Dysfunctional Faith-Alone justification

[Soyeong]

This is a traditional error of faith alone justification.

By faith we are imputed the righteousness of God to do His will. Only by doing His righteousness through faith, is the believer declared to be righteous:

1 John{3:7}
Little children, let no man deceive you: he that is doing righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.

1 John{2:29} I
If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one that is doing righteousness is born of him.

Being saved by faith is having imputed righteousness. Being justified is doing righteousness by faith.

Righteousness imputed without being done, is dead faith alone without works.

Being declared righteousness through faith alone is in perfect accordance with being declared righteous by doing God's righteousness through faith and imputed righteousness. While the only way to become righteous is through faith alone apart from being required to have first done enough righteous works in order to earn it as the result, it is contradictory for someone to be righteous without being a doer of righteous works through faith.

 

[passion84god]

You were doing well up to this point then you quoted the verse above (Romans 2:2-6).

Oblivious to the context of Romans 2 which is Paul's assault on the Jewish legalism.

I would strongly advise you to adhere to the context of Romans 2.

You need to take your own advice. I got the context right.

Romans 2​

​

1 Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.

2 But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.

3 And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?

4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

5 But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;

6 Who will render to every man according to his deeds:

7 To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:

8 But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,

9 Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;

10 But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile:

11 For there is no respect of persons with God.

According to the Bible, in the righteous judgment of God, those who by patient continuance in well-doing or those who work good will be rewarded with glory, honor, peace, and immortality or eternal life.

At the same time, those who are contentious and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, or those who do evil will face indignation, wrath, tribulation, and anguish.

Be careful in regard to what you preach and how you live.

 

[passion84god]

You may not understand that I am battling against not just legalism but also work's righteousness.

I have only read the first three posts here and your responses to me, so I honestly don't know what others here are saying.

 

[2Christ]

You continue in your misunderstanding.

We are justified, sanctified, and are blameless, perfected, even divinely righteous, by grace alone in Christ alone.

Not one single work that you perform can justify you before God Almighty, not one work.

On judgement day when your babbling about your legalism and your works. Standing before our eternal Lord
you will be saying to Jesus; look at my works!

Were you boasting in Jesus Christ or were you boasting in your works, your legalism?

We are talking about salvation here.

The main problem with your statement is that it creates a choice that Jesus never created. It assumes that either you trust Christ or you obey Him. Jesus taught that true faith in Him produces obedience to Him.

The question is not whether works save us apart from Christ. No Christian should claim that. The real question is: if Jesus is truly our Lord, does He expect us to obey Him?
Jesus answered that question many times.

“And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46, ASV)

According to Jesus, calling Him Lord while refusing to do what He says is a contradiction.

Jesus also said: If ye love me, ye will keep my commandments.” (John 14:15, ASV)

Notice that Jesus did not say, "If you love Me, do nothing." He said love is shown through obedience.

Again: “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me.” (John 14:21, ASV)

And:“If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.” (John 15:10, ASV)

So when someone says, "Look at my works," that would indeed be wrong if he means his works earned salvation. But it is equally wrong to say that obedience has no place in salvation, because Jesus repeatedly connected eternal life, discipleship, love, and obedience.

Notice how Jesus describes the final judgment: “Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 7:21, ASV)

Jesus did not say, "The one who merely professes faith." He said, "he that doeth the will of my Father."

Then He continues: “Every one therefore that heareth these words of mine, and doeth them, shall be likened unto a wise man, who built his house upon the rock.” (Matthew 7:24, ASV)

The difference between the wise and foolish builders was not what they heard. Both heard. The difference was that one obeyed and the other did not.

Even when Jesus was asked directly about eternal life, His answer included obedience: "And behold, one came to him and said, Teacher, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? And he said unto him... if thou wouldest enter into life, keep the commandments.” (Matthew 19:16-17, ASV)

Jesus was not teaching salvation by human merit. He was teaching that those who truly belong to God live according to God's will.

Now what about Paul? Paul absolutely taught that nobody can earn justification through works done to establish his own righteousness before God. “For by grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, that no man should glory.” (Ephesians 2:8-9, ASV)

But notice that people often stop reading before the next verse: "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God afore prepared that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10, ASV)

Paul agrees with Jesus. We are not saved by works, but we are saved for good works.

