I recently took issue with someone who claimed the “easy-believism = non-believism.” Afterwards, he went a step further and wrote this blog post claiming to believe in “hard-believism” It’s the usual hodgepodge of Lordship Salvation assertions and claim that even though he really, really believes in salvation by faith alone, you’d better make sure you have enough works and make Jesus “Lord of your life” somehow. Shocker::::> he’s short of specifics. It sure would be refreshing if one of these Lordship Salvation advocates would be a little more specific about the amount of works sufficient to make “saving faith,” but specific standards might be difficult to make and might not exclude enough people who don’t have the right kind of faith (like they do, without a doubt!)
So here’s my response to the unbiblical suggestion that salvation by faith in Jesus Christ is “hard”:
We aren’t saved because we’re “worthy of Jesus.” We’re saved by the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ which is given as a gift to all who believe, not just to those who are worthy to follow Christ. Your fundamental misunderstanding is the confusion between life as a disciple which is very hard, requires OUR sacrifice and OUR work, and salvation which is a gift purchased by the work of Christ.
It’s not an “odd assumption” that saving faith may not be accompanied by works. It’s a biblical fact. Romans 4:5 says, “But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.” A man who does NO works whatsoever will be saved if his faith in in Christ. This is because those who are born again understand that our salvation is secured, not by what we do, but by what Christ has done.
If the plan of salvation required us to live a particular way observe some particular religious exercise, then our faith in that “plan of salvation” would require works. If we believe circumcision saves, then proof of that faith would be our circumcision. If we believe that church attendance is what saves, then proof of that faith would be our church attendance. If we REALLY believed that, we’d do it, right?
But the gospel is Christ’s imputed righteousness to all who believe, not because we deserve it but because we’ve received it as a free gift. If we believe Christ has done everything necessary to save us…that nothing we do makes us worthy to receive it, then the proof of that faith is that we stop trying to earn our salvation. Jewish believers in the New Testament stop following the ceremonial law. If Muslim claims to be born again by faith in Christ alone, the proof of that faith would be the forsaking of Islam.
It doesn’t, however, follow that someone who puts his trust in Christ for salvation will necessarily become a regular church attender, or get baptized, or stop getting drunk, or read the bible, or share the gospel. These are all good things, things which the bible commands of us. But each of these things requires our own will, our own effort, our own decision to do. God doesn’t turn us into little robots that automatically do what He tells us when we are born again. We STILL have to make a DAILY decision to die to ourselves to follow Christ. We must decide that we will get up and go to church on Sunday morning instead of sleeping in. We must decide to abstain from sexual sin, and drunkenness, and lying. We must decide to be cheerful givers who don’t live our lives for money. We must decide to share the gospel with the lost, and to read the bible, and to love our neighbors as ourselves.
The bible says plainly, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” John 1:12-13. Salvation—being born again—doesn’t require our willingness to serve God, to live right or to do works. The only thing we must be willing to do is turn to God in faith and trust Him to save us.
Contrary to your strawman argument that “easy-believists” can’t define what it means to believe, once again, I turn, not to some theologian or man-made “systematic theology,” but to the bible. What did Jesus say it means to believe for salvation? In John 3:14-15, Jesus says: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.” So Jesus says eternal salvation is accomplished in the same manner that temporal rescue from the serpents of fire in Numbers 21. That passage is thus:
5And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread.
6And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.
7Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.
8And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
9And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.
What did the people bitten by the serpents have to do to be saved? Believe God and look to the fiery serpent on the pole. What was the evidence that they believed God? They looked at the fiery serpent on the pole.
What deeds accompanied their belief? They started loving their neighbors, following the law or giving up sin? No, the ONLY “deed” that was required of them was to stop trusting in themselves and look to God for salvation.
You wrongly suggest that those who believe the bible when it says salvation is a free gift requiring no sacrifice on our part think that works don’t matter. Once again, another strawman. The bible teaches that God has prepared works for us to do (Eph. 2:10), but that we will be rewarded for all of our works of eternal value. (1 Cor. 3:10-14). We cannot repay God for our salvation and to pretend to do demonstrates a fundamental misunderstanding of the gospel, but God, who is just, will reward us for our work for His kingdom. But, contrary to your claim that every believer has works, 1 Corinthians 3:15 says that even a man who has no works of eternal consequence will STILL be saved.
