Can one enter heaven just because they go to church every Sunday? Can our guilt or gratefulness for Jesus’ death on the cross for the atonement of our sins be satisfied with good and moral deeds like voluntary work, donations, etc.?
Simply, is heaven such an easy place to go to? If you just saying you believe in God with your lips alone, are you saved?
In fact, the scriptures say that just faith isn’t enough. In fact, the Bible says that faith without actions is dead. So we can understand that faith and action go hand-in-hand (James 2:14-17, 24). Well then, what do we need to have faith in? We must have faith and believe in the promises of God and Jesus with our hearts and proclaim it with our lips. And then we follow that up with our ‘actions’.
What then, are these ‘actions’? Are they the good deeds mentioned above? Nope, they aren’t.
Righteous Faith and Action in Different Eras
Depending on the era one lives in, there is a faith and action that God considers to be righteous. What is righteousness? Having one’s sins atoned for and therefore becoming a sinless person, in right-standing with God, i.e. righteous. God provided a specific way for people to have their sins forgiven. It was expected that His people would have faith in His words, His way, and then follow.
At the time of the Old Testament, atonement of one’s sins was accomplished through the sacrifice of an innocent animal. Similarly, when Jesus came, he established a new covenant with his blood the night before he was crucified (Luke 22:14-20). He made the covenant with his disciples, who were the representatives of believers at that time. The blood that Jesus shed paid the price of sin for all mankind and thus provided the ultimate atonement of sin and a way for people to become righteous. However, sin still exists and is prevalent today. Why is that?
That night before Jesus went to the cross, he said that the new covenant he established would be kept at a certain time. “I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God… I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes” (Luke 22:16,18). So this tells us that the covenant he made with all who would believe in him (Christians) was meant to be kept at a specific time in the future. Until that time, we would need to know and keep the teachings Jesus gave us. We should have faith in his promises, and when the proper time comes, act on that faith in Jesus’ promises.
Righteous Faith and Actions at Our Time
Our time now is the era when Jesus promised to return a second time to fulfill the covenant he made 2,000 years ago and bring people into salvation (Hebrews 9:28).
At Jesus’ first coming, righteousness and salvation was coming to Jesus and believing in him because that’s what God commanded his people to do. But we do not live in the time of Jesus’ first coming and therefore the expectations for us are different.
So, what is this righteousness deemed worthy by God and Jesus that we need to achieve?
The Advocate Sent by God
In John 14:26, Jesus promised that God would send an Advocate in Jesus’ name to those who believe in him. So righteousness at our time would be to believe in the Advocate that God sent on Jesus’ behalf. Jesus promised that this Advocate would remain us forever (Revelation 22:16).
But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
John 14:26
This Advocate will lead us into all truth. He will also remind and explain to us the meanings of Jesus’ parables about the kingdom of heaven, as well as the prophecies of Revelation.
Now, who is this Advocate? Have we already met him? Or have we all been waiting in vain and have already missed him?
How to Prove our Love to God
To have a faith that is considered righteous by God, we have to first know what He wants from us. Can we confidently believe that we will receive salvation without knowing who and what God and Jesus have promised? Without knowing Jesus’ teachings and prophecies for when he returns (John 14:23), are we sure that we’re doing what he asked us to do?
We all know from personal relationships that if you ask someone to do something for you or keep a promise they made, you expect them to follow through on it. But if they ignore what you want or disregard what you asked while claiming they love you, what would you think?
To love God for convenience sake, or to love Him the manner we think He wants is no love at all. Love, according to God, is to obey His commandments and carry out a life of faith that He acknowledges.
It is now time to leave our own versions of God and heaven behind, and to think logically and Biblically. If we consider ourselves to be Christians, let’s build our faith based on the teachings of Jesus Christ. And if we know his teachings and promises, then we will be able to act upon them. And in doing that, we will have lives of faith that are righteous in God’s eyes. Let’s constantly strive to be those God acknowledges.
Love and Peace to all.
Written by Your Soul and Heaven
If you would like to know more about how to live a life of faith that God acknowledges, you can also check out this post
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