James 2:21-22 (NKJV) Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?
Many Christians are insecure in God’s love and fail to experience true peace with God. They have a nagging thought that God is not happy or satisfied with them and that God is waiting to discipline them by striking them with something evil.
We are a product of our thought life. Because we have heard sayings such as “there is no free lunch” or “there must be a catch because it is too good to be true”, we might find it difficult to accept the unconditional love of God and the gift of righteousness, because they simply seem too good to be true. Another hindrance is that we are often defined by our doing rather than our being, because our identity is in our doing. Such thinking will cause us to doubt God’s grace and mercy toward us, and because we are imperfect, we will never feel secure or accepted by God. However, when we are rested in His grace and acceptance of us based on Christ’s redemption, we will grow in the Lord daily.
If we read the opening Scripture without referencing other Scriptures, we might easily misunderstand that one must work to be justified before God. Justification means being made righteous before God—a position unattainable by works or the law, for no one can achieve it based on their own strength. The good news of the gospel is that God has given it to us because we can’t achieve it based on our strength.
Romans 4:1-3 (NKJV) What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”
These Scriptures revealed to us that despite Abraham’s obedience in leaving the land of Ur, he also made mistakes along the way, such as bearing a son through Hagar due to his impatience. Though his obedience of offering Isaac on the altar as a sacrifice is admirable and commendable in the eyes of men, there is nothing to boast about before God because whatever men do to gain justification will never be acceptable by Him. Likewise, no work of any kind will give us a right standing before God. The wrath of God towards sin can only be appeased by blood.
In our case, it is the blood of Christ, the ultimate unblemished lamb of God, that has redeemed us from our sins and lawlessness. It is His unmerited favour that allows us to rest in God’s presence and have permanent access to Him.
Sermon Series: Faith with works
单单因为神的恩典
雅各书2: 21-22 我们的祖宗亚伯拉罕把他儿子以撒献在坛上，岂不是因行为称义么？可 见 ， 信 心 是 与 他 的 行 为 并 行，而且信心因着行为才得成全。
很多基督徒对神的爱缺乏安全感，因而无法经历到与神真正的平安。总有一个挥之不去的想法影响着这些基督徒，认为上帝不喜悦他们或对他们心怀不满，甚至会觉得神正在伺机通过某种邪恶的打击来管教他们。
我们是自己思想生活的产物。因为我们都听说过诸如“天下没有免费的午餐”或“好事过头必有猫腻”之类的说法，我们可能会发现自己很难接受上帝无条件的爱和公义的礼物，因为它们看起来好得令人难以置信。另一个障碍是，我们经常被我们的行为而不是我们的本我所定义，因为我们的身份在于我们的行为。这种想法会让我们怀疑神对我们的恩典和怜悯，因为我们不完美，我们总是没有安全感，或者觉得自己不被神接纳。然而，当我们凭着基督的救赎安息在祂的恩典与接纳之中，我们就会在主里日益成长。
如果只读这段开篇的经文而不参考其他经文，我们很容易误以为一个人必须靠努力才能在神面前称义。称义的意思是指一个人在神面前被视为公义——这个地位无法靠着努力争取或遵行律法来企及，因为没有人能靠着一己之力得以称义。福音的好消息是：因为我们无法凭自己的力量称义，于是神早就把它白白地赐给了我们。
罗马书4:1-3 如此说来，我们的祖宗亚伯拉罕凭着肉体得了甚么呢？ 倘若亚伯拉罕是因行为称义，就有可夸的；只是在神面前并无可夸。经上说甚么呢？说：亚伯拉罕信神，这就算为他的义。
这段经文向我们启示，尽管亚伯拉罕顺服了神的旨意，离开吾珥地; 但在这段旅程当中他也犯了错, 他因为自己的着急，就与侍女夏甲生下了一个儿子。尽管他将以撒献在祭坛上为祭的顺服在世人眼中是令人钦佩可歌可泣的，但在神面前，这一切却是没什么可夸耀的，因为无论人为了得着义而做什么，都绝不会为神所悦纳。同样，任何努力都不会使我们在神前拥有合法的地位。神对罪的烈怒只能以血来平息。
至于我们，是基督的宝血，神至高无瑕的羔羊，将我们从罪恶与不法中救赎出来。正是祂那无价的眷顾，让我们能够安息在上帝的同在里，拥有永远敞开直达祂面前的通道。
讲章系列：有行动的信心
Image Source：pixabay.com