Originally posted by Blackhawk
After another look at the passage I think that you are right it has much to do about the judgement. However I do not think it says that one must do these actions themselves or one is not saved.
If one must not do those actions - why would Christ bother to mention them specificlly, not once - but twice?
I believe there is a total package when it comes to our salvation. We receive grace and the gift of salvation freely and in return we are told by Christ that those who lose their lives (meaning giving of ourselves without ceasing) we will rise in Christ.
The sheep and the goats have both received the message of Salvation, the goats too, freely received the free gift, but chose not to act on their faith - thus they lost the gift of salvation.
Originally posted by Blackhawk
I say this because there is more explicit verses that help me interpret this text. One is the text in James and the another is when Paul states that salvation is by faith alone and not by works. (Eph 2:8 & 9) Read the passage again but this time assume my point of view and I think that it will be clear that one can read the passage with the interpretation that the goats never had salvific faith so they did not have the works either.
Actually, he is talking about "works of the law"...meaning the Jews who were keeping the 631 laws of cleanliness and manipulating the Mosiac laws for their own benefit - yet they acted as if they were holy and boasted that they followed the law - that is who Paul is talking about here.
The Pharasees were using the laws to get out of caring for their parents and other responsibilities yet they would boast about how they kept the Mosaic laws and thus had salvation.
My main question always for the faith plus works side is how much owrks do we need to be saved? How unselfish do we need to be? Does the Bible ever explicitly state this? [/B]
No, because its not a game. We are called to die completely to ourselves, our needs, our wants, our selfish desires and live to serve our fellow humans. We're not supposed to get caught up in the stock market, and all the trappings of this world - we're supposed to trust in God's plan for us, take up our cross and serve our neighbors.
But who does that 100% in this life. No one. Christ was the only one who acted perfectly for any stretch of time. [/B]
Correct, because we are still human, we are still weak and can do nothing without the grace of God. We have to confess our failings daily, receive forgiveness and pick our cross back up again. It's a life-long battle because the road is long and the gate is narrow.
We don't do works because we think they are going to save us - we do good works in order to lift our neighbor up, to feed them phyiscally and spiritually - all through the grace of God. Always through the grace of God.