Paul also wrote:"Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing; but the keeping of the commandments of God.” (1 Corinthians 7:19, ASV)

And: “For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.” (Romans 2:13, ASV)

And: “Do we then make the law of none effect through faith? God forbid: nay, we establish the law.” (Romans 3:31, ASV)

These statements agree completely with Christ's teaching that faith does not abolish obedience.

The apostles taught the same thing. "And hereby we know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.” (1 John 2:3, ASV)

“He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” (1 John 2:4, ASV)

At the final judgment, believers will not be standing before Christ presenting a list of achievements to earn heaven. Salvation is God's gift. But neither will Christ ignore how they lived.

Jesus Himself said:"For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then shall he render unto every man according to his deeds.” (Matthew 16:27, ASV)

And: “If a man keep my word, he shall never see death.” (John 8:51, ASV)

The biblical position is neither legalism nor lawlessness. We are saved by God's grace through faith in Christ, but the faith that saves is a faith that obeys. Obedience is not the root of salvation; Christ is. Obedience is the fruit that shows the tree is alive.

That is why Jesus never asked, "Did you claim grace?" He asked whether people heard His words and did them. The person who trusts Christ will not boast in his works, but neither will he dismiss the commandments of the One he calls Lord. Jesus taught that true faith and obedience walk together.

 

[Proximus]

I kind of thought that "believing in Him" would be your response.

Are you aware that the English words " believe, believer, and believing " are mistranslations of the Greek word "pisteuo"?

If your interested, I could give you some information about it?

Jay

Well, the general idea that men are expected to have trust in him, believe on him, and in Him, especially, when God is now in His Glorified Human. It is better to see into the major idea first, and then also see the various particulars.

 

[Roger316]

The original argument for faith alone was: "Can I be saved by my faith alone, without doing good work."

James{2:14}
What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?...Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.

Simple answer is: No. Salvation is not by faith alone without works.



The argument remains the same: "Can I be saved by my faith alone without works?"

The answer remains the same: No. No faith alone without works cannot save any man.

James{2:14}
What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?...Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.


You've never heard any Christian arguing their salvation is by faith alone apart from their works?

You've never heard any Christian ever say, that though they are still sinning against Christ, they are also still saved by their faith alone in Christ?

No. I can't say that I have. I don't recall ever hearing a Christian say that. When I was growing up, the big question on everyone's mind was how to avoid sinning.

But James was dealing with people who claimed to have faith and the question for him was whether or not such a claim was genuine. We must be clear about what kind of "works" James had in mind.

When James says that “faith without works is dead,” he is not urging Christians to add charity projects to their schedule. He is describing the *inner logic* of genuine faith. James assumes that if God has forgiven you, you will forgive; if God has shown mercy, you will show mercy; if God has loved you, you will love. The “works” he has in mind are not random acts of goodness but the **relational obligations that naturally arise from receiving God’s own treatment of you**. In James’s mind, it would be a contradiction to claim faith in a God who has poured out mercy while refusing to extend mercy yourself. The works are simply the visible implications of having truly encountered God’s character.

This is why James insists that works reveal whether faith is alive or dead. He is not saying that works complete faith as a separate ingredient; he is saying that **faith, if real, inevitably expresses itself in the same kind of actions God has shown toward us**. A forgiven person forgives. A loved person loves. A person who has received God’s concern for their well‑being naturally becomes concerned for the well‑being of others. These are not add‑ons to faith—they are the *logical consequences* of seeing God clearly. For James, the absence of such works does not mean a believer is immature; it means the supposed “faith” never truly grasped God’s mercy in the first place. The works he describes are the relational echoes of God’s own actions toward us.

 

[Watchman22]

Well, the general idea that men are expected to have trust in him, believe on him, and in Him, especially, when God is now in His Glorified Human. It is better to see into the major idea first, and then also see the various particulars.

I guess thats a no then?

 

[ATG]

Would you accept "Faith apart from meritorious works"?

You mean, is it proper sense of Scripture?

What does 'meritorious' mean? It can't mean good and righteous works, since Jesus' faith is never apart from doing good:

Jhn 8:29
And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.

The only works that can't be by faith in Jesus Christ are evil works. Which include dead works apart from Christ.