It’s true that James says that faith without works is dead, but you misunderstand what dead faith is. If faith without works is the equivalent of “no saving faith,” then what is the status of our eternal destiny when we have no works. Have you ever gone an hour without works? Your faith was dead. How about a day? A week? A month?
James is not suggesting that our salvation is secured only when we prove our faith by our works. James says, “ But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God. Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.” James 2:20-24
So is James saying Abraham was saved when he offered up Isaac? Absolutely not. According to Romans 4:10 says that Abraham’s faith had saved him, even before he was circumsized. Abraham was 99 when he was circumsized, according to Genesis 17 and Isaac had not even been born yet. So Paul says Abraham was made righteous by faith in Genesis 15:6, before he was circumsized and before Isaac had even been promised, yet you think James is saying that Abraham was saved when he added works to his faith? Good thing Abraham didn’t die between Genesis 15:6 and Genesis 22, else his “dead faith” would have condemned him to hell, I suppose.
The addition of works to the gospel is necessary to your “hard-believism” because you claim, falsely, that Jesus said salvation is “hard.” Yesterday, you accused me of “proof-texting,” yet as proof for your assertion that salvation by grace through faith is “hard” for us, you cite no verses but rely on man’s “theology.” But Jesus said no such thing. Jesus compares salvation to looking at a snake on a pole, to eating a piece of bread, to drinking water, and to walking through a gate. Jesus did all that is necessary for us to be saved. We must only believe and trust him, and him alone, to save us. That is “easy-believism” and it is taught in the bible from Genesis 4:26 to Revelation 22:17.
No one disputes that some people might claim to believe but they really don’t. But “easy-believism” doesn’t posit that everyone who claims to believe really does. It says that everyone that does believe will be saved. Period. Stop drawing unbiblical distinctions between “believing” and “believing.” Stop encouraging people to trust in their works as “proof” of their salvation, and tell them to trust in the promise of God made before the world was even created that He would saved ALL those who put their trust in Him. If someone isn’t sure if he’s saved, the answer isn’t to hope that he’s met some vague, undefined standard of life change or submission to Christ’s “Lordship,” the answer is the believe the gospel trust in Christ’s work to save him.
If I’m wrong, it should be easy to answer this: what is the “life change” evident in all “true” believers that isn’t also found in unbelievers? I’ve known lots of “good” Mormons and plenty of “moral” atheists. What, specifically, is the “life change” you’re talking about? Giving up some sin in our lives? Many people give up vices without believing the gospel. Is it being kind and generous to others? Does Ted Turner’s generosity prove his “faith”? Even better, what kind of “life change” might we expect from a seven year old who believes the gospel? To stop sneaking candy and to do his homework diligently? Where was the “life change” in Samson or Lot, men the bible says were saved, but the accounts of their lives are far from complimentary. What of the multitudes of people baptized by John and Jesus’ disciples? If they had this “life change,” why were there only 120 believers together in Acts 1:15? Were all but 120 people who believed the gospel during John and Jesus’ ministry just “easy-believers” who weren’t really saved? Or were they saved people who were more concerned with living their own lives than serving God? Your false “life change” requirement produces false positives from both sides—unbelievers who appear to live decent lives, and believers who are not yet living godly ones.
Finally, if life-change is necessary for faith to save us, why does the bible teach that baptism should happen immediately after a profession of faith? Did Philip require a show of works from the Ethiopian eunich before baptism him in Acts 8? Did Paul wait to see what kind of life change the jailer and his family had before baptizing them in Acts 16?
The only person who truly believes that salvation is by faith alone is the one that will admit that the way we live our lives has NOTHING to do with salvation. We aren’t required to give up some sin or to commit to live a certain way. We aren’t required to go to church, study the bible, or put money in the offering plate. We are required to put our hope for eternal life in the hands of Jesus Christ. Easy for Christ? Absolutely not. Easy for us? Yes, if we can get over our pride in our works and become as children.
If I’m wrong, it should be easy to answer this: what is the “life change” evident in all “true” believers that isn’t also found in unbelievers? I’ve known lots of “good” Mormons and plenty of “moral” atheists. What, specifically, is the “life change” you’re talking about? Giving up some sin in our lives? Many people give up vices without believing the gospel. Is it being kind and generous to others? Does Ted Turner’s generosity prove his “faith”? Even better, what kind of “life change” might we expect from a seven year old who believes the gospel? To stop sneaking candy and to do his homework diligently? Where was the “life change” in Samson or Lot, men the bible says were saved, but the accounts of their lives are far from complimentary. What of the multitudes of people baptized by John and Jesus’ disciples? If they had this “life change,” why were there only 120 believers together in Acts 1:15? Were all but 120 people who believed the gospel during John and Jesus’ ministry just “easy-believers” who weren’t really saved? Or were they saved people who were more concerned with living their own lives than serving God? Your false “life change” requirement produces false positives from both sides—unbelievers who appear to live decent lives, and believers who are not yet living godly ones.
