God Bless the Child

If you were to turn to the Book of Billie Holiday, you would read the following passage:

Them that’s got shall get
Them that’s not shall lose
So the Bible said and it still is news

Mama may have,
Papa may have
But God bless the child that’s got his own
That’s got his own

Yes, the strong gets more
While the weak ones fade
Empty pockets don’t ever make the grade

Mama may have,
Papa may have
But God bless the child that’s got his own
That’s got his own

Now I imagine that some of you are jumping out of your chairs and yelling “Hey, wait a minute! There is no such book in the Bible!”

OK, you caught us operating in a little jocularity - just a wee bit of humor. But, in all seriousness, the concept behind that classic blues song is taken from a scriptural context. Specifically: those who have will be given more, and those who have not shall lose what little they may have.

Let’s pause to read a passage from the Bible in which Jesus is giving some rather stern teaching about the kingdom of heaven. He earlier talks about the foolish virgins who were shut out of the wedding celebration. Later, Jesus will teach about the sheep and the goats. The overall theme seems to be those who do those works that are an acceptable to God, and those who are rejected.

¹³Watch therefore [give strict attention and be cautious and active], for you know neither the day nor the hour when the Son of Man will come.
¹⁴For it is like a man who was about to take a long journey, and he called his servants together and entrusted them with his property.
¹⁵To one he gave five talents [probably about $5,000], to another two, to another one--to each in proportion to his own personal ability. Then he departed and left the country.
¹⁶He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he gained five talents more.
¹⁷And likewise he who had received the two talents--he also gained two talents more.
¹⁸But he who had received the one talent went and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money.
¹⁹Now after a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them.
²⁰And he who had received the five talents came and brought him five more, saying, Master, you entrusted to me five talents; see, here I have gained five talents more.
²¹His master said to him, Well done, you upright (honorable, admirable) and faithful servant! You have been faithful and trustworthy over a little; I will put you in charge of much. Enter into and share the joy (the delight, the blessedness) which your master enjoys.
²²And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, Master, you entrusted two talents to me; here I have gained two talents more.
²³His master said to him, Well done, you upright (honorable, admirable) and faithful servant! You have been faithful and trustworthy over a little; I will put you in charge of much. Enter into and share the joy (the delight, the blessedness) which your master enjoys.
²⁴He who had received one talent also came forward, saying, Master, I knew you to be a harsh and hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you had not winnowed [the grain].
²⁵So I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is your own.
²⁶But his master answered him, You wicked and lazy and idle servant! Did you indeed know that I reap where I have not sowed and gather [grain] where I have not winnowed?
²⁷Then you should have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received what was my own with interest.
²⁸So take the talent away from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents.
²⁹For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will be furnished richly so that he will have an abundance; but from the one who does not have, even what he does have will be taken away.
³⁰And throw the good-for-nothing servant into the outer darkness; there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.

Matthew 25:13-30 [AMP]

In the above passage, a man gives three of his servants finances to manage.  The most industrious servant received the most... and adeptly traded these funds, doubling the amount for his master.  The second did the same.  The third guy was lazy and fearful.  He hid the money in the ground where it could not earn any interest or grow in value.  The top performer was rewarded... but the lazy bum was punished.

When we become Christians, we are given gifts from God.  We are to use these gifts to glorify God, and to help our fellow man.  If you never share... never help the needy... never use your nice car to give someone a ride... never take time to listen to someone suffering from emotional pain... never share the good news of God’s love gift of salvation through Jesus Christ... if you never do anything with the gifts that God has given you, then you are like the lazy bum in Matthew 25.

The idea of acceptable works being rewarded and bad works being rejected is not a New Testament concept. In the Book of Genesis, we see two brothers: Cain and Abel. One brother brings a sacrifice to God that is accepted. The other brings a sacrifice that is rejected.

³And in the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground.
⁴And Abel brought of the firstborn of his flock and of the fat portions. And the Lord had respect and regard for Abel and for his offering,
⁵But for Cain and his offering He had no respect or regard. So Cain was exceedingly angry and indignant, and he looked sad and depressed.
⁶And the Lord said to Cain, Why are you angry? And why do you look sad and depressed and dejected?
⁷If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin crouches at your door; its desire is for you, but you must master it.

Genesis 4:3-7 [AMP]

Cain and Abel are examples of two types of sacrifice: one that is accepted by God and one that is rejected by Him.  So let’s focus on what God is looking for in our lives.  Returning to our concept of the Billie Holiday song, if you gots... you shall get.  If you not... you shall lose. Abel did that which God respected and received the blessing of God’s respect.  Cain got the opposite... and had a bad attitude.

