Are You

1
Are You Good Enough
to be saved?
2
Believing in Salvation by Grace.

• Can brethren today say, wholeheartedly,
  along with the apostles
  We believe that we are
  saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus (Acts
  1511)?
• Salvation is a favor bestowed freely by God, a
  gift we did not deserve.

3
Yet some think and talk this way

• Am I good enough? Have I done enough? Have I
  pleased God enough that I may enter Heaven?

4
The Hymn
Will it Do, Precious Lord?

• Will my two weary feet and my work hardened
  hands be enough when Im passing with you? If I
  work, if I pray to the end of the way, will it do
  precious Lord, will it do? Will it do when I come
  to the end of the way? My trophies are few, but
  Lord I can say That I have tried to be honest
  and I tried to be true. Will it do precious Lord,
  will it do?

5

• Many have been deceived by evil workers who
  leave grace out of the gospel.

6
Philippians 32-3 (NASB)

• Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers,
  beware of the false circumcision 3 for we are
  the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit
  of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no
  confidence in the flesh.

7
Galatians 16-7 (KJV)

• 6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him
  that called you into the grace of Christ unto
  another gospel7 Which is not another but there
  be some that trouble you, and would pervert the
  gospel of Christ.

8

• Just as salvation by grace only or faith only
  is falsehood, so is
  salvation by works only a false doctrine which
  can cause us to be lost.

9

• Preachers, who emphasize obedience, yet fail to
  preach on our need for Gods grace, fail to
  preach the whole counsel of God!
  (Acts 2027).

10

• Without understanding grace, we will offer our
  good works to God in a meritorious manner
  (i.e. believing that we
  must somehow do enough to deserve salvation)

11
Believing in salvation by grace is essential to
our freedom in Christ.

• Acts 1510 "Now therefore why do you put God to
  the test by placing upon the neck of the
  disciples a yoke which neither our fathers nor we
  have been able to bear?
  Without grace, the New Law is also a burden!
• Acts 1511 "But we believe that we are saved
  through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same
  way as they also are."

12
Does the New Testament Teach That We Must Be
Good enough to be saved?

• Many New Testament passages teach that we will be
  judged according to our deeds.
  Examples Mat. 1627 2 Cor. 510 Gal. 66-10
  Col. 323-25 Rev. 223 2012 2212.

13
Matthew 1627 (NASB)

• "For the Son of Man is going to come in the
  glory of His Father with His angels and will
  then recompense every man according to his deeds.

14
Therefore, must our good deeds outweigh our bad
deeds on Judgment Day?

• Then, he whose balance (of good deeds) will be
  (found) heavy, Will be in a life of good pleasure
  and satisfaction. But he whose balance (of good
  deeds) will be (found) light,- Will have his home
  in a (bottomless) Pit.
  SURAH 1016-9, The Holy Quran

15
The Gospel is Not a
Meritorious Law System!

• Gods justice is satisfied only by the blood of
  Jesus Christ.
• The foundation of Gods justice is the principle
  of exact retribution (Psalm 6212).
• Yet, God will NOT strike a balance by rewarding
  Christians whose goods deeds outweigh their bad
  deeds! (cf. Rom. 25-11)

16
Romans 25-8 (NASB)

• 5 But because of your stubbornness and
  unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for
  yourself in the day of wrath and revelation of
  the righteous judgment of God, 6 who will render
  to every man according to his deeds 7 to those
  who by perseverance in doing good seek for glory
  and honor and immortality, eternal life
  8 but to those who are selfishly ambitious and
  do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness,
  wrath and indignation.

17
Romans 29-11 (NASB)

• 9 There will be tribulation and distress for
  every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first
  and also of the Greek, 10 but glory and honor and
  peace to every man who does good, to the Jew
  first and also to the Greek. 11 For there is no
  partiality with God.
• Does this teach that we must be good enough to
  be saved!?!

18
How good is good enough?

• Rom 212-13 (NASB) 12 For all who have sinned
  without the Law will also perish without the Law
  and all who have sinned under the Law will be
  judged by the Law 13 for not the hearers of the
  Law are just before God, but the doers of the Law
  will be justified. (i.e., Perfect obedience!)

19
Romans 310, 23 (NASB)

• 10 as it is written, "There is none righteous,
  not even one
• 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the
  glory of God,

20

• So how will the penalty
  of our sins be paid?
  How can Gods justice
  be satisfied?
  Only through
  the blood of Jesus!

