Category: Faith Fix

Question: If we are “saved by grace through faith” and “faith without works is dead,” then if we don’t have works, our faith is dead. If our faith is dead, how can we be saved? We wouldn’t be, correct? So, while we aren’t saved by our works, if we don’t have works, then we must not have faith. And without faith, we’re not saved?

First, let’s look at what you are referring to in scripture as well as a couple of the surrounding verses in context. Ephesians 2:8-10 says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” This is saying that no man has the right to boast as if salvation came from his own doing. It was God’s grace entirely and our trust in that grace that brought about our salvation in Him. Humans always seem to  think that they can do everything on their own. Human ambition and pride can get very ugly, especially as we are called to walk in His will and not our own. Paul is writing to the Ephesians to remind them of these truths. But look at verse 10, it’s so beautiful. We are God’s handiwork, and He created us to do good works that He paved the way for us to be able to do. When Jesus left this earth, He said that we would do greater works than He did while He was here. John 14:12, “Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.” Our purpose, and the purpose of Him leaving, was so that we could do greater works than He did. I believe this is mostly referring to the idea that all of us working together can do even more than Jesus did while He was here. He created a multitude of laborers instead of just one.

This leads us to the other scripture you mentioned in your question. James 2:17, “Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.” You see, this is not referring to spiritual death and losing salvation. What this means is that without good works, your faith is as good as dead, or really we could say as effective as something dead. When Jesus left us here to do works, it was because we were meant to be effective at reaching the lost. Consider the great commission, “go to all the world and preach the gospel.” God is not willing that any should perish, and He put us here so that we would not be willing that any should perish. If we won’t work for the Lord and for His will to be done on earth, as it is in heaven, then what are we here for? Let’s continue reading, James 2:18-20, “But someone may well say, ‘You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.’ You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless?” 

Really you could ask if someone says they’re saved but has no desire to serve God or reach people, are they actually saved? Because of God’s grace and unmerited favor, I believe He has great mercy on us even when we fail. But our failure doesn’t excuse His plan for us as His laborers on this earth. If we call ourselves Christians but won’t be His laborer, we’ve missed the very purpose and act of salvation. 

If we truly learn to trust Him and look at the bigger picture other than just our own lives, we will understand that there’s no other way to live in faith than to live for Him and do what He has for us to do. Don’t let your faith be as good as dead. Seek Him, turn to Him, and submit your way to His.

Be Blessed,

Pastor Renée 

Question: Is all fear and worry sin? 

In society worry has been treated almost like a badge of honor and in Christianity it has been treated like a sin. I don’t really believe it’s either. Let me explain. 

Over the years I have heard it preached that it is a sin to worry and to be in fear. However, I don’t believe you can be human and not experience fear and worry. It seems to me that God, who made us human, would have totally understood this. We live in a fallen world, and we have to experience consequences of that fallen world, two of such are worry and fear. I’m not sure that it is scripturally accurate to call those things sin. That can tend to put good Christians in bondage. That being said, I don’t believe it’s God’s heart for us to live in worry or in fear. Let’s look at the Bible because it has a lot to say about both fear and worry. 

Look at what the Old Testament has to say about fear. Psalms 23:4, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” David is expressing how fear comes as we walk through darkness but that when walking through that darkness we can make a conscious decision not to fear, knowing who walks with and protects us. This is faith, not that fear doesn’t come, but that we can make a decision that fear won’t rule over us, choosing to trust God instead and act accordingly.  Again and again in the Old Testament we see the people of God told not to be afraid but it’s always because of who God is that His people can go forth without fear not because they just won’t experience fear. Now, I want to bring your attention to the testimony of the Israelites when they were told to enter the promised land. Remember how they were told that the land was flowing with milk and honey, and that that was what God had for them, but when the spies went to spy out the land, they saw giants in the land. They called themselves grasshoppers in their sight, afraid of their own weakness. But even in this situation, it wasn’t the fear that was the sin. It was the decisions they made because of the fear. Their fear caused them to rebel against God and His plan. They never did inherit His promises. 

Now let’s look at worry. Just as with fear, God calls us again and again not to live in worry. Why is that, because worry is sin or because worry only hurts us? Look at Luke 12:25, “And which of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life’s span?” Of course in this context, if you continue reading, you’ll see it’s regarding how you’re going to be taken care of, fed, clothed, etc. It’s not that worrying makes you a dirty, rotten sinner, it’s that worry can’t help you or any situation. 1 Peter 5:6-7 says, “…humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.” I find it interesting that the Bible tells us it’s actually humility that causes us to come to the Lord with our worries and our fears and our anxieties and casts them onto Him asking for His help, knowing we can’t do it alone. He knew we would have plenty of opportunity to worry, to fret and to become anxious in this world. He was never looking to punish us for that, but to give us a source of help and peace.  

