Does,
then, the one who supplies the Spirit to you and works mighty deeds among you do
so from works of the law or from faith in what you heard? Galatians 3:5
“And
I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the
door will be opened to you. For everyone
who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks,
the door will be opened.”
Luke 11:9-10
Piety
Father, help us forge a common understanding of what we
need to do when armed with the grace of faith brought to us by your Son. Holy Spirit, give us the conviction to
overturn the disagreements the drive us apart and bind our wounds of discord so
that we stand together and serve together in faith. Amen.
Study
Paul’s contention that justification comes not through
the law or the works of the law but by faith in Christ and in his death is
supported by appeals to Christian experience and to scripture. That did not mean the subject was settled
after Paul’s pronouncement. In fact,
this very question led 1600 years later to the Protestant Reformation.
Paul reminds his audience in Galatia that the gift of
God’s Spirit came from the gospel received in faith, not from doing what the
law enjoins. The story of Abraham referred to is an example that shows faith in
God puts you on the right side. However,
it does not cut off the invitation with only the “chosen people.” The promise to Abraham extends to the
Gentiles, as well.
Back in the 1500’s Martin Luther and his followers had
declared sola fide! Faith alone! Grace alone! Nothing we do can
earn our salvation. This was not unlike
Paul’s message nor that of St. Augustine.
For Martin Luther, the
place of good works in the everyday life of a Christian was to be found within
the context of righteousness, justification, and grace. Essentially, works were
not to be viewed, in any way, shape, or form, as the means to justification and
grace. The only way one can achieve righteousness, according to Luther, is
through faith. Indeed, the pursuit of good works as the means to salvation
could be as detrimental to grace as ignorance of sin. Good works, however, are
not totally discounted in value by Martin Luther. Quite the contrary, they have
a positive and important role to play in both the revelation of an individual's
sinful nature, and in the proper Christian response to God's grace. Be this as
it may, the Biblical passage: "He who through faith is righteous shall
live," which Luther seems to have understood as the keynote of his
teachings, can be taken as the vantage point from which his understanding of
good works can be judged. They are, without a doubt, divorced from all baring
on the act of justification; for, 'by the works of the law shall no flesh be
justified."[i]
However, it took another 450 years before the Lutherans
and Catholics signed an historic document on the topic which healed the rift
that opened with the Council of Trent.
Talk about family feuds!
The Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification
essentially says that Lutherans and Catholics explain justification in
different ways but share the same basic understanding. The central passage
reads, “Together we confess: by grace alone, in faith in Christ’s saving work
and not because of any merit on our part, we are accepted by God and receive
the Holy Spirit, who renews our hearts while equipping us and calling us to
good works.”
The declaration acknowledges
that good works are a genuine response to God’s grace—not the cause of
it. The declaration also rescinds the formal condemnations of both the Catholic
and Lutheran Churches against one another.[ii]
Action
How does your faith equip you and call you to do good
works? It is our faith that causes us to
respond when our neighbor is hungry and knocks on our door for food. Without faith, we might roll over and go to
back to sleep.
We knock on God’s door with our prayer and God
answers. Who is knocking on your door
today? Will you answer? After all, God works mighty deeds and Jesus
performed many signs to get our attention and instill our faith. Should we not also perform this as a branch
from the tree of faith?
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