Many are deceived into thinking sin no longer counts, that it no longer matters to Me, but it has always mattered. My Son died for sin because it mattered. He died to set men free from it, not to leave them free to do it more. (source)

I have seen many Christian influencers advocate for the idea that we need not overly fear about our sins because Christ’s grace will cover all of our sins.

In my view, this idea is the number one most subversive doctrine taught by modern Christianity – because this doctrine basically teaches that we need not worry about following the commandments or repenting – which undermines like almost everything taught in the Bible.

Some term this view of grace as “hyper-grace”. Hyper-grace subverts actual grace, because the point of the atonement is for Christ’s power to help change our character for the better – while hyper-grace does the opposite – it uses Christ’s atoning power to justify our continuing to commit sin. In other words, the doctrine of hyper grace represents only a half gospel: it includes the power of Christ, yes, but it denies the importance of repentance or actually following Christ’s teachings.

I worry that people are not adequately trying to overcome the flesh, become saints, follow the commandments, repent, and be Christlike because they think all of these things don’t matter, since Christ’s grace atones for all of this. Which is a grave error and endangers people’s status in heaven for the eternities.

Thesis

Throughout the following essay, I aim to prove the following points using the scriptures. Regarding the gospel:

• Yes, Christ’s grace does cleanse us of our sins and help to spiritually transfigure us so that we no longer desire to do sin and are born again – thus making our salvation be only through Christ (as discussed in The Atonement as a Blood Transfusion).
• However, to access Christ’s grace, we must try to follow Christ and follow the commandments – which means aligning our actions, intentions, and desires with Him.
• There are varying degrees of glory in heaven, thus we must strive to be as righteous as possible in this life to attain the greatest reward.
• In my opinion, our goal is to align our hearts with Christ. Having a selfless attitude is more important than works because our effects on the earth pass away, while our attitude carries on with us in the afterlife.
• People who had a “good feeling” about Jesus, but then lived very sinful lives, might still be able to access lower levels of heaven through grace. However, to access a fullness of glory in the life to come, we must try our best to change ourselves to become more Christlike.

On Scripture Texts:

Christ never ever says that all we need to do is “have a good feeling” about Him, or simply believe in Him to be saved. Rather, he repeats over and over again that we must follow the commandments to be saved (as I will show).

The scriptures which can be interpreted as claiming that our salvation depends purely upon our faith, and not our actions, come from the apostles. We can be 100% certain that this interpretation is false, because Christ says the exact opposite many, many times. Here are a few reasons why these scriptures exist:

• They are false passages added to the scriptures by servants of Satan.
• They are discussing how the Law of Moses (meaning the sacrifice of animals) was fulfilled on Christ’s death. So, to go into depth, when they say we are not saved by “the Law” – that means we are not saved via animal sacrifices.
• They are discussing the idea of predestination – how certain souls are predestined to be saved, and therefore God leads them to have faith so that they are among His people.

So for the rest of the essay I will go through all the scriptures from Christ and the apostles which definitively prove that following the commandments / works / repentance matter to our salvation, thus meaning that faith alone isn’t sufficient.

Teachings directly from Jesus Christ

Salvation depends on our Actions

Here is a list of quotes from Christ showing that our salvation depends not just on our level of “faith” but also on our actions / works / degree of righteousness or sin. If I said any of the below quotes came from myself, I’m sure a mob of protestants would start yelling that grace alone saves us, not our works. But how can they argue with me when these quotes come directly from Jesus himself?

Matthew 16:27
27 For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.

John 5:29
29 And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.

John 8:34
34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.

Matthew 3:10 (similar Luke 3:9)
10 And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

Matthew 7:21-27
21 ¶ Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
24 ¶ Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
Similar – Luke 6:47-49

Matthew 13:41–50
41 The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;
…49 So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,
50 And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.

Luke 12:47-48
47 And that servant, which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.
48 But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.

If you honestly read these scriptures, I don’t know how you could believe in the hyper-grace idea that simply saying a “salvation-prayer” is enough to save you, and that we don’t also have to make an effort to do good and be obedient to the commandments.

Christ’s Friends are those who Follow His Commandments

According to Jesus, for us to be able to claim to be His friends and to love Him, we must follow his commandments. Thus, empty words about how you believe in Jesus will not be enough to save people who aren’t making a serious effort to follow His commandments.

Luke 6:46
46 ¶ And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?

John 14:15-24
15 ¶ If ye love me, keep my commandments.
…21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
…23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
24 He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me.

