Revelation Chapter Two, Christ Knows Our Works

Revelation 2:2a “I know your works,

Our Lord begins His dissection of the livelihood of the Ephesian church with a commendation. He says that He knows their works. This, of course, is a comment favoring Ephesus, not a dead work done in lieu of having salvation.

What does the Bible say about works, and their position or importance in a believer’s life? As it happens, the epistle to the Ephesians begins to answer this question. Paul wrote that salvation is of faith divorced from works, Ephesians 2:8, 9. Why? When a person believes, they are trusting in what Jesus has done for us; not what we have done for Him, or ourselves. It excludes boasting, since we will not enter Heaven by our power, but sheerly by God’s unmerited favor. Paul writes that we are created in Christ for good works, “which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them,” Ephesians 2:10. Further clarifying this point, Paul tells the Roman church, “Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace, but as debt. But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness,” Romans 4:4, 5. Faith and works are separated into two camps. One is saved by faith; the other is attempting to earn salvation by works. Paul reminds the Roman Christians that grace and debt are two entirely different things. If you owe God a debt it is eternal. You will literally have to work forever to repay it; that is why the Lake of Fire will never release its captives when God casts them in. But our belief in the gospel counts as imputed righteousness because we have trusted the message God vouchsafed to us. We are sternly reminded that God justifies the ungodly. Not our works, not human effort, but God alone. Ephesians 2:10 puts works in their proper context: namely resulting from salvation, laid out by God and enabled by the Holy Spirit.

In Titus Paul informs us what the purpose of good works are. Mind you, we must keep in mind that good works are the kind Christians do after we are saved not to curry favor or earn eternal life, but because the Holy Spirit produces the fruit of the Spirit within us, and we simply convey God’s love toward mankind as our new nature desires. Titus 3:8 reads, “those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are profitable to men.” For the third time we are told that faith comes first. By this I mean that we are saved apart from works; we are saved entirely by grace through faith in the Son of God. We who have already believed should be careful to maintain good works. Good works are profitable to our fellow man. If we are doing them to woo God or pad our resume as it were, they become dead works, even if we are genuinely saved. We have strayed in regard to what a work’s purpose is, and forfeit its efficacy.

James states that good works are the result of good conduct, emanating from, “the meekness of wisdom,” James 3:13. The type of wisdom he mentions originates in God, who liberally grants it to those who request it, James 1:5. The opposite motivation for performing works is likewise addressed in James: bitter envy and self-seeking, James 3:14. He diagnoses this type of motivation, naming it earthly, sensual (or carnal), and demonic, James 3:15. Self-seeking aptly describes the nature of religion. Works done performatively to garner Heaven, forgiveness, and eternal life are defined by their very execution. They are self seeking; whatever other motivation lay back of them, the desire to gain from it remains preeminent in one’s thoughts. It is an introverted spiritual view, with the carnal or old man in full control, working our way toward the impossible. Selfism is worshiped in modern culture, and while older cultures eschewed its public display as being gaudy, it is as old as Eden. Elsewhere Paul warns about this type of thinking and its latent lethality: “For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live,” Romans 8:13. This is predicated on Romans 8:9, where Paul makes the profound distinction that if we do not have the Holy Spirit, we are not Christ’s, i.e. we are not saved. When we have the Spirit of Christ we may walk in the Spirit and not submit to the desires of the flesh. This carnal origination would include the desire to perform works out of a motivation that is not centered in our love of Christ, and Christ’s love for humanity.

Jesus Himself testified of good works, saying, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven,” Matthew 5:16. Good works profit other people, and good works (hallmarked by selfless, sacrificial effort to serve others) glorify God. Jesus did good works to serve people and gave glory to the Father. Good works are extroverted; good works manifest when we are not thinking of how this benefits me, but what does the Lord desire? It is not systematic, formulaic, or compulsory; it is organic, Spirit-driven and inspired, and an act of genuine love. Love is not selfish, see 1 Corinthians 13:3-6. Therefore a true good work would not be performed with self-interest in mind. Dead works are introverted, always with some eye to self, fulfilling James’ clear warning about bitter envy and self-seeking. Our light is like the moon radiating the warmth of the sun. That light isn’t native to the moon’s surface. If we pretend otherwise, we practice deception and delusion. Our singular purpose when performing good works is to reflect the light of God onto others, so they may be warmed and see by it. Christ, the true Light, is where our works should lead them. The Ephesians were praised for their works, listed first, for which they were apparently diligent about.