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Aug 22, 2023 · This is what the Philippians had done for Paul (Phil. 4:15–18), and it’s what Paul wanted the Cretan church to do for Zenas and Apollos. It’s a good work. Good works can meet needs that are big or small, material or spiritual, and the recipient can be almost anyone. Here are a few examples:
Mar 29, 2024 · Many people memorize Ephesians 2:8–9, and it is an excellent synopsis of the gospel, but the passage does not end at verse 9. Verse 10 is necessary to complete the thought. Someone might wonder what place good works have in the life of a Christian. We have already seen that chapters 4–6 are all about good works and right behavior.
- Genuine Salvation Involves A New Creation That Is Entirely God’s doing.
- Genuine Salvation Inevitably Results in A Life of Good Works.
- God Prepared These Works Before He Saved us.
- The Good Works That We Walk in Should Be Done in A Corporate context.
- Conclusion
- Application Questions
Paul says, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus….” “His” is emphatic in the Greek, underscoring the point that Paul has been making throughout chapters 1 and 2, that our salvation was ordained by God from eternity and that we had nothing to do with it. We were dead in our sins, but God raised us from the dead (2:1, 5). Just as God c...
Those who argue that there is no necessary connection between saving faith and subsequent good works believe that they are defending the Reformed doctrine of salvation by grace alone, apart from works. (See, for example, Zane Hodges, Absolutely Free [Zondervan], pp. 207-208; 222-223). But the Reformers would be aghast at the view that a person may ...
Concerning these good works, Paul adds, “which God prepared beforehand….” What does he mean? The only other use of this verb is in Romans 9:23, where after writing that God prepared vessels of wrath for destruction, Paul states, “And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory.” So P...
Our American culture inclines us toward independence. We tend to idolize the “self-made man,” who goes it alone. But Scripture teaches that when God saves us, the Holy Spirit baptizes us into the one body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:13). We are individually members of this body, each with a role to perform. But we must work in coordination and cooperation...
In closing, there are two main applications. First, make sure that you are a new creation in Christ. Have you truly been saved by His grace through faith in Christ alone? Spurgeon (ibid., p. 150) pointed out that the only way you can become a Christian is by being created. He anticipated the objection, “But we cannot create ourselves!” He answers, ...
Why does Paul keep emphasizing that salvation is totally God’s doing? What is his practical aim?If someone said, “I’ve accepted Christ as my Savior, but I haven’t decided yet to make Him my Lord,” what would you say?What is Paul’s practical point in stating that God prepared beforehand the good works that we should do?God is sovereign and yet we are responsible. How do we maintain the proper biblical balance here?Apr 26, 2021 · That’s not because Paul thinks it’s the most important issue! That’s only because I think the rest of them are really straightforward and uncontroversial and don't require a lot of explanation on my part. Look carefully: Paul essentially makes 7 commands in this passage; only two of them have to do with the government. It was not Paul’s ...
The work we do on earth—to the extent we do it according to the ways of Christ—survives into eternity. Paul is speaking specifically of the work done by the community of the church, which he likens to a temple. Paul compares himself to a “skilled master builder” who has laid the foundation, which is, of course, Christ himself.
4. It teaches that we must zealously do good works. Ephesians 2:8-10 states that salvation is by grace through faith, and that these two lead to good works. Grace and faith are the very foundations of salvation, and with the privilege of having access to God, we also have a responsibility: to perform the good works God ordained beforehand for ...
May 17, 2023 · To return to Ephesians 2, immediately after teaching that we are saved through faith, not through works (Ephesians 2:8–9), Paul says that we were created “to do good works” (Ephesians 2:10). Salvation comes by God’s grace through faith, and that faith is made manifest in good works. The works follow the faith and are a proof of it.
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