John 15:9-14
9 As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.
10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.
…14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.

Luke 8:21
21 And he answered and said unto them, My mother and my brethren are these which hear the word of God, and do it.
Similar – Matthew 12:50

We Shouldn’t Worship in Name Only

According to Christ, proclaiming that we follow God is useless if we don’t follow his commandments. In other words, He doesn’t want us to only pay lip service to Him.

Matthew 21:28–31
28 ¶ But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard.
29 He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented, and went.
30 And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not.
31 Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They say unto him, The first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you.

Matthew 15:7-9
7 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,
8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

Works Follow those who Have Faith

According to Jesus Christ, those who abide in Him bring forth good fruit, and if we don’t have good fruit then we are corrupt. Thus again, our degree of actually acting out and following the gospel matters, and salvation doesn’t depend purely upon faith.

John 15:2-6
2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
…5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.

Matthew 7:17-21
17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.
18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
21 ¶ Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

Luke 6:43-49
43 For a good tree bringeth not forth corrupt fruit; neither doth a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
44 For every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble bush gather they grapes.
45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.
46 ¶ And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
Similar: Matthew 7:16-20

In the parable of the Sower, the people who truly receive the gospel are the ones who yield fruit – Mark 4:20
20 And these are they which are sown on good ground; such as hear the word, and receive it, and bring forth fruit, some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some an hundred.

Luke 13:6–9 – in the parable of the fig tree, we learn that fig trees which bear no fruit are cut down. Likewise, if we do not bear fruit we risk losing our salvation.

Fruit Meet for Repentance?

According to Jesus, we only can repent if we bring forth fruit (what a sobering message, especially for someone like me!). Thus again, simply having faith is not enough.

Matthew 3:8-10; Similar (Luke 3:8-9)
8 Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:
…10 And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

Luke 3:8–14
8 Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.
9 And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: every tree therefore which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
10 And the people asked him, saying, What shall we do then?
11 He answereth and saith unto them, He that hath two coats, let him impart to him that hath none; and he that hath meat, let him do likewise.
12 Then came also publicans to be baptized, and said unto him, Master, what shall we do?
13 And he said unto them, Exact no more than that which is appointed you.
14 And the soldiers likewise demanded of him, saying, And what shall we do? And he said unto them, Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely; and be content with your wages.

Treasure in Heaven

Jesus Christ talks many times about earning treasures in heaven for every good work we do. Thus we see that works really matter, not just faith.

Rewards to those who give to the Poor

Luke 12:33–34
33 Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth.
34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Luke 18:18–23
18 And a certain ruler asked him, saying, Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
19 And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good, save one, that is, God.
20 Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mother.
21 And he said, All these have I kept from my youth up.
22 Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.
23 And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich.

Rewards to those who are persecuted for the gospel

Matthew 5:10–12
11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Matthew 19:29
29 And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.
Similar – Mark 10:29-30, Luke 18:29-30

Rewards to those who accept God’s true messengers

Matthew 10:41-42
41 He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward.
42 And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward.
Similar – Mark 9:41

Rewards in heaven to those who spread the gospel

Matthew 25:14–30 – in the parable of the talents, the Servant who serves the Lord faithfully will be rewarded, while the servant who (in words) claims to obey the Lord, but in deed doesn’t do anything to help in, is cast into outer darkness.

Rewards for being Humble

Matthew 23:12
12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.

Follow the 10 Commandments and Give to the Poor to be Saved

These scriptures clearly show that following the commandments and being charitable is a requirement for salvation. Thus, simply “having a good feeling about Jesus” is not enough.

Matthew 19:16-21
16 ¶ And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?
17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness,
19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
20 The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?
21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.
Similar – Luke 18:18-22, Mark 10:17-21

Interestingly, in these scriptures, Jesus only mentions five commandments. He neglects to note the commandments to have “No other gods before Me”, “No graven images / idols”, “Don’t take the Lord’s name in vain”, “Remember the Sabbath day”, “Thou shalt not covet”. In other words, here he emphasizes the commandments relating to how we treat our fellow man.

Matthew 25:31–46
32 And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:
…34 Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
35 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
36 Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.
37 Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
38 When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
39 Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
40 And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.
41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
42 For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
43 I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
44 Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
45 Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.
46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

In the parable of the good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), we learn that to gain eternal life, we must love God and love our neighbor. Moreover, Jesus defines loving our neighbor as serving him as seen in the story of the good Samaritan.

