In the July/August issue of Modern Reformation Magazine, Dr. Michael Horton posted a very insightful article titled “Christ & Islam”. For clarification he also has released three videos in which he compares the theology of true Christianity and Islam. CRN has posted Part 1 and Part 2 here. Part 3 can be viewed below.
Soli Deo Gloria!
No doubt that few have heard of Scottish preacher Eric J. Alexander, who is the former senior pastor of St. George’s Tron parish church in Glasgow, Scotland. He is the author of Prayer: A Biblical Perspective.
Alexander’s five sermons expositing 1 Peter are exemplary in their teaching of what it means to be God’s people.
Soli Deo Gloria!
In the July/August issue of Modern Reformation Magazine, Dr. Michael Horton posted a very insightful article titled “Christ & Islam”. For clarification he has also released three videos in which he compares the theology of true Christianity and Islam. Below are parts 1 & 2.
Soli Deo Gloria!
“Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.” Rev. 4:11, ESV
The natural mindset is that we thank God and praise him when he has greatly blessed us or delivered us or comforted us in some way, but a study of the Psalms or Romans 8, for example, shows us that Christians worship their God from grateful hearts even in the midst of fiery trials. While the world sees that as a paradox, we who are in Christ know from what we have been saved. Sadly, in our time, there are so many who call themselves Christians who are ignorant of the propitiatory sacrifice deliberately made by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ in order that all who would believe and obey the gospel would be justified by grace alone through faith alone as God’s gift alone. God has imputed the righteousness of his Son to all those he has justified just as he imputed their unrighteousness to his account as he hung on that cross paying the penalty for their sins. This knowledge and the power given to believers as they abide in their Lord enables them to have this paradoxical world-view that the “world” cannot understand nor will it ever understand this side of Judgment Day.
To remain as informed as possible on what is going on in Evangelical Christianity in our time I read and listen to many varied sources. Some of these sources you may or may not view in as good a light as others and some may not be “up there” like they used to be. I am convinced that a lot of that is perception and opinion and we must be discerning; being as wise as serpents while as innocent as doves as we seek to learn what God is teaching us. I still subscribe to Tabletalk Magazine from Ligonier Ministries even though they have guest writers each month in it of the type that I often warn you good people about. However, they also often have gems that make my subscription worthwhile. I received my September 2012 issue today and it is quite good. The interview section in this edition is of Carl Trueman who I deeply respect.
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, to the saints and believers in Christ Jesus who are in Ephesus. 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. Eph. 1:1–2 Possessing the Treasure New Testament v1
As my 61st birthday is less than two months away and the fact that I have seen the incredible changes not only in our culture, but in how Christians and our culture relate I am amazed at how polarized things have become. When I was a young and growing up as a Southern Baptist, the secular government was not Christian by any means, but on the other hand, neither did it invade into what we call Christianity. I never heard the term “Christian World View” until sometime in the mid 1970’s. The Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision in 1973 that legalized abortion on demand in the United States also created an awakening of sorts within those whose consciences had not yet been seared with a hot iron and so began a resistance to the rise in this country of the Culture of Death. Not everyone who is part of this resistance would be those I would call my brothers or sisters in Christ and neither would some of them share the same Christian World View that I have. Also, many who affirm whole heartedly the precepts of the Culture of Death also claim to be “Christians,” but by their rejection of orthodox Christianity beginning with the Word of God as being authoritative, Jesus Christ as the Second Person of the Triune God, et cetera, they fail the test and thereby show themselves to be apostates.
An article appeared last week in The Huffington Post entitled, “When Jesus Healed a Same-Sex Partner.” The author argues that the word translated as “servant” in Matthew 8 and Luke 7 actually should be rendered as “lover.” This change would mean that, when Jesus healed the centurion’s servant, He actually was healing the centurion’s same-sex partner.
Dr. James White of Alpha & Omega Ministries responds to this appalling argument.
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, to the saints and believers in Christ Jesus who are in Ephesus. 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. Eph. 1:1–2, Possessing the Treasure New Testament v1
I originally planned on this being a six part study, but have decided to break the last part into two posts so there will be a “Part 7.” I had a lot of work to do today of the sort that enabled me to listen to podcasts while I worked. I have been keeping up with Dr. Al Mohler’s “The Briefing” podcast since April of this year. If you don’t listen to it I highly recommend that you do even if you do not agree with Dr. Mohler on some theological issues. Why? The podcast is simply him going over what is going on the secular media and then he contrasts that with the Christian World View. It has been most enlightening. The podcasts is only about 20 minutes long each weekday. After those, I usually, if I have the time, try to catch up on listening to Dr. James White’s “The Dividing Line” podcasts. I also listen to the White Horse Inn podcasts, with Dr. Michael Horton, which comes out weekly. My theology is probably lined up closest to that of Dr. James White of those I just listed, but the input I get from those others in invaluable. Why?