Finally, if life-change is necessary for faith to save us, why does the bible teach that baptism should happen immediately after a profession of faith? Did Philip require a show of works from the Ethiopian eunich before baptism him in Acts 8? Did Paul wait to see what kind of life change the jailer and his family had before baptizing them in Acts 16?
The only person who truly believes that salvation is by faith alone is the one that will admit that the way we live our lives has NOTHING to do with salvation. We aren’t required to give up some sin or to commit to live a certain way. We aren’t required to go to church, study the bible, or put money in the offering plate. We are required to put our hope for eternal life in the hands of Jesus Christ. Easy for Christ? Absolutely not. Easy for us? Yes, if we can get over our pride in our works and become as children.
Feb 09, 2011 @ 01:24:10
It sure would be refreshing if one of these Lordship Salvation advocates would be a little more specific about the amount of works sufficient to make “saving faith,”
Christ’s work is the amount of work sufficient to make saving faith.
It is maddening you cannot even see the right distinction to disagree with but must harp convolutedly on a straw man. This is why I am seeing conversation with you is futile; you either don’t read or don’t understand. Neither can be helped on my end.
Feb 09, 2011 @ 02:41:42
So what’s your objection to “easy-believism”? I say, the ONLY thing someone must do to be saved is to call upon the name of the Lord in faith for salvation. Is this true, or isn’t it?
Feb 11, 2011 @ 16:23:11
Jesus saying salvation is hard should alone negate the term “easy believism.” no one can really argue against faith alone or they put themselves in the position of claiming Christ’s work was not sufficient. my question for you is what is faith? it has to be more than just believing.
one mistake you make is the claiming Israelites were looking to God when they were to behold the brass snake. They could believe, trust, & have all the faith in the world but if they didn’t follow the commandment to LOOK at the snake (which was not God and eventually became an idol), they would die. their belief & faith was followed through with an action – obeying a commandment.
the connection to James & Abraham is foundational to the definition of justification. Christ became the final atonement which allowed us to be justified in God’s eyes restoring us to some extent to the pre-fall man. That is the Gospel. It is more than Jesus’ death in the cross or no one before Him could have received salvation.
Salvation is by faith alone. faith is a gift of God because of His grace. The story is completed with Christ’s work on the cross and our faith today must include that part of the Gospel. But faith is not just believing or everyone who believed God existed would receive the inheritance.
so what is it?
Feb 11, 2011 @ 22:02:06
Will,
Jesus never said salvation is hard. With man, it is impossible, but with God it is possible, but it isn’t hard for us because Jesus did all the work necessary to obtain it. God’s grace isn’t difficult to obtain, it’s very easy to obtain if we are willing to humble ourselves like children and believe Him when He says “whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” Rev 22:17 On the contrary, Jesus said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30. Again, in Hebrews 4:3, the bible says, ” For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.” Salvation is easy because it requires no work whatsoever on our part. Jesus paid the entire price for our redemption. All we must do is put our faith in him.
You’re mistaken about the fiery serpent, IMO. God did not command the Israelites to look upon the serpent. He promised salvation (from the venom) if they did. Anyone who believed God when He made the promise WOULD look to the image though. In doing so, he wouldn’t be trying to save himself, but rather, would be depending on God’s promise of salvation.
In the same way, the bible is clear that we must call upon the name of the Lord to be saved. Throughout the bible, “calling on the name of the Lord” is used synonymously with “believing the gospel” because they are the same thing. In John 4:10, Jesus tells the Samaritan woman at the well, “If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.” This is the gospel according to Jesus: know the gift of God–eternal life; know who Christ is. THEN she WOULD ask, and He would give eternal life. In other words, what is required is that she believe God when He says that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. If she doesn’t believe God offers eternal life as a gift, or that she must earn it somehow, she won’t be saved. If she doesn’t know who Jesus is, or if she doesn’t believe He is the messiah, she won’t be saved. But if she knows those things, she WILL ask and be saved.