Pluck out your Eyes to avoid temptation and be Saved

In these scriptures, Christ clearly tells us we must avoid sin to be saved. The sins he lists to avoid include (but are not limited to):

• Being angry with others without a cause.
• Speaking ill of others.
• Feelings of lust.

And just to emphasize, he says clearly that if you break these you are in danger of judgement and hell fire. He is so emphatic that we must not sin, that he says it is better for us to cut off body parts which tempt us into sin than to sin. So yes, obeying the commandments does matter, and our degree of “having a good feeling about Jesus” is not the only determinant of salvation.

Matthew 5:20–30
20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
21 ¶ Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:
22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.
…27 ¶ Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery:
28 But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.
29 And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
30 And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.

Similar: Mark 9:43–47 & Matthew 18:6–9

Love your Enemies to be Saved

In this scripture, we are told that those who don’t forgive their enemies are not children of God, nor will they have a reward in heaven. So, there are more things to the salvation equation than simply saying “salvation prayers” and having a good feeling about Christ.

Matthew 5:20, 39-46
20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.
39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.
…41 And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.
42 Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.
…44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
45 That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.
46 For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?

What Christ Says about Repentance

Christ tells us several times that we must repent in order to be saved. So, it’s sad that people online say that repentance is not necessary because all we need is grace.

Luke 13:3-5
5 I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.

Matthew 4:17
17 ¶ From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Similar: Mark 1:15

Luke 5:32
32 I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
Similar: Matthew 9:13

Luke 24:46–47
46 And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:
47 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

Luke 15:7-10 – There is joy in heaven when sinners repent, and sinners need repentance unlike just people.

What Christ Says about Forgiveness

According to Jesus, God will judge us the same way we judge others – so if we are forgiving towards others, God will be forgiving to us – another element to the salvation equation beyond simply our degree of faith in Jesus.

Matthew 6:14–15
14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Similar – Mark 11:25

Matthew 7:1–2
2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
Similar –  Luke 6:37–38

Matthew 18:21-35 – According to the parable of the unmerciful servant, if we don’t forgive our neighbors, then God won’t forgive us.

Making Sacrifices

According to Christ, we have to be willing to sacrifice all that we have in order to be His disciple. Therefore, simply saying a salvation prayer about how you believe in Christ, but then not applying His doctrines to your life will not be enough.

Matthew 16:24–25
24 ¶ Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.

Luke 14:26-27, 33
26 If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.
27 And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.
Similar – Luke 14:27-33, Matthew 10:37-38

Matching Doctrines in the Apostles

We see a continued of emphasis on keeping the commandments in the writings of the apostles.

James

Please look at these scriptures from James. James was clearly extremely opposed to the idea that faith alone (without works) saves us.

James 1:12, 22-27
12 Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.
… 22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
23 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
24 For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.
25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
26 If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain.
27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

James 2:14-26
14 What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him?
15 If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food,
16 And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit?
17 Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.
18 Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works.
19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.
20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?
… 24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.
…26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

John the Revelator – Revelations

According to the Book of Revelations, 1) repentance matters (meaning faith alone isn’t enough), 2) we shall be rewarded according to our works, 3) we will be punished for our sins, of which he provides a list (not just punished for our degree of lack of faith), and 4) if we are lukewarm – i.e. we have some faith but don’t diligently follow the word – it will not be well with us.

Revelation 2:5
5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.
Similar: Revelation 2:16

Revelations 3:3
3 Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.
Similar: Revelations 3:19

Revelation 22:12-14
12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
…14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.

Revelation 12:17 – the saints are defined as those who keep the commandments.

Revelation 21:8,27
8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
27 And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Revelation 3:15–16
15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.

Other Texts from John

In the epistles of John, we again see that John really thought following the commandments was important:

1 John 2:3-4
3 And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
4 He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

1 John 3:18
18 My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.

Peter

In these passages we see also that Peter believes it is important for us to not commit sins once we become saints and to repent (to belay the obvious, the fact repentance matters means that faith alone doesn’t save us most of the time).

2 Peter 2:19-21
19 While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.
20 For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning.
21 For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.

Acts 3:19
19 ¶ Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;

Acts 2:38 – Peter promises we shall receive the Holy Ghost if we repent and are baptized.

Paul

Paul again clearly has the view that grace and faith alone save us, and that diligently following the commandments and doing good are also necessary to our salvation.

True Saints

As Jesus has said, Paul also notes how only those who put off sin are truly disciples of Christ.

