Faith Alone? John 6:27-29

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Help!

I’m sure that this has been talked about a million times before – but I can’t seem to find a recent thread over this particular verse. I have a big Baptist friend who keeps bombarding me on the “Faith Alone” argument using John 6:28-29 as his main line of defense.

It reads:
28
So they said to him, “What can we do to accomplish the works of God?”
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29
Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent.”
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He argues that the only “work” we must do is simply to “believe”.

Now, when I show him other Bible versus, such as James 2:24, James 2:26, etc – he’ll say something to the extent of, “Yeah, I’m sure James was a pretty good guy – but c’mon – these words are from Christ’s own mouth!”

Any ideas/suggestions on what I should do? Are there any other versus out there that I’m missing that might help sway him to my “faith and works” argument? Thanks!
 
Matthew 25, verses 31 - end, the parable of the sheep and the goats, also came from Jesus’ mouth and is very explicit as to what we must do and what will happen to us if we don’t. The only thing I’ve had them try to jump on is the kingdoms at the beginning. They take that literally, even though it’s plainly a parable, and try to say that it doesn’t apply to individuals.

There are plenty of other verses from the gospels that I’m sure you will be told about by the other posters. If you don’t get the responses you need, go to newadvent.com and search the bible there.
 
Our Lord Himself is speaking in James… “ALL scripture is given by inspiration of God” (2 Timothy 3:16)

P.S. … Protestants too often ignore passages of Scripture which clearly contradict their teachings – teachings they base on less specific texts. Ask your friend understand each text for itself and on its own terms, and only then understand it in the larger picture of Scripture (not the other way around). Learn exactly what is James telling us (our justification is increased and perfected by our works), and then how this contributes/changes/adds to our understanding of salvation. 👍
 
Congratulate our Christian brother for being even more knowledgeable than those who set the canon. Seems like they included that short letter of James which contradicted the apparent “central teaching of faith alone” which is based on our Christian brother’s interpretation of Jesus’ John 6:29.

Congratulate our Christian brother on his proper interpretation of James. He strays from the more popular Protestant views of that piece.

I’d ask, what does “believe in” mean. Could entail a lot of stuff. James letter on the other hand speaks directly and at length. (so Jesus’ two words are open to interpretation while the James paragraph is not)

Just using common sense in my response. Some expert around here will nail down the proper context and meaning of Jesus words for you. When people don’t accept our proper interpretation of John 6 they weave such a tangled web for themselves.

Remind him to re-read the letter of James which is very, very, very special and beautiful. James or whoever wrote it was more than just a “nice guy”!

(ps forgot to mention Father Serpa answered a question a couple days ago about the good thief and faith alone vs faith and works)
 
Boomer Sooner:
Help!

I’m sure that this has been talked about a million times before – but I can’t seem to find a recent thread over this particular verse. I have a big Baptist friend who keeps bombarding me on the “Faith Alone” argument using John 6:28-29 as his main line of defense.

Now, when I show him other Bible versus, such as James 2:24, James 2:26, etc – he’ll say something to the extent of, “Yeah, I’m sure James was a pretty good guy – but c’mon – these words are from Christ’s own mouth!”
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Hmm, well, about James being a “pretty good guy” in comparison to Jesus:
It’s not a comparison of being a pretty good guy, which, James would have the righteousness from God which is through faith, which is the righteousness of Christ essentially, but he would not be perfect and sinless like Christ. Rather, it’s like pitting Christ against the Word of God (ironically), to see any contradiction between Christ’s teaching in John 6 and Christ’s teaching in James 2. Both are canonical and inspired. A house divided against itself cannot stand.

So, away with any contradiction or “lessening” of James 2.

Now, I would ask him 2 things:
  1. What is the “work of God” that’s spoken of in 6:27-29?
    I would suggest to you that it is the believing in Christ, Whom He has sent. That is the work of God. There is nothing that we can do that we may work the works of God. I don’t know if your Baptist buddy is a Calvinist, but if he’s not, he may not particularly like that. Now, you should, and you don’t even have to be a Calvinist. That’s, as I understand it, straight up Catholic teaching. Grace alone. Faith is a gift of God’s grace. Undeserved and unmerited. Salvation, justification, not by faith alone, not by works alone, but certainly by grace alone.
  2. On another topic, take your buddy to Genesis 15:6 and Romans 4:9,10 and Galatians 3:6,7. Ask him "When was Abraham justified (saved)? Not to be tricky, but if he says that he was saved there in Genesis 15:6, then take him to Hebrews 11:8-10 and Genesis 12, the first 8 verses or so, and ask him “was Abraham not saved here, like Hebrews talks about, with his faith?”
    If there’s a “one time imputed righteousness” then there seems to be a problem with seeing Romans 4 as talking about when Abraham was justified, God’s reckoning his faith *to him as righteousness. *Certainly, I think we have to understand that Abraham was saved back in Genesis 12, but there’s more to justification, perhaps, than a one time imputation by God through faith.
    That should get your mind rolling on other things.
 