In my twitter exchange with the advocate for “hard-believism,” he said several times that if salvation was as easy as believing, lots more people would be saved. (This is probably a paraphrase that is too simple, but it’s the gist of it.) But the problem isn’t that salvation by faith is hard, it’s that people don’t know about the gift of God, or they refuse to believe Jesus is the only way to salvation.
There is probably no more misconstrued book of the bible than the epistle of James. People routinely tell me that “faith isn’t enough because even demons believe” which a) ignores what demons are said to believe–”God is one” and b) that the offer of redemption by faith is not offered to fallen angels, according to Hebrews 1. The book of James is about the practical application of our faith and about being justified in our faith when we face the testing of our faith. In James 1:2-4, James says: “My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” So the context of James is the trying of our faith, which produces patience and will make us “perfect and entire.”
James’s example of Abraham proves this point. As I showed in my post above, Abraham had already been saved for YEARS before he offered up Isaac. His salvation was not dependent on his obedience in offering Isaac, though his obedience proved his faith. The faith that was being tested was his faith that God would raise Isaac from the dead as a picture of the resurrection of Christ. If Abraham had a lapse of faith, would he have lost his salvation? Of course not, because we know Abraham was saved by his faith, not by his works.
Faith as a concept isn’t as difficult to understand as many people think. Faith is simply believing something that we haven’t seen. It can be mundane…if I told you I bought a new car you’d probably believe me. But when it comes to the gospel, the linchpin of faith is trust. If we have faith on Jesus Christ we’re trusting in Him and Him alone to save us, just as the Hebrew who was bitten by the fiery serpent trusted God to save him. A great example (that I didn’t come up with) is that of a chair. If I have I believe a chair would hold me up, I would be willing to sit in it. If I only put half my weight in it and brace myself was I settle into it, I don’t have faith in the chair, I’m also trusting in myself. The evidence that a bitten Israelite believed God is that he stops giving himself first aid and looks at the bronze serpent.
Likewise, the “evidence” that we have put our faith in Christ alone for salvation isn’t that we try to clean up our life, commit to give up sin, go to church or start wearing Jesus tshirts. The evidence is that we don’t pretend that our righteousness comes from what we do. This is where repentance enters. If we are trusting in a religion or a false god to save us, we would have to have a “change of mind” to be saved. Paul had to give up his false Jewish religion to be saved. A Muslim would need to give up Islam to be saved. Someone who thinks he is saved by trying to follow the ten commandments would have to give up that false belief.
Feb 12, 2011 @ 23:35:41
I like the point you made about believing jesus is the only way to get to heaven. Believe that and accept that gift then you’re in and all the rest is gravy. I love you, man, but sometmes all that you say confuses me. I’ve been raised with the Gospel and have learned a lot. If it confuses me, I feel for the fellow that is new to it. Maybe you need to get a journey group for theology and talk about this stuff there. And for the rest of us with IQ’s less than 125 you can just keep it simple.
Feb 13, 2011 @ 23:05:20
I really wish I could read this but the formatting is making it difficult for me to follow. Could you edit it so the first few paragraphs have spacing and match the font and size of the last paragraphs?
Thanks
Feb 14, 2011 @ 13:36:38
It’s true! It’s true! I stink at blog formatting, lol. I’ll try to fix it up though. Thanks for the heads up.
Nov 13, 2011 @ 16:32:42
I would just like to say that the preachers against “easy-believism” that I’ve listened to have never said anything contrary to the fact the we are saved by grace through faith. So on that point I think both sides would agree (with the exception of some). The point that I would make it that it is dangerous ground to have someone pray a prayer (“believe”) , declare them saved, and send them on their way. We can no more tell if a man is saved than we can see his thoughts or into his heart. But the Bible does give us ways to determine that a person has been saved (by God, by the way, NOT by their own belief). You say how much work is required (for those who think it is), but I say how much belief is required? Is salvation only an intellectual assent to knowledge…and isn’t believing an action (a work) of sorts? Only God can save a man. And I am concerned for the pastors, when they stand before God, that have told countless individuals that they were saved when in fact they were not.
So, since you seem to have a shortage of verses that would lead one to belief that salvation is not all that easy, I’ll give you some.
Luke 14:25-35
“If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and consider whether he is strong enough with ten thousand men to encounter the one coming against him with twenty thousand? Or else, while the other is still far away, he sends [o]a delegation and asks for terms of peace. So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions.