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, to the saints and believers in Christ Jesus who are in Ephesus. 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. Eph. 1:1–2, Possessing the Treasure New Testament v1
While visiting in Oklahoma over this last weekend I heard a sermon Sunday morning taken from 2 Peter 3:17,18.
17 You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness, 18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. 2 Peter 3:17,18, NASB
It was a good sermon. The preacher used the example of how we are able to discern what is error from what is not by remaining faithful to our study and obedience to the truth, that is, God’s revealed truth, which is his Word. When we do that then when counterfeit truth is taught as if it is the truth we are already on guard and are able to not be carried away by the error of those unprincipled false teachers who are seeking to draw away followers from the flock of God unto themselves. This series on going through The book of Ephesians a verse at a time is what the Holy Spirit uses to build the mind of Christ in Christians. This is their transformation through the renewing of their minds (Romans 12:2). Let us look at Ephesians 2:1-10 for some more of that mind renewal.
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, to the saints and believers in Christ Jesus who are in Ephesus. 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. Eph. 1:1–2, Possessing the Treasure New Testament v1
What I am about to say is indicative of the doctrinally confused times in which we now live. I have written posts that teach nothing more than the doctrine of Justification by faith and have received criticism from more commenters than I care to count and several confused questions concerning not our Justification, but our Sanctification. Here are two examples. One was from a Roman Catholic priest who wanted me to stop teaching people about the sufficiency of God’s Grace at our Justification because, according to the traditions and teachings of the RCC, that grace is not sufficient and with each sin, Christians must attend Mass and confession, et cetera and even then that did not entirely pay the entire penalty for that sin in the eyes of God and so Purgatory awaits all true believers. Sigh… The other example was a very short angry comment that contained a link. The comment stated, “Calvin, John MacArthur, James White, John Piper are wrong” then there was link to a post on another site that was a very confused teaching about the fact that no one can enter into the presence of God carrying any sin so even though each believer is “saved” when they believe, it is conditional on their walking in repentance and keeping the law, et cetera. Those who are not able to reach this level of perfection lose their salvation. Sigh… My brethren, We are sinners and our salvation is a miracle because not one of us do one thing to deserve or earn it.
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, to the saints and believers in Christ Jesus who are in Ephesus. 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. Eph. 1:1–2, Possessing the Treasure New Testament v1
In these dark days there is an accompanying Biblical ignorance within the Church. This ignorance is in itself quite sad because so many genuine Christians actually have a wrong view of God. This means they also have a skewed understanding of the gospel that is doctrinally shallow. In fact, the religious structure around this is man-centered rather than God-centered. The end result is a religious system that does not satisfy the spiritual needs that God designed into all of us. This is why those church leaders behind this moving tragedy are continually attempting to derail all attempts by their people’s demands to “go deeper” into the Word or to address what the Word says about election and the Sovereignty of God after they read a book by Dr. James White or listen to a sermon by John MacArthur, for instance, that does indeed address these highly relevant spiritual topics. My brethren, man-centered religiosity is so spiritually thin because it is based on man’s traditions that came out of policies designed to offend no one. In doing this, the theologians and religious leaders behind this also produced a religious system that is based on feelings and, therefore, is temporally based rather than focused on the eternal.
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, to the saints and believers in Christ Jesus who are in Ephesus. 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. Eph. 1:1–2, Possessing the Treasure New Testament v1
Is the Gospel something that the Christian “is” or “becomes?” The Emergent Christians are fond of quoting St. Francis of Assisi, “preach the gospel always, use words if necessary.” There are two problems with this quote. First, he never said that and second, the gospel is a message that is to be proclaimed. The word “gospel” comes from the Greek εὐαγγέλιον (euangelion), “gospel, good news.” It is a message that redemption is available to those who are in bondage. The Emergents’ call “to be the Gospel” is utter nonsense because what they have done is taken the Biblical definition of the Gospel and redefined it into something else that we often call on this blog the “social gospel,” which is “another gospel,” and does not save.
