Faith without good deeds is dead? If so, Can you lose your Salvation?

Faith without good deeds is dead? If so, Can you lose your Salvation?

 Grace is when God gives us what we don't deserve and mercy is when God doesn't give us what we do deserve. -Unknown

Jas 2:14-26 NLT

Xref: Eph. 2:8-13, Heb. Ch. 11, Jhn 6:39, Jhn 10:28-29, 2 Tim. 4:8, 1 Cor. 9:25-27, James 1:12; Rev. 2:10; 1 Pt 5:2-4; Matt. 5:19, 1 Thess. 2:19, Daniel 12:3, Prov. 11:30, Rom. 8

14 What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don't show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? 15 Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, 16 and you say, "Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well"--but then you don't give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? 17 So you see, faith by itself isn't enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless. 18 Now someone may argue, "Some people have faith; others have good deeds." But I say, "How can you show me your faith if you don't have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds." 19 You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. 20 How foolish! Can't you see that faith without good deeds is useless? 21 Don't you remember that our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. 23 And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: "Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith." He was even called the friend of God. 24 So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone. 25 Rahab the prostitute is another example. She was shown to be right with God by her actions when she hid those messengers and sent them safely away by a different road. 26 Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works.

There are groups that teach that you can lose your salvation, and that you can walk away from your salvation. It is my firm conviction based on Biblical evidence listed in the Cross reference verses verses up above that you cannot. Nor can you walk away from your salvation. I am sure that if you research these verses on your own, you will find that scripture supports that if you think you can lose your salvation, you should really evaluate whether or not you have salvation in the first place. Salvation is a gift of God, a gift of Grace, and a gift of Mercy. It cannot be earned by works, (Lest any man should boast {KJV}) Works are important for the benefit of others as well as us. When we do good works, we show others Christ who we are to be a reflection of. We are a reflection of God the Father to the world when we do good works. When we do good works, we are “Working out our salvation with fear and trembling as found in Philippians 2:12-13. People use this to show that you must do good works to “Earn” your salvation. Look carefully at what these versions are saying. The NLT says it this way: 12 Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. 13 For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. What are the results of these good works? Crowns. Crowns that we will throw at the feet of Jesus our king when we finally enter paradise. Here are what these rewards for our works will be:

Crowns of Reward in Heaven

By Rev. Michael L. White

(Copyright © 2010. All rights reserved.)

NOTE: The Scripture pop-up service used on this page is RefTagger.

When we all get to Heaven, we will stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ to be judged for our works done in this world, both good and bad. As believers, in order to enter Heaven, we will be counted as righteous because of our faith in Jesus, but we will then receive rewards and crowns for our faithfulness and good works in this world (1 Corinthians 3:8-15; 2 Corinthians 5:10-11; Romans 14:10-12; Revelation 11:18; Revelation 22:12). Listed below are the five types of crowns mentioned in Scripture, some warnings about protecting our crowns and rewards, and the joy of receiving crowns.

Five Crowns of Reward

1. Crown of Righteousness (a.k.a. the Watcher’s Crown) For loving (longing for) the Lord’s appearing (2 Timothy 4:8)

2. Crown of Victory (a.k.a. the Victor’s Crown) For spiritual discipline and self-control (1 Corinthians 9:25-27)

3. Crown of Life (a.k.a. the Martyr’s Crown) For patiently enduring trials and/or death (James 1:12; Revelation 2:10)

4. Crown of Glory (a.k.a. the Elder’s Crown) Godly leaders who were good examples to their flock (1 Peter 5:2-4; Matthew 5:19)

5. Crown of Rejoicing (a.k.a. the Soul-winner’s crown) For leading others to accept Christ by sharing the Gospel of repentance and salvation (1 Thessalonians 2:19; Daniel 12:3; Proverbs 11:30)

Warnings About Crowns and Rewards

•           Do not let anyone take your crown (Revelation 3:11)

•           Do not let anyone deceive you into forfeiting your crown or reward (2 John 1:7-8)

•           Do not do your good deeds with wrong (self-centered or otherwise impure) motives (Matthew 6:2, 5, 16)

Joy of Receiving Crowns

Because Jesus is the King of kings and Lord of lords, He is worthy of our everlasting praise and worship! Therefore, we will have the joy of casting our crowns at Jesus’ feet when we get to Heaven (Revelation 4:10-11). However, if we have earned no crown, we will miss out on the joy of casting it (or them) at Jesus’ feet. What a shame that will be!

Reprinted in part with permission from Parson Place: http://www.parsonplace.com/crowns.html