Saved by Faith or by Works?

    Understandably, the issue of whether or not a person is saved by faith or by works is a very common topic of debate among those seeking God. On the one hand, passages like Ephesians 2:8-9 and Titus 3:3-8 clearly teach that a person is saved by grace through faith, and not by works. Yet James 2:14-26 states that faith without works is dead.
    This apparent contradiction in the scriptures should of course raise some serious questions for those who believe in biblical inerrancy, not to mention the countless millions who are staking their eternal salvation on the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
    If salvation is to be earned, then those claiming to be saved by faith alone are risking eternal damnation, for both themselves and others, by omitting the obvious works required. Likewise, if salvation cannot be gained through righteous deeds, then those attempting to earn their place in heaven are walking an equally treacherous path.
   The question therefore is whether or not the Bible is in conflict on the point of salvation; and whether one's path to eternal life is dependent on works or faith.

    In order to answer this question, we must first understand the context of the Book of James.

   Chronologically, James is the first book of the New Testament, written to Jewish Christians scattered by persecution somewhere between 10-20 years after the resurrection of Jesus Christ in the year 30-33 AD. Given the persecution facing early Christians at this time, faith, endurance, self-discipline and obedience to God are major themes throughout the book.
   Knowing this, the greater context of James 1-2 is exercising faith through living life in obedience to God's word. That said, we find that the Christians in James 2:1-13 were guilty of living a double standard. They were claiming to have faith in Jesus, yet they were guilty of showing favoritism within their community.
    After addressing the issue of discrimination in the church, James goes on to say that if a person claims to have faith but their life shows no evidence of faith, then that person's faith is dead and is of no use to anyone. (James 2:14-17) James further elaborates on this in verses 18-25 by comparing the faith of Abraham and Rahab the prostitute, both of whom were shown to have genuine faith by their actions.
    Finally, James' closing statement in verse 26 makes his point clear: Faith without good works is like a body without breath; it is dead and useless. Having dead faith, therefore, is not the same as as having no faith. A dead body is still a body. But just as a body without breath is lifeless and inanimate, so too faith without good deeds is also dead and useless.
    James is not saying that salvation comes from works instead of faith. He's saying that good works complete a person's faith, giving it life and movement and making it real. If a person's life is devoid of righteousness and good works, then how can anyone else know that that person has faith?

    Faith without works is dead, but the inverse is also true: Works without faith are also dead.

    In Matthew 7:15-20 Jesus warns his followers to be cautious of false teachers saying: "Just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions." Jesus then goes on to say that many people who do good works and miracles in his name will be turned away from heaven because they never knew him. (Matthew 7:21-23)
    It is important to note here that these individuals did many miraculous works in the name of Jesus and even called him "Lord." However, Jesus said that they would still be turned away on the grounds that they did not personally know him, and continued to break God's laws even though they did many mighty works in his name.
    In this regard, Jesus himself makes it abundantly clear that salvation comes from knowing and being known by him, and not from good works. Good works are still important—they are the proof that a person has indeed been saved by faith in Jesus Christ. But it is God's grace that saves, not the good works themselves. The Christian's faith is nonetheless made complete by doing good works, which God prepared for us long ago, and by living a righteous life. (Galatians 5:16-25, Ephesians 2:10)

   In conclusion, we can see from the greater context of the scriptures that salvation comes not from works, but from grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Righteousness and good works are not a means of earning salvation, rather they are the evidence of salvation.
   That said, if a person says that they believe in God and claims to have faith in Jesus but their life and words show no evidence of salvation, then the validity of that person's faith should be seriously questioned. If a person claims to be a follower of Jesus but is living in open sin then their actions show that they don't really know God at all. If a person knows God, then there should be evidence in their life to prove it.
   Likewise, a person can appear to know God on the outside by doing and saying all of the right things, when in reality their heart is far from him. Instead of trusting in God's saving grace, they try to earn salvation by doing good works and playing the part of the devoted Christian. But a bad tree cannot produce good fruit. Eventually the person living behind a mask of self-righteousness will be exposed, and all the good works in the world will not be enough to save them in the end.
    Salvation therefore is a matter of the heart and depends on the individual and their personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It is between them and God. No one else can make that choice. But once the choice has been made, salvation is assured and the works of a righteous person complete their faith and prove that it is genuine.
 
 

See Also:

The Issue of Faith: Is Faith Irrational?

Who is Jesus?

 
   

Debunked: Jesus vs. Asclepius

Jesus:

1) Born of a virgin. Was not conceived through sexual intercourse between a mortal and a god. Both of Jesus' parents remained faithful to each other and had other children after he was born. (Matthew 1:18-25, Mark 3:31-34, Luke 2:41-52)

2) Born in a cave/stable. Was placed in a manger. Birth heralded by angels and a star in the east. Was visited by magi and a group of shepherds. 

