Building Up In Love

Everywhere the Bible is talking about the importance of love in our daily lives. One area that love is of premier importance is in the act of “building others up.” The reality is that each of us is growing toward something. We are not who we once where but the events, relationships, and loves make up who we currently are. Good or bad we are becoming what course we have set for our lives. God has determined for us those relationships are one of the main ways that we are changed and transformed. It is the nature of those relationships that determines what sort of person that we are and are becoming.

Building others up is an act of someone who is seeking out the maturity and wellbeing of another. It is like an incomplete project that someone comes along and helps to finish. Let’s face it when it comes to emotional and spiritual maturity, we all are incomplete projects. We regularly come up short in these areas in our day-to-day life.

God has determined that your sanctification is in community with other believers. It is in this context that we can really grow if we approach these relationships in love. Love is the key!

Ephesians 4:1–3 CSB

Therefore I, the prisoner in the Lord, urge you to walk worthy of the calling you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

Notice some key elements in this passage. Paul is urging use to “walk worthy of the calling you (we) have received.” To accomplish this, he focuses on three personal attributes and two active attributes. The three personal attributes are humility, gentleness, and patience. I believe these three personal attributes are what makes you and others attractive in relational sense. It is with this personal disposition that we then do the action of our calling.

The first action is to bear one another in love. One thing that can be said of relationships is there are moments of unpleasantness. Even the best of friends and lovers will reach a point in their relationship where something unpleasant will afflict them. It could be something the other has said or done. Or it could be some difficult or tragic event in their lives. The key to get through those moments is to bear one another in love! This is a real test of love. If the relationship dissolves in moments of unpleasantness, then what you called love was more likely affection. You see love bears all things (1 Corinthians 13:7). To be sure love celebrates the warm affection and gratitude of a good friend! However, love also perseveres when the warmth and affection have subsided.

The second action is to make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. In this way we are eager to keep unity. How different this is from our modern culture. Most are eager to create disunity. As believers though Paul is telling us that we must make every effort to keep unity. There is a key qualifier here though “of the Spirit.” This points to the reality that Christians are united by the Holy Spirit of God. It is not a spirit of unity for which we are longing. Even the world longs for this at times. It is unity under the provision and authority of God.

If you are looking for what unity of the Spirit looks like consider the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Notice that these traits of the Spirit are central to the verses we are looking at. Notably love, peace, patience, and gentleness. When we live these out in community then God’s sanctifying work is accomplished in our lives.

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Ephesians 4:14–16 CSB

Then we will no longer be little children, tossed by the waves and blown around by every wind of teaching, by human cunning with cleverness in the techniques of deceit. But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into him who is the head—Christ. From him the whole body, fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament, promotes the growth of the body for building itself up in love by the proper working of each individual part.

The body of Christ, that is the Church, is to function to build up one another into maturity (Ephesians 4:11-13). This is accomplished through spiritual gifts given by Christ (Ephesians 4:7). Notice in verse 14 that we are not immature, tossed about by every trend in teaching, susceptible to clever argumentation, cunning, or deceit. BUT “Speak the truth in love” and grow into Christ. It is by Christ that we are put together as a body of believers. Further it is this body then that “builds itself up in love.” This building up in love is to ensure the “proper working of each person.”

Love is the contrast to immaturity and instability. When we fail to love we lack the staying power of mature love. Young love is passionate, but shallow. Mature love is secure and deep. What is more speaking truth in love creates stability of teaching and learning. When speaking the "truth" while love is absent it is the cleverness, craftiness, and deception that are the foundation of what becomes unrighteous teaching.

I have a strong reaction to people that try to persuade others using deception. I have this reaction even when I agree with their underlying point. We have reached a point in our public life that many believe (or act as if they believe) cleverness, craftiness, or deception are acceptable as long as they support or promote our beliefs and desired outcomes. This is the way of the world.

As believers we cannot fall into the ways of the world no matter what. Speak TRUTH in LOVE is a simple yet profound reality of Christian teaching and faith. This is the standard by which we must walk and live. Our very souls and other’s souls depend on it!

Incomplete Faith?

 

James 2:22–23 CSB

You see that faith was active together with his works, and by works, faith was made complete, and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness, and he was called God’s friend.

There are Two phrases that stand out in this passage of James. “Faith was active together with his works,” “by works, faith was made complete.” These are two important considerations when it comes to faith and loving works. These are connected to love as this is the topic that James introduced earlier in James 2:8 “Indeed, if you fulfill the royal law prescribed in the Scripture, Love your neighbor as yourself, you are doing well.”

Faith Together With Works

Faith and works of love go together. This would seem according to James that faith and works are collaborators. The Greek work used in this case is synergeō. We get our English word synergy from this word. Synergy is when two parts, parties, or individuals work together they are more effective than if they worked on their own separately. The word choice here by James is important. James could have said “faith was demonstrated by his works” as some would take this to mean. However, “faith is active together with his works.”

