Answering the liberal/skeptic fallacy
by Paul Bishop (with thanks to David Bishop for his contributions to this article)
Introduction
1. Jesus taught salvation by faith
2. Jesus taught faith apart from works for salvation.
3. John influenced by Paul?
4. Peter/Apostles taught salvation by faith alone.
5. Objections to Jesus' faith alone teaching
a)active and passive righteousness
b)the lawyer
c)rich young ruler
d)sermon on the mount
e)the sheep and goats
f)the one who endures
g)darkness and light
6. Paul didn’t care about works?
Conclusion
The argument often goes something like this: Did not Jesus say, “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.” (Luke 14:27) and “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me…and he who does not take up his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.” (Matt. 37a – 38), and “He who endures to the end shall be saved” (Matt. 24:13 NKJV)? Didn’t Jesus give key behavioral requirements in His teachings, as in the Sermon on the Mount? Did not Jesus tell the story of the Good Samaritan to show how to get eternal life? It is asserted that Jesus said good deeds are necessary to be saved; that faith is still important, but it is not the way of salvation. All this, the argument goes, contradicts Paul who says “For by grace you have been saved, through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
Is this so? We will prove with Scripture and logical arguments that Paul repeated the exact same gospel that Christ taught – salvation by faith alone. Then we will address the verses where Jesus allegedly teaches a “works” salvation. The Paul vs. Jesus commentary by Davis Danizier will often be used as an example. Claims by a Paul vs. Jesus proponents are in green type, my words are in black, quoted verses are italicized. Green quotes noted with (G) are general statements that combine the viewpoints of most Paul vs. Jesus advocates. All emphasis in Bible verses is mine.
1) “Jesus said that good works and deeds are necessary for salvation. He said faith is still important, but it is not how people go to heaven.” (G)
Basically, this statement shows total unfamiliarity with the teachings of Jesus Christ. Jesus said that belief in Him alone is necessary for salvation, and although works are still important for a Christian, our eternal destiny does not depend on our own effort or lack thereof.
To discover the teachings of Jesus about salvation, it is necessary to look in the correct places. Jesus taught about many other topics besides salvation, from adultery to zeal. The most rudimentary principle of Biblical interpretation is this: Scripture interprets Scripture. To properly understand Bible doctrines, it is essential to look in passages where that doctrine is stated clearly. Of the four gospels, the one that was written for the purpose of Christ’s teachings on salvation is the gospel of John. John states near the end of his book, “these have been written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.” (John 20:31 NKJV) In fact, the Gospel of John is the only book in the entire Bible written expressly for an evangelistic purpose. Therefore the primary place to look for Jesus’ teaching on salvation is John’s Gospel. Let us examine then what Jesus said in regard to salvation there.
When Nicodemus came by night to talk to Jesus, He told him:
“As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (John 3:14-18)
Notice that Christ repeatedly says, five times, that whoever believes has eternal life/is not judged. This is the common theme in other verses in John:
“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.” (John 5:24, NKJV)
“Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.’” (John 6:35)
“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life” (John 6:47 NKJV)
“For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:40)
“Believe” is repeated over and over and over again. If Jesus taught salvation by good deeds, then he repeatedly gave out false information to His disciples and thousands upon thousands of people at the multiplication of the loaves and fishes, the Samaritans, Lazarus’s funeral, etc.:
“I said therefore to you, that you shall die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you shall die in your sins.” (John 8:24)
“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?’ She said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world.’ ” (John 11:25-27)
Notice that no human works are added to this promise. He who believes will live. No turning from sin, loving enemies, or any human merit is added. Just “believe” in Christ, who is our resurrection and life.
“I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness.” (John 12:46)
The word, “believe” is used 98 times in John’s Gospel. James Patrick Holding writes concerning John 3:18, “The Greek here for ‘believes’ is pisteuo, which has the same root as pistis, faith - while ‘rejects’ is apeitheo – ‘to disbelieve (willfully and perversely):--not believe, disobedient, obey not, unbelieving.’ So this clearly indicates faith in the Son as the requirement for eternal life, and indicates lack of faith in the Son as something that will leave God's wrath on the non-believer - which sounds a great deal like Paul's idea of salvation by faith!” [1]
The basic meaning of pisteuo is 1) to accept as true and 2) to trust or rely or depend on someone for something. Jesus taught that to be saved, we must accept Him as true, and trust in Him alone as our only way to heaven. No human merit of any kind, no combination of faith and works; Jesus repeatedly and conspicuously states that whoever believes is saved. Pisteuo stands alone in these scores of sentences to thousands of people. This enables Jesus to say, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me” (John 14:6) If it were by works also, it would not be through Him alone as He states, it would be through Him and us. Therefore no works ar involved in the word, “believe.”
