“Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.” – Romans 4:4-5
FAITH IS COUNTED FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS – not a man’s works, not his commitment to reform, not his willingness to turn from his sins, not his desire to serve God henceforth, not his being baptized, not his surrendering his life to Christ, not his crowning Jesus as his “Lord” – but his faith in Christ crucified, buried, risen. Hearken unto the apostle: “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified” (Galatians 2:16).
Lordship Salvation constitutes “the works of the law”; so does the heresy of needing to turn from sins in order to be saved. So, too, does the myth that every believer will automatically lived a changed life, and the falsehood that baptism is necessary for salvation. In fine, anything which requires more of a man than simply trusting Christ to be saved teaches a false gospel of works.
If salvation were by the works of the law, then it would no longer be the free gift that it is, but rather a debt which God owes to those who suitably serve him. But my text makes plain the truth that the man who believes on Christ – not the man who works – is whose faith is counted for righteousness, and whose sins are washed away by Christ’s precious blood. Man can never be justified by his good works, for his righteousnesses are as filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6), and his good deeds but worthless things.
But some will say, “You need to impress God to be saved.” O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth? To suggest that mortal, sinful man can “impress” the Almighty is as imbecilic as it is impossible. O vain man, nothing you say or do can ever “impress” God, because you, by your sinfulness, are at enmity with him, and his wrath abides upon all who do not believe on his Son. You may be as religious as you please, so that nothing escapes your lips but religious babble, and that nothing personifies your conduct but religious ritual and piety, and that nothing occupies your mind but religious subjects, but “EXCEPT A MAN BE BORN AGAIN, HE CANNOT SEE THE KINGDOM OF GOD” (John 3:3).
All the piety and religious devotion in the world can never redeem a man from the everlasting fire of hell, because works are not the price of sin’s ransom; rather, the only price is the precious blood of Christ, shed on Calvary’s cross and applied to heaven’s mercy seat upon Christ’s bodily resurrection as a perpetual testimony to his work of redemption. If you could pay for your sins with your own good works, why would Christ have needed to be despised and rejected of men, wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities, and suffer the shame of the cross?
Contrariwise, the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise: YE MUST BE BORN AGAIN (John 3:3). Dear reader, reformation is not regeneration. The world abounds with unsaved religious people who pray, go to church, read the Bible, speak about Jesus, and live a changed life, yet they will not go to heaven because they have never decided to trust Jesus Christ as their only hope for heaven. They may speak fluently of Christ, but they are foolishly relying upon their own good works, and their perseverance in their “faith” to justify themselves before God. They have never been justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus (Romans 3:24), which is the only way man can be justified. They have never attained unto the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all that believe (Romans 3:22).
If you think good works are necessary for salvation, I ask you, who did hinder you, that ye should not obey the truth? You cannot be justified by keeping the law (Acts 13:39), but even if it were possible, you never could because no man can keep the law perfectly (James 2:10). Please do not persist in attempting to make yourself righteous before God. My text speaks blissfully of a man’s faith being counted for righteousness, because faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ is the only righteous thing that sinful man can do. No amount of human righteousness can justify man before the Almighty; no amount of sincerity can nullify the everlasting fire reserved for those who reject Christ, even those who reject him to trust their own goodness and religious devotion to save them.
CONCLUSION
Salvation is “not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us by the washing of regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Ghost” (Titus 3:5). That washing of regeneration – elsewhere termed “the new birth” – is not a process wrought over a lifetime by gradually turning from sin and changing one’s ways, but an immediate event wrought by the Spirit of God the moment a soul believes the gospel. The moment one trusts Christ for salvation, he is washed by the blood of the Lamb (Revelation 1:5), his name is written in heaven, the righteousness of Christ is imputed on his behalf (Romans 3:26), he is made a son of God, and he is indwelt with the Holy Spirit. Moreover, because he has received Christ as Savior, he is no longer under the curse of the law, nor does the wrath of God abide on him, but he is reconciled unto his Maker by the blood of Christ. Being saved is an instantaneous and irreversible event, for of his children Christ saith, “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand” (John 10:28).
The gift of God is eternal life, dear reader (Romans 6:23). Salvation is not a reward for the righteous; it is a gift for the guilty. And unless you believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ as your only hope for heaven, you will not be saved. Please do not try to save yourself, or, what is worse, try to “help” Christ save you. Simply come to him just as you are, without one plea, but that his blood was shed for thee, and believe on his name unto the saving of your soul. I pray that you do so.