Faith is a Verb

Building on my post from yesterday, it's apparent that faith is more than just a belief.
This is addressed specificly in James:

"What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don't show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? "
(Jas 2:14 NLT)

So faith is more than belief, it must be shown through our actions. Recent church history has worked very hard to remove the belief of salvation through works. This is a good thing, becuase it is clear that we cannot work our way into heaven. But I'm afraid that in the process, the church has eliminated our obligation to works. This is not supported by the New Testament of the Bible. While we receive antonement for our sin as a free gift, meaning there is nothing that we can do in order to earn this atonement, that gift comes with responsibilty. God expects us to accept this gift, understanding that we did not deserve it, but now that we have it, we are to use it to His glory, so that the world may see Him through us.
The problem, as I see it, is in focusing too narrowly on Ephesians 2:8-9:

"For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. "
(Eph 2:8-9 NASB)

This makes it clear, that our salvation is a gift, that we accept through our Faith in Jesus. This is an awesome passage in scripture, and provides us with great comfort that God is so good that He chose to give His only Son to pay our debt. The problem is that while this verse is quoted as proof of salvation through grace, leaving out the following verse creates a problem. If you only look at this passage, you get the impression that this is a one-way transaction. This is a gift with no expectation for us to do anything in return. But the following verse clearly shows we do have an obligation once we receive the gift:

"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. "
(Eph 2:10 NASB)

Notice, I didn't say that we had an obligation to fulfill in order to receive the gift. The obligation is in response to the gift. If we look at the transaction that took place on the cross, this becomes clear. We owed a debt, due to our sin. We are unable to pay that debt. Christ stepped in and chose to pay the debt for us. When we accept His gift (payment of our debt), we become His bond servant. He then becomes our master and Lord. We must follow Him and obey everything He asks of us.

So Faith is an action. We put our Faith in Jesus and prove we are His children by obeying his commands. James 2 addresses this issue specificly:

"Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. But someone may well say, "You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works." You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? You see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected; "
(Jas 2:17-22 NASB)

James makes it clear here that faith requires works. It is not just beleif. As James states, even the demons believe in Jesus. But their actions/works prove that they are not His followers. Therefore, Faith requires action on our part, or that faith is useless.

Matthew 7:21 - Only those who do the will of the Father will enter the Kingdom

Today I'm exploring what Jesus meant in Matthew 7:21 - 27:

"Not everyone who calls out to Me, 'Lord! Lord!' will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of My Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to Me, 'Lord! Lord! We prophesied in Your name and cast out demons in Your name and performed many miracles in Your name.' But I will reply, 'I never knew you. Get away from Me, you who break God's laws.' "Anyone who listens to My teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won't collapse because it is built on bedrock. But anyone who hears My teaching and doesn't obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash." (Mat 7:21-27 NLT)

So, who are these that call out to Him "Lord! Lord!"?
How do we know that we're not one of them?

Jesus says that "only those who actually do the will of My Father in heaven will enter." So how were those who "prophesied in Your name and cast out demons in Your name and performed many miracles in Your name" not doing the will of the Father? Jesus says they were breaking God's laws.

It comes down to obedience. If we do things in the name of Christ, but are not acting in obedience to Him, then we are dis-obeying Him, we are breaking God's laws. He compares the person who hears and obeys His teachings to a house built on bedrock. That bedrock is His word. We must believe His word and build our life upon it, through obedience to it. This means there is more to salvation than simply believing that Christ is Lord and died on the cross for our sins. James 2:19 says:

"You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. How foolish! Can't you see that faith without good deeds is useless?" (Jas 2:19-20 NLT)

But, these good deeds must be done out of obedience and not our own selfish ambition. If we are simply doing the good deeds as a way to impress the world with our righteoness, or to try to prove in some way to God that we're worthy, then we are not acting in obedience.

Obedience is a true expression of love. We obey because we love and respect Christ. It is our love for Him that drives us to obey Him. And through our obedience to Him, we can know that we will enter the Kingdom. This does not, in any way, mean that we are saved by works, but is an outward sign of our relationship with Christ. For if we truly believe that He is Lord of our lives, then we will obey, and that obedience will be apparent to others. So, salvation comes through our belief in Christ as Lord, and then through acting out our belief by following His commands. Just as James said:

"So you see, faith by itself isn't enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless. Now someone may argue, "Some people have faith; others have good deeds." But I say, "How can you show me your faith if you don't have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds." You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. " (Jas 2:17-19 NLT)

This is a very important point: Even the demons believe in Christ. But they do not obey or love Him. Faith and Obedience are inseparable. You cannot enter the Kingdom without both.

To sum it up, those who Jesus said will call Him "Lord, Lord", and He says He never knew, believed in Him, but never obeyed Him. That is why they will not enter the Kingdom.