This is illustrated in John 3, one of the clearest chapters on salvation in the Bible, when Jesus said, “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; and so whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.” (John 3:14-15)
This is an interesting comparison. Christ is referring to Numbers 21:4-9 when the people of Israel sinned and the Lord punished them by sending poisonous snakes giving them fatal bites. Moses fashioned a bronze serpent, and whoever looked on the serpent after being bitten would live. “Moses raised a bronze snake on a pole as a cure for a punishment due to disobedience (cf. Numbers 21:4-9) So Jesus would be lifted up on a cross for people’s sin, so that a look of faith gives eternal life to those doomed to die” [2]. The Israelites did not have to work to be cured; Moses didn’t have them go through obstacle courses or climb mountains or recite the Torah to be healed; they were only to look with belief at a bronze snake, the object of their salvation from death, and be saved. Likewise, we look toward Christ’s work on the cross to be saved.
As can be clearly seen, when Paul said “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works” he is in precise agreement with the teachings of Jesus Christ.
2) Yet, despite this, Davis Danizier exclaims, “All of the gospels … NEVER once make any statement remotely similar to Paul that the faith and grace that engender salvation occur "apart from" obedience, works or deeds.” [3]
This pitifully erroneous statement totally ignores the Gospel of John, the most important gospel on the subject of salvation! Many verses from John are shown above saying exactly what Paul taught, nullifying this statement. People asked Christ this very question. “Then they said to Him, ‘What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?’ Jesus answered and said to them, 'This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.' ” (John 6:28-29 NKJV) Here, if Jesus truly taught works were involved in salvation, He had His chance to say what good deeds were necessary for eternal life, if works were the least bit necessary. But no, rather, He explicitly affirmed faith in Him, apart from good deeds, for eternal life.
Jesus said in John 6:47, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life” (NKJV). If Jesus taught faith plus works for salvation, He would have to include works in this statement. But He doesn’t say, “whoever believes in Him, and loves other people” or “believes in Him, and does good deeds” or “believes in Him, and does thus-and-so”. It says, “whoever believes in Him has everlasting life.” Period. Nor does it say, “might have”, “could have”, or “have unless you fail”, everlasting life; it says has everlasting life as an immediate possession as soon as one believes in Him. No ifs, ands, or buts; there is no other requirement for salvation except faith alone in Jesus Christ alone. Either it means that the requirement to have everlasting life is solely by believing in Christ, or language ceases to communicate!
Indeed, Jesus is specifically teaching that faith is the only way to heaven, apart from our performance. To argue otherwise would be arguing against the plain teachings of Jesus!
3) “John was influenced by Paul’s teachings, and he put Paul’s teachings in Jesus’ mouth for this gospel.” (G)
John was one of the first disciples to be called by Jesus. John was one of the inner circle of Jesus (which also included Peter and James).Of all the disciples, only John had the courage to stand at the foot of the cross. Of all the disciples, Jesus gave to John the solemn responsibility of taking care of His mother – I certainly wouldn’t give the care of my mother to anyone who I did not have utmost trust in. John was one of the first of the Twelve to see the empty tomb. If anything, Paul would be influenced by John! Christ appeared to Paul on a few occasions after His resurrection, but John spent three intimate years with Him during His public earthly ministry. If anyone has a qualified opinion of what Christ thought, said, and did, it is John, and he records that Jesus taught salvation by faith.
Further, it is not feasible that John lied about what Jesus taught. As pointed out in Christian Evidences, he, nor any other of Christ’s disciples, could have lied about their beliefs. They were persecuted and martyred for what they believed, and it is a confirmed fact of human nature that no one will die for what he knows to be a lie. Since John lived with Jesus, he would know what Jesus taught, and if he later twisted Jesus' teachings, he would know it, and certainly not die for his own lie. Further, John’s gospel was written while people who heard Christ still lived. If Christ taught another gospel from what is written in John, then the Gospel of John would not have been accepted.
