Galatians 5:4 - "Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace."
If God Examined Your Works
Suppose you were called upon by Almighty God to stand before Him right now. Suppose the Lord required this of you for the purpose of examining your works. As you stand in the presence of a just, holy God, He gives you the orders of how your works will be examined. He tells you to present your best works first, then your evil, bad, corrupt works.
So, you prepare to show the Lord your best works. You go to church regularly; so you present it to the Lord. You give to work of God; so you make that known to Him. You treat your neighbors in a kind fashion; so you do not hesitate to call names of your neighbors to whom you have shown kindness. Then, you stop for a minute. You think, making sure you can tell of another good work, without stretching the truth in any way. You tell the Lord, that, you are not a gossiper. You do not spread rumors on people. You do not lie. You give to charity. You pay all of your bills on time. When you owe money to any party, you are prompt to pay what you owe. You study the Bible regularly. You pray every day. You even fast on a regular basis. You make it a point to witness to so many people a week. And, you go on and on. Hours pass, and you still rattling off your best works. In your mind, you are thinking, "This isn't so bad; I'm a lot better than I thought I was!" You present your good works to the Lord for eight solid hours. Then, after a period of silence, the Lord asks simply, "Are you finished presenting your best works?" You answer, "Yes." There is another long silence before the Lord responds to all these good works you have presented to Him. You wait, wondering what the Lord will say about all these great things you have done. Suddenly, you hear a sound from the throne. You listen, but can't make out the words. Then, you realize that the Lord is not speaking; He is gagging at all your good works. Your BEST WORKS have made the Lord regurgitate all over heaven. This is the Lord's response to your BEST WORKS; you have not even presented your evil works yet!
Oh, you think this is far fetched. It's only an analogy, but it correctly reflects the Lord's opinions of your best works.
Isaiah 64:6 - "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away."
ALL our righteousnesses are as FILTHY RAGS! When we think of filth, we think of homosexuality (and it absolutely is). When we think of filth, we think of adultery, fornication, pornography, lying, stealing, cheating, child molestation, child abuse, domestic abuse, legalized murder of babies, and sins of this nature. And, yes, every one of these things are sheer filth in the sight of a holy and just God.
But God used this word, "filth" to describe our goodness; our best righteousness.
The Pharisees' Religion - A Religion of Righteousness
Upon reading the New Testament, you quickly discover a religious group of people called Pharisees. They strove to keep every jot and tittle of the law of Moses, even adding to it! They were strict. They had rules and regulations. Jesus spoke of their righteousness. Notice:
Matthew 5:20 - "For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven."
Here, Jesus speaks to a multitude, using the Pharisees as an example. He tells the people, "If you are not more righteous than the Pharisees, you'll not enter the kingdom of heaven!" The Pharisees were the strictest bunch around! I'm not sure it was even possible to get more strict than they were (I've been in churches that have tried)! Know this: Jesus was not teaching, that to go heaven, you must be more strict than the Pharisees. However, He was teaching that you have to be more righteous than they were. Then, Jesus begins to expound.
"You have heard it said, Thou shalt not commit adultery," He begins. "But I say unto you, He that looketh upon a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery already in his heart." The rules of the Pharisees dealt with actions; Jesus was dealing with the heart!
Then Jesus goes on to say that they have heard the command, "Thou shalt not kill." But He informs them, "I say unto you, if you are angry with your brother without a cause, you are in danger of the judgment." Again, Jesus deals with the heart!
The problem with the righteousness of the Pharisees is that their righteousness didn't go DEEP ENOUGH. It didn't get into the heart. Their righteousness was manifested in rule-keeping. There was never a change of heart!
I have heard Holiness preachers say that we are going to have to be more strict than the Pharisees to get to heaven. But Jesus was NOT teaching us to have more rules than them; He was rather teaching us to be more righteous than them. We need a righteousness that is not merely conformity to a rule, but rather a change of heart. There's only one thing that will change your heart from filthy to clean - the blood of Jesus Christ!
II Corinthians 5:17 - "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."
The Most Important Fact You Will Ever Learn
When a person hears a clear declaration of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and decides to respond, the first thing that the individual must do is let go of every feeble, sorry effort to save himself. You are not fully trusting Christ if you are trusting in any effort of your own to save yourself. The greatest truth you will ever admit is that you are hopelessly lost - that your best works are pitiful and disgusting in the presence of a holy God. Once you realize this, salvation is on the horizon! Help is on the way!
How the Galatians Fell from Grace
At the beginning of this blog post, I opened with a scripture from Galatians 5:4, which shows us that the Galatian churches were fallen from grace. Those in the Galatian churches realized this truth. At some point (probably under Paul's preaching), the Galatians heard the gospel. They finally let go of their religion of works, and trusted Jesus only for their salvation. Every lost person must do this if they expect to be saved. You must let go of every philosophy, ideal, religion, creed, and everything else, placing all of your faith in Jesus Christ alone.