Since saving faith cannot be apart from doing good, which is Jesus Christ in us doing no good, then saving faith can only be apart from our past works without Christ, none of which are any good.

Heb 4:9
There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.

Gal 2:20
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
How can 'meritorious' works be any good, if they must be apart from the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ?

Meritorious works must therefore be no good, so that having faith in Jesus Christ must always be apart from doing them.

 

[Inquisitor]

You need to take your own advice. I got the context right.

Romans 2​

​

1 Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.

2 But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.

3 And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?

4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?

5 But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God;

6 Who will render to every man according to his deeds:

7 To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:

8 But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,

9 Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;

10 But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile:

11 For there is no respect of persons with God.

According to the Bible, in the righteous judgment of God, those who by patient continuance in well-doing or those who work good will be rewarded with glory, honor, peace, and immortality or eternal life.

At the same time, those who are contentious and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, or those who do evil will face indignation, wrath, tribulation, and anguish.

Be careful in regard to what you preach and how you live.

I made the point about Romans 2 and the context.

The context means what is Paul really talking about in Romans 2.

You have made your point based on the first eleven verses which is a general introduction for both Jew and Gentile.

You stopped before verse twelve?

Care to explain verse fourteen?

Romans 2:14
For when Gentiles who do not have the Law do instinctively the things of the Law, these, not having the Law, are
a law to themselves.

 

[ATG]

Would you accept "Faith apart from meritorious works"?

And so, if you mean good works approved of God, being done through faith in His Son Jesus Christ, then of course not. At least not the faith that is in Jesus Christ

If 'meritorious' works' are good works with Christ, and faith must be apart from them to be saved, then once again, we have another dysfunction of faith alone justification without works: Either faith of Jesus Christ cannot be with doing good. Or, the saving faith is not of Jesus Christ, but of another Christ that saves apart from doing good:

Mark 13:22
For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.

And of course, since all people on earth are doing good or evil works, then that saving faith apart from good works, must be with evil works. Since only the dead can have no works at all...

 

[Inquisitor]

The biblical position is neither legalism nor lawlessness. We are saved by God's grace through faith in Christ, but the faith that saves is a faith that obeys. Obedience is not the root of salvation; Christ is. Obedience is the fruit that shows the tree is alive.

Can you flesh out the paragraph above.

Also can you explain clearly what you mean here "Obedience is the fruit"?

The fruit of what?

 

[Inquisitor]

And so, if you mean good works approved of God, being done through faith in His Son Jesus Christ, then of course not. At least not the faith that is in Jesus Christ

If 'meritorious' works' are good works with Christ, and faith must be apart from them to be saved, then once again, we have another dysfunction of faith alone justification without works: Either faith of Jesus Christ cannot be with doing good. Or, the saving faith is not of Jesus Christ, but of another Christ that saves apart from doing good:

Mark 13:22
For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.

And of course, since all people on earth are doing good or evil works, then that saving faith apart from good works, must be with evil works. Since only the dead can have no works at all...

You need to concisely identify the sole cause of salvation!

 

[Blade]

It is amazing to me what some can interpret from a few lines of text.

This is a known huge debate about faith and works. Even AI says "the most significant and debated topics in Christian theology." Am I saved by believing in trusting in John 3:16-17 Rom 10:9-10? I didn't do anything He found me. For me.. get that? Me.. at my worse.. He shows me a tiny tree oh so beautiful full of branches.. never seen a tree with so many branches... then says "show me a branch that was not originally of the vine. I am the vine you are the branches".

I personally believe that is enough for me. Yet that being said.. there is a song by Allies older song but called "Surrender" take a listen in it that bring born again should be like day and night. Something within you has changed ..its never been there before.. you never cared about sin.. now every sin.... you feel awful.. something in you has changed.. it should be like day and night. Saved.. always listening to ACID ROCK.. one day it just changed.. I have no clue no one said a word to me about it.. this was years later after I was saved.. I had still do.. no desire for it.. it just was as if it was never there. Lol the song. now.. Jesus Freak..

I don't do good works because I was told to.. if your saved.. you have to obey... you have to blah blah blah. No... you read Paul and yes.. yes I understand now... what I want to do I don't do.... and what I should not do I do.. its no longer I that sin but sin that is in me. Those good works now.. its that new man that new spirit.... I want to.. as if I always wanted to. Sorry but its faith in Christ you are saved.. and many will be there you knew should not. They are His creation His kids and we get no say here.