21
Romans 324-25 (NASB)

• 24 being justified as a gift by His grace
  through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus
  25 whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation
  in His blood through faith. This was to
  demonstrate His righteousness, because in the
  forbearance of God He passed over the sins
  previously committed

22
Romans 326-28 (NASB)

• 26 for the demonstration, I say, of His
  righteousness at the present time, that He might
  be just and the justifier of the one who has
  faith in Jesus. 27 Where then is boasting? It is
  excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but
  by a law of faith. 28 For we maintain that a man
  is justified by faith apart from works of the Law.

23

• The law of faith declares that we are
  justified by faith apart from works of the
  law (Rom. 328) Apart from ANY law-keeping
  in attempt to merit salvation.

24
Philippians 39 (NASB)

• And may be found in Him, not having a
  righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but
  that which is through faith in Christ, the
  righteousness which comes from God on the basis
  of faith,

25
The Gospel is Not a
Meritorious Law System!

• Gods justice is satisfied only by the blood of
  Jesus Christ.
• Justification by faith (Rom. 41-5).

26
Romans 41-5 (NASB)

• 1 What then shall we say that Abraham, our
  forefather according to the flesh, has found? 2
  For if Abraham was justified by works, he has
  something to boast about but not before God. 3
  For what does the Scripture say? "And Abraham
  believed God, and it was reckoned to him as
  righteousness." 4 Now to the one
  who works, his wage is not reckoned as a favor,
  but as what is due. 5 But to the
  one who does not work, but believes in Him who
  justifies the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as
  righteousness,

27

• Unable to boast by his good works, Abraham was
  justified by faith!
• Works refers to the law of works (Rom. 327),
  the attempt to meet the full quota of good
  works of Gods law.

28

• Abraham did not attempt to earn salvation by his
  good works, but demonstrated a living faith which
  was credited to him as righteousness.
• Genesis 156, which Paul quotes, does not record
  the first time Abraham was justified before God
  (Gen. 121-4 / Heb. 118-10).
• Abrahams faith in God was not faith alone, but
  an obedient faith which trusted in God (James
  220-24).

29
The Gospel is Not a
Meritorious Law System!

• Gods justice is satisfied only by the blood of
  Jesus Christ.
• Justification by faith (Rom. 41-5).
• Justification by the merit of our good deeds is
  NOT possible (Rom. 44 cf. 310, 23).

30
Romans 44 (NASB)

• Now to the one who works, his wage is not
  reckoned as a favor (grace), but as what is due.

31

• The serious problem in this approach is that a
  person would have to obey the law flawlessly!
  (cf. Romans 310, 23)
• There can be no other kind of
  worker that God owes
  a reward!

32
The Gospel is Not a
Meritorious Law System!

• Gods justice is satisfied only by the blood of
  Jesus Christ.
• Justification by faith (Rom. 41-5).
• Justification by the merit of our good deeds is
  NOT possible (Rom. 44 cf. 310, 23).
• The blood of Jesus is the source of our
  righteousness.

33

• Since man fails to perform good works perfectly,
  he cannot
  be credited righteousness from God
  unless he is forgiven of his sins.

34
Romans 46-8 (NASB)

• 6 Just as David also speaks of the blessing upon
  the man to whom God reckons righteousness apart
  from works 7 "Blessed are those whose lawless
  deeds have been forgiven, and whose sins have
  been covered. 8 "Blessed is the man whose sin
  the Lord will not take into account."

35
In What Sense Will We be Judged According to our
Works?

• We will be held accountable for all the evil
  deeds we did not repent of and receive
  forgiveness for.
• Those who do not obey the gospel to have their
  sinned washed away (Ac 238 2216) will receive
  eternal condemnation (2 Thes. 16-9).
• God is faithful to forgive Christians of their
  sins, but we must repent and confess our sins to
  be forgiven (Ac 822 1 Jn 19)

36

• We can be judged and condemned by the evil deeds
  we committed which we did not repent of and
  receive forgiveness (Rev. 2012).

37
Revelation 2012 (NASB)

• And I saw the dead, the great and the small,
  standing before the throne, and books were
  opened and another book was opened, which is the
  book of life and the dead were judged from the
  things which were written in the books, according
  to their deeds.

38
In What Sense Will We be Judged According to our
Works?

• We will be held accountable for all the evil
  deeds we did not repent of and receive
  forgiveness for.
• Our deeds in life demonstrate our faithfulness or
  unfaithfulness to God.

39
2 Corinthians 56-9 (NASB)

• 6 Therefore, being always of good courage, and
  knowing that while we are at home in the body we
  are absent from the Lord 7 for we walk by
  faith, not by sight 8 we are of good courage,
  I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the
  body and to be at home with the Lord. 9 Therefore
  also we have as our ambition, whether at home or
  absent, to be pleasing to Him.