We all know what happened next:  Cain killed his brother.  Sadly, this behavior still occurs.  We have people who get jealous of those who are blessed and want to kill, steal and destroy (John 10:10).  I have experienced it in my life... perhaps you have as well.  Rather than celebrate your success, they plot to bring you down... all because they see you receiving what they did not achieve.

But that is a bit of a tangent from our original scripture... that those who manage what God has given them shall receive more... and those who mismanage shall have what little they have taken away.

Interestingly, this seems to be the opposite from one of the world would view as the norm. Not to make this a political statement, but our President seems to think those who have should lose and those who have not should gain. Banks that were in trouble because of bad business practices should be bailed out, and those who managed their finances properly are dealing with higher taxes. But, of course, this is not about politics.

In the economy of heaven, your works that are reflective of a faithful spirit will bring you great reward.  Likewise, the lazy and carnal Christian will have nothing in regard to rewards. That person may even be facing punishment, and according to these scriptures -- most likely so.  YIKES!  What we are reading suggests that our Heavenly Father does not give cash for clunkers!

It is important at this point to emphasize that no one can buy their way into heaven by doing good works. However, good works are an indication of the level of our faith. Yes, we understand that salvation is a gift from God through faith in Jesus Christ our Lord, we also understand that faith without works is dead.

¹⁴What is the use (profit), my brethren, for anyone to profess to have faith if he has no [good] works [to show for it]? Can [such] faith save [his soul]?
¹⁵If a brother or sister is poorly clad and lacks food for each day,
¹⁶And one of you says to him, Good-bye! Keep [yourself] warm and well fed, without giving him the necessities for the body, what good does that do?
¹⁷So also faith, if it does not have works (deeds and actions of obedience to back it up), by itself is destitute of power (inoperative, dead).
¹⁸But someone will say [to you then], You [say you] have faith, and I have [good] works. Now you show me your [alleged] faith apart from any [good] works [if you can], and I by [good] works [of obedience] will show you my faith.
¹⁹You believe that God is one; you do well. So do the demons believe and shudder [in terror and horror such as make a man's hair stand on end and contract the surface of his skin]!
²⁰Are you willing to be shown [proof], you foolish (unproductive, spiritually deficient) fellow, that faith apart from [good] works is inactive and ineffective and worthless?
²¹Was not our forefather Abraham [shown to be] justified (made acceptable to God) by [his] works when he brought to the altar as an offering his [own] son Isaac?
²²You see that [his] faith was cooperating with his works, and [his] faith was completed and reached its supreme expression [when he implemented it] by [good] works.
²³And [so] the Scripture was fulfilled that says, Abraham believed in (adhered to, trusted in, and relied on) God, and this was accounted to him as righteousness (as conformity to God's will in thought and deed), and he was called God's friend.
²⁴You see that a man is justified (pronounced righteous before God) through what he does and not alone through faith [through works of obedience as well as by what he believes].
²⁵So also with Rahab the harlot--was she not shown to be justified (pronounced righteous before God) by [good] deeds when she took in the scouts (spies) and sent them away by a different route?
²⁶For as the human body apart from the spirit is lifeless, so faith apart from [its] works of obedience is also dead.

James 2:14-26 [AMP]]

I like what Joyce Meyer often says: when she asks someone “Are you a Christian?” one of the more common responses is, “I go to church.” Joyce follows that with, “You can sit in the church... that doesn’t make you a Christian. I could sit in my garage, that doesn’t make me an automobile.”  A lot of people go to church... but are they sheep or goats?  Again, the scriptures define the acceptable one(s) as those whose faith is evidenced by their good works!

One thing I have often related is that I have had more problems in life from people who call themselves Christians than from people who seem to worship the devil or claim to be atheists.  It is not only frustrating to have someone claiming to be a fellow believer in Christ telling lies about you and sowing all sorts of discord (Proverbs 6:16-19)... but it makes it very difficult to convince the lost of their need for salvation through Christ when they witness that sort of behavior.  Such occurrences were part of the inspiration behind our book, “Please Don’t Feed the Atheists” and our Powerhouse audio teaching Things That God Hates.

How about making a commitment this week to live a true Christian life -- by committing works that please God, rather than those that anger Him?

How do I do that?