Any time I make this about me and what I know and you need to listen.. other then you need Jesus as lord.. is about me not Him. So I miss reading "this is what I believe and why". Don't believe me .. you seek you pray you find this truth for your self.

If I am saved by works.. I am doomed. The song just came on.. My Desire... Jeremy camp.. the works are just fruit of what He has done in my life.

 

[ATG]

I hear what you’re saying, and I appreciate the way you’re trying to take James seriously. But I’m not sure I fully understand what *specific* dysfunction you see in the idea of being justified by faith apart from works.

Once again, dysfunctional justification by faith alone without works:

1. It's impossible for a living person to be without works. I.e. to have no works in life. To be doing nothing at all on earth.

2. No person can only be saved by their faith alone without works, and also be justified by faith with works. Unless faith alone, is also with works, and not only without works.

The impracticality is therefore:

Either the saved believer can do no works nor live by his faith, else he is being saved by his faith with works. Or, justification must be by faith alone without works, and by faith alone with works... 'Alone' becomes confusion without practical affect.

When you say it’s “dysfunctional,” do you mean logically inconsistent, pastorally harmful, or something else?

Can't be one without the other.

1 Cor{14:33}
For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.

 

[Roger316]

You mean, is it proper sense of Scripture?

No. I mean your definition of "Faith Alone" is different from what we typically mean by faith alone.

What does 'meritorious' mean? It can't mean good and righteous works, since Jesus' faith is never apart from doing good:

Jhn 8:29
And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.

The only works that can't be by faith in Jesus Christ are evil works. Which include dead works apart from Christ.

Since saving faith cannot be apart from doing good, which is Jesus Christ in us doing no good, then saving faith can only be apart from our past works without Christ, none of which are any good.

Heb 4:9
There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.

Gal 2:20
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
How can 'meritorious' works be any good, if they must be apart from the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ?

Meritorious works must therefore be no good, so that having faith in Jesus Christ must always be apart from doing them.

And so, if you mean good works approved of God, being done through faith in His Son Jesus Christ, then of course not. At least not the faith that is in Jesus Christ

If 'meritorious' works' are good works with Christ, and faith must be apart from them to be saved, then once again, we have another dysfunction of faith alone justification without works: Either faith of Jesus Christ cannot be with doing good. Or, the saving faith is not of Jesus Christ, but of another Christ that saves apart from doing good:

Mark 13:22
For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.

And of course, since all people on earth are doing good or evil works, then that saving faith apart from good works, must be with evil works. Since only the dead can have no works at all...

I think we may be using the word “works” differently than James does. You’re right that everyone does something — good, bad, or mixed. But James isn’t talking about generic human activity. He’s talking about the specific relational obligations that logically flow from receiving God’s mercy.

In other words, the “works” that make faith alive are not just “actions,” but the necessary implications of believing the gospel. If God forgave me, I must forgive. If God loved me, I must love. If God showed mercy to me, I must show mercy to others.

So when James says “faith without works is dead,” he’s not saying “faith is dysfunctional because humans always act.” He’s saying “faith is dead when it refuses to express the very things it claims to believe.”

Does that distinction make sense to you? I’d like to hear how you see it.

 

[Roger316]

Once again, dysfunctional justification by faith alone without works:
1. It's impossible for a living person to be without works. I.e. to have no works in life. To be doing nothing at all on earth.

2. No person can only be saved by their faith alone without works, and also be justified by faith with works. Unless faith alone, is also with works, and not only without works.

I think the difficulty here comes from treating “works” as any human action whatsoever and treating “faith alone” as if it meant “faith existing in total isolation from all human activity.”

But neither Paul nor James uses the categories that way. Paul contrasts faith with works of the law — covenantal boundary‑markers. James contrasts living faith with a refusal to act in ways that logically follow from believing the gospel.

So “faith alone” describes the instrument of justification, not the total content of a believer’s life. And “works” in James are not generic actions but the relational implications of receiving mercy.

With those categories in place, “faith alone” is not dysfunctional at all — it simply answers a different question than the one you’re raising.

How do you define “works” in James? Are they just “any action,” or something more specific?