Look finally at 1 John 4:18 (NKJV), “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.” Fear involves torment, that means it’s painful! God’s solution? Love. His perfect love. What is that love? That even while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8), and that love is the reason we can trust God to get us to the other side of those things we worry about and fear. I think that it is important for us not to look at worry and fear as sin, but to look at them as things that only hurt and rob from usand our relationship with the Lord. Besides this, I think we need to start looking at how wonderful it is that God saw these things coming and gave us away of escape. Don’t condemn yourself for experiencing fear or worry, but focus instead on building your trust in the Lord through time spent getting to know Him. Remember, He no longer just walks with us, but in us! 

Be Blessed,

Pastor Renée 

If God is all-knowing why would He allow people to be born that He ultimately knows are going to end up in Hell? 

Acts 17:25 (NASB) Nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things.

Sometimes people make the mistake of assuming the why of creation. This is because they misunderstand or are not fully convinced of what true love is all about. True love is never about self, even for God. The picture of love we get from 1 Corinthians 13 is one of self-sacrifice and focus elsewhere. Verse 5 really brings it out by stating, “Love does not seek its own.” In other words, true love is always focused elsewhere. 

I say that because it lays the understanding for what I’m about to tell you. People assume God created us because He wanted or needed us. This is a wrong assumption, one that would not be based in love. Since He is love’s author, He knows it better than anyone. God created us because it was good for us to exist. Ask most people if they are happy to exist and they would say yes. Now, some may answer and say no, but if they are still living, then they want to be alive. Most people live a life that indicates they want to partake of it, howbeit they desire that it is the way they want it. In seeking to exist well, by nature we are declaring that existing is beneficial for us. 

We have to understand, there was nothing lacking in God’s existence as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. They had perfect communion with each other for eternity. Their existence did not need ours for anything at all. It was better for us to exist than not to. To exist in love we had to be created in such a way that we could choose how we live. Again, basic human instinct tells us that to be forced to live in such a way is not right. The idea of hell is also something many people mix up. Hell does not exist because God wills for any kind of being to be there. Hell exists for those that don’t want God. Let me explain.

Psalms 34:8 (NASB) says, “O taste and see that the LORD is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!” God is the embodiment of goodness. IT DOES NOT EXIST WITHOUT HIM! Hell is not as much about punishment as it is absence. Absence of God, or willful rejection of Him, is hell. It is not that there are options. Even kind-of good is still experiencing God. If one rejects God, there is no where else for them to be, no good exists because only God is good. Part of what God does here is give many proofs to His goodness so people will embrace Him. But here’s the problem; people love to sin. John 3:19 tells us this.

Sin, its very nature, is complete separation from good, which is God. When a person embraces bad, by default they reject good. This seems to be a concept so many struggle with yet its truth remains. How this problem is alleviated is like this: Jesus came to cover those sins, and obedience teaches us the truth about avoiding it. Yet people love their sin. Some other scriptures that speak to this are Proverbs 2:14 & 14:12, Romans 1:32, and 2 Timothy 2:3-4.

So God created us because it was better for us to exist than not to, He gave us free will because love gives choice, He gave us instruction on how to be right and avoid death, He gave His Son to overcome death because we didn’t listen, He gave us more instruction on living right, then He gave us His Holy Spirit to be with us to help. He gave us a Bible, and the ministry offices, the church of believers, and even angels to ensure we get where we need to be. God created us in the most perfect way possible, gave us every ability and reason to be right, and yet man still rejects Him. That some choose to turn away does not negate the goodness of being able to exist.

It’s easy to think wrong about the way all things work because there is a devil who would love to confuse us. One of the ways he does this is by telling us that somehow God is unfair to so many. That is a complete distortion of the truth. Creation is good because God said it is, if for no other reason. He made it good but then this very creation chose to leave its goodness. This fact it doesn’t mean the existence of creation is bad, just that its choices are. 

People don’t accidentally end up in hell, they choose to go. Be assured that God grants every man sufficient opportunity to choose right. Whether they do or not does not speak to the idea of it being good that they were here, just to the idea that they didn’t embrace it.

Be Blessed,

Pastor Jeff 

Is the Holy Spirit in little kids? Even if they’re not necessarily old enough to profess their faith?

