Top Bible Questions: Is salvation by faith alone or faith and works?

This question can be answered by saying yes and no. Yes one is saved by faith alone but one cannot be saved just on faith alone. How is this possible? This question begs another question we must answer first. At what point does salvation occur? If we are to ask ‘are we saved by faith?’ the answer would be yes. But if you were to ask ‘do we need actions to back up our faith?’ the answer would also be yes. So let’s be clear. This question is simply a matter about the timing of salvation. When are we saved? The answer is very clear in Scripture. 

The simple answer is to have faith in Jesus, believing he died for our sins and rose from the dead. Even simpler, is to believe that Jesus did those things to save us. Romans 10:9, Acts 16:31, John 3:16, all point very clearly to belief as the number one agent to bring about our salvation made possible by the grace of God through Jesus. There is no amount of church attendance, charitable donation, or volunteer work that “qualifies” someone to be saved. You cannot ‘earn’ your way to salvation but it comes by faith in Christ. 

With that being said, believing and being baptized are the first steps of the journey. Salvation does not end with our confession and baptism and we continue on life as it were before. A faith that is alive will be transformed by the Spirit and we will live a life of service in God’s kingdom and this is where the ‘works’ or ‘deeds’ come into play. The things we do because of our faith do not save us but they encourage us to continue to walk in our faith. 

We see very clearly in Scripture that faith without doing anything in response to our faith is considered a “dead” faith. James 2:26 says, “For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.” We cannot say we have a faith and not back it up by our actions. Our actions include our lifestyle, the way we live our life, and the way others see us. If our actions oppose those of Christ’s, then our faith is dead and we need to make it alive through the Spirit. 

In conclusion, we are saved by our faith in Jesus, however, that is not the end of the story. Our life should reflect our faith in the things that we do, what we say, and how we treat people. If we do not have good works, we do not have a real faith in Jesus and we need to recommit. Believe in Jesus, share in his death through baptism, and receive the Spirit as a gift to be used in His kingdom. Faith is just the first step in our walk with Christ.