Is faith a work?

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brightfame52

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Nov 21, 2020
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Whatever. I'd offer to teach you what that verse really means but I don't have the gift of teaching and don't have enough patience for such a thankless task.
Like I said, Faith is a product of Grace. If you insist its of your natural man, it becomes your work and condemned by scripture. You put yourself under law, faith was required by natural creation law and the law of moses Matt 23:23
23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
 

brightfame52

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Nov 21, 2020
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Romans goes on to tell us that we've all received "a measure of faith", so I agree that faith is given to us. Although I don't think that this passage teaches that.

I think the meaning of this passage is that God determined salvation to be by faith instead of works because not all were given the Law, and therefore not all had the same opportunity to keep it, including the sacrifices which would cover sins. So God gives salvation by faith so that anyone, no matter their relation to the Law, has the opportunity to be saved.

Much love!
Thats works ! You talking about an opportunity to be saved, thats pure works, opportunist salvation.
 

markss

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Feb 10, 2020
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Thats works ! You talking about an opportunity to be saved, thats pure works, opportunist salvation.
You're saying then that we don't choose to believe, rather, God chooses us, and we believe as a result of His choice, is that right?

Much love!
 
Mar 4, 2020
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Like I said, Faith is a product of Grace. If you insist its of your natural man, it becomes your work and condemned by scripture. You put yourself under law, faith was required by natural creation law and the law of moses Matt 23:23
23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.
Doing something that requires work such as reading, running, thinking, believing something isn’t the same thing as working to keep the law.
 

brightfame52

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Nov 21, 2020
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You're saying then that we don't choose to believe, rather, God chooses us, and we believe as a result of His choice, is that right?

Much love!
Correct. God gives some the gift of believing on the name of His Son Phil 1:29

29 For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;

And that word given is the greek word charizomai:
to show favor, give freely

The word is from the word charis which is Im sure you know the word grace.

So Faith to believe on Christ is of Grace just like Eph 2:8 is saying. But now if a person insists that no, its not of grace, but of my own freewill naturally, then that downgrades to works, merit. To stay consistent with Salvation by Grace, it has to be owned that even my faith wasn't of myself, but the Gift of Grace.
 

brightfame52

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Nov 21, 2020
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Doing something that requires work such as reading, running, thinking, believing something isn’t the same thing as working to keep the law.
Nothing changes friend, you either admit that Faith is a product of Gods Grace, or if not its saying faith is a product of your flesh, then that makes it your work, you may as well say you keep the law to get saved, because you have forfeited any claim to grace.
 
Mar 4, 2020
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Nothing changes friend, you either admit that Faith is a product of Gods Grace, or if not its saying faith is a product of your flesh, then that makes it your work, you may as well say you keep the law to get saved, because you have forfeited any claim to grace.
One is only put under the law by attempting to be justified by the law. That’s what causes one to fall away from grace. Believing in Jesus isn’t a work of the law.

Galatians 3:3,4
3Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. 4You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.
 

BroTan

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Sep 16, 2021
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Dear brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ of Nazareth, our Lord and Savior,

Please read this OP before answering.

Serious question looking for some answers. Thought maybe I could find some here. I want to post two scriptures and see what people conclude. I’ll post the KJV.

My question is this: is faith in Christ a work?

John 6:28,29 KJV
28Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?
29Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

Ephesians 2:8,9 KJV
8For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9Not of works, lest any man should boast.

If I understand correctly, Jesus is saying that the work God wants us to do to have salvation of our soul is to believe on His Son Jesus Christ.

However, Paul says that we are given a gift of being saved because of our faith and that it has nothing to do with our works or self-effort.

Can someone explain this to me? Thank you.

My question is this: is faith in Christ a work?

Yes. Once you really sit down and study the Bible from Genesis to Revelation you will see that God means what he says and can't lie. We in the last days where the great punishment comes at the end (Lake of Fire). It’s starts off with repentance, that’s one of the first thing Jesus says when he got started in his ministry, Jesus says in Luke 5:32 I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. Works and your faith in the word of God, you need both. When Jesus died on the cross that was the end of the first covenant, which consisted of the blood of animals and the keeping of God’s commandments. And his death also brought in the second covenant, which consist of the blood of Jesus and the keeping of God’s commandments. (v.18) Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin. In other words, no more animals are going to die for your sins.