3) Jesus had twelve disciples and multiple other followers. 

4) Died without offspring and was never married. (Isaiah 53:8)

5) Had a three year ministry as a traveling teacher. He lived a sinless life and taught others to follow his example of moral excellence. (Ephesians 5:1-14)

6) In John 3:13-15 Jesus refers to a bronze snake erected by Moses, ca. 1440-1400 BC. (Numbers 21:4-9) In this story, God sent poisonous snakes among the Israelite because they were rejecting him and his provision for them in the wilderness. God then instructed Moses to make a bronze snake and to place it atop a pole in the center of camp, telling him that anyone who was bitten by a snake would be healed if they look at the bronze snake atop the pole.
    Just as the people in this Old Testament passage were miraculously saved from death by God's power through their faith, so too Jesus promised to bring spiritual healing and eternal life to those who would have faith in him, his death on the cross, and subsequent resurrection from the dead.
    (The bronze snake fashioned by Moses was later destroyed by King Hezekiah when the people began worshiping it as a god. 2 Kings 18:1-4) 

7) It was foretold in the Old Testament book of Isaiah that the Jewish Messiah would open the eyes of the blind and the ears of the deaf, and that the lame would leap for joy. (Isaiah 29:18, 35:4-6, 42:6-7) No one in the Old Testament ever healed the blind and no one in the New Testament healed the blind except Jesus. (John 9) Jesus also healed the deaf (Mark 7:31-37) and the lame (Matthew 9:1-8) In one instance, Jesus heals a lame man at a location we now know to have been home to a healing shrine of Asclepius. (John 5:1-15)
    In this particular example of Christ's healing power, Jesus bypasses the ritual associated with the healing god (waiting for the water to be moved by an angel/spirit) and heals a man simply by speaking. Likewise Jesus raised the dead, not through the use of ritual or magical herbs, but by his voice alone. (John 11:1-44, Mark 5:21-43, Luke 7:11-15)

8) He was arrested and tried before Pontius Pilate who sentenced him to death by crucifixion. He died and was buried for three days before rising from the dead, whereupon he was seen by multiple witnesses. (1 Corinthians 15:3-9)

9) Defeated death and the grave by rising from the dead and brings eternal life to everyone who believes in him.(1 Corinthians 15:55-57, John 17:3)

10) Died sacrificially in order to fulfill Old Testament Prophecy and the requirements of the Law of Moses for the redemption of mankind. He was the "Lamb of God," an atoning sacrifice to take away the sins of the world by taking that sin upon himself. (John 1:29-30, 3:16-21, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Hebrews 8-10)

Asclepius:

1) Asclepius was born out of a sexual union between Apollo and one of two women, Coronis or Arsinoe. In different versions of the myth, his mother was either killed by Apollo for being unfaithful to him or died in child birth. She was then laid out on a pyre to be burned, but Apollo (or in some cases Hermes) cut the unborn Asclepius from her womb and gave him his name which means "to cut open."

2) In one version of the myth, after he was rescued from his mother's womb, Asclepius was carried away to a mountain top were he was looked after by a dog and goat and was later discovered by the shepherd Aresthanas. While still another accounts states that he was raised by the centaur Kheiron (Chiron) who taught him the art of medicine. There was no manger, star, or magi in the accounts of Asclepius' birth. Though the baby was said to have "shown with the brilliance of fire" on account that he was rescued from the flames of his mother's funeral pyre.

3) No specific number of followers is recorded, and none of them are referred to as "disciples." 

4) Was married to Epione and had many god-children who embodied the healing characteristics of their father: Janiscus, Alexenor, Aratus, Hygieia, Aegle, Iaso, and Panaceia. 

5) Did not have any specific ministry and did not teach moral values or spiritual truths. Instead, Asclepius was regarded as a physician who traveled the world and instructed people in the medical arts.

6) Asclepius is often depicted carrying a serpent-entwined staff as a symbol of his healing power. According to the myth, a serpent wrapped itself around his staff and taught him which herbs to use in order to save the life of a man close to death. The same iconography of a serpent-entwined staff can be traced to Heka, the ancient Egyptian god of magic, and has remained the symbol of the medical arts to this day.

7) Asclepius never healed the blind, deaf or lame. Though he was believed to be able to heal those near death and even to bring the dead back to life. He accomplished this by using the blood of Medusa taken from the veins on her right side—which were said to posses life giving properties—and magical herbs. That said, Asclepius never healed someone with a command or a simple touch; his healing always required ritual and medicine—sometimes even surgery.   