4) “No one (except Paul) EVER states that salvation can occur with any of these virtues APART FROM works/deeds actions” [4]
This is totally wrong, and it is quite surprising that anyone would believe this when it can be so easily falsified by reading the Bible. It has been shown above Jesus Christ taught exactly that: salvation can only occur through belief in Him, apart from works. The other Apostles did as well, following the teachings of Jesus. The Apostle John said in His introduction to his Gospel, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.” (John 1:12).
Another Apostle who was one of the inner circle of Jesus is Peter. Jesus had a special relationship with Peter. Dialogue between Peter and Jesus is found throughout the gospels; Christ sometimes addressed Peter as representing all the disciples. The angel singled him out from the other disciples when he said to the women at the tomb, “go tell the disciples and Peter” where the resurrected Christ would meet them (Mark 16:7). Peter was considered a leader among the disciples, often speaking on their behalf, (Acts 2:14-36) and is always listed first when the disciples are listed. Peter, with his closeness and friendship with Christ, would certainly know how to obtain salvation as Christ taught, and with his leadership among the Twelve, what he said on salvation is notable.
As Peter was preaching to the first gentile convert, Cornelius, he said at the climax of his sermon about Christ, “Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins.” (Acts 10:43). In this sermon Peter didn’t mention any works involved in being saved.
There was a discussion among the early Christians on the relationship between faith and works, recorded in Acts 15. The conflict was actually instigated by some Pharisees who had become converted. These Pharisees said that the Gentiles who became Christians should follow Mosaic law and be circumcised in addition to faith. Peter, however, stood up, saying “God, who knows the heart, testified to them [the gentiles] giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He did to us; and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith. Now therefore why do you put God to the test by placing upon the neck of the disciples a yoke which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way they also are” (Acts 15:8-11). Peter specifically stated that salvation is by our faith in the grace of God, not by any works as the Pharisees argued. The very people who were adding works to salvation were the same people who Christ criticized before as “hypocrites”, a “brood of vipers”, blind men leading the blind, and whitewashed tombs. Jesus had very harsh words for the legalism of the Pharisees who laid heavy burdens on men’s shoulders and not lay a finger to help (See Matthew 23).
How ironic that Paul vs. Jesus proponents are actually taking the side of the Pharisees in saying that works are needed for salvation, whereas Jesus Christ and His close servants Peter and John taught salvation by grace through faith alone. Further, all of the Disciples, the Apostles and elders agreed on this, and sent Paul with a letter to the brethren (15:22).
So, besides Paul, the Bible records Jesus Christ, John, Peter, and all the other Apostles and leaders teaching salvation by faith apart from works. The consistent teaching of the entire bible on salvation is by faith alone in Jesus Christ alone. God’s message to mankind is what Paul told the jailer, “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:31 KJV) By His grace He will give them the free gift of eternal life (See John 10:27-28; Romans 6:23).
5) OBJECTIONS
What about the sayings of Christ about bearing a cross, and persevering, and doing good works? We will answer some of these, with the knowledge that none of them can be interpreted as salvation messages without Jesus contradicting Himself. As we have already seen in the clearest passages in the Gospels that specifically state “eternal life” and how to get it, salvation is by faith. Jesus’ sayings in the other gospels are only construed as works salvation by 1) taking the passage out of context, and 2) refusing to look at His plain statements elsewhere. It cannot be overemphasized, that we understand Bible doctrines where they are stated clearly. Difficult passages yield to clearer passages on the same subject.
While we are going to answer the Scriptural objections to salvation by faith alone, the critics do not give this courtesy. I have yet to find a Paul vs. Jesus proponent who would try to offer some sort of explanation to the sayings of Jesus that taught salvation by faith (besides the idea that John was influenced by Paul, which is refuted above).
Before we answer this, however, it is necessary to understand that the Bible speaks of two kinds of righteousness, which we will call “active” and “passive.” As David Bishop explains:
Active righteousness is what we produce by keeping the Ten Commandments, following Christ in discipleship, and otherwise actively working good deeds. This kind of righteousness is urged by Christ, and is noble, right, and good. However, this kind of righteousness cannot save, because no matter how much we do, it isn’t enough! “There is none righteous, no not one” (Romans 3:10).