But at some point, the Galatians slowly began going backwards. They had backslidden; they had fallen from grace. There is a very important fact we must realize about this backsliding. The Galatians did not go back to doing evil works; they went back to trusting in GOOD WORKS. The Galatians did not forsake Christ to become murderers, thieves, extortioners, liars, adulterers, homosexuals, and the such like. There is a backslidden state worse than that! And that is the state in which the Galatians found themselves! The only state worse than falling from grace to become a murderer or a thief is to fall from the grace of God, trusting in your works rather than in Jesus Christ.
In the third chapter of Galatians, Paul describes the method by which the Galatians fell.
Galatians 3:3 - "Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?"
The Galatians began their walk with God at "the altar," if you will. They began their journey realizing that if they were to be saved, Christ would have to do it, for they could not save themselves. They cast aside every work of their own and trusted solely in Christ. They began IN THE SPIRIT. But now, they went back to trusting in works to keep them saved. I've heard it over and over - "Oh, the Lord will save you. But if you're going to 'stay saved,' you have to..." and then the list of works is preached. Dear reader, get this straight. If works can't get me saved, works can't keep me saved! If going to church won't save me, going to church won't keep me. If paying my tithes won't save me, paying my tithes won't keep me. If dressing modestly won't save me, dressing modestly won't keep me.
Paul plainly asks the Galatians in Galatians 3:3, "Having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?" You began trusting in Jesus, and now you're going back to a bunch of works that couldn't save you to start with???? Paul is flabbergasted! He is absolutely beside himself! He is certain that he taught them better than that! He has preached to them that Christ is their only hope, and now they are trusting their works to keep them saved!
No, the Galatians wouldn't fit a "backslider's category" among many churches. But Paul said they were fallen from grace. Not because they went back to BAD WORKS; but because they went back to trusting in GOOD WORKS.
Yes, placing faith in good works to keep you saved is the worse kind of backsliding that has ever been. Look at what Paul tells the Galatians about trusting in good works to keep them saved:
1) Works cannot justify - Galatians 2:16
2) Rebuilding works once destroyed makes you a transgressor - Galatians 2:19
3) If works could justify, Christ died on the cross in vain - Galatians 2:21
4) If you trust in works, Christ is become of no effect - Galatians 5:4
5) If you trust in works, you are fallen from grace - Galatians 5:4
Clearly, trusting in works after you are saved is backsliding as much as anything. We must trust in Christ for salvation, and in Christ alone.
Nothing can for sin atone; Nothing but the blood of Jesus!
Naught of good that I have done; Nothing but the blood of Jesus!
Oh, precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow!
No other fount I know!
Nothing but the blood of Jesus!*
If God Examined Your Works
Suppose you were called upon by Almighty God to stand before Him right now. Suppose the Lord required this of you for the purpose of examining your works. As you stand in the presence of a just, holy God, He gives you the orders of how your works will be examined. He tells you to present your best works first, then your evil, bad, corrupt works.
So, you prepare to show the Lord your best works. You go to church regularly; so you present it to the Lord. You give to work of God; so you make that known to Him. You treat your neighbors in a kind fashion; so you do not hesitate to call names of your neighbors to whom you have shown kindness. Then, you stop for a minute. You think, making sure you can tell of another good work, without stretching the truth in any way. You tell the Lord, that, you are not a gossiper. You do not spread rumors on people. You do not lie. You give to charity. You pay all of your bills on time. When you owe money to any party, you are prompt to pay what you owe. You study the Bible regularly. You pray every day. You even fast on a regular basis. You make it a point to witness to so many people a week. And, you go on and on. Hours pass, and you still rattling off your best works. In your mind, you are thinking, "This isn't so bad; I'm a lot better than I thought I was!" You present your good works to the Lord for eight solid hours. Then, after a period of silence, the Lord asks simply, "Are you finished presenting your best works?" You answer, "Yes." There is another long silence before the Lord responds to all these good works you have presented to Him. You wait, wondering what the Lord will say about all these great things you have done. Suddenly, you hear a sound from the throne. You listen, but can't make out the words. Then, you realize that the Lord is not speaking; He is gagging at all your good works. Your BEST WORKS have made the Lord regurgitate all over heaven. This is the Lord's response to your BEST WORKS; you have not even presented your evil works yet!
Oh, you think this is far fetched. It's only an analogy, but it correctly reflects the Lord's opinions of your best works.
Isaiah 64:6 - "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away."
ALL our righteousnesses are as FILTHY RAGS! When we think of filth, we think of homosexuality (and it absolutely is). When we think of filth, we think of adultery, fornication, pornography, lying, stealing, cheating, child molestation, child abuse, domestic abuse, legalized murder of babies, and sins of this nature. And, yes, every one of these things are sheer filth in the sight of a holy and just God.
But God used this word, "filth" to describe our goodness; our best righteousness.
The Pharisees' Religion - A Religion of Righteousness
Upon reading the New Testament, you quickly discover a religious group of people called Pharisees. They strove to keep every jot and tittle of the law of Moses, even adding to it! They were strict. They had rules and regulations. Jesus spoke of their righteousness. Notice:
Matthew 5:20 - "For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven."
