Can we fix it? No we can't!

I had a professor in Seminary who looked out on our faces with this little smirk he would get. It would creep up at us underneath his mustache and whenever I saw it I knew that we would all soon have our spiritual nickers in a bunch.

You know, you are all saved by works. 

(a pause as the smirk grew and eyebrows furrowed)

What???

Our school was reformed! We believed that we were saved by grace through faith, clearly NOT by works! Didn't he read Ephesians 2:8-9!? What is he talking about!

and then as he watched us all squirm he continued 

Yes, you have all been saved by works. 

GOD'S Works, and don't you ever forget it!

A collective sigh came over the class as we breathed and relaxed parts of our bodies. Whew, he did read the Bible, and moreover, He never let himself forget that he had been saved by the works of God. 

This was the problem of Israel, this is the problem for us. 

I've often said that one of the "downfalls" of the Reformation was just this; we understood that we had nothing to do with our gaining our salvation and so we lost the power of what had been done. This is what is written in James 2:26. He is calling out those who claimed to believe that Jesus was the Messiah and with a snarky flair! So, you think Jesus was the One, well good, so the the demons!

What we profess and what we believe are not always the same. We understand this when we say "our actions speak louder than our words. Yes, I know, we are all sinners, the church isn't perfect, yadda yadda, blah, blah. 

Look at your life. What does it read. 

Does it read "I was saved by my God's works" or "I was saved by my works"