8) Asclepius was killed by Zeus for saving too many people from death and for bringing too many people back to life. In one version Hades, the god of the underworld, convinced Zeus to kill Asclepius because Hades was afraid that there would be no more souls in his realm if Asclepius continued to keep people from dying. Another version of the myth state that Asclepius defied the gods by overturning the natural order leading to an overpopulation of earth, and was thus slain by Zeus. While still other accounts assert that Asclepius was struck down after he accepted a payment of gold for bringing a man back to life.
     In any event, Asclepius was not arrested, tried or crucified. In one myth, however, Zeus resurrected Asclepius to avoid any future quarrels with his father, Apollo. Though most myths end with Asclepius being "set in the heavens" as the constellation Orpiuchus, the "Serpent Holder."  

9) Asclepius did not defeat death and the grave, and was in fact killed for defying the natural order of the gods.

10) Did not die sacrificially for the sins of mankind. In fact, the concept of sin is not even found in the Asclepius myth.

Conclusion:

The stories of Jesus Christ are not based on the myths of Asclepius.



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Sources:

Encyclopedia Britannica

Olympian gods

Asclepius


See Also:
Mythology and the Messiah

Debunked: Jesus vs. Dionysus

Debunked: Jesus vs. Horus

Debunked: Jesus vs. Mithras

Debunked: Jesus vs. Orpheus

Debunked: Jesus vs. Krishna

The Dying and Rising God: Jesus or Osiris?

Debunked: Jesus vs. Orpheus

Jesus:

1) Born of a virgin. Was not conceived through sexual intercourse between a mortal and a god. (Matthew 1:18-25)

2) Born in a cave/stable. Was placed in a manger. Birth heralded by angels and a star in the east. Was visited by three magi and shepherds. Was taken to Egypt when his parents fled from Herod the Great, fulfilling Old Testament Prophecy. (Hosea 11:1, Matthew 2:13-15)

3) Died without offspring and was never married. (Isaiah 53:8)

4) Had twelve male disciples and multiple other followers including women. 

5) Instructed his followers to commemorate his death with the ceremony of Holy Communion. (Luke 22:19-18) He did this by giving a new symbolic meaning to the Jewish Passover Ceremony in which the bread and wine symbolized the body and blood of the lams that were slain during the first Passover. (Exodus 12, John 1:19-29)

6) Had a three year ministry as a traveling teacher. He lived a sinless life and taught others to follow his example of moral excellence. (Ephesians 5:1-14)

7) Preformed many miracles, cast out demons, raised the dead, and walked on water, etc. During his final entrance into Jerusalem, Jesus said that "stones would cheer" if the people were silent. Though we see in the text that this event—which would have been quite miraculous—never took place as the crowd never stopped cheering. (Luke 19:36-44)

8) He was arrested and tried before Pontius Pilate who sentenced him to death by crucifixion. He died and was buried for three days before rising from the dead, whereupon he was seen by multiple witnesses. (1 Corinthians 15:3-9)

9) Defeated death and the grave by rising from the dead. (1 Corinthians 15:55-57)

10) Died sacrificially in order to fulfill Old Testament Prophecy and the requirements of the Law of Moses for the redemption of mankind. He was the "Lamb of God," an atoning sacrifice to take away the sins of the world by taking that sin upon himself. (John 1:29-30, 3:16-21, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Hebrews 8-10)

Orpheus:

1) Was reputedly born out of a sexual union with the Thracian king Oeagrus and a muse named Calliope. Though some versions state that Orpheus' father was the god Apollo. He was not born of a virgin. 

2) Being that Orpheus was the son of a king, he was not born in a stable. There were no angles, magi, or shepherds, and here was no star. However in some myths he did travel to Egypt to study. 

3) Was married at one point to a wood nymph named Eurydice. Though it was said that he later scorned the affection of women, prefering to instead share his love with young boys. ie he was a homosexual pedophile. 

4) Did not have any disciples or followers to speak of. Though he was one of the characters who accompanied Jason as one of the Argonauts in the epic poem Argonautica. 

5) The followers of Orpheus did use wine in a symbolic ritual in which they sought to commune/ become one with the god. However, some ancient sources state that Orpheus was merely a mortal, a great hero, and not a god. (ie. Strabo, 64 BC-c.24 AD )

6) Orpheus was a travailing musician, seer, and poet who, in some accounts, brought mankind the gifts of agriculture, writing, and medicine. Although these gifts are likewise accredited to numerous other gods depending on the myth in question. (ie both Apollo and Aesculapius also taught medicine to mankind.) Orpheus is also reputed to have started many cults of Apollo and Dionysus, and to have prescribed the secret rituals and rites of the various Greco-Roman mystery cults. He also practiced magic and astrology. That said, he did not have a specific ministry and was not widely known to be a teacher. He was not known to be a great moral exemplar and did not live a sinless life. 

