Works
Dear Elder Peterson,
In the last letter, I discussed the importance of faith. THe importance of faith cannot be overstated, but faith must be placed in the truth or it is a false faith that will not produce the desired results. All too often we are told that if we want to get A we must do B. But if B does not lead to A, then no matter how hard or how long we do B, we will never get A because B does not lead to A.
For example, If the goal (A) was to “always retain a remission of our sins”, and we asked most members of the church what we need to do (B) to gain that blessing, they would likely tell us something about obeying all the commandments. But, that course of action does not lead to that result. In fact, the more you believed that you could not receive a remission of your sins without obeying all the commandments, the less faith you would have in the atonement of Jesus and the more faith you would be putting in your own ability to save yourself. The result is that you would not be worthy of the remission of your sins and you would not have the Holy Ghost. This means that putting your faith in the wrong action results in the exact opposite conclusion from the one you are seeking.
“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
In the discussion between faith and works, people tend to either believe that we are saved by faith or saved by works. These people will either focus on works or focus on faith and not on both.
Works:
Obedience to the laws of the gospel is often taught as being what brings the remission of sins and makes us worthy of the spirit. Mormon points out that this is not the case. He uses two examples to make his point, praying and giving gifts of charity. He explains that 6 For behold, God hath said a man being evil cannot do that which is good; for if he offereth a gift, or prayeth unto God, except he shall do it with real intent it profiteth him nothing. He points out that a man being evil can do nothing good.
“For behold, if a man being evil giveth a gift, he doeth it grudgingly; wherefore it is counted unto him the same as if he had retained the gift; wherefore he is counted evil before God.
9 And likewise also is it counted evil unto a man, if he shall pray and not with real intent of heart; yea, and it profiteth him nothing, for God receiveth none such.
10 Wherefore, a man being evil cannot do that which is good; neither will he give a good gift.an evil person can give pray and his prayer is counted as evil, or give a gift and his charity is counted as if he retained the gift.” – Moroni 7:8-10
This shows us that our actions or works are not what makes us good or evil. It doesn’t matter if an evil person does good works, he will not be saved or accepted by God. This could easily end the discussion regarding works, however, we also know that faith alone is dead.
Faith:
Some believe that by just believing in Christ we will be saved, regardless of what we do. However, we see again and again the scriptures teaching that if we do not do certain things, then we will not be welcome into heaven. One such example is given by Jesus who taught saying,
“And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
33 And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
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40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
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45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.” – Matthew 7:32-46
In this example, the Lord separates the wicked from the righteous based on what they did, (their works). This almost appears to contradict what Mormon said about how if a wicked person did “good works” it was still counted as evil. But there is no contradiction here.
Also, notice that ever single action Jesus uses to separate the goats from the sheep had nothing to do with sins. For example, it is not a sin to not give someone water when they are thirsty and there is no law that says we have to visit the sick or imprisoned or we sin. He didn’t say, that the goats were the ones who broke the sabbath day or killed their neighbors, or lied and stole. He said that the goats were not welcome into heaven because they didn’t give someone a glass of water. 8^O That’s a pretty high bar to set, far higher than “don’t sin”.
You see, faith alone without works is dead, (see James 2:17-18).
Faith that Leads to Good Works
If we are doing “good works” to be saved, then we are trying to earn our way to heaven and will fail just like the evil man that prayed. In the scriptures, this is called “being justified by the law”. If we try to justify ourselves by the law, then we are “fallen from grace” and living as if there had been no atonement made.
“Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.
5 For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.
6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.” – Galatians 5:4-6
Take a look at that last sentence in the verse above that says, “faith which worketh by love.” You see, true faith leads us to works of love. It changes our hearts and causes us to experience “a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually”.
“2 And they all cried with one voice, saying: Yea, we believe all the words which thou hast spoken unto us; and also, we know of their surety and truth, because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually.
3 And we, ourselves, also, through the infinite goodness of God, and the manifestations of his Spirit, have great views of that which is to come; and were it expedient, we could prophesy of all things.
4 And it is the faith which we have had on the things which our king has spoken unto us that has brought us to this great knowledge, whereby we do rejoice with such exceedingly great joy.” – Mosiah 5:2-4
This happens because through faith we receive a remission of our sins and the gift of the Holy Ghost which fills us with peace, love and joy. We realize that we have not earned these great blessings by our works, but received them because of the goodness of God. When we see how good God is to us, even when we do not deserve it… When we see God’s love and mercy toward us even when we do not deserve it based on our own merits… We come to know who God is and how much God loves us and that God’s love and mercy for us is not dependant upon our works, but goodness.
“And again I say unto you as I have said before, that as ye have come to the knowledge of the glory of God, or if ye have known of his goodness and have tasted of his love, and have received a remission of your sins, which causeth such exceedingly great joy in your souls, even so I would that ye should remember, and always retain in remembrance, the greatness of God, and your own nothingness, and his goodness and long-suffering towards you, unworthy creatures, and humble yourselves even in the depths of humility, calling on the name of the Lord daily, and standing steadfastly in the faith of that which is to come, which was spoken by the mouth of the angel.
12 And behold, I say unto you that if ye do this ye shall always rejoice, and be filled with the love of God, and always retain a remission of your sins; and ye shall grow in the knowledge of the glory of him that created you, or in the knowledge of that which is just and true.” – Mosiah 4:11-12
When we have faith in Christ to obtaining a remission of our sins and the gift of the Holy Ghost, without earning it by our works, then we come to know God’s goodness and love toward us unworthy creatures and we naturally and without realizing it will mirror and emulate God as we interact with others, even if they are unworthy of our love and goodness. Our faith naturally leads us to do good to others, because good has been done to us. Not to save ourselves, but because we have been saved.
Our good works are a way of rejoicing in God’s goodness toward us. Each act of kindness is a celebration of God’s love and mercy toward us. Our actions become a way for us to thank God and become like God. If done correctly, our faith in God increases our understanding of God’s love which in turn increases our desire to do good to others.
When we rejoice in God’s love for us and allow His spirit to fill our hearts with love and goodness, then we can’t stop ourselves from doing good, loving others, and serving with joy. This is the experience that should permeate our souls each day as we interact with our companions and all of God’s children. This spirit of joy and rejoicing opens the door to having and hearing the promptings of the spirit which will tell you how to do God’s will. As the people under King Benjamin said, “through the infinite goodness of God, and the manifestations of his Spirit, we have great views of that which is to come; and were it expedient, we could prophesy of all things. And it is the faith which we have had on the things which our king has spoken unto us that has brought us to this.”
In the name of my friend and Savior, Jesus Chirst, Amen
With love and faith,
Uncle Philip