The same way that you received salvation (or, if you have never received salvation... this is how we do it:

For with the heart a person believes (adheres to, trusts in, and relies on Christ) and so is justified (declared righteous, acceptable to God), and with the mouth he confesses (declares openly and speaks out freely his faith) and confirms [his] salvation.

Romans 10:10 [AMP]

Put your complete trust in Christ... yielding to the Holy Spirit (because He has the right of way) and allowing Him to walk out those good works through you. Make a commitment to do this daily and it will go from an action to a habit to a lifestyle.

Faith and Works

Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. The LORD said, “I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them.” But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.

Genesis 6:5-8 [NASU]

[But Noah found favor (grace)]

Looking at Noah’s ancestors, we are inclined to believe Noah was called of God early in life; initiated into the worship of his Creator; delighted in His word and was dedicated to His service. We further believe his mind was set and his ears attentive to the voice of the Lord, not being influenced by the nay sayers, the religious, the self righteous, and never tossed about by “every wind of doctrine,” or lured by lust into the things of the world. Noah had a constant and certain confidence and trust in God’s love and in His ability and power to order and sustain all things. Therefore in the midst of a wicked and perverse generation Noah had “set his mind” to walk with the One who had called him to righteousness, hence he found grace in the “eyes of the Lord” and over came the world through faith (1^st John 5:4).

By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.

Hebrews 11:7 [NASU]

Because of God’s love for mankind, He had mercy; and mercy brought forth the favor of God to warn Noah about the impending flood that would destroy all flesh. Noah, not out of fear of death, but out of fear (reverence) of God, never doubting, obeyed Him in all that He commanded him to do.

By grace through faith Noah became the heir of righteousness. But what is faith? Now I know most of you will quote Hebrews 11:1 and say to me, that is faith; but what constitutes faith? And, where does one get faith? As we examine the Scriptures we find that God spoke with Noah warning him of things to come. Now Noah, having a loving, trusting relationship with God, believed God and began to do the things God commanded him to do (Genesis 6:22).

Now let us imagine if Noah had heard God but did not do the things God commanded him to do in a timely manner. I highly suspect that Noah would have perished with the rest of the world. Although it does not seem possible to love God apart from obedience, nevertheless we conclude that just loving, hearing and believing God does not totally constitute faith. Faith must include obedience!! Is not obedience an expression of love for God? But isn’t obedience works? Yes, of course it is. But works alone did not justify Noah; his love, believing and obedience to the words spoken to him by God---faith, justified him.

And then there is Abraham, living in Mesopotamia in his father’s house serving other gods (Joshua 24:2) and God spoke to him (Acts 7:2). Unlike Noah, Abraham was not in a relationship with God when He called him. Because of God’s love for mankind He had mercy and choose Abraham to be a father of faith. When God spoke to Abraham, His word made alive the ears of Abraham and caused him to hear; effecting faith in him (Romans 10:17). When Abraham heard God, he believed; this was God’s gracious gift to Abraham.

Again let us just imagine if Abraham had heard God and believed but said to God, “I believe you God but I think I will stay here in Ur.” Would Abraham have received the blessings that God promised Him? Of course not!! He had to obey God’s commands. Then we conclude from the Scriptures that Abraham heard God, believed, and because God first loved him, he loved God in returned and expressed that love through obedience; thus his faith was perfected (James 2:22).

By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.

Hebrews 11:8 [NASU]

The Holy Scriptures teach us that both Noah and Abraham were men of faith. Now for the answer to our question, we examine what these two men have in common. Both were chosen of God; heard, believed, and obeyed Him. And because God first loved them, they both loved God; thus effecting faith in their hearts. Therefore we conclude that the foundation of faith is the love of God in the heart of man, the corner stone is the word of God believed, and the completion of faith is obedience. Now we have the answer to what constitutes or establishes faith: hearing God (Romans 10:17), believing and obeying Him from a heart of love.

Jesus said,

If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.

John 14:15 [NASU]

Would not keeping our Lord’s commandments be works of faith through love? Sure, I agree, it is by grace through faith that a person is saved and not of works, but isn’t God’s favor granted to those who when God calls, motivated by love, they obey Him? Noah and Abraham both were justified and saved by grace through their obedience to God’s purpose in calling them.

Many have written that the Apostles Paul and James were in disagreement concerning works. I contend that both Apostles were taught and led by the same Spirit and they did not disagree on anything. Men, trying to understand God’s Holy word by the intellect, have grossly misunderstood the messages of these two men.

