Ephesians 2:8-10
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the
gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which
God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
Comments(
Key to the proper understanding of what Paul is here saying is a proper understanding of what Grace and Faith are as comprehensive Biblical terms.
God's plan for man's salvation has a role for each party to fulfill. There is God's role or duty and there is man's role or duty.
God's role in making salvation available is summarized in the term grace. Man sinned and God's absolutely just nature demands justice for man's transgressions. God cannot just overlook our sin because to do so would be a violation of His absolutely holy nature. However, thankfully for us, God is gracious and does not wish for mankind to suffer the punishment that is due for sin. So, He came up with a plan whereby His requirement for justice would be met and mankind would have the opportunity to be restored to fellowship with Him.
God was under no obligation whatsoever to do this for man. There is nothing mankind could do to compel God to do what He did for us, nor is there anything mankind could do to repay God or deserve the opportunity for salvation under any circumstances whatsoever. Mankind simply has no part in God's decision to do this and no right to boast about it under any circumstances. God did all that He did from a Gracious heart with the wellbeing of mankind entirely in His purpose.
Grace is often defined as God's unmerited favor and as a comprehensive biblical term represents everything God did in regards to making salvation possible for mankind. Grace is God reaching down to fallen man with an offer of hope.
On the other side of the issue is man's role in God's grand plan. Man must do something in order to receive the benefit of God's grace. If this were not so, no one that ever lived would be lost. Faith is much more than a passing belief in the facts of the gospel. In scripture faith is defined as being a great many things. a comprehensive study of this can be found here. For purposes of this study, faith is defined in scripture as:
1) a work (1 Thessalonians 1:3, 11)
2) Law (Romans 3:27)
3) Trial (1 Peter 1:7)
4) Service (Philippians 2:17)
5) Walk (2 Corinthians 5:7)
Hebrews 11 is a chapter filled with examples of those whose faith led them to endure great hardships and persecutions. Faith as a comprehensive Biblical term represents everything man does in response to what God did to make salvation available, or to God's grace. Faith is fallen man reaching up to God in hope.
So when we look at what Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:8 and we understand it in harmony with how the Bible defines grace and faith, it is clear that Paul was teaching a great truth that we as Christians must understand. Essentially what Paul was saying was that "by what God did for us, (Grace), we are saved through what we do in response (Faith). God's grace is not offered as a result of anything man did or could do under any circumstances. What God did for us (Grace) is a gift freely offered.
Verse 9 goes on to explain clearly that nothing man could do would have any bearing whatsoever on what God did for us in order to make salvation available. What God did for us, is wholly God's doing with no regard whatsoever for the actions of man in any way.
No doubt about it, grace is the gift of God. There is no way we can do enough to earn it. God's gift of grace cost Him more than we can ever repay. Christians must understand the incredible opportunity we have been given. God was under no obligation to us whatsoever. He could have left us to suffer the consequences of our sin and He would have been completely within His rights to have done so. Yet, because of His love for us, He sent His Son to earth where He died at the hands of those He came to save. Lest we for an instant think we are in any way less guilty because of the centuries separating us from those who participated in His death, let us always remember that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God and it is our sin that put Jesus on that cross as surely as those who drove the spikes through His wrists and feet.
Many among those claiming Jesus Christ as savior use this verse out of context to support the doctrine of salvation by faith alone. They claim that Paul is teaching that salvation is a free gift that stands completely apart of any effort of man whatsoever. First off, that is not what Paul is teaching here at all. The free gift that stands apart from human works is grace, not salvation. God's grace is His role in our salvation and absolutely stands apart from man's works. No man can ever boast that he deserves or obligated God in any way to offer His grace. One merely has to read verse 10 to see that mankind was ordained to perform good works. The word 'ordained' in this context means 'something officially ordered or decreed'. The faith mentioned in verse 8 must therefore include the good works ordained in verse 10 of the same context. The two cannot be rightfully separated.
Secondly, if Paul were divorcing works from salvation in verse 8-10, then he completely contradicted himself in this very letter when he wrote in Ephesians 6:10-13, "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." If good works were completely separated from salvation, then Paul lied to the church in Ephesus when he told them put on the whole armor of God in order to stand against the devil. If salvation were possible on the merits of faith alone, no one would have to put in the armor of God or anything else for that matter to stand against evil. Proponents of the doctrine of salvation by faith alone love to misapply cherry picked verses of scripture to support their unholy doctrine when it's clear from a comprehensive view of Paul entire teachings that such a belief cannot stand up without being hopelessly contradictory. One can reinforce this by considering the teachings of Paul is his other epistles as well. For example, Romans 2:6-10, Galatians 6:7-10, 2 Corinthians 5:9-10, Philippians 2:12, Colossians 1:22-23, 1 Thessalonians 1:3, 2 Thessalonians 1:8,9, 2 Thessalonians 2:15, 1 Timothy 4:16, 1 Timothy 6:14, 2 Timothy 3:14, Titus 1:16, Titus 2:5-7, Titus 2:14, Titus 3:8, Titus 3:14.
Understanding that we can never earn our salvation certainly does not alleviate us from any obligations to our savior whatsoever. “Through faith” means that we must believe what God says and do what he requires. In Jesus' own words, He said in Matthew 7:21, "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 which is in heaven."
Obedience to the commandments are required in order for the Christian to receive God's grace.
Romans 1:5
By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among
all nations, for his name:
Matthew 19:17
And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there
is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the
commandments.
Since our salvation truly is a gift, then it is by Grace that we are saved. God's grace is easily understood to be the unmerited favor of God. So by the unmerited favor of God, we are saved when we are obedient to His will.
Mercy, Justice and Grace
God's Mercy is when you don't get what you deserve.
God's Justice is when you get what you deserve.
God's Grace is when you are freely given the opportunity to receive something you could never deserve.