Passive righteousness, on the other hand, is the righteousness of faith. We may call it “passive” because we do not produce it. When we place our faith in Christ, we are pronounced righteous (or justified). Paul spoke of his stringent efforts at keeping the law, which he finally gave up so that he “may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith” (Philippians 3:9; see also Romans 9:30-10:4). This understanding helps clarify some of the things Jesus said. When He spoke about “active” righteousness, He spoke it to two categories of people: self-righteous unbelievers who rationalized what the law revealed to their conscience, and those who were already Christians.
The unbelievers who viewed themselves as righteous are represented by the Pharisees in the New Testament. They violated the spirit of the law while studiously keeping the letter of the law. To them Jesus said in effect, “You think you are righteous because you don’t commit adultery, but I say to you, If you look at a woman to lust after her you have already committed adultery in your heart. You think you haven’t committed murder, but I say to you, When you hate your brother you have committed murder already in your heart.” He reminded them how they tithed and did many outward good deeds, while “neglecting the weightier things of the law, as justice and mercy and faithfulness” (Matthew 23).
The other category of people to whom Christ spoke of active righteousness was His own disciples. He did not engage in pre-evangelistic expositions of the law to them, for they were already saved. Instead He urged them to live lives of commitment to Him. When one reads about “cross-bearing” and “hating one’s life” in comparison to dedication to Him, searching back in the context frequently reveals that at the beginning of the discourse Jesus was speaking to His own disciples who were already saved (Matthew 16:24-28). Jesus did not attach a saving value to the active righteousness He urged His followers to engage in any more than He did to that of the self-righteous unbelievers [5].
The lawyer “And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and put Him [Jesus] to the test, saying ‘Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?’ And He said to him, ‘What is written in the law? How does it read to you?’ And he answered and said, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.’ And He said to him, ‘You have answered correctly. Do this and you will live.’ But wishing to justify himself, he said to Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbor?’ Jesus replied…”[This is the story of the Good Samaritan. Read the whole passage here]. (Luke 10:25-37) Danizier says “‘This DO and you will live’ (verse 28) -- showing clearly that salvation is related to works/deeds /actions, however important faith might be to motivating such behavior.” He also writes that the Samaritan “provides the example of one who is saved by their compassionate actions toward their enemy.” So this is an example of Jesus’ message of our “best effort” at “universal compassion” for salvation [6].
From a close study of this passage and in light of clearer passages on Jesus teaching on salvation, there is no works salvation here. Jesus dealt with people individually. Notice that the lawyer was not humble, but prideful, as is shown in the passage, “But wishing to justify himself, he said to Jesus, ‘And who is my neighbor?’
If the man would have asked, “how do I love God?” Jesus would have answered, “Believe on Him who He has sent” as He did all the other times on how a person obtains eternal life. Yet Jesus, being God, knew the lawyer was prideful and self-righteous, not humble and ready to believe; therefore, He showed the lawyer the law, showing him his own sinfulness by telling the parable of the Good Samaritan. The Samaritans were a group of people who were descendents of Israelites that intermarried with heathen, and the devout Jews hated them. A despicable Samaritan doing good deeds and obeying God, while the supposedly God-fearing Jew does not demonstrates this man’s sin and need for a Savior. The lawyer would not help the Samaritan if he were put in that position. It is the lawyer who asked about what works and effort he could do to have eternal life. Jesus did not mention the words “eternal life”, but did show the lawyer his desperate need for the free gift of the Savior. Paul the Apostle did the same (see below).
Lets for a moment, take Danizier’s thought on this passage to its logical conclusion. If Jesus is instructing us on what to do to get Eternal life, then a person must love God with ALL of his heart, ALL of his soul, ALL of his strength, ALL of his mind, love his neighbor as much as himself – DO ALL of these things, ALL the time. Who then would be in heaven? Would Mr. Danizier? Would any of us? If you hold that Jesus taught salvation by works, living a good life, or “universal compassion” then the person who does not do this perfectly is not saved. Jesus said, “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matt. 5:48) That is exactly what Jesus meant when He said “do this and you will live.” Although the lawyer said that he kept the commandments, Jesus’ telling of the parable showed the lawyer from his own rational faculties that if the demands are this high, he cannot possibly “do this and live.”
