Grace and Faith
W. Carl Ketcherside
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Salvation is by the grace of God. Without such grace salvation would not be obtainable. But that grace has appeared, and the offer of salvation has been made universally.
The grace of God must confer this salvation upon men, either conditionally or unconditionally. If it is conferred unconditionally, all men must be saved, and universalism is true. But if universalism is true, the Bible which reveals the grace of God is in error, for it teaches that some will be damned.
If the Bible is true, salvation is offered conditionally, and to be saved it is required that man determine the conditions specified by grace and comply with them.
That the salvation offered by grace is conditional, is revealed in Ephesians 2:8, 9: "For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast."
Salvation is not of ourselves. If so, it could not be of grace. If a man merited or deserved salvation, to the extent of such merit, it would not, and could not be of grace. But salvation is predicated upon the unlimited, unrestricted grace of God, therefore, salvation is a gift of God. Being a gift, it cannot be earned, and thus is not of works. There is no merit in works as such to procure salvation. If such merit existed one could boast of his efforts and their results. "To him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt" (Rom. 4:4). God is not in debt to us, and we cannot do enough works to put him in debt.
There are two sides to salvation--the divine and human. The divine part is expressed by the word grace. The human part is expressed by the word faith. These are universally inclusive of their respective areas.
Whatever was required on the part of
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These are not separate from, additional to, or opposed to salvation by grace. They are expressions of grace, by which it reigns through righteousness, unto eternal life, by Jesus Christ our Lord (Rom. 5:21). Since salvation is said to be by grace, whatever was required of God to provide salvation is merely an expression of grace, and cannot be said to be in opposition to the doctrine of salvation by grace. On the divine side, we are saved by grace alone, but by grace expressed, manifested and perfected in our behalf through ordained channels.
On the human side, salvation is by faith. Whatever condition, therefore, is required of man to appropriate to himself the blessings of grace, is merely an expression of faith. Such a condition is not something apart from, additional to, or opposed to faith, but is an expression of faith in harmony with the divine will.
There is only one thing which avails in Christ Jesus. It is faith which works by love. "For in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision, but faith which worketh by love" (Gal. 5:6). The only thing that avails is faith. But to avail, faith must be properly activated (it must work) and motivated (by love). So any condition imposed by faith, or as a test of faith, is not salvation by works versus faith, but salvation by faith at work. We are saved, not by faith and works, but by faith which works!
Is there any condition or test established by grace for salvation from our past sins? If so, compliance therewith is not salvation by works, but salvation by faith--at work! Jesus said, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel unto every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned" (Mark 16:15, 16).
The grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. The gospel of God's grace is to be announced, therefore, to every creature, in all the world. That gospel authorizes baptism as a condition of salvation, by which faith expresses itself. The grand design of baptism, as it pertains to God, is the remission of sins; that is, it is to place man in a position where God's grace can be applied to the individual in a pardoning act. As pertains to man, the design is to furnish a test of his faith, to see if it is of an availing quality, if it works by love!
Baptism, then, is a condition of salvation, because it is a divinely authorized ordinance by which faith demonstrates or manifests itself. He who is baptized under the gospel seeks not to be saved by works, but by faith which works by love. Paul was baptized to wash away his sins (Acts 22:16). He declares he was saved by grace, not according to works. "According to the power of God, who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace (2 Tim. 1:8, 9). To be immersed on this basis is not an attempt to be saved by works, but by faith manifested and perfected. Since salvation is said to be by faith, whatever is required of man to obain salvation is merely an expression of faith, and cannot be said to be in addition to, or a substitution for faith. In this sense, it may be said man is saved by faith alone, but it is faith expressed, demonstrated and manifested, as well as perfected.
Is this in opposition to James 2:14-26? Not at all. The question under discussion by James is not whether we are saved by works, but if we can be saved by faith which does not work, that is, by faith which is not demonstrated or perfected. Note his proposal. "A man may say, Thou hast faith and I have works: show me thy faith without thy works and I will show thee my faith by my works." What
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Consider the example of Abraham. "Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with works, and by works was faith made perfect?" What was perfected? Was it works? No, it was faith, perfected by works.
Romans 4:2 declares, "For if Abraham was justified by works, he hath whereof to glory, but not before God." There is no contradiction. Paul, as the context shows, deals with works as deeds of merit, the performance of which would place God in debt to us. There is no merit in works as such. They cannot save us, but we cannot be saved without them. James deals with works as a demonstration of faith ("I will show my faith by my works") and as a perfecting agent of faith ("By works was faith made perfect").
Works sustain the same relationship to faith as my spirit does to my body. It does not form a separate or additional man. It only animates my body, making it a living something. Without it, the body is helpless, powerless and unavailing. The body of Adam existed before the spirit entered into it, but it was cold, lifeless, inanimate and useless. We are not saved by righteous works, but by faith. Yet this faith must manifest itself in righteous works. "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Spirit" (Titus 3:5). We are not saved because we work for God; we work for God because we are saved.
"For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast."