Faith without works is dead! This truth is of utmost importance, as God emphasizes it through repetition in His Word. The apostle James, in chapter two of his epistle, clearly teaches that faith and works are inseparable. He illustrates that faith apart from works is barren, unproductive, and ineffective, much like a desolate land that cannot bear fruit without rain. Just as both sunshine and rain are needed for growth, active faith and active works are both required to produce godly, spiritual life in us. The apostle Paul, in Ephesians 2:8-9, declares that we are saved by grace through faith, not by works, so that no one may boast. Yet, in the very next verse, he affirms that we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand for us to walk in. God desires us to perform good works in the name of Jesus Christ, as they are a major part of the purpose for each true Christian's life. We cannot truly be Christians without them. There is no contradiction between Paul and James on this matter. Faith is required, and works are required. Works toward God are to do His will, to perform His work, and to obey His laws. Works toward our neighbors are to serve them and to do good for them. Such works promote the growth of godly character and provide a shining example of true Christian living. Faith without works is dead, but faith with works is life—eternal life!

God's grace is central to our relationship with Him, and justification by faith, rather than by works, is a critical aspect of His plan for salvation. Ephesians 2:10 establishes that God requires works of us, but their purpose is not to earn salvation. Instead, these works glorify Him and internalize His character within our hearts during the period of sanctification, as we are formed into the image of Jesus Christ. Our works are the fruit of His grace, meaning they cannot earn what He has already enabled us to do. Justification by works, as perceived by some religious Jews of the apostles' day, was seen as an entitlement based on their sincere efforts to please God. However, this view is flawed when isolated from God's entire purpose for salvation. If justification were earned through works, it would open the door for human pride to enter the relationship with God, a deadly problem. Pride, as seen in Satan's rebellion, destroys relationships by fostering a sense of equality with God. Therefore, God chooses us while we are still sinners, ensuring that pride cannot be part of the equation. This prevents us from creating character in our own image, which would mirror the world shaped by Satan's pride. Romans 3:19-20 clarifies that no flesh will be justified by the deeds of the law, for the law's purpose is to reveal sin, not to save. All have sinned and fall short of God's glory, burdened with a debt that can only be paid by death. Since justification cannot be claimed through law-keeping, it must be received as a gift freely given by God. Romans 4:1-8 uses Abraham as the primary example, showing that he was justified by faith, not works. His belief in God was accounted to him as righteousness before circumcision, a symbol of works, was introduced. This demonstrates that justification is not earned, and as spiritual children of Abraham, we are justified in the same manner—by faith. Genesis 26:1-5 further illustrates that Abraham's obedience to God's commandments did not negate justification by faith. Justification by grace through faith does not do away with God's law, as Paul emphasizes in Romans 6:1. Instead, it frees us in Christ to keep the law as He did, aligning with God's purpose for our spiritual creation.

Justification cannot be earned through human works of any kind. No man can make himself acceptable to God by changing his conduct through sacrifice and effort or by disciplining himself to obey every commandment. Painful sacrifices such as crawling on bloody hands and knees or spending adult lives in monasteries fail to remove the blot of sin. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Every offering a man brings is already tarnished by immorality and lacks the value to nullify the sins of the world. Only the life of Jesus Christ meets the standard of a sinless sacrifice without blemish. The apostle Paul strove for righteousness with exceptional zeal yet still fell into sin. Without faith in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ there is no justification. Faith is a work but it is a gift from God resulting from His calling. Repentance is also a gift yet the called one must choose to exercise it. Justification is freely given by God without constraint to the one He has called. It is not earned as the fruit of labors. In justification our works have no part at all.

Paul argues that circumcision makes no difference as a work or as a means of justification before God. Circumcision does not grant salvation or justification. Salvation or justification is by grace. There are no works that grant justification by God. It is all by grace. God saves both Jew and Gentile the same way by grace. Jew and Gentile are saved and justified the same way. It is by grace. God chooses by His own will and then shows love and mercy and grants favor that one could come before Him and have sins forgiven once one accepts the sacrifice of Christ. Baptism is not a work that one must do in order to be saved. It is a righteous requirement. Baptism does not save. The saving is all done by grace. The only action is to believe. Abraham believed and it was accounted to him for righteousness. The response to God's grace is to exercise faith. Even the faith is a gift of God. Paul and Barnabas preached that people are saved by grace and not by works. Any kind of thing like circumcision in which one tries to show a work or an action in order to be justified does not count toward justification or salvation. Certain men taught that unless one is circumcised according to the custom of Moses one cannot be saved. Some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed said it is necessary to circumcise them and to command them to keep the law of Moses. They said one had to be a Jew in order to be saved. Peter said that God made no distinction between Jew and Gentile. Peter said through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ people shall be saved in the same manner. Israelites and Gentiles are granted salvation in the exact same way by grace. There is no distinction. Since circumcision has nothing to do with justification or salvation under the New Covenant the church should not require it of the Gentiles for the purpose of salvation. Peter called the law of Moses a yoke of bondage that neither the fathers nor they were able to bear. The custom of Moses is a code phrase for the laws rituals and traditions of Judaism. The Jews believed that by keeping all those laws customs and traditions God would accept them and grant them salvation. Under Moses' law circumcision morphed into a means of salvation. It showed that one was included in God's holy nation through lawkeeping and ritual purity. It began to function more as a work rather than a sign. It was one of those things one had to do in order to be saved. Justification by faith does not void or abolish or do away with God's law. It establishes or restores the law to its proper place. The law is a code that defines what sin is so one can live in righteousness before God.