Some people, like Danizier, might say that we don’t have to be perfect, but God will save us according to our best efforts at doing good deeds and “universal compassion” as he calls it. WHERE does the Bible say that?! The Bible does mention exactly what Mr. Danizier proposes, “the gentiles who did not pursue righteousness, attained righteousness, even the righteousness which is by faith, but Israel [Mr. Danizier's viewpoint] pursuing the law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works.” (Romans 9:30-32) The passage goes on to say, “I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God [as Mr. Danizier may well have], but not in accordance with knowledge. For not knowing about Gods righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one who believes” (Romans 10:2-4).
The passages Danizier refers to in his Paul vs. Jesus commentary say nothing even close to “he who gives his best efforts at being compassionate will have eternal life.” Salvation by our-best-efforts-at-doing-good-deeds is the Danizier gospel, not Christ’s Gospel.
When Jesus said, “do this and you will live” He was showing the young man how he could not inherit eternal life through what he does. If a person is perfectly holy enough to live up to God’s standard of perfection, he would live… but no one is can do this! It is impossible to keep these commandments perfectly, and if you even fail them once, you are not “doing” them, bringing condemnation. Only the one who trusts in Christ rather than his own ability is not condemned.
Good works are important, and Christ’s commands Christians should strive to keep, but our eternal salvation does not depend upon our works, our sufficiency, our adequacy, our merit; it depends on our faith in Christ’s work, His sufficiency, His adequacy, His merit. Salvation is of God, not of man. The Bible is very clear on this, as Jesus said,
“I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep” (John 10:11).
“I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me” (John 14:6).
“Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Matt. 20:28).
Danizier is correct that faith (by grace) motivates good behavior, as seen for example in Christ’s dealing with Zaccheus (Luke 19), but works as a result of our gratitude to God have no saving value, according to Jesus.
The Rich Young Ruler: “And a certain ruler questioned Him, saying, ‘Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call Me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments, “Do not commit adultery, do not murder, do not steal, do not bear false witness, honor your father and your mother.”’ And he said, ‘All these things I have kept from my youth.’ And when Jesus heard this, He said to him, ‘One thing you still lack; sell all that you possess, and distribute it to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.’ But when he heard these things, he became very sad; for he was extremely rich.” (Luke 18:18-23) “Jesus’ entire ministry purpose is said here: being kind to the poor and philanthropically distributing wealth.” Or “Jesus says that keeping the commandments is how to get eternal life!” (G)
When the rich man asked Christ what good thing he could do to inherit eternal life, and further stated that he kept the Commandments, he was shown that he broke the First commandment, because he loved his riches, which he could not leave, more than God (Luke 18:18-26). Christ gave these men expositions of the inner meaning or the “spirit” of the law so they would see themselves as sinful in their own eyes and see their need of a Savior. This is the necessary pre-evangelistic technique when dealing with self-righteous people.
There is no point in telling a person about the Gospel unless he realizes his need for God’s grace. Christ is showing this man that he is a sinner, as is obvious from careful study of the passage. In Matthew’s version, the ruler asked “what good thing shall I do that I may obtain eternal life?” (Matthew 19:16), to which Jesus responded with a different idea of “good” than the ruler thought, that only God is truly good. Charles Ryrie writes, “…[T]he Lord emphasized that only God is good in the intrinsic sense of good. Christ was trying to deepen and widen the man’s concept of ‘good’ so that he would acknowledge Jesus as God. Then he might realize that he could not perform anything, no matter how noble, that could grant him eternal life. But Jesus, as God, could, if he would recognize Him for who He is”[7].
The young ruler was shown that he did not keep the Law, but unfortunately, he refused to see his need, but continued to trust in his riches and ability, not Christ; and therefore went away disappointed. Christ was certainly not telling them how to be saved. When this was His subject, Jesus said to believe in Him. When asked, “What shall we do that we may work the works of God? Jesus answered and said to them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.... Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life’” (John 6:28-29, 47 NKJV).
Paul used the same technique as his Master Jesus did. Paul said,
“Is the Law sin? May it never be! On the contrary, I would not have come to know sin except through the Law; for I would not have known about coveting if the Law had not said, ‘You shall not covet.’ But sin…produced in me coveting of every kind; for apart from the Law sin is dead. And I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment came, I died” (Romans 7:7-9).
Paul is saying that we need to be shown our sin by the Law, by the commandments, so we can see our need and believe in Christ for forgiveness of sins, as Peter preached, “Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through His name everyone who believes in Him received forgiveness of sins.” (Acts 10:43).
