What is the Proper Relationship of Grace, Faith and Works?

Grace, Faith, and Works in Ephesians 2

Welcome back to Coffee with a Calvinist. My name is Keith Foskey and I am a Calvinist. Today we're going to be in Ephesians chapter 2, so if you want to go ahead and open up your Bible and make your way there, we're going to be looking particularly at verses 8 through 10.

And I want to make mention while you're turning in your Bibles of a couple of things. One, I want to say just how much I miss my church family yesterday. As many of you who are a part of Sovereign Grace are aware I was unable to be at church yesterday.

I'm currently in quarantine awaiting a COVID test and praying that everything comes back negative so I can get back to my normal duties as pastor. And also the other thing I want to mention is if you look behind me at my background for today, this is Wartburg Castle.

This is in Germany. This is the place where Martin Luther was basically protected from after the Diet of Worms. He was under the threat of death and so he was taken here. And while he was here, he translated the Bible into German.

And that German translation is still the translation that's still used by many Germans today. So this castle bears a great deal of history for the Reformation. And also my reason for mentioning it today is because even before I was a Calvinist, I was encouraged and moved by the writings and teachings of Martin Luther.

Justification by Faith Alone and the Reformation

Martin Luther, of course, was famous for many things. One that many people know about is the writing of the 95 Theses, posting them on the castle church door at Wittenberg. But the other thing that is often accustomed or attached to the life of Martin Luther is the doctrine of sola fide, the doctrine of justification by faith alone.

And this was a doctrine that was, I believe, is thoroughly biblical. I teach this doctrine and I still believe, as Luther said, it is the article upon which the church stands or falls. We either believe that we're justified by faith in Christ or we believe that we're justified by something that we accomplish.

And as a confirmed Protestant, as a confirmed Calvinist, and a very great admirer of Martin Luther, I would say, hear, hear. This is the article upon which the church stands or falls. And so when we get to Ephesians chapter 2 and we look at verses 8, 9, and 10, this is one of the passages that I would go to if I was having a conversation with someone about the subject of justification.

I would go with them to Ephesians chapter 2 because the wording here is so clear and so precise from the Apostle Paul that it's almost impossible to argue against. It's almost impossible to miss the meaning.

Paul says clearly, for by grace have you been saved through faith, and that is not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works.

Grace as God's Sovereign Gift

This is such an important doctrine. This is a doctrine that we cannot get away from. We should not try to get away from. I remember when I was a young Christian. Long before, again, I was a Calvinist.

I was a Christian for many years before being introduced to the doctrines of grace, and I was even in the seminary before I was entered. It was while in seminary that I was introduced to the doctrines of grace.

I had a bracelet that I wore on my wrist, and that bracelet said EPH 2 colon 8, and that stood for Ephesians 2 8. For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God.

That passage has moved me. It has been a foundation for me and for my doctrine for so long. If anyone ever tries to apply works to how a person is saved, I always go back to Ephesians 2 8, and I point them to the Apostle Paul's teaching, and I say, see here, no, it says for by grace, and remember what grace is, unmerited favor.

That is God's choice. God's choice of grace, and one of the things that we have to remember is God is sovereign over his grace. That's the name of our church, sovereign grace. God is sovereign in his dispensation of grace.

He dispenses grace to whom and how he chooses, and it is by grace that you are saved, through faith. Faith is the instrumental cause. It is the instrument God uses that we take hold of that grace, and it is by grace through faith that we are saved, not of anything that we accomplish.

Even faith itself is a gift from God. This passage, some people want to argue about the linguistics, and they want to argue about whether or not when it says, and that is not of yourself, if that can refer to faith, or if that refers to grace, and the way that it's constructed, it actually refers to it all.

The whole thing is not of ourselves. It is all a gift from God, for by grace are you saved through faith, and none of that is of yourselves. It is all a gift from God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.

No one should ever stand up and say, I am so glad that I was smart enough to get saved. I'm so glad that I was wise enough to get saved. I'm so glad that I had the spiritual sensitivity or the intellectual acumen to be saved.

No. By grace you've been saved through faith, and that is not of yourself. It is the gift of God, not of works, not of anything that you've done, lest anyone should boast. But that doesn't mean good works don't have a place.

Good Works as the Fruit of Salvation

It just means that good works don't have a place in causing our salvation. The good works that we are to do, and we are to do good works. As Christians, we are to do great works for God. We are to be imitators of Christ.

We have been predestined to be conformed to the image of the Son, and because of that, the Apostle Paul goes on to say that we are not saved by works, but we are saved for good works. For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves.

It is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are God's workmanship. That word workmanship means masterpiece. We're God's creation, and He's created us for good works. So believer, understand this.

You can never say that you are saved by your works, but if you are saved, your works are the byproduct of your salvation. Just recently I was teaching at Set Free, and I taught, I'm actually I made the point that fruit is a natural byproduct of a seed that's been planted and is growing.

When the Spirit comes to live inside of us, when He is implanted in our hearts, He begins to grow in us, and we begin to grow as believers, and we grow in our works. We grow in those nine fruit of the, the Ephesians 5 is listed as nine individual qualities, and the first one of course, and I would say the one that sort of encapsulates all the rest, is the fruit of love.

Think about what 1st Corinthians 13 tells us, that without love, we are nothing. So what's the fruit of the Spirit? What's the first work that we should be known for as believers? Love. Jesus said, this is how all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

So you're saved by grace, you're saved through faith, you're saved for good works. That is the proper understanding of how works and faith are a part of our salvation, and understanding completely that all of it is a gift from God.

Closing Encouragement and Call to Share

I hope that today's episode will and has been helpful for you. I pray that these daily Bible studies continue to be a blessing in your life, and if they are, would you please take a moment and like and comment on this video, and if you're on Facebook, share it, and even if you're on YouTube, and maybe you have a friend that would be blessed by receiving this Bible study, please take a moment and send them the link.

It's a real help to us to help us reach a wider audience. Again, I want to thank you for watching Coffee with a Calvinist. My name is Keith Foskey, and may God bless your day.