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, to the saints and believers in Christ Jesus who are in Ephesus. 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. Eph. 1:1–2, Possessing the Treasure New Testament v1
We are in the throes of an election year and political motives are lurking behind so much of what the “powers that be” say and do right now. I have the luxury of being quite free to simply exegete God’s Word and use the discernment and wisdom he has given me plus the spiritual gift of teaching to explain what it says while the Holy Spirit takes these truths and applies them to reader’s hearts in ways that I could never imagine. I never have to worry about compromising anything in order not to offend some group or emphasize something else beyond what is necessary in order to please another. No, I am free to simply teach the Word and so should any Pastor or church leader. Why is it that so much of the visible church is so shallow and so much like the world? Those like that long ago abandoned adherence to God’s Word as authoritative as His Word and absolute truth, which is inerrant and infallible and complete, et cetera. Instead, they took on the “wisdom” of the world and so became “liberal” and spiritually dead. They are outside of God’s purpose for his Church. Their motives for doing so may vary, but mostly it boils down to them becoming man-pleasing instead of God-fearing.
3 Some Pharisees came to Jesus, testing Him and asking, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason at all?” 4 And He answered and said, “Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning MADE THEM MALE AND FEMALE, 5 and said, ‘FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH’? 6 “So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.” Matt. 19:3–6, NASB
My wife and I attempted to eat at our local Chick-Fil-A here in Olathe, Kansas this evening in support of Dan Cathy in light of the completely biased or one-sided coverage of his interview statements as a Baptist in a Baptist publication about religious and theological issues. It seems that it is perfectly fine for those with a worldview that is opposed to the traditional Christian worldview to express them, especially when it comes to the Biblical definition of what constitutes marriage, but those who hold to the Christian worldview have no right to state their beliefs, their stances, and what lines they will never cross no matter what. By the way, this was the day people were to come out in support of Chick-Fil-A and Dan Cathy en masse and we witnessed it big time in Olathe. We couldn’t even get close to the restaurant. The line to get in even beat the line we experienced at Cantler’s Crab House in Annapolis, Maryland last weekend. My wife has been ill and couldn’t stand in the sun so we had to go eat elsewhere. However, from where we sat, we could see that the crowds never diminished the whole time we were there.
17 Now while seeking to be justified in Christ, we were found also to be sinners ourselves, then is Christ a minister of sin? May it never be! 18 For if I rebuild what I destroyed, I demonstrate myself to be a transgressor. 19 For through the Law I died to the Law that I may live to God. I have been crucified with Christ; 20 and it is no longer I who live, but Christ living in me, and that which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the son of God who loved me and gave himself up on behalf of me. 21 I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law then Christ died for nothing. Gal. 2:17–21, Possessing the Treasure New Testament v1
We have come to Galatians 6, the last chapter of this foundational epistle that defines what the Gospel is and what it is not. Judiazers had infiltrated the Galatian churches, which Paul had planted. These Judiazers claimed that the doctrine of Justification by grace alone through faith alone as God’s gift alone was not enough. These false teachers added “works righteousness” to what Paul taught. Their flavor of “works righteousness” was that these gentile Christians must become circumcised and keep the Mosaic Covenant in order to be truly justified before God. This epistle was written by Paul to counter this evil. Why is this important for us to study this in our day? The false teaching that “works righteousness” is necessary for our justification before God is still poisoning the Church. It comes in many forms. Some are quite obvious while others are very subtle. Some are taught directly while the subtle variety, though meaning well, put Christians into bondage to the Law from which, in fact, the Gospel frees those justified by grace through faith by God himself.
12 So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh— 13 for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. Rom. 8:12–14, NASB
I worked for a short period of time in the late 1980s in PC marketing. I’m really not cut out for sales, but most of the other sales people I worked with were in their natural element. Most of my “customers” were just normal people coming into the store looking for a computer. Others were businessmen looking for a solution for their office environment. For example, I sold computers to oilmen who bought high end PCs with a lot of RAM and very large monitors with very expensive graphics cards to handle the software they used. All of that I looked at as God’s sending me clients so I could earn a commission as part of his providing my daily bread (Matthew 6:11). The most heartrending experiences I had during that time though were people who would come in to the store and they would be passed to me for some reason. They would come to my little cubicle and we would talk. It was there that they would see my Bible on my desk or the little plaque my wife gave me with Isaiah 40:31 on it, and then they would say they were Christians too and then they would look for a “deal.” I could tell, as I am sure most of you could too, that most of these people were seeking to manipulate the fact that I was a Christian so they could “profit.” When I refused to be manipulated that way some became ugly and spiteful and some even threatened to call the management and tell all sorts of things about me if I didn’t give them what they wanted. That was always terrible, but I think it was also quite surprising to them when I told them to go ahead. The really sad thing was that most of those professing Christians I worked with probably would have done everything under the sun to “make a sale” even if it did mean doing things that no genuine Christian should ever do to his or her employer.