Galatians 5:24
24 And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

Ephesians 4:21-24
21 If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:
22 That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;
23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

Avoid Sin to be Saved

Paul clearly says that we must avoid sin in order to be saved.

Galatians 5:19-21
19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

1 Corinthians 6:9–10
9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

Romans 8:13
13 For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

2 Corinthians 6:17–18
17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

Do Good to be Saved

Paul clearly says that our works matter to our salvation.

Romans 2:7-13
7 To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life:
8 But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,
9 Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;
10 But glory, honour, and peace, to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile:
…13 (For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.

Obedience Required for Salvation

Pau notes that our loyalty to God isn’t just dependent on our faith, but rather on whether we actually obey Him and have good fruit.

Romans 6:16-23
16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
22 But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.
23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Repentance Limited

Worryingly, Paul notes how the consequences for sin are more severe if we have already converted to the gospel (rather than nonexistent – as taught by people who say that everyone who has faith is automatically saved regardless of their works).

Hebrews 10:26–27
26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
27 But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.

Hebrews 6:4–6 – Paul again says that repentance becomes less effective for serious sins (“falling away”) if we commit the sins after we have been converted.

Works Meet for Repentance

As taught by Jesus, Paul also notes how works meet for repentance are necessary (so faith alone isn’t sufficient because repentance is necessary, and repentance and faith are also not sufficient because works are needed for repentance).

Acts 26:20 – Paul says we should repent and mentions the importance of “works meet for repentance”.

2 Corinthians 7:9-10 – As a side note, Paul notes here how repentance brings salvation.

Varying Degrees of Glory

2 Timothy 2:20–21
20 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour.
21 If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work.

* This passage shows that Paul believed in heterogenous degrees of glory in the afterlife, meaning we must strive to be as righteous as possible in order to inherit the highest level of glory.

Old Testament

In Isaiah 57:15 we learn that being humble is necessary to being close to God (rather than only having faith).
15 For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

In Isaiah 29:13, we see a condemnation of people who only pay lip service to God but don’t follow Him (which is what some Christians do when they pray “salvation prayers” but don’t then renew their efforts to follow the commandments).
13 ¶ Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:

In Ezekiel 33:31 we again see a condemnation of people who only pay lip-service to God.
31 And they come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them: for with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness.

Conclusions

Hopefully this essay/scripture list overwhelmingly shows that faith and grace alone are not sufficient and that all Christians should diligently endeavor to 1) follow the commandments, 2) do good, 3) abstain from sin, and 4) repent. This isn’t to say we must be perfect to go to heaven (otherwise we wouldn’t need a savior). However, Christ’s whole mission was for us to abstain from sin – so for us to use the atonement as a justification for our continued committing of sin is sort of blasphemous.

I guess my philosophy is: in making decisions I assume that the bar to enter heaven is high. When judging others, I will assume the bar to enter heaven is lower. And when praising Christ for His atonement, I will confess that it is only through His grace purifying me that I can enter into heaven. And finally, I hope to improve and be as righteous as possible (I still have much to do) because there are varying degrees of glory in heaven and I strive for the highest attainment.

This essay obviously is very incomplete because I haven’t addressed the scriptures which do exist that can be interpreted to mean that exclusively faith is needed for salvation. Suffice it to say that I know with 100% certainty that this is incorrect because none of these scriptures actually come from Jesus Christ – instead they come from the apostles – and this interpretation completely and utterly contradicts basically everything Christ ever taught (as I showed in this essay). I think the following explanations serve to justify the existence of these scriptures:

• I assume the apostles didn’t know that their epistles would become scripture and thus weren’t very careful on how they said some stuff – they wanted to emphasize the importance of grace (which is important), but didn’t understand that their passion would be used centuries later to create a false gospel that they themselves never intended to exist.
• Some of the epistles may be false, and some scriptures may have been added to true epistles.
• A lot of discussion about how “the law” doesn’t matter anymore is specifically talking about the sacrifice of animals (since Jesus ended animal sacrifice with the atonement) – and such scriptures weren’t intended to apply to literally all sins.
• There was a belief that God predestinates people to be saved (since he can see the righteousness of our soul before we are born, and he also can see the future) – and thus God manipulates circumstances in our lives so that we are led to have faith and therefore are cleansed by the atonement. Sections of discourses on this sometimes are misunderstood.

I have a lot of notes on these points already, so hopefully I will have an essay ready on this soon. Thanks for reading! 💜 💜 💜