 

[Roger316]

And so, if you mean good works approved of God, being done through faith in His Son Jesus Christ, then of course not. At least not the faith that is in Jesus Christ

If 'meritorious' works' are good works with Christ, and faith must be apart from them to be saved, then once again, we have another dysfunction of faith alone justification without works: Either faith of Jesus Christ cannot be with doing good. Or, the saving faith is not of Jesus Christ, but of another Christ that saves apart from doing good:

Mark 13:22
For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.

And of course, since all people on earth are doing good or evil works, then that saving faith apart from good works, must be with evil works. Since only the dead can have no works at all...

James is not arguing that faith must be accompanied by generic human activity — everyone has that. He is arguing that genuine faith necessarily expresses the character of the God who gave it. The “works” he has in mind are the relational consequences of believing the gospel: forgiving because you were forgiven, showing mercy because you received mercy, loving because you were loved. These are not additions to faith but its natural outflow. So “faith alone” describes how God justifies; “works” describe how faith breathes. There is no contradiction unless we redefine the terms.

You are assigning a meaning to the Phrase "Faith alone" that is not correct.

 

[ATG]

From my side, the original slogan was aimed at the question of **merit**, not the question of **how living faith expresses itself**, so I may be hearing your point differently than you intend.

That's because the challenge of dysfunction only has to do with faith alone and works, not about merit.

Whether the works are 'meritorious' or unmeritorious, it's still impossible for any living person to be without works at all.

The same for being justified by faith alone without works, whether meritorious or not. No one can then have any works, meritorious or not, and still be saved by faith alone, being no more alone, but with works...Meritorious or not.

 

[ATG]

From my side, the original slogan was aimed at the question of **merit**,

Though merit has no part in the challenge of dysfunction, however, If meritorious means works to boast of, then the answer is no: No man can be justified by their works and boast of the work, whether with faith or not...Neither nor works of faith have any pride of man, but only thanks to Jesus Christ our Lord.

Boasting is excluded if by faith, not because we have no works at all by faith, (else our faith is dead, being alone). But because works of faith cannot be boasted of by any man, but only through Jesus Christ our Lord:

Gal 2:20
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

1 Cor{15:10}
But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace [which was bestowed] upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.

"If by grace and faith", is not without any works at all (Which is impossible except for the dead), but is only without any works to boast of:

Rom 11:6
And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.

No more of works, is not no more works at all, but is no more works to boast of before Christ. If we have works to boast of, then it is no more by grace, but by pride.

When we repent of doing our own works without Christ, He saves us by His faith to do no more works by pride, but now to do our works by Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom be the glory.

To not be saved nor justified by any 'meritorious' works, is simply not by works of pride to justify us with God: Which is the pagan theism of hero-worship. I.e. Herculean works earn glory and deification by the Gods...

But, the justification of Jesus Christ by grace through faith, is not only the true and living God's rebuke to old pagan heroic glorification, but is foremost rebuke by the God of Israel to old Jewish justification by law alone to boast of:

Rom 2:23
Thou that makest thy boast of the law, through breaking the law dishonourest thou God. For the name of God is blasphemed among the nations through you, as it is written.Which they themselves did not even wholly keep, but only boasting in part:

Mat 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.

Matthew{23:5}
But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments,

Frankly, deification of the heroes of old, have more to boast of than mint, cumin, and phylacteries...

 

[2Christ]

Can you flesh out the paragraph above.

Also can you explain clearly what you mean here "Obedience is the fruit"?

The fruit of what?

see it like this, legalism is the pharisee way, the wrong way, they followed the only letter of the law without love, without understanding, without mercy, without justice. they were convinced they followed the "law". please refer to Matthew 23 full chapter for context.

Jesus is very clear about lawlessness, very clear when he said.

Mat 7:23 (KJV) And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. (

a part from pulpit commentary the this verse;

our Lord speaks not of sin generally (τὴν ἁμαρτίαν), but of lawlessness (τὴν ἀνομίαν). He has throughout been insisting upon obedience to the Law in its final meaning as essentially necessary for his followers.

Yes Jesus did say this.

As we know, Jesus is God and He does not change!

What did jesus asked of us, his followers?;

Jhn 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
Jhn 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;
Jhn 14:17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.