The WORKS Bible verses collection. Please add your favorite verses

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5 For this very reason **make every effort **to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 8 For if these things are yours and abound, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For whoever lacks these things is blind and shortsighted and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. 10 Therefore, brethren, be the more zealous to confirm your call and election, for if you do this you will never fall; 11 so there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 1:5–12
 
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OK. Here are some more. Below are some excerpts from today’s Mass readings . . . . .

EZEKIEL 18:26-28 When someone virtuous turns away from virtue to commit iniquity, and dies, it is because of the iniquity he committed that he must die.
But if he turns from the wickedness he has committed, he does what is right and just, he shall preserve his life; since he has turned away from all the sins that he has committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die.

Excerpt from PSALM 25

(From) PSALM 25 Remember your mercies, O Lord.
Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;
teach me your paths,
guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my savior.

PHILIPPIANS 2:5, 8b Have in you the same attitude
that is also in Christ Jesus, . . . . he humbled himself,
becoming obedient to the point of death,
even death on a cross.

MATTHEW 21:28-32 Jesus said to the chief priests and elders of the people:
“What is your opinion?
A man had two sons.
He came to the first and said,
‘Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.’
He said in reply, 'I will not, ’
but afterwards changed his mind and went.
The man came to the other son and gave the same order.
He said in reply, 'Yes, sir, ‘but did not go.
Which of the two did his father’s will?”
They answered, “The first.”
Jesus said to them, “Amen, I say to you,
tax collectors and prostitutes
are entering the kingdom of God before you.
When John came to you in the way of righteousness,
you did not believe him;
but tax collectors and prostitutes did.
Yet even when you saw that,
you did not later change your minds and believe him.”
 
Cathoholic said:
OK. Here are some more. Below are some excerpts from today’s Mass readings . . . . .
MATTHEW 21:28-32 Jesus said to the chief priests and elders of the people:
“What is your opinion?
A man had two sons.
He came to the first and said,
‘Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.’
He said in reply, 'I will not, ’
but afterwards changed his mind and went.
The man came to the other son and gave the same order.
He said in reply, 'Yes, sir, ‘but did not go.
Which of the two did his father’s will?”
They answered, “The first.”
Jesus said to them, “Amen, I