Salvation, Grace, and Works
When the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. This is a faithful saying, and these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men.
– Titus 3.4-8 (NKJV)
The relationship between grace and works is one of the core disagreements between Roman Catholic, Orthodox, and historic Protestant believers. Even among Protestants, the means by which God gives grace is an area of disagreement. One place in Scripture where all these come together nicely is this passage from Titus 3.
Here we see several beautiful teachings that we must hold together as we cling to the faith once for all delivered to the saints. We must resist the efforts of those who wish to separate one of more of these truths, when in reality, they are all inseparable from one another.
First, salvation does not come to us as a result of our works but solely as a result of God’s grace. We are not saved by some combination of works and grace, as some maintain, but ‘according to His mercy He saved us.’ Though Roman Catholics and Orthodox both affirm grace, they maintain the necessity of good works for salvation (not as a result of it). They criticize Luther for inserting the word ‘alone’ (‘sola’) when he wrote of salvation by grace alone through faith alone, maintaining that Scripture nowhere explicitly says this. While the argument is clever, it is clear even to children that grace plus anything is no longer grace but simply a fair response to something someone has earned. St. Paul explicitly says otherwise here.
Second, God’s gracious salvation and the gift of the Holy Spirit come to us through the means of baptism. ‘He saved us through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit.’ It was not until after the Reformation that anyone understood this verse to apply to anything other than water baptism as God’s means of grace through which he applies the merciful gift of salvation. Baptism is not our act of obedience or public profession of faith, as Baptists teach, but God’s act of mercy whereby he saves us and grants us the indwelling Spirit. Baptism is not a work we must do (works righteousness) but a work which God does to us (salvation by grace). Of course, baptism does not benefit anyone without faith. Scripture plainly teaches that there is no salvation apart from faith, but it also teaches that baptism is one of God’s means of grace and not our response to grace.
Third, works are an essential part of the believer’s life. ‘I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works.’ Here the relationship between salvation and works is abundantly clear. It is the saved who are called to do good works, not good works that result in our salvation. Note also that good works are not an optional part of the Christian life, as though someone could live without them and be a genuine believer. They are essential, not resulting in salvation but inevitably flowing from it. St. James speaks against the lie that someone could supposedly have saving faith that does not result in good works.
Held together, these three teachings are a beautiful tapestry of grace lived out in the Christian life. They should always encourage us and spur us on when we become complacent. Above all, they should continually drive us to Christ–the source of our salvation–in thanksgiving and praise.