ephesians 2:10 – ¹⁰For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

We are saved through Belief (Faith) Which Results in Confession of that Truth
Romans 10:9-10 – “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”

There is a False Confession Not Accompanied by Works
Luke 6:46 – “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?”

There is a False Confession Accompanied by Works
Matthew 7:21-23 – “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. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.”

I could go on and on with examples here, and I’m fighting not to go off on a tangent about how important it is to see and meditate on the full counsel of God vs. just one verse (clearly shown from above).  But my heart here today is for your encouragement as you encounter this tension in the Bible, that you would KNOW you are saved, that Christ’s blood covers you fully, that you are His, and He is yours.

What differentiates saving faith that produces works from counterfeit faith?  In short, the Holy Spirit.  Manifestly, this comes from the affections of our heart, fueled by a passion for God’s glory emanating from the Holy Spirit within us.  By the grace of God our eyes have been opened to see Christ as God, Lord, Savior, Friend.  There is no longer enmity between us and Him because of sin, He has removed everything separating us from Him now and forever.  We are free to enter into the joy of our master for all eternity.  What better news could we know and savor, than this?  Compare your current life struggles with knowing for the next 80 Billions years, you will have more joy than you can imagine in the presence of God?  If, by faith, we have come to know Him, to taste this joy even in part – we will want more of Him.  For those of us who have tasted what it means to know Christ, the world will no longer seem the source of pleasure, but unsavory.  We will not be satisfied by temporary pleasures the world would offer us, but we will seek after the fullness of joy for all eternity found only in Christ.

So then, if there is any love for God in the face of Jesus Christ in your heart, that moves you towards Him and away from sin – you can know you are saved.  You are not saved because of your works, but because your love for God from your heart will progressively move you closer to Him and further from sin.  We all will struggle, Christ died to save struggling sinners.  Hope you all had a great weekend, know you’re prayed for, and our treasure is secure in Christ.

Grace and Peace,
Adam