Let’s take a look at something Peter says, in Acts 1: 36-38 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ. Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, "repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” Anyone that is not baptized is a person with their sins yet upon them, because it is the baptism that washes away our past sins. "And now why tarriest thou? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord." (Acts 22:16):

"Every word" that proceeds out of his mouth (Matthew 4:4). Baptism is one of those words. In order to be baptized, certain events must take place: You must give up a lifestyle where sin has dominion, (ruler ship) over you. Sin according to 1 John 3:4, Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression (breaking) of the law. You must be taught "The Word", before you can adhere to God's commandments (judgments\statues). These laws are found in the Holy Bible; beginning with Genesis and ending with Revelation.

Now this is how faith and works start working together, doing all those things that are written to do. What did Jesus say in John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments. Let’s see who else you have to love, Jesus says in Matthew 5:44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; People complain about the way the world is and won’t change themselves, to do the will of God. Pay attention to what Jesus says in Matthew 10:34 Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. And that sword is the Word of God. It’s easy for people to say how much they love the Lord, they may be able to deceive man, but God knows the mind. Many profess they know God, but in their works they deny him everyday.

Paul said in (Titus 1:16) They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him; being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate. Yea, most people are talking about how they know God with their lips, but by they works they are doing something totally different. The Lord God commanded you to remember the Sabbath day (which is the seventh day of the week) to keep it holy and you deny him to his face by saying “I go to church on Sunday (the first day of the week) because Paul broke bread on Sunday”. There's no other day to go to church on, but what's written in the Bible. So people have been taught to do the things thats not written in the Bible and to use the Bible to justify it.


So the Faith here is to believe in Jesus, stop sinning and keep the Commandments, Statues, and Judgements. Put in the work and do what thus said the Lord, and let faith have it's perfect works.
 

brightfame52

Well-known member
Nov 21, 2020
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One is only put under the law by attempting to be justified by the law. That’s what causes one to fall away from grace. Believing in Jesus isn’t a work of the law.

Galatians 3:3,4
3Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. 4You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.
Once you deny grace and its saving effects, its by default law works. So again, if you deny that Faith in Christ is a result of Grace, and insist that its from you naturally, you forfeit grace salvation. Salvation is either all of grace or all of works Rom 11:6

6 And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then it is no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.

So which is it, is your faith a result of the efficacious working of Grace or is it of your flesh naturally? Cant be of both
 

JBTN

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Feb 11, 2020
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1. If what Jesus said in John 6:28,29 is not literal, then it can be interpreted to mean that God produces one’s required faith/belief in Jesus. That means it’s apparent God selects who is saved and who isn’t. The problem I see with that is God doesn’t want any unsaved people. God being omnipotent, I assume, shouldn’t have any problem working out the faith of everyone: that seems reasonable to me from what I can tell in scripture.

2. If John 6:28,29 is literal then no interpretation is required. If faith is our work that we do, then it’s our obedience, our perseverance, our choice. Each person can decide to examine the evidences in the Bible and believe or not. If that’s the case, God doesn’t decide who is disobedient to the command to have faith and repentance and doesn’t decide who is saved our lost, but only judges choices of each person.

Which one is accurate, 1 or 2 or is there another option I’m not aware of?

I see it as a combination of the two.

God is working to produce faith in people. He is doing this by bearing witness to his Son. Jesus tells us this.

“But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.” This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel.
‭‭John‬ ‭5‬:‭17‬-‭20‬ ‭ESV‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/59/jhn.5.17-18.ESV

“But the testimony that I have is greater than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me. And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen,”
‭‭John‬ ‭5‬:‭36‬-‭37‬ ‭ESV‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/59/jhn.5.36-37.ESV

“It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me—”
‭‭John‬ ‭6‬:‭45‬ ‭ESV‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/59/jhn.6.45.ESV

If the Father was using his power to select who has faith then there would be no need for the miracles. The Father was working to produce faith by performing miracles and bearing witness that Jesus was the Christ. He wasn’t selecting who would believe and who wouldn’t. He was giving them the information they needed to decide on their own.

“Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.””
‭‭John‬ ‭6‬:‭29‬ ‭ESV‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/59/jhn.6.29.ESV