Paul states that works does not justify man; and he of course is right. Now we confess and agree with Paul, there is no way man can work his way into salvation by obedience to the Law or any other works of the flesh; it is by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ that one is saved. And the Apostle James says that works justifies man (James 2:21), and of course he is right also. Without contradiction we agree with James because we understand the messages of these two men.

The Apostle Paul is speaking of works apart from hearing, believing and loving God. He is speaking of men who know of God and His promises but are trying to work out their salvation by their own methods rather than following God’s plan; such works are corrupted by the sin nature of man and is not acceptable to God; and also, there has never been a law given that could impart life.

The Apostle Paul is speaking of men seeking righteousness through the “works of the Law” and James is speaking of a love that leads to obedience—“works of faith”---diligently following God’s plan.

The Apostle Paul writes,

For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law.

Romans 3:28 [NASU]

Now we will repeat the same Scripture but inserting the elements of faith in italics rather than the word “faith.”

For we maintain that a man is justified by hearing God, believing Him, and obeying from a heart of love apart from the works of the Law.

For example, let us imagine if Noah possessed a stone with God’s handwriting giving the Ten Commandments of the Moral Law. Let us also imagine that Noah also had God’s warning of a flood and instructions to build an ark. But let us suppose that out of fear of death Noah kept all Ten Commandments to the letter but ignored the instructions to build an ark. If all of the above were true, could “the works of the Law” save him? Of course not!

Let us imagine that, in as effort to survive the flood, Noah set out to build a boat without following God’s plan; and we will assume that he got his boat ready by the time the flood came. Don’t you know that the storm would have completely destroyed his little boat. Thus his works would have not saved him from death. He would have been like Nimrod, who never knew God, trying to build his tower into heaven.

The Apostle James writes,

What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him?

James 2:14 [NASU]

The Apostle James is speaking here of a faith that is lacking the element of obedience to the word of God.

Again, for example, let us imagine that Noah heard God when He warned of a flood that would destroy all flesh. And He believed Him as He gave him instructions to build an ark; but he never lifted a hand to pick up his tools to build the ark. Would his hearing and believing God save him? Of course not! Apart from works of obedience his hearing and believing would be worthless (James 2:17, 20). God’s saving grace was poured out upon Noah because he participated in his salvation through obedience to the word of God from a pure heart of love.

Out of God’s love for mankind, He has mercy and extends His invitation of salvation to man through His Son Jesus. We love God because He first loved us. Through this love of His, He inspires faith -- a faith that includes obedience (works).

James C Sanford

Faith and Works

“Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. The LORD said, ‘I will blot out man whom I have created from the face of the land, from man to animals to creeping things and to birds of the sky; for I am sorry that I have made them.’ But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.” (Genesis 6:5-8 NASU)

[But Noah found favor (grace)]

Looking at Noah’s ancestors we are inclined to believe Noah was called of God early in life; initiated into the worship of his Creator; delighted in His word and was dedicated to His service. We further believe his mind was set and his ears attentive to the voice of the Lord, not being influenced by the naysayers, the religious, the self righteous, and never tossed about by “every wind of doctrine,” or lured by lust into the things of the world. Noah had a constant and certain confidence and trust in God’s love and in His ability and power to order and sustain all things. Therefore in the midst of a wicked and perverse generation Noah had “set his mind” to walk with the One who had called him to righteousness, hence he found grace in the “eyes of the Lord” and over came the world through faith (1^st John 5:4).

“By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.” (Hebrews 11:7 NASU)

Because of God’s love for mankind He had mercy; and mercy brought forth the favor of God to warn Noah about the impending flood that would destroy all flesh. Noah, not out of fear of death, but out of fear (reverence) of God, never doubting, obeyed Him in all that He commanded him to do.

By grace through faith Noah became the heir of righteousness. But what is faith? Now I know must of you will quote Hebrews 11:1 and say to me, that is faith; but what constitutes faith? And, where does one get faith? As we examine the Scriptures we find that God spoke with Noah warning him of things to come. Now Noah, having a loving, trusting relationship with God, believed God and began to do the things God commanded him to do (Genesis 6:22).

Now let us just suppose that Noah had heard God but did not do the things God commanded him to do in a timely manner. I highly suspect that Noah would have perished with the rest of the world. Although it does not seem possible to love God apart from obedience, nevertheless we conclude that just loving, hearing and believing God does not totally constitute faith. Faith must include obedience!!Is not obedience an expression of love for God?

But isn’t obedience works?

Yes, of course it is. But works alone did not justify Noah; his love, believing and obedience to the words spoken to him by God---faith, justified him.