James has already stated that faith without works is dead being by itself (James 2:17). Paul makes it clear that works do not save us in various passages (Romans 10:3; Romans 9:31-32; Titus 3:5; Romans 3:27-28; and more). Many would point out the seeming contradictory passages. So how do we resolve these? I would say that it is more the absence of one or the other that leads to a false sense of security for the unbeliever. Without works of love faith is dead and cannot save (James 2:14). Without faith works are dead and cannot redeem (Hebrews 6:1). You see they are a package deal. I think this is James’ point when he says faith together (synergetically) with works produce righteousness in the lives of those who love God. In all reality you cannot have one without the other.

Even Paul who we typically think of when we talk about faith and not works says that we are created to accomplish works of faith (good works, works of love, walking in the Spirit, walking in newness of life, bearing fruit, newness of the Spirit, (Titus 3:5,8, Ephesians 2:8-10, Galatians 5:4-6, First Corinthians 13:1-3, Romans 8:3-4, 12-13, Romans 5:1, 6:4, 7:4-6 ). You see everywhere Paul connects these works to our faith. We do a disservice to Paul when we describe his writings as describing “faith and not works” without clarifying what is meant by that statement. So, what does he mean since the statements seem clear that Paul is saying we are justified by faith and not works then?

Paul, I believe, is making the point that it is impossible to work your way into heaven. There are not enough works of the law that you or I could ever do that would earn our way into God’s grace. One way to think of this is, “What is the object of your faith?” When the object of your faith is in doing good works then it comes up short every time. On the other hand, if God is the object of your faith then your trust in Jesus Christ is empowered by God’s salvation and sanctification. This is primarily the point that Paul is trying to make when he says that works of the law do not save.

God’s grace is a unilateral gift that only God provides. We are unworthy and undeserving, yet God in His love gives us this grace. We receive that Gift (Salvation) through faith not some work. We do disservice to Paul’s writings when we make Salvation merely an act of confession and then call that confession faith. This is why on the heels of nearly every “saved by faith not works” statements Paul follows it up with statements about good works, walking, and good fruits. He is not separating faith and works as some would think, but rather recognizing that when we are saved for good works then it is transforming us and fulfilling God’s righteousness in us.

Even Christ makes this plain to us when he says, “You will recognize them by their fruit (Matthew 7:15-20).” You see it is the fruit (works) that reveals what a man believes in his heart. So then it is the combination of knowing Christ (Matthew 7:23) and producing good fruit (Matthew 7:16) that saves a man’s soul. Without both, there is compelling cause to question whether the person has been saved. Jesus also illustrates this in the picture of the vine and the branches (John 15:1-10). In this imagery there are two ways that one can be thrown into eternal Judgement. The first way to be removed is to not bear fruit (John 15:2). Jesus makes it pain that no fruit bearing branches are removed. He trims those that are bearing fruit that they might be more fruitful. The second way to be thrown into the fire is to not abide in Christ (John 15:6).

So you see salvation is both being in Christ and producing fruit. These are inseparable. If you have just works then you are placing hope on filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). If we have mere confession without good works then we are trusting in dead faith (James 2:17). Neither of these can save. It is faith active together with works that both saves and demonstrates we are saved. Just to be clear these are not works of merit. These works do not make us better in God’s eyes, no! These are fruit bearing works (Spiritual) that are the result of saving faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Faith Made Complete

Philippians 2:12–13 CSB

Therefore, my dear friends, just as you have always obeyed, so now, not only in my presence but even more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God who is working in you both to will and to work according to his good purpose.

“Working out your own salvation” in a merely confessional faith makes no sense. However, “working out your own salvation” in a synergistic faith/good works brings this particular passage into clearer view. This working is a command that we are to fulfill according to Paul. It is more than a passive agreement that we are letting God work in us, but rather we have an active role to play in our salvation and sanctification. This role is obeying God. It is through obedience to God in faith that we “work out” our salvation. What is more when we do this then God is “working in” us and accomplishing His “work according to His good purpose.” It would seem to me that there is a synergistic God’s work/My obedience action occurring here.

James says that Abraham’s faith was made “complete” through his good works. This word is teleioō (tell ee o). There are many references to the completion and perfection of the Spiritual fruit and disciplines in our lives. The completeness (teleioo) is ultimately found by faith in the perfect (teleioo) sacrifice Jesus Christ (Hebrews 5:8-9); Trusting in Christ’s sacrifice makes us perfected (teleioo)(Hebrews 10:14); Through persistent moving toward God’s will we are also being made complete (teleioo) (Philippians 3:13); and keeping God’s word makes God’s love complete (teleioo) in us (1 John 2:5) which gives us assurance of our salvation.

In short then without good works our faith is incomplete. We move toward a mature faith by living out what God has shown us and put into us. Love, being the supreme Christian virtue and premiere fruit of the Spirit, is a mark of mature Christian spirituality. Love is also an ideal that we always will be moving toward as God sanctifies and draws us nearer to His heart. I can never say “Ah I have matured in God’s love. I can rest now.” Love will be striving and longing as we wait for perfection in the afterlife.

Philippians 3:13–17 CSB

Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus. Therefore, let all of us who are mature think this way. And if you think differently about anything, God will reveal this also to you. In any case, we should live up to whatever truth we have attained. Join in imitating me, brothers and sisters, and pay careful attention to those who live according to the example you have in us.

God Bless You

~BJ Olson