11 / 12
The Amish Voice 11
Letter From a Reader…
Continued
from back page
no one is justified by the works of the law,
that we are saved by grace through faith, and
not of ourselves, etc. I do not think that you
would disagree with that—that salvation,
justification, being born again, are a
matter of faith and do not depend
upon works. That is, we can have
eternal life
now
, as John explained
and as Jesus taught, by believing in
Jesus. Believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ, and thou shalt be saved. John
writes that we can know
now
that
we have eternal life (I John 5:13).
You know, MG, that there is a huge chasm
between mankind and God, and that gap
must be bridged somehow. Now, some seem
to think that we can build our own bridge and
work as hard as we can on it during our lives,
and then Jesus will come along at the end
and take our bridge and fix what needs fixed
and make our bridge work. The Bible seems
to say, though, that no matter how much we
work on our bridge or how big we make it, it
is never close to sufficient, and can never
work. Rather, Jesus has made the bridge for
us—not using our own feeble attempts, but
in His strength and wisdom—in His dying on
the cross. The question then is, “In which
bridge do we trust?” Do we trust in our own
bridge and hope that Jesus can use what we
have made and make it work, or do we trust
in the bridge that Jesus Himself made for us
and has told us is all that is needed? If I want
to add my own efforts and improvements to
the bridge that Jesus made, then I do not real-
ly trust Him, do I? I must have complete
faith in Him. That faith is proved when I cast
myself on the bridge that Jesus made—the
way of salvation that He provided—and I
rest my eternity on Him rather than on my
own efforts. Jesus made a bridge for us, and I
will trust Him and cross the bridge that He
made. My faith is proved when I trust in Him
alone to get across. If, however, I want to say
that I must help to make that bridge, then I
am not really trusting in what Jesus has done.
MG—are you trusting in Jesus
alone
, or do
you think that you can
combine
your own
efforts to make a better bridge than Jesus
made?
Certainly it is absurd to think that I can sit on
this side of the canyon and claim that I trust
in the bridge that Jesus made while never
being willing to step foot on that bridge. It is
absurd, as you would agree, I think, for one
to simply claims that he trusts in Jesus, but
has no works to show that he does in fact
trust in Jesus alone for salvation.
The reality of the Scriptures indicates that
one is saved—born again—given eternal
life—as a gift—paid for by the blood of Je-
sus—and that I cannot improve upon it or
help it by my efforts (that would not really be
trusting in Jesus, anyway, but in myself).
However, once a person is born again, saved,
been changed by God’s Holy Spirit—then
one’s life should be different and should be
full of good fruit as evidence of a good tree.
If a bad tree cannot bring forth good fruit,
then an unsaved person cannot bring
forth works pleasing to God.
As for Noah’s ark, it was not No-
ah’s work in building the ark that
justified him before God. The Bible
states that Noah found grace in the
eyes of the LORD—that “Noah was
a just man” and walked with God.
You see, MG—Noah was justified
by his faith—before God ever instructed him
to build the ark. Noah trusted in God, and his
works proved that as he obeyed God and
built the ark. Noah’s works did not justify
him, for God’s word states that Noah was
already “just” due to his faith.
Noah was declared a just man who walked
with God, long before he ever began building
the ark. It is the same with us. Our efforts
and works do not save us. We are justified by
faith alone—and because we have been made
new creations in Christ—we obey and love
Him and live for Him. Faith without works is
indeed dead. Works without faith are also
dead. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by
the word of God. We are saved by faith, the
Scriptures teach.
I look forward to hearing from you as we
seek the Scriptures together.
—Paul Miller
If the Amish Voice has been a blessing
to you — drawn you closer to the heart
of God — challenged you to live and
serve the Lord with a greater passion…
Would you join others by sending a
donation to help us with the printing and
postage expenses?
Secondly, would you pray for us as we
thrive to encourage and challenge you
with more truth packed issues in 2014? We
welcome articles, suggestions, and ideas from you as
well. You may send your donation and comments to:
The Amish Voice
PO Box 128, Savannah, OH 44874