6 I marvel that you are so quickly being turned from the one who called you in the grace of Christ to a different gospel; 7 which is not another; except there are some troubling you and are desiring to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel to you besides that which we preached to you, let him be a curse. Gal. 1:6–8, Possessing the Treasure New Testament v1
John Bunyan compared the life of faith to a pilgrimage in his masterpiece, Pilgrim’s Progress. On the other hand, the Apostle Paul often compares our life of faith with a race. In my younger days I was a long distance runner. I competed into my late 40’s in the Corporate Challenge and prior to that I was a member of the Oklahoma City Running Club and ran in who knows how many 5k, 10k, 5-mile and even 10-mile races in and around the OKC area. I knew all about what it took to be a good runner on race day. If I didn’t prepare right then I couldn’t race well. If I didn’t put in the miles in training to run in a 10 mile race then I certainly couldn’t run in that race on race day without problems. Our life of faith can be compared in many ways to a race. Paul used it figuratively that way in Galatians 2:2, Romans 9:16, and 1 Corinthians 9:24.
30 As He spoke these things, many came to believe in Him. 31 So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” John 8:30–32, NASB
Those who like to portray our Lord Jesus Christ as just a bundle of love who would never do or say anything to any that could possible cause offense obviously have never studied what he actually said in Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. In our Lord’s parable of the soils (Matthew 13:1-23; Mark 4:1-20; Luke 8:4-15) he gives us a contrast between genuine believers and those who only appear to be and others who obviously are not. I posted on this several years ago here. The point is that just are there are very religious people who have done religious works and may even appear to be “christian” to some, our Lord says that the criterion to be one of his is not by one’s own choice, but by first being chosen by God, prepared by God, then having the Good News sown into the soil of the heart by him. As our Lord said in John 8:30-32 (above), those who are truly his are those who not only hear his Word, but continue in it. They are truly his disciples and they will know the truth and the truth will make them free.
1 I am telling the truth in Christ, I am not lying, my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit, 2 that I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart. 3 For I could wish that I myself were accursed, separated from Christ for the sake of my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh, 4 who are Israelites, to whom belongs the adoption as sons, and the glory and the covenants and the giving of the Law and the temple service and the promises, 5 whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen. 6 But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel; 7 nor are they all children because they are Abraham’s descendants, but: “THROUGH ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS WILL BE NAMED.” 8 That is, it is not the children of the flesh who are children of God, but the children of the promise are regarded as descendants. Rom. 9:1–8, NASB
I just spent the last several days traveling from Kansas City to the Washington D.C. area and back. While it was merciful to get away from this dreadful heat wave and drought that has persisted since May 29th, I looked very hard for God’s people in the D.C. area, in Baltimore and Annapolis. I saw lots of church buildings, but I’m not sure I came across a lot of Christians. We ate in a restaurant in Georgetown on Saturday night and there were three men and a woman at the table next to us in a very long and serious discussion. They looked very distinguished. In between the serving of the courses they went over a very formal document in which they attempted to define what the terms “Born-Again” and “Evangelical” meant and how it would be handled by whatever “organization” that document defined. My wife and I discussed it later and she succinctly stated that I could have settled all of their confusion very quickly with some direct preaching from the Word.
3 So also we, when we were children, we had been enslaved under the fundamental principles of the world. 4 But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under law 5 that he might redeem the ones born under law that we might receive adoption as sons. Gal. 4:3-5, Possessing the Treasure New Testament v1
As I shared in our last post, Only One Gospel Part 8, my own pilgrimage or sojourn from my justification to this stage of my sanctification has not been a smooth upward line on a chart. No, in fact, one of the reasons I think I have such a clear understanding of Romans 7 is that I have lived it especially during those dark periods of those fiery trials that seemed to last forever during the 1990’s right up to through 2009 when my seizure disorder, which had been dormant since 1976 reappeared. However, the main element that comes through all of these “elemental principles of the world” is that even though those of us who are in Christ are indeed saved by grace and are new creations all according to the will of God all by his work, we are still in this temporal state in these bodies of flesh in this lost and dying world that neither knows our Lord nor what true joy is. However, even in the midst of a our tests and trials, we can rejoice in our Lord and be full of the joy of the Lord for we know that God is 100% in control and our time to meet him face to face is fixed and our time in our Lord’s presence will be for eternity.
