#775 1689 Confession Good Works

16:1 Good works are only those works that God has commanded in His holy Word. Works that do not have this warrant are invented by people out of blind zeal or on a pretense of good intentions and are not truly good. 

7 Would the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I present my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? 8 He has shown you, O mankind, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God? Micah 6: 7-8

20 Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, 21 equip you with every good thing to do His will. And may He accomplish in us what is pleasing in His sight through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. 22 I urge you, brothers, to bear with my word of exhortation, for I have only written to you briefly.… Hebrews 13: 20-22

…8 ‘These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. 9 They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’” 10 Jesus called the crowd to Him and said, “Listen and understand.… Matthew 15: 8-10

12 Or if the scroll is handed to one unable to read, he will say, “I cannot read.” 13 Therefore the Lord said: “These people draw near to Me with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. Their worship of Me is but rules taught by men. 14 Therefore I will again confound these people with wonder upon wonder. The wisdom of the wise will vanish, and the intelligence of the intelligent will be hidden.”… Isaiah 29: 12-14

16:2 These good works, done in obedience to God's commandments, are the fruit and evidence of a true and living faith. Through good works believers express their thankfulness, strengthen their assurance, build up their brothers and sisters, adorn the profession of the gospel, stop the mouths of opponents, and glorify God. Believers are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, so that they bear fruit leading to holiness and have the outcome, eternal life. 

17 So too, faith by itself, if it is not complemented by action, is dead. 18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. 19 You believe that God is one. Good for you! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.…
20 O foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is worthless? 21 Was not our father Abraham justified by what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that his faith was working with his actions, and his faith was perfected by what he did.… James 1: 17-22

Saving faith always produces fruit unto obedience.

12 How can I repay the LORD for all His goodness to me? 13 I will lift the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD. 14 I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all His people.…

Psalm 116: 12-14

…3 By this we can be sure that we have come to know Him: if we keep His commandments. 4 If anyone says, “I know Him,” but does not keep His commandments, he is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But if anyone keeps His word, the love of God has been truly perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him:… 1 John 2: 3-5

…4 Through these He has given us His precious and magnificent promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, now that you have escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. 5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith virtue; and to virtue, knowledge; 6 and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness;…
7 and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if you possess these qualities and continue to grow in them, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 But whoever lacks these traits is nearsighted to the point of blindness, having forgotten that he has been cleansed from his past sins.…
10 Therefore, brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure. For if you practice these things you will never stumble, 11 and you will receive a lavish reception into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 12 Therefore, I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are established in the truth you now have.… 2 Peter 1: 4-12

…15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they set it on a lampstand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. 17Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them.… Matthew 5: 15-17

1 All who are under the yoke of slavery should regard their masters as fully worthy of honor, so that God’s name and our teaching will not be discredited. 2 Those who have believing masters should not show disrespect because they are brothers, but should serve them all the more, since those receiving their good service are beloved believers. Teach and encourage these principles.… 1 Timothy 6: 1-2

14 or to governors as those sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to praise those who do right. 15 For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorance of foolish men. 16 Live in freedom, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.… 1 Peter 2: 14-16

10 so that you may be able to test and prove what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. 12 Now I want you to know, brothers, that my circumstances have actually served to advance the gospel.… Philippians 1: 10-12

…9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life. 11 Therefore remember that formerly you who are Gentiles in the flesh and called uncircumcised by the so-called circumcision (that done in the body by human hands)—… Ephesians 2: 9-11

21 What fruit did you reap at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? The outcome of those things is death. 22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the fruit you reap leads to holiness, and the outcome is eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.… Romans 6: 21-23

16:3 Their ability to do good works does not arise at all from themselves but entirely from the Spirit of Christ. To enable them to do good works, they need - in addition to the graces they have already received - an active influence of the same Holy Spirit to work in them to will and to do His good pleasure. Yet this is no reason for them to grow negligent, as if they were not required to perform any duty without a special motion of the Spirit. Instead, they should be diligent to stir up the grace of God that is in them. 

…4 Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me. 5 I am the vine and you are the branches. The one who remains in Me, and I in him, will bear much fruit. For apart from Me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not remain in Me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers. Such branches are gathered up, thrown into the fire, and burned.… John 15: 4-6

…4 Such confidence before God is ours through Christ. 5 Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim that anything comes from us, but our competence comes from God. 6 And He has qualified us as ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.… 2 Corinthians 3: 4-6

12 Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling. 13 For it is God who works in you to will and to act on behalf of His good pleasure. 14 Do everything without complaining or arguing,… Philippians 2: 12-14

11 We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. 12 Then you will not be sluggish, but will imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised. 13 When God made His promise to Abraham, since He had no one greater to swear by, He swore by Himself,… Hebrews 6: 11-13

…6 All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all wither like a leaf, and our iniquities carry us away like the wind. 7 No one calls on Your name or strives to take hold of You. For You have hidden Your face from us and made us melt in the hand of our iniquity. 8 But now, O LORD, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You are the potter; we are all the work of Your hand.… Isaiah 64: 6-8

16:4 Those who attain the greatest heights of obedience possible in this life are far from being able to merit reward by going beyond duty or to do more than God requires. Instead, they fall short of much that is their duty to do. 

…2 “Yes, I know that it is so, but how can a mortal be righteous before God? 3 If one wished to contend with God, he could not answer Him one time out of a thousand. 4 God is wise in heart and mighty in strength. Who has resisted Him and prospered?… Job 9: 2-4

16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh craves what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are opposed to one another, so that you do not do what you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.… Galatians 5: 16-18

…9 Does he thank the servant because he did what he was told? 10 So you also, when you have done everything commanded of you, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’” 11 While Jesus was on His way to Jerusalem, He was passing between Samaria and Galilee.… Luke 17: 9-11