The Sermon on the Mount [read here] (Matt. 5-7). Danizier thinks this is especially noteworthy as Jesus’ “first public teaching.” [8]
This is not Jesus’ first public teaching. We know that the exchange with Nicodemus and the Samaritan woman at the well happened before this because John the Baptist was still active when Jesus talked to Nicodemus and Samaria (John 3:24; 4:1), and when Jesus taught the Sermon on the Mount, John the Baptist was in prison (Matthew 4:12-17; Mark 1:14-15; Luke 3:20) So one of His earliest public teachings was in Samaria; where He taught salvation by faith. “So when the Samaritans came to Him, they were asking Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. And many more believed because of His word; and they were saying to the woman, ‘It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and we know that this One is indeed the Savior of the word.’” (John 4:40-42)
We see in John’s Gospel that in Jesus’ earliest ministry He taught the disciples the basic truths of salvation, and they were already saved before His big public ministry begins. Therefore, when Jesus later taught the Sermon on the Mount, they were not considering it as the road to eternal salvation.
This is an example of active and passive righteousness. Jesus usually had mixed audiences of saved and unsaved individuals. Therefore, to the believers this is a call to active righteousness, serving God, being of a Godly character and attitude, and to the unbeliever, a realization that he is a sinner.
Jesus is doing exactly what Paul wrote, using the law as a pre-evangelistic tutor to lead people to Himself. Jesus is expounding on the Law: what the spirit of the Law actually means. The high ideals of the Law – humility, purity, sincerity, loyalty, and love – convict the lost person to his own sinfulness and failure, and make him realize himself as a sinner in need of a Savior. This purpose is evident throughout the Sermon, like when He says, “Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:20). The scribes and Pharisees were the most studious of all people in obeying the Law, how then could anyone else do better than them? Jesus is setting God’s standard of what is good and holy, and what it actually means to keep the Law; something no one can do perfectly as God demands (Matthew 5:48).
What Christ did in example and actions, Paul puts to words: “Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, that we may be justified by faith.” (Galatians 3:24). In fact, Paul is obeying and following the example of Jesus; quite out of line with those who say that Paul was independent rebel from Jesus!
One might ask, “If this is pre-evangelism, then why didn’t Jesus end the sermon by talking about faith?” Who is to say He didn’t? The Sermon as recorded in Matthew can be spoken in several minutes, and the original was undoubtedly much longer than that. He probably did put out a call to belief later in the Sermon. But Matthew’s Gospel is primarily ethical in direction, with a largely Christian reader base. So if this sermon was one hour long, Matthew took the portions that were the most relevant to his target audience, as lead by the Holy Spirit. Jesus’ actual evangelism is outlined in the Gospel of John, a book with written for very purpose of Christ’s doctrine of salvation. A major error of Paul vs. Jesus proponents surfaces here: they often never stray from the Gospel of Matthew, or stay with the first three, when all four Gospels are necessary to give the full account of the life and teachings of Jesus.
“But when the Son of Man comes in His glory…And all the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and He will put the sheep on His right and the goats on the left...” [The King will say to the sheep to come into the kingdom, because they served Him by serving His “brothers” but the King says to the goats to depart into hell, because they did not help Him (His brothers)]. Read whole passage here. (Matt 25:31-46) Danizier assigns this passage special significance by calling this the “last public teaching” of Jesus. [9]
Danizier makes another factual error – this was not the last public teaching of Christ. He was talking only to his disciples, which is not a “public” teaching but a personal discourse to his friends, and even if you consider the disciples as “public” He taught them much more after this at the last super and after His death and resurrection.
We know this sermon was to His disciples by looking at the beginning of the sermon, in Matthew 24: “And as He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?’ And Jesus answered and said, ‘See to it that no one misleads you…’” (Matthew 24:3-4) This is the beginning of a sermon that flows from Matthew 24:4 to 25:46 that Jesus gave in private to His disciples, so this is not a public evangelistic sermon, but a discourse on prophecy, the costs of discipleship, and the Christian’s reward in heaven.
This is a judgment at the end of the Tribulation period of only gentiles (same word for “nations”). There is no indication here the sheep are saved by their compassionate actions towards the third party, Christ’s “brothers”, which are probably Jews. The sheep get to live in the King’s Millennial Kingdom. The context indicates they are already Christians, those who have believed in Christ and are made righteous by His sacrifice. However, the goats go immediately to hell, because of their rebellion against God, being allied with the anti-Christ, probably taking the “mark of the beast” and persecuting Christ’s brethren.