Hello Boomer Sooner,

Jesus tells us, “If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments”. Jesus tells us that it is those who feed the poor who will enter into life and those who do not care for the poor He will cast into hell.

Is it safe for someone to not believe in what Jesus told us to do to go to heaven but rather simply “believe” in Jesus? God’s terminology to the term believe means to do what God tells you to do. The Protestants have developed their own false definition to God’s term believe.

Please visit Believe which studies biblical verses which use the term.

NAB JOH 3:36

Whoever believes in the Son has life eternal. Whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but must endure the wrath of God.NAB LUK 8:13

Those on the rocky ground are the ones who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy. They have no root; **they believe **for a while, but fall away in time of temptation.

NAB WIS 12:2
Therefore you rebuke offenders little by little, warn them, and remind them of the sins they are committing, that they may abandon their wickedness and believe in you, O LORD!NIV PSA 78:32

In spite of all this, they kept on sinning; in spite of his wonders, they did not believe.NAB MAT 25:41

Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, a stranger and you gave me no welcome, naked and you gave me no clothing, ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.’ Then they will answer and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison, and not minister to your needs?’ He will answer them, ‘Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.’ And these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life." (ISA 58)NAB MAT 19:16

“Teacher, what good must I do to possess everlasting life?” He answered, “Why do you question me about what is good? There is One who is good. If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments." “Which ones?” he asked. Jesus replied “You shall not kill”; ‘You shall not commit adultery’; ‘You shall not steal’; ‘You shall not bear false witness’; ‘Honor your father and mother’; and ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

Peace in Christ,
Steven Merten
www.ILOVEYOUGOD.com
 
The last verse of John also tells us that not everything Jesus did was written down. Like possibly the teaching in James? Either Scripture is His inspired word or it isn’t.

As the sermon that Christ used to grab ahold of my heart says, Either it is God’s inspired word cover to cover including the cover (Holy Bible), or we have nothing else to talk about.

God Bless,
Maria
 
Boomer Sooner:
Help!

I’m sure that this has been talked about a million times before – but I can’t seem to find a recent thread over this particular verse. I have a big Baptist friend who keeps bombarding me on the “Faith Alone” argument using John 6:28-29 as his main line of defense.

It reads:

He argues that the only “work” we must do is simply to “believe”.

Now, when I show him other Bible versus, such as James 2:24, James 2:26, etc – he’ll say something to the extent of, “Yeah, I’m sure James was a pretty good guy – but c’mon – these words are from Christ’s own mouth!”

Any ideas/suggestions on what I should do? Are there any other versus out there that I’m missing that might help sway him to my “faith and works” argument? Thanks!
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God is the author of both the Epistle of St. James and the Gospel of St. John. Is St. John’s Gospel accurate with respect to the Word of God, but the Epistle of St. James is incorrect? Does he rejecte the Epistle of St. James from the Bible as did Martin Luther? If not, why does he think the Word of God in the Epistle of St. James is in error, and the Word of God according to another apostle, St. John, is not in error?

Seems he has some self-conflicting theories he needs to resolve. If his interpretation of Holy Writ was correct, both John and James cannot contradict one another, as they are both inspired to the same truth by the same Holy Spirit.
 
It’s amazing how scriptural minimalists will isolate individual passages in order to establish their doctrine. They are more focused on their rebellion than they are on the truth.

John 6:27 Clearly states, “Do not **labor **for the food which perishes, but **for **the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of man will give to you; for on him has God the Father set his seal.”

Jesus is telling us to **labor **for the food which endures to eternal life!

Of course the scriptural minimalist will stumble here because he/she does not **believe **in the food which endures to eternal life.

Several verses later Jesus describes this food, that we are to labor for, which he call us to believe in, as himself.

The scriptural minimalists walk away because they neither believe nor do they obey.
 
Thanks guys! 👍

That helps a lot! Great work! I can’t wait to see what he has to say in response to this stuff.

(I’ll keep you all posted) 😉
 
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