7) The miracles preformed by Orpheous generally involved his music. It was said that he was able to charm inanimate objects like trees and stones with his song and bring them to life.

8) Was never arrested, tried, or crucified. Instead Orpheus was ripped apart by the Maenads—the female followers of Dionysus/Bacchus—because he preferred to worship the sun/Apollo. He also did not rise from the dead.

9) Orpheus is one of the few Greek heroes to descend to the underworld to save someone from death. However, in the Orpheus myths, he is not actually successful.
     As the story goes, Orpheus' wife died of a snakebite, so he descended into the underworld to bring her back to the land of the living with his music. Depending on the version of the myth, Orpheus either convinces Hades (the god of the underworld) to let him return with his wife or the gods deceive Orpheus with an apparition of his wife. In the story were Orpheus actual finds his wife he is instructed to lead her out of the underworld with his music. However he is told that if he looks back before leaving the underworld she will be lost to him forever. In this version Orpheus looks back before his wife has left the underworld and she vanishes. In the other version, she was never their to begin with and likewise vanishes. 
    Regardless of the myth, however, Orpheus' quest to the underworld is a complete failure. He does not defeat death in any respect, nor is he able to save anyone from death. 

10) As stated before, Orpheus did not die sacrificially. Nor did he take away anyone's sins. In fact, the concept of sin and salvation is completely absent from any Orpheus myth.

Conclusion:

The stories of Jesus Christ are not based on the myth of Orpheus. 

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Sources:

Greekmythology.com

Orpheus

Orpheus/Greek Mythology

Encyclopedia of Greek Mythology  

See Also:

Mythology and the Messiah

Debunked: Jesus vs. Dionysus

Debunked: Jesus vs. Horus

Debunked: Jesus vs. Mithras

Debunked: Jesus vs. Asclepius

Debunked: Jesus vs. Krishna

The Dying and Rising God: Jesus or Osiris?

Debunked: Jesus vs. Dionysus

Jesus:

1) Born of a virgin. Was not conceived through sexual intercourse between a mortal and a god. (Matthew 1:18-25)

2) Born in a cave/stable. Was placed in a manger. Birth heralded by angels and a star in the east. Was visited by magi and a group of shepherds. Was taken to Egypt when his parents fled from Herod the Great, fulfilling Old Testament Prophecy. (Hosea 11:1, Matthew 2:13-15)

3) Preformed many miracles and turned water into wine. (John 2:1-11)

4) Jesus had twelve male disciples and multiple other followers including women. Unlike Dionysus however, there was nothing inherently attractive about Jesus. (Isaiah 53:2-6)

5) Instructed his followers to commemorate his death with the ceremony of Holy Communion. (Luke 22:19-18) He did this by giving a new symbolic meaning to the Jewish Passover Ceremony in which the bread and wine symbolized the body and blood of the lambs that were slain during the first Passover. (Exodus 12, John 1:19-29)

6) Had a three year ministry as a traveling teacher. He lived a sinless life and taught others to follow his example of moral excellence. (Ephesians 5:1-14) Jesus also taught that people needed to be spiritually "born again" in order to enter the Kingdom of God. (John 3:1-21)

7) Had a "Triumphal Entry" into Jerusalem while riding on a donkey. (Luke 19:28-40, Zechariah 9:9) 

8) He was arrested and tried before Pontius Pilate who sentenced him to death by crucifixion. He died and was buried for three days before rising from the dead, whereupon he was seen by multiple witnesses. (1 Corinthians 15:3-9)

9) Defeated death and the grave by rising from the dead.(1 Corinthians 15:55-57)

10) Died sacrificially in order to fulfill Old Testament Prophecy and the requirements of the Law of Moses for the redemption of mankind. He was the "Lamb of God," an atoning sacrifice to take away the sins of the world by taking that sin upon himself.  (John 1:29-30, 3:16-21, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Hebrews 8-10)

Dionysus:

1) Dionysus was born out of a sexual encounter between Zeus and a mortal woman named Semele who was the daughter of Cadmus the king of Thebes. However, according to myth, Semele later asked to see Zeus' true form as a god which resulted in her being killed by his lightning bolts. Zeus then cut the unborn Dionysus from his mother's womb and sewed him into his thigh. Later, when the baby was old enough to be born, Zeus cut him out of his leg on  Mount Pramnos on the island of Ikaria. 