First of all I’d ask, “What’s old enough to profess your faith?” Jesus said that unless we had the faith of a child we could not see the Kingdom of Heaven. That’s a profound thing if you think about it. To profess faith is simply to say what one believes. If a two year old can confess Jesus as a two year old would, is that any less faith? The only reason I bring this out is because too often we put too much emphasis on amounts of faith instead of looking to what faith really is. Faith is completely tied to the amount we can trust God. 

That said, John 7:39 (NASB) tells us, “But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those WHO BELIEVED IN HIM were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” Who received? Those who believed in Him, or trusted in Him. I would argue that a child is more capable of believing in faith than even an adult at times. We equate knowledge to faith but that isn’t true at all. You can have knowledge of God, yet no faith in Him. The Pharisees are an example of this. 

Let’s tackle the heart of the question though. Is the Holy Spirit in kids? I would say absolutely. Is He in every kid? I’d say no. Is it the same as adults? I don’t know. We know that Jesus insisted that the kids come to Him. Matthew 7:9-10 (NASB) says, “Or what man is there among you who, when his son asks for a loaf, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he?” Will then a child who comes to Christ be denied the blessing of God the Spirit being present in them? I can’t see how a loving God could do such a thing. One might argue, “But those kids can’t  understand! I would argue, “Neither do most adults!”

There are aspects of God and His Kingdom that are absolutely a mystery to us. There are things we won’t fully know here and now. How we can even receive God’s Spirit on the inside of us and still be able to sin afterwards is beyond me. But it happens. How we can receive and bask in His love and then turn around and hate or despise our neighbor is also beyond me. Yet we do! Children need the experience of God in their flesh, maybe even more so than adults do. I can’t see that God, who so greatly desires children to come to Him, would also refuse the blessing promised to them. I am a big advocate for how we introduce our children to God and the things of God including His church. How we do will form faith in them which either lasts or is lightly esteemed. What we show our kids, WILL be their faith! 

We have always encouraged our kids to explore a relationship with God in all its forms. They see the trials and know our struggles, and they partake of our victories. If children are not encouraged to do so, why would we think they would maintain interest when they get older. Children can experience the goodness of God and be taught to embrace Him. Our children were taught to pray, hear the Word, serve, tithe, give, listen, love, and anything else we do. This is why today, as they grow older, they still do these things. If we are to raise up a child in the right way, there is no reason to think that God will not bless them accordingly. 

Jesus said to come as a child. The instruction is to adults but the example of the action is that of the children. Therefore, one might say they are possibly more susceptible to the Holy Spirit than we are. I don’t know for sure, but I certainly wouldn’t exclude them. We shouldn’t be quick to write off the spiritual nature of our children. That doesn’t mean that it leads us, but we must consider it. Teach your kids about the blessing of the  Holy Spirit. Let them know God’s goodness and open their hearts to a life long walk with Him. After all, if we won’t, no one will.

Be Blessed

Pastor Jeff

If we are forgiven of our sins and washed cleaned then why will we still have to be judged on judgement day for them? ”For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.“  ‭‭(2 Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭10‬ ‭NASB‬‬) We’re not to feel condemned and we are forgiven but also God will bring them back up on judgment day? 

Romans 8:1 (NASB)

Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Judgement, condemnation and words that are similar are concepts people often get confused. As in the scripture in Romans above, this is one people often mix up. They will say, “See, there’s no reason to feel bad for what you’ve done. Don’t live in condemnation.” They are talking about being self-condemning. Now, while living in a self-condemning mind is generally not healthy, that is not what this is talking about. In context (there’s that word again!) this is referring to eternal condemnation, meaning eternal life in hell. The deeds before salvation and after salvation are very different.

The recompense that is talked about in 2 Corinthians is not punishment for wrong deeds. The Bible promises us that we will be rewarded for our good deeds done in Christ or lose reward for bad deeds. Ephesians 2:10 (NASB) says, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” Although the context of Matthew 6:6 (NASB) is prayer, “…and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you,” it applies to more than that. James 1:12 is another of many examples.

Christians being saved and Christians being rewarded for what they did with that salvation are two different things. Salvation is a gift, it is free and unearned. There’s nothing you can do to make it better or more. After salvation, however, we are given works to do. These works or tasks are what God saved us for. He didn’t just save us so we could vacation on an island somewhere and live stress free all of our days. Salvation points to the rest we will receive with Him in His presence, strengthening us while we do what He destined us to do while we await it. These are His works and we will get rewarded based on how we were faithful to them. 

