By:
Edited By W. T. P. Wolston.
HEARKEN, all ye who are working for salvation, to a truth written in Romans 4:5: “To him that worketh not!” So that―
It is “not” by baptism,
It is “not” by confirmation,
It is “not” by the holy communion,
It is “not” by church membership,
It is “not” by alms or charities,
It is “not” by vows or resolutions,
It is “not” by tears or penance,
It is “not” by feelings or experience,
“To him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.”
You are called on to believe on “him who justifies the ungodly!”
God never justifies sin, but He does justify the sinner; He never justifies the godly, because, in truth, there are none, but He does justify the ungodly on the principle of faith. Otherwise none could be justified at all! Good works are only splendid sins!
You can be justified on the ground of absolute grace alone. You must renounce every meritorious claim, and own your personal guilt. Then your faith is reckoned as righteousness. There is no other door of hope.
Suppose that you say that we are told in Philippians 2:12,12Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. (Philippians 2:12) “to work, out our own salvation”! Quite true, only you must remember that, in order to work out a problem, you must have it on your paper before you can work it out.
“Working for” and “working out” are very different things. Our blessed Lord, when on the cross, accomplished the former; the believer, already saved, should do the latter.
Good works do not carry one particle of saving value. We are justified before God by faith alone. We are justified before men by works; but it is God who saves.
J. W. S.