2) Dionysus was reportedly born on Mount Pramnos and was later raised by nymphs on the mythical Mount Nysa. There were no magi, shepherds, or angles in the Dionysus myth. Nor is there any mention of a miraculous star in the east. However, Zeus' wife, Hera, did send Titans to kill the baby Dionysus. In some myths, they ripped him apart as an infant, while in other stories he was in the form of a bull. Regardless of his form, Dionysus was ripped apart and eaten by Titans leaving only his heart behind. Zeus retrieved the heart and, depending on the myth, either sewed it back into his thigh or gave it to Semele to eat so that Dionysus could be reborn. For this reason Dionysus was sometimes known as the "twice born."

3) As a child, Dionysus discovered the art of cultivating vines and learned how to make wine and was regarded by the ancient Greeks as the first to do so. In some accounts it is implied that wine was miraculously created from Dionysus' tears, while other myths assert that he simply learned how to make wine and taught that knowledge to mankind. In that respect one could argue that Dionysus turned water (his tears) into wine. However the vast majority of ancient sources agree that no such miracle was ever performed by Dionysus. 

4) Dionysus had many followers and was sexually attractive to both men and women. However no exact number of followers is ever given. Nor are they ever referred to as "disciples." Instead, Dionysus is most often depicted surrounded by mythical creatures and "Raving Women" (Maenads) who participated with him in his wine-induced orgies.

5) The followers of the Dionysus Mystery cult practiced a ritual commemorating the death of the infant Dionysus in which they drank wine to the point of intoxication and ripped apart animals, devouring them raw, just as the Titans had done to Dionysus. (Though there is evidence that suggests the earliest rites involved human sacrifice and cannibalism.) These rituals usually climaxed in a wild frenzy of drunkenness and sexual indulgence among devotees. The rampant immorality associated with the Dionysus cult was so great that the Roman government attempted to regulate its practices and even went so far as to outlaw the religion altogether. 

6) Dionysus did not have a specific ministry. He was, however, afflicted with madness by Zeus' wife, Hera, which lead him to wander through Syria and Egypt for a time. The myths of Dionysus also state that he traveled to India and taught the local people how to cultivate grapes and to make wine.
    That said, the majority of ancient traditions state that Dionysus taught wine-making and grape cultivation, not moral principles. In fact, it is clear that any spiritual teachings Dionysus may have brought were anything but moral—even by pagan standards.
    Ironically, despite his propensity for violent dismemberment and wanton disregard for social order, Dionysus was viewed by his worshipers as a peace-loving god of culture and civilization. In the Orphic traditions he was even seen as a god of resurrection who would guide initiates to eternal life through reincarnation. 

7) Dionysus was often portrayed in a Triumphal Prepossession. Sometimes he is shown riding on a mule, though he is most often depicted dressed in leopard skins and riding in a chariot, followed by dancing centaurs, satyrs, and Meanads. Because of this, the Romans believed that Dionysus ("Bacchus" in the Roman Pantheon) was the originator of the Triumphal Procession. He did not ride on a donkey or a donkey's colt, nor did he appear in anyway humble.

8) In one myth, Dionysus was arrested by a king named Pentheus. However, Dionysus revealed himself to be the god of intoxication and had Petheus torn to pieces by mad women. He was neither crucified nor buried, nor did he rise from the dead after three days. 

9) Several myths depict Dionysus descending into the underworld to bring people back to the mortal realm. The most common story is that he traveled to the underworld in order to bring his mother back to life. Upon freeing her from the underworld, he carries her to Olympus where she remains. 
    Other Greek myths have a similar tone of descending into the underworld alive in order to bring someone else back to the mortal realm either through bribery, acts of valor, or trickery. Though at least one of these stories involving Dionysus is not a myth at all. Rather it is a comedy written by the ancient playwright Arisophanes.

10) Dionysus did not die sacrificially for anyone. Nor did he take anyone's sin upon himself. In fact, Dionysus demonstrated, condoned, and encouraged the very behaviors that Jesus himself condemned. (Mark 7:20-23, Romans 1:18-32)

Conclusion:

The stories of Jesus Christ are not based on the myths of Dionysus.



*     *     *     *     *     *     *

Sources:

Greek gods and goddesses

Olympian gods

Dionysus

Dionysus and Jesus


See Also:
Mythology and the Messiah

Debunked: Jesus vs. Horus

Debunked: Jesus vs. Mithras

Debunked: Jesus vs. Asclepius

Debunked: Jesus vs. Orpheus

Debunked: Jesus vs. Krishna

The Dying and Rising God: Jesus or Osiris?