Judging our works is not the same as judgement for sins. However, if after we are saved we insist on continuing in our sin, there is judgement in that. 1 John 1:9 (NASB) says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” We still need to confess our sins and He absolutely will forgive them. What if we insist on living in them? Those are called “dead works”. You can be judged and rewarded for good works, or judged and lose reward for dead works. It doesn’t always equate to hell, but it can mean we lose out on blessing. This is why Jesus said in Matthew 6:19-21 (NASB), “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

What we do in this life matters. Not just for here, but for eternity. This is why we are repeatedly told in scripture to keep our focus there when deciding how we live. That Jesus saved us does not take away the responsibility for living right. He saved us so we COULD and WOULD live right. He promises reward for doing so. To live now for the promise of reward later is what faith is all about. When His promise of our future drives us to live different, these actions show our trust in Him. This is what really pleases God and what Hebrews 11 is all about.

Be Blessed,

Pastor Jeff 

John 6:65 says “And He (Jesus) said, “Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.” Verse 37 says, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me…” Does this mean that people can’t come to God on their own? 

One of the amazing things about this question, is that I was literally just studying these scriptures. It seems like God might want us to understand it! 

Romans 3:10-12 (NASB) says, as it is written, “THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE; THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS, THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD; ALL HAVE TURNED ASIDE, TOGETHER THEY HAVE BECOME USELESS; THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD, THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE.” Well that’s a pretty heavy statement but it shows the condition of the human heart after sin. Nobody really wants God. We may think we do because we don’t want hell, or because we want help, but the truth is, everyone resists God Himself. I can verify this by telling you quickly about sin. Sin is the opposite of good which is God so to embrace sin, even a little, is rejection of God.

With that said, let’s look at the context of these scriptures of John 6, backing up to verses 44-45 (NASB) which says, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day. It is written in the prophets, ‘AND THEY SHALL ALL BE TAUGHT OF GOD.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father, comes to Me.” This is a scripture that Calvinist (or those who believe only those God chooses get to go to Heaven) use to back up their theology. But is this what these scriptures are telling us? I don’t believe so.

The greater context here is dealing with the heart of man. In verse 26 Jesus talked about how they were seeking Him for the feeding (naturally) not because He was God. In other words, they weren’t as interested in what was being taught as they were in what they got for showing up. He was talking about the difference between those who come and have a heart to learn and those who are just trying to get what they want.

God does in fact draw people. I believe He is drawing all people. How would we know this? 1 Timothy 2:4 tells us. It’s what people do with it that matters. Do people answer the call? When God draws, how do they respond? Humans are so lost that they don’t even know they need God. I see this time and time again. We cannot even come to God unless He draws us in. However, that does not say that there are some He won’t draw. He draws mankind through various methods so we also have to be careful about thinking of that in our box. 

When trying to understand scripture, we have to look at it from the standpoint of God‘s love. God‘s love is pure and real. Although the Bible tells us that His love is greater than our love, that does not mean that we cannot understand His love at all. After all, human love only exists because of God.  Would love drive you to pick some and not others simply on a whim? Not the sacrificial love that the scriptures speak of. Would love send some to hell, simply because you didn’t choose them? Of course not, not the love that came for the entire world (John 3:16). 1 John 4:18 (NASB) says, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.” Wouldn’t the thought that God has destined some people to hell with no way to choose otherwise be a major cause of fear? See, this idea doesn’t have to be taken very far to see it doesn’t hold up scripturally. 

Finally, the full understanding of the last part (vs 37) is found a few scriptures later. John 6:40 (NASB) says, “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds (comes to) the Son AND BELIEVES in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.” This is the key part, they come because they are called, they stay because they believe. Many come, not all stay. To those who believe continually, will also stay continually. 

I love what one theologian said when answering the question are people “once saved always saved?” He said, “This I can guarantee this, there will be no unbelievers in Heaven.” I don’t think it’s our job to sit around deciding who gets to go and who doesn’t, we are not equipped to decide that. Our job is to share the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and let the Holy Spirit work on the hearts of people to either come to believe, or let them continue in their unbelief by their rejection.

The whole counsel of God is important to understanding His word. In other words, if something seems different, yet doesn’t fit the character clearly spelled out, we have to seek a different interpretation. I may not know everything about scripture, or every language it’s written in, but I know the gist by seeing God’s heart throughout. If nothing else, by the fact that at our worst, He proved His love most. That’s a special love that is going to every length to see us get where God has us to be. That indeed is a very special love.

Be Blessed,

Pastor Jeff