“But the one who endures to the end, he shall be saved.” (Matt. 24:13)
It’s argued that this means a person has to endure in doing good works to the end of his life to go to heaven, and if he doesn’t persevere, he will not be saved.
This argument ignores the context. This is from the same sermon where Jesus talked about the sheep and the goats; so Christ is also only speaking to his disciples, who “came to Him privately, saying ‘Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?’” (Matt. 24:3) Jesus was talking about the last days, not about salvation. He was speaking of all the terrible things that were going to happen, of false prophets, wars, famines, earthquakes, tribulations, their own future suffering and persecution (24:5-11) “the one who endures shall be saved” are words of comfort to those who are faithful, who persevere for His namesake, who love Him more than their own life. He is affirming to them that they will be saved in the end, that they have something to look forward to as they endure their suffering. Eternal salvation is separate from personal perseverance, and is not the context of this passage.
“This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.” John 3:19-21. Danizier claims that “Jesus here includes some specific behavior requirements” for salvation in these verses. [10]
Astounding he would say this, since 3:19-20 is right after Jesus’ clear explanation of salvation of John 3:14-18, where He teaches salvation by faith. Jesus stated in the preceding verse, “He who believes in Him [the Son] is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. This is the judgment…”
It is clear from looking at the context of the passage that Jesus is not talking about performing behavioral requirements at all, but is answering the long-asked question: why do people reject the free gift of God? Why is such a freely given gift that we do not deserve offered and available by faith rejected by so many people? Jesus explains that people would rather die in their sins than humble themselves before God, and do not want their deeds to be exposed. They do not want to be held accountable to a God, especially when they owe Him their service because He has sacrificed for their salvation; therefore they love darkness rather than Light, and continue in their comfortable evil ways.
David Bishop talked to a man once who did not want to become a Christian because he didn’t want to give up living with his girlfriend. He explained that abstaining from immoral relationships does not save, but faith in Christ saves, and after believing in Christ, his desires would change, and pleasing God becomes more important than living with his girlfriend. The young man refused to believe. He said, “I would feel guilty.” And he didn’t want to feel guilty. He wanted to stay in his sin and not have to answer to a Savior to whom he owes his allegiance. He did not want his deeds to be exposed. People like that young man who would live their dark lifestyles without feeling guilt rather than have to answer to their Savior is what this of what this passage speaks.
However, doesn’t the last sentence of “he who practices truth” talk about his good deeds? Yes, but a closer examination of the sentence, “so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.” is self-explanatory. He who practices truth is coming to Jesus because his good works are from God. There is no reward for an unbeliever’s good works. Standing before the Judgment seat of God in your own works, regardless of how good you have been, will help nothing if you don’t have Christ’s work applied to you by faith. But a Christian does good works, he is given additional reward in heaven. Good deeds are talked of when He says, “he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”
If Jesus was teaching behavioral requirements for salvation, he would say, “he who does good deeds will have eternal life” – He doesn’t. This is an example of Danizier reading his own meaning into the text something it clearly doesn’t say. And they accuse Christians of putting words into Jesus’ mouth?! Incredible!
6) “Paul didn’t care about good works. He didn’t think they were necessary at all, and this contradicts Jesus, who always stressed doing good works” (G)
Anyone who says this has not read the Pauline Epistles. As already proven, both Jesus Christ and Paul His Apostle taught salvation solely by God’s grace through faith alone, not by any human merit, as is consistent with the rest of the Bible. Good works are still important, but NOT for eternal life. Good works are the result of the Believer’s gratitude towards his Savior and the steps of discipleship. Of course good works are necessary for a Christian to do in order to please God and be a testimony to others, but it isn't necessary for salvation.
One might think that if salvation is a free gift that is accepted by simple faith, then a person should do whatever he wants. Paul answers this objection:
“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace might increase? May it never be! How can we who died to sin still live in it? ... [A]s Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have become untied with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, that our body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be salves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin….consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law, but under grace” (Romans 6:1-2, 4-7, 11-14 [Read Romans 6 here)
That is the grand purpose for the Christian that compels the actions of all the admirable things in the Law: humility, compassion, love, patience, kindness, and forgiveness. But Christians do not do these things out of fear of hell, but from the heart of gratitude and the ever-increasing desire to please and serve the God who loves them; who loves them so to such a great extent that He died for them and gave them the free gift of salvation. Paul wrote, “You have been bought with a price” (1Corin 6:20a) What a wonderful purchase! Christ is our redeemer who rescued us from death.
