Saving Faith Leads to Obedience

This is a little different than what I usually post here, but I just posted this to Facebook this morning in response my "wait and see" approach for what many are trying to call "The Asbury Revival."  I'm unwilling to call it a "revival" or even a movement of the Holy Spirit until I can see if those present received the real gospel that leads to real repentance and are transformed into disciples who are taught to obey everything that Jesus has commanded.  However, I took the opportunity to also address the false gospel of "easy believism" and also addressed the heresy known as "the prosperity gospel."

The whole council of Scripture is clear, we are saved by grace, through faith, unto good works (obedience to the Law) that has been predestined for us in Christ Jesus.  See Ephesians 2:8-10 (the "memory verses" I want the members of the Discipleship Discord associated with this website to know by heart)  in addition to the passage quoted below.

[copied from a Facebook post I made on 3/14/2023]
Something that I think we miss. We know that Paul makes a logical argument in the book of Romans for what the Christian faith is, but did you realize that both his first and last arguments are that genuine faith leads to obedience?

Take a look at Romans 1:5 and Romans 16:26 (in context)

Romans 1:1-7
English Standard Version

Greeting
1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, 2 which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, 3 concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh 4 and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, 5 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, 6 including you who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,
7 To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 16:25-27
English Standard Version

Doxology
25 Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages 26 but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith— 27 to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.
The author of the book of James (James the half-brother of Jesus) says it another way:

James 2:14-26
English Standard Version

Faith Without Works Is Dead
14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! 20 Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. 24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead
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And Jesus says it another way:

John 14:15-31
English Standard Version

Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit
15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.
18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. 20 In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 21 Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.” 22 Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?” 23 Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me.
25 “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. 28 You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. 29 And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. 30 I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, 31 but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.

It is in this context (helping us to obey everything that He has commanded us) that Jesus promises us the Holy Spirit. We love to think of the Holy Spirit as our Comforter, the one who equips us for every good work prepared for us in Christ Jesus, and the one who seals us and will deliver us, the Bride of Christ, to the Bridegroom, that is Jesus, on the day when the Kingdom will be given to Him, but how often do we tell people that the goal both of Law in the Old Covenant and the New Covenant was to make a people who were obedient, and in doing so reflected the very nature and character of God Himself by living in accordance to His commandments? Check it out if you don't believe me...search the Scriptures to see if what I say is true. God wants more for you than to save you and redeem you, He wants to change you so that you desire to obey Him so that you can experience all the blessings of the Law (and Jesus has taken all the curses of the Law upon Himself).

Anything that claims to be the work of the Holy Spirit which does not lead to transformation and obedience is not a result of the gospel and is not of God, period, exclamation point, full stop.
Anyone that tells you that you don't have to change to add Jesus to your life is preaching idolatry and not the gospel of Jesus Christ. Anyone who tells you that the goal of Christianity is for you to live "your best life now" and that you can somehow experience the blessings that come from the gospel without repentance and obedience and without partaking in the sufferings of Christ is lying to you and is a false teacher, and anyone that says that they have heard the voice of the Spirit and it has told them something contrary to Scripture, even if that message is accompanied by signs and wonders, is lying to you and is not preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ.

If you have believed in a watered-down gospel that doesn't call you to obedience, perhaps you haven't really believed the gospel at all, but one of the many counterfeit versions that the flesh, world and devil are happy to have you believe because it may inoculate you towards you feeling you need the real thing.
One last thing from the mouth of Jesus during His Sermon on the Mount. Notice how Jesus continually puts people into two categories here, those who obey and those who do not obey (notice especially the words of 7:21-23 where people did many miraculous signs and never knew Him because they were called "lawless" by Him--living life in disobedience to His Law and commandments).

Matthew 7:7-29
English Standard Version

Ask, and It Will Be Given
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!

The Golden Rule
12 “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
13 “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

A Tree and Its Fruit
15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16 You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? 17 So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. 18 A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.

I Never Knew You
21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

Build Your House on the Rock
24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

The Authority of Jesus
28 And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, 29 for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.
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I cannot bring you a more important message today because it was the message of the Law and the Prophets (the Old Testament), John the Baptist, Jesus, the Apostles, and all the other authors of the New Testament--Repent, Be Born Again, and Go and Sin No More! By their fruits you will know them! (Also in Matthew 7, but also the main point of both 1 John and James, and Paul also makes this argument about those that called themselves "super-apostles" and about the "Judaizers"). The work of the gospel is to transform us and make us obedient here and now--not just to make us perfect some day in the future when we will be freed from the presence of sin and obedience will be "easy." This is part of why Jesus tells us we must count the cost before choosing to be His disciples. Those who deny Him in either word or lifestyle before men will be denied by Him before His Heavenly Father (see the passage in Matthew 7 I quoted earlier). Let this be a call that is as clear as John the Baptist's, "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!" Now, more than anything, this is the message not just the culture but those that call themselves "the Church" need to hear.