Here, Jesus speaks to a multitude, using the Pharisees as an example. He tells the people, "If you are not more righteous than the Pharisees, you'll not enter the kingdom of heaven!" The Pharisees were the strictest bunch around! I'm not sure it was even possible to get more strict than they were (I've been in churches that have tried)! Know this: Jesus was not teaching, that to go heaven, you must be more strict than the Pharisees. However, He was teaching that you have to be more righteous than they were. Then, Jesus begins to expound.
"You have heard it said, Thou shalt not commit adultery," He begins. "But I say unto you, He that looketh upon a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery already in his heart." The rules of the Pharisees dealt with actions; Jesus was dealing with the heart!
Then Jesus goes on to say that they have heard the command, "Thou shalt not kill." But He informs them, "I say unto you, if you are angry with your brother without a cause, you are in danger of the judgment." Again, Jesus deals with the heart!
The problem with the righteousness of the Pharisees is that their righteousness didn't go DEEP ENOUGH. It didn't get into the heart. Their righteousness was manifested in rule-keeping. There was never a change of heart!
I have heard Holiness preachers say that we are going to have to be more strict than the Pharisees to get to heaven. But Jesus was NOT teaching us to have more rules than them; He was rather teaching us to be more righteous than them. We need a righteousness that is not merely conformity to a rule, but rather a change of heart. There's only one thing that will change your heart from filthy to clean - the blood of Jesus Christ!
II Corinthians 5:17 - "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new."
The Most Important Fact You Will Ever Learn
When a person hears a clear declaration of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and decides to respond, the first thing that the individual must do is let go of every feeble, sorry effort to save himself. You are not fully trusting Christ if you are trusting in any effort of your own to save yourself. The greatest truth you will ever admit is that you are hopelessly lost - that your best works are pitiful and disgusting in the presence of a holy God. Once you realize this, salvation is on the horizon! Help is on the way!
How the Galatians Fell from Grace
At the beginning of this blog post, I opened with a scripture from Galatians 5:4, which shows us that the Galatian churches were fallen from grace. Those in the Galatian churches realized this truth. At some point (probably under Paul's preaching), the Galatians heard the gospel. They finally let go of their religion of works, and trusted Jesus only for their salvation. Every lost person must do this if they expect to be saved. You must let go of every philosophy, ideal, religion, creed, and everything else, placing all of your faith in Jesus Christ alone.
But at some point, the Galatians slowly began going backwards. They had backslidden; they had fallen from grace. There is a very important fact we must realize about this backsliding. The Galatians did not go back to doing evil works; they went back to trusting in GOOD WORKS. The Galatians did not forsake Christ to become murderers, thieves, extortioners, liars, adulterers, homosexuals, and the such like. There is a backslidden state worse than that! And that is the state in which the Galatians found themselves! The only state worse than falling from grace to become a murderer or a thief is to fall from the grace of God, trusting in your works rather than in Jesus Christ.
In the third chapter of Galatians, Paul describes the method by which the Galatians fell.
Galatians 3:3 - "Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?"
The Galatians began their walk with God at "the altar," if you will. They began their journey realizing that if they were to be saved, Christ would have to do it, for they could not save themselves. They cast aside every work of their own and trusted solely in Christ. They began IN THE SPIRIT. But now, they went back to trusting in works to keep them saved. I've heard it over and over - "Oh, the Lord will save you. But if you're going to 'stay saved,' you have to..." and then the list of works is preached. Dear reader, get this straight. If works can't get me saved, works can't keep me saved! If going to church won't save me, going to church won't keep me. If paying my tithes won't save me, paying my tithes won't keep me. If dressing modestly won't save me, dressing modestly won't keep me.
Paul plainly asks the Galatians in Galatians 3:3, "Having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?" You began trusting in Jesus, and now you're going back to a bunch of works that couldn't save you to start with???? Paul is flabbergasted! He is absolutely beside himself! He is certain that he taught them better than that! He has preached to them that Christ is their only hope, and now they are trusting their works to keep them saved!
No, the Galatians wouldn't fit a "backslider's category" among many churches. But Paul said they were fallen from grace. Not because they went back to BAD WORKS; but because they went back to trusting in GOOD WORKS.
Yes, placing faith in good works to keep you saved is the worse kind of backsliding that has ever been. Look at what Paul tells the Galatians about trusting in good works to keep them saved:
1) Works cannot justify - Galatians 2:16
2) Rebuilding works once destroyed makes you a transgressor - Galatians 2:19
3) If works could justify, Christ died on the cross in vain - Galatians 2:21
4) If you trust in works, Christ is become of no effect - Galatians 5:4
5) If you trust in works, you are fallen from grace - Galatians 5:4
Clearly, trusting in works after you are saved is backsliding as much as anything. We must trust in Christ for salvation, and in Christ alone.
Nothing can for sin atone; Nothing but the blood of Jesus!
Naught of good that I have done; Nothing but the blood of Jesus!
Oh, precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow!
No other fount I know!
Nothing but the blood of Jesus!*
*Robert Lowry