And then there is Abraham, living in Mesopotamia in his father’s house serving other Gods (Joshua 24:2) and God spoke to Him (Acts 7:2). Unlike Noah, Abraham was not in a relationship with God when He called him. Because of God’s love for mankind He had mercy and choose Abraham to be a father of faith. When God spoke to Abraham His word made alive the ears of Abraham and caused him to hear effecting faith in him (Romans 10:17). When Abraham heard God he believed; this was God’s gracious gift to Abraham.

Again let us just suppose that Abraham had heard God and believed but said to God, “I believe you God but I think I will stay here in Ur.” Would Abraham have received the blessings that God promised Him? Of course not!! He had to obey God’s commands. Then we conclude from the Scriptures that Abraham heard God, believed, and because God first loved him, he love God in returned and expressed that love through obedience; thus his faith was perfected (James 2:22).

“By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.” (Hebrews 11:8 NASU)

The Holy Scriptures teaches us that both Noah and Abraham were men of faith. Now for the answer to our question we examine what these two men have in common. Both were chosen of God, heard, believed, obeyed Him and because God first loved them they both loved God; thus effecting faith in their hearts. Therefore we conclude that the foundation of faith is the love of God in the heart of man, the cornerstone is the word of God believed, and the completion of faith is obedience.

Now we have the answer to what constitutes or establishes faith: hearing God (Romans 10:17), believing and obeying Him from a heart of love. Jesus said,

“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” (John 14:15 NASU)

Would not keeping our Lord’s commandments be works of faith through love? Sure, I agree, it is by grace through faith that a person is saved and not of works, but isn’t God’s favor granted to those who when God calls, motivated by love they obey Him. Noah and Abraham both were justified and saved by grace through their obedience to God’s purpose in calling them.

Many have written that the Apostles Paul and James were in disagreement concerning works. I contend that both Apostles were taught and led by the same Spirit and they did not disagree on anything. Men, trying to understand Gods Holy word by the intellect, have grossly misunderstood the messages of these two men.

Paul states that works does not justify man; and He of course is right. Now we confess and agree with Paul, there is no way man can work his way into salvation by obedience to the Law or any other works of the flesh; it is by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ that one is saved. And the Apostle James says that works justifies man (James 2:21), and of course he is right also. Without contradiction we agree with James because we understand the messages of these two men.

The Apostle Paul is speaking of works apart from hearing, believing and loving God. He is speaking of men who know of God and His promises but are trying to work out their salvation by their own methods rather than following God’s plan; such works are corrupted by the sin nature of man and is not acceptable to God; and also, there has never been a law given that could impart life.

The Apostle Paul is speaking of men seeking righteous through the “works of the Law” and James is speaking of a love that leads to obedience—“works of faith”---diligently following God’s plan.

The Apostle Paul writes,

“For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law.” (Romans 3:28 NASU)

Now we will repeat the same Scripture but inserting the elements of faith in italics rather than the word “faith.”

For we maintain that a man is justified by hearing God, believing Him, and obeying from a heart of love apart from the works of the Law.

For example let us say that Noah possessed a stone with God’s handwriting giving the Ten Commandments of the Moral Law. And he also had God’s warning of a flood and instructions to build an ark. But let us suppose that out of fear of death Noah kept all Ten Commandments to the letter but ignored the instructions to build an ark, could “the works of the Law” save him? Of course not!

Or again let us suppose that in as effort to survive the flood he set out to build a boat without following God’s plan; and we will assume that he got his boat ready by the time the flood came. Don’t you know that the storm would have completely destroyed his little boat. Thus his works would have not saved him from death. He would have been like Nimrod, who never knew God, trying to build his tower into heaven, which God destroyed.

The Apostle James writes,

“What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him?” (James 2:14 NASU)

The Apostle James is speaking here of a faith that is lacking the element of obedience to the word of God.

Again for example let us say that Noah heard God when He warned of a flood that would destroy all flesh. And He believed Him as He gave him instructions to build an ark; but he never lifted a hand to pick up his tools to build the ark. Would his hearing and believing God save him? Of course not!

Apart from works of obedience his hearing and believing is worthless (James 2:17, 20). God’s saving grace was poured out upon Noah because he participated in his salvation through obedience to the word of God from a pure heart of love.

Out of God’s love for mankind He has mercy and extends His invitation of salvation to man through His Son Jesus. We love God because He first loved us and through this love of His He inspires faith, a faith that includes obedience (works).

James C Sanford