And if you are Christ’s then you are of Abraham’s seed and according to promise, heirs. Gal. 3:29, Possessing the Treasure New Testament v1
I mentioned many times on this blog that I grew up going to church. Some of my first memories were as a small child in church in 1950’s Oklahoma. I doubt if many today would feel real comfortable in the “church environment” I remember from that period. Of course, I did not come to faith until I was in my mid-thirties so I saw most of what went on during that period as a child, a pre-teen, and a teen in the youth group then as a College and Career young adult as an exercise in religiosity that seemed to have something to do with getting better and better at being righteous. When I went into the military in 1973 I left church until the mid-1980’s, married and with a family of my own. What was so interesting was that it was little different than I remembered. I still couldn’t wait for that last verse of the never-ending invitation hymn to get over with so we could get home.
13 For the promise to Abraham or to his descendants that he would be heir of the world was not through the Law, but through the righteousness of faith. 14 For if those who are of the Law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise is nullified; 15 for the Law brings about wrath, but where there is no law, there also is no violation. 16 For this reason it is by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with grace, so that the promise will be guaranteed to all the descendants, not only to those who are of the Law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, 17 (as it is written, “A FATHER OF MANY NATIONS HAVE I MADE YOU”) in the presence of Him whom he believed, even God, who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist. Romans 4:13-17, NASB
One of the comments from yesterday’s post, Only One Gospel Part 6, stated succinctly that as I presented the message of this series, “Mike – you are swimming up stream in the self-centered culture.” My friend who stated that is right. However, isn’t that what Jesus told us would be the case? If we are his disciples and prove it by following him, obeying him, living by faith, not conforming to this world, et cetera then this world would hate us just as it hated him. However, it wasn’t until I got quite deep into this teaching and discernment ministry that I discovered the shocking truth that most of the push-back to the truth from God’s Word, getting Doctrine right, not compromising for the sake of unity, et cetera was coming from professing Christians. Some of those professing Christians had quite well known ministries and their apologists were quite brutal, underhanded, and played dirty. What am I saying? The self-centered culture that is in darkness that these truths expose is actually most of the visible church.
He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. 2 Cor. 5:21, NASB
This morning, as I worshiped at our church, we had what some call “The Lord’s Supper” and others “Communion.” No matter which name is used, I rejoiced as I took the bread and the cup and meditated on what my Lord Jesus went through to become my propitiation, to become separate from God the Father, one who knew no sin to be sin on behalf of those he came to save so that they might become the righteousness of God in him. The reason the joy was so intense for those who “get” the magnitude of this is that they also know that not one of those could ever have become reconciled to God the Father by any action or deed or by attempting to keep the Law. No, there was no other way other than a sinless sacrifice paying their penalty for them and that is exactly what our Lord Jesus did.
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. Romans 10:17, NASB
Justification by Grace alone through Faith alone is a core or central doctrine to true or Orthodox Christianity. This justification is God’s declaration (as we he did with Abraham) of righteousness based upon believers believing and obeying God by turning to Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour as they receive the Spirit as they hear the proclamation of the gospel. Now, compare what I just summarized there with what goes on in most “culturally relevant churches” in our time. You know, those churches that are focused on following the person on the stage, but in fact, it is really about self-glorification. That is why people go to those “churches.” They go to hear how good of a person they really are and what the “secret” is of unlocking their potential so that God will give them everything they could ever want because, hey, they are worth it! Sigh, sorry, but that is not even close to being biblical Christianity. It’s some other religion.
1 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? 2 May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? 3 Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; 7 for he who has died is freed from sin. 8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. Rom. 6:1–9, NASB
The Christians with whom I have the most “disagreement” are those who are confused about our Justification and Sanctification. I have noticed that most of the articles and videos online that claim to prove R.C. Sproul, Dr. James White or John MacArthur wrong and that their gospel is not biblical while those producing those articles and videos have the real gospel are all of the same bent. They are all infected with the same lack of faith that the Judiazers had in the sufficiency of saving grace made available through Christ’s substitutionary death on the cross. They all, like the Roman Catholics and the Judiazers Paul was dealing with in his epistle to the Galatians insisted that, yes, we are saved by grace through faith, but there has to be something added to it called works.