40
2 Corinthians 510 (NASB)

• For we must all appear before the judgment seat
  of Christ, that each one may be recompensed for
  his deeds in the body, according to what he has
  done, whether good or bad.

41
Revelation 1413 (NASB)

• And I heard a voice from heaven, saying, "Write,
  'Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from
  now on!'" "Yes," says the Spirit, "that they may
  rest from their labors, for their deeds follow
  with them."

42
Philippians 212-13 (NASB)

• 12 So then, my beloved, just as you have always
  obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much
  more in my absence, work out your salvation with
  fear and trembling 13 for it is God who is at
  work in you, both to will and to work for His
  good pleasure.

43
Salvation Depends not on being Good enough, but
on Our Faith in Christ.

• The attitude we bring in our service to God will
  justify or condemn us (Luke 189-14).

44
Luke 189-12 (NASB)

• 9 And He also told this parable to certain ones
  who trusted in themselves that they were
  righteous, and viewed others with contempt 10
  "Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a
  Pharisee, and the other a tax-gatherer. 11 "The
  Pharisee stood and was praying thus to himself,
  'God, I thank Thee that I am not like other
  people swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even
  like this tax-gatherer. 12'I fast twice a week I
  pay tithes of all that I get.'

45
Luke 1813-14 (NASB)

• 13 "But the tax-gatherer, standing some distance
  away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to
  heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, 'God,
  be merciful to me, the sinner!' 14 "I tell you,
  this man went down to his house justified rather
  than the other for everyone who exalts himself
  shall be humbled, but he who humbles himself
  shall be exalted."

46

• How we view our service to God will determine our
  eternal salvation!

47
Salvation Depends not on being Good enough, but
on Our Faith in Christ.

• The attitude we bring in our service to God will
  justify or condemn us.
• Good works must never be done in an attempt to be
  good enough.
• If you view your good works as the means of
  achieving your salvation, you will lose your
  salvation in the end!

48
Works only severs us from Christ!

• Gal 54 (NASB) You have been severed from
  Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by
  law you have fallen from grace.

49
Where righteousness comes from

• Gal 55 (NASB) For we through the Spirit, by
  faith, are waiting for the hope of righteousness.

50
Salvation Depends not on being Good enough, but
on Our Faith in Christ.

• The attitude we bring in our service to God will
  justify or condemn us.
• Good works must never be done in an attempt to be
  good enough.
• Works of obedience is a demonstration of our
  faith in God who saves us.

51
Hebrews 59 (NASB)

• And having been made perfect, He became to all
  those who obey Him the source of eternal
  salvation,

52
Titus 34-7 (NASB)

• 4 But when the kindness of God our Savior and
  His love for mankind appeared, 5 He saved us, not
  on the basis of deeds which we have done in
  righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the
  washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy
  Spirit, 6 whom He poured out upon us richly
  through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 that being
  justified by His grace we might be made heirs
  according to the hope of eternal life.

53

• God does the saving not us,
  but if we want to be saved
  we must demonstrate genuine faith by our works of
  obedience (James 214-26).

54
Salvation Depends not on being Good enough, but
on Our Faith in Christ.

• The attitude we bring in our service to God will
  result in either our justification or
  condemnation.
• Good works must never be done in an attempt to be
  good enough.
• Works of obedience is a demonstration of our
  faith in God who saves us.
• Believe in Christ and the power of Gods grace.

55
Believe in Christ and the power of Gods grace.

• To maintain our hope of Eternal life, we must
  continue in the grace of God (Acts 1343)
  throughout life.
• Never again, when contemplating your eternal
  salvation, say to yourself Am I
  good enough to enter Heaven?
• Salvation is a free gift of God which we could
  never hope to earn, deserve, or obtain by our own
  efforts (Eph. 24-10).

56
Ephesians 24-7 (NASB)

• 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His
  great love with which He loved us,
  5 even when we were dead in our
  transgressions, made us alive together with
  Christ (by grace you have been saved),
  6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us
  with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus,
  7 in order that in the ages to come He might show
  the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness
  toward us in Christ Jesus.

57
Ephesians 28-10 (NASB)

• 8 For by grace you have been saved through
  faith and that not of yourselves, it is the gift
  of God 9 not as a result of works, that no one
  should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship,
  created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God
  prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

58

• By Gods mercy and love for us, we can in Christ
  be good enough to enter Heaven!

59

• No One is Good enough to be Saved without
  the Grace of
  Our Savior.
  Let Us Never Set Aside the Grace
  of God in the Plan of Salvation (Gal. 220-21).