A good work that the Paul vs. Jesus proponents like to emphasize is Christ’s prolific teachings on love. “We should just love other people, love our neighbors, be nice, and we’ll go to heaven”, they say. And if we don’t? Hell, obviously. But what love would this be? They claim their view is the only way God can be loving; but how can a God with the character of “love Me and love other people or you are going to hell” be truly loving? It is a poor motivation to do good when one should say, “I need to be nice or I’ll go to hell”. A better motivation is, “I will love other people because Christ loved me, He died for me, He was gracious and merciful to me, and I should do the same.” While Christ did indeed emphasize that people should love, He did not say we are saved by our love. He said we are saved by His love, so great and so deep that He died for us. “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13) Love is necessary for true obedience.
“For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word in the statement, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’… But I say to you, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets is desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another…. Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissentions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you…those who practice such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law…If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit” (Galatians 5:13-14, 16-17, 19-23, 25)
Paul’s epistles are filled with pleas to serve God and obey the commandments of Jesus, and reprimand for Christians who are sinning and failing to do good works. Here are a very few examples:
“Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself; do not look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others” (Philippians 2:3-4). This is a close parallel to the principles in Christ’s parable of the Good Samaritan.
“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence or anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things” (Philippians 4:8)
“As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude” (Colossians 2:6-7).
“Now as to the love of the brethren… you yourselves were taught by God to love one another” (1 Thessalonians 4:9).
“Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed” (1Timothy 6:18-19).
Paul agrees with the rest of the Bible that Christians do not do good works to be saved; Christians do works because they are saved. Good works are the result of God’s grace. Jesus saved our lives by giving His own life, and He is gracious to give us salvation as a free gift to all who believe in Him. It is because of His great work, His grace, His mercy, His love Christians should do good deeds. As an example, if a father pushed his son out of the way of a car, and by saving his son he himself was hit and had his legs amputated, would not the son be indebted to his father? The father lost the use of his legs for his son’s life. If the father were to ask the son to do something, shouldn’t he do it? Especially if it’s for his own good? The laws of God are reasonable, logical, and sensible. The closer a person lives to the laws of God, the better his life will be. Abstaining from intercourse except until marriage, not killing people, loving and forgiving others, not stealing, and other rules help prevent heartache and misery in life.
It is evident from a cursory reading of Paul’s writings that he did care a great deal about good works, and his epistles are full of exhortations and pleas to do good deeds for God (active righteousness). It is clear from Paul’s letters that he is concerned with the behavior of the Christians to whom he writes. Many of his letters focus on their behavior. He admonishes the people continually to do good, have good attitudes of love, joy, forgiveness, and other good qualities as Paul’s Master Jesus did.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, the claim that Paul and Jesus contradicted each other on salvation is totally groundless, and comes only from a misunderstanding or ignorance of the Bible and its rules of interpretation. That the Paul vs. Jesus proponents make so many ridiculous, shoddy errors shows their total lack of credibility and study of the Bible. They continually take out of context and misread their own ideas into the text to come to faulty conclusions that are totally opposite of what Jesus taught. The Apostle Paul was a humble servant of Jesus Christ, and preached only the gospel of Christ.There is no doubt that the teachings Christ, Paul, and the entire Bible gives the gospel as by faith alone in Christ alone.
NOTES:
1. J.P. Holding >http://www.Tektonics.org<
2. The Bible Knowledge Commentary, prepared by Dallas Theological Seminary, editors John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck (Wheaton: Victor books 1983), pp. 281-282
3. Davis Danizier “Paul vs. Jesus” >http://www.wordwiz72.com/paul.html<
4. Ibid.
5. Adapted from the “Christian Under Grace” by David Bishop
6. Davis Danizier “Paul vs. Jesus” >http://www.wordwiz72.com/paul.html<
7. So Great Salvation, Charles Ryrie (Wheaton: Victor Books 1989). pp. 81-82
8. Danizier “Paul vs Jesus” >http://www.wordwiz72.com/paul.html<
9. Ibid.
10. Ibid.
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