“Therefore, salt is good; but if even salt has become tasteless, with what will it be seasoned? It is useless either for the soil or for the manure pile; it is thrown out. He who has ears to hear, [p]let him hear.”
Matthew 5:17-20
17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. 19 Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 7:13-14
13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Matthew 7:21-23
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
Nov 14, 2011 @ 22:35:48
Every heretic I know who is teaching works salvation claims to believe in “salvation by faith alone.” But it’s not “faith alone” when you suggest that salvation is “difficult” or requires us to make changes in our behavior to be saved. It becomes faith PLUS whatever life change or behavior modification is required. If a drunkard must give up drunkeness to be saved, it’s salvation by faith plus giving up drunkeness. If a woman must give up her adulterous relationship with a co-worker to be saved, it’s salvation by faith plus giving up adultery. Neither of those things are the same as salvation by faith ALONE.
It’s a mistake to start parsing degrees of “belief,” too. God has given us varying degrees of faith (Romans 12:3), and our faith will ebb and flow during our lives. Even the “greatest man who ever lived,” John the Baptist, had a weakness of faith as he sat in Herod’s jail waiting to die, so much so that he sent messengers to inquire whether Jesus really IS the messiah. Yet, when our faith wanes, God abideth faithful! (2 Timothy 2:13) The issue isn’t the amount of faith, it’s the OBJECT of our faith. Do we believe in salvation by faith through Jesus Christ alone, or do we believe we must add to the work done by Christ by “turning from our sin,” “following Jesus” or living for God? Again, those are two different things. One saves and is the narrow way, one damns and is the way that leads to destruction.
Jesus Himself explained what he meant by “believing on Him” in John 3: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.” To be saved, we must believe on Christ the same way that the Israelites in Numbers 21:
No parsing of Numbers 21:9 is necessary. Those who believed God looked upon the serpent of brass and lived. Those who didn’t died. The man who stopped trying to save himself and trusted God was saved. The man who tried treating his own wounds died. No part of God’s provision for physical salvation of those bitten by the serpents involved a commitment to live right, stop sinning, go to church or be kind to others. The ONLY difference between those who lived and those who died was whether or not he believed what God said and looked upon the serpent. The way to be saved from the venom was narrow, but was not hard.
None of the verses you cited say salvation is hard. To be sure, Jesus regularly taught that obtaining our own righteousness is not just hard, but impossible. That’s precisely what he says in Matthew 5, which you quoted. If you think Jesus was suggesting that living right plus faith is required to save you, I can only hope that you live even more righteously than the pharisees. Do you tithe on even the smallest gain, as Jesus said pharisees were correct in doing? (Luke 11:42).
Almost without fail, when someone wants to prove that faith alone is insufficient for salvation (all the while insisting that he believes in “salvation by faith alone, of course), he invariable throws out Matthew 7:21-23. The problem is that Matthew 7:21-23 doesn’t say any such thing, but instead describes someone who believes his WORKS have saved him. His claim to righteousness isn’t the imputed righteousness of Christ by grace through faith, it’s the “great works” done in the name of Jesus. Guess what? Preaching sermons, starting a church, building a Habitat for Humanity house, giving to missions, wearing a purity ring, tithing regularly, serving as church greeter and working in the nursery on Sunday morning won’t save anyone. Yet there are millions of people who do those things, yet they have not done the one thing that could save them. They have never dropped any pretense of saving themselves by the great things they’ve done for God and instead called upon the name of the Lord for salvation. I guess I’m still pretty confused how you think this passage proves that salvation “is not all that easy.” Was the problem that these men didn’t prophesy in God’s name enough? Didn’t drive out enough demons? Didn’t do great enough works? Absolutely not. The problem was, they didn’t believe the gospel because if they did, they would have been saved because EVERYONE who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved, not just some.
Finally, the bible clearly teaches a distinction between being a disciple (which does require work, effort and our own sacrifice) and being born again (which requires only Christ’s work, effort and sacrifice.) No one is worthy to be born again. God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. We are saved by grace through faith through no goodness that resides in us, but as a free gift of God to us. If someone believes he is “worthy” to receive eternal life, he doesn’t understand the gospel. However, the bible teaches that we can be worthy to be a disciple. How? By taking up our own cross and dying daily. By counting the cost. By living for God. All that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. 2 Timothy 3:12 Wanting to be worthy to serve God as a disciple, to do works for the glory of God, is a good thing unless that desire is equated with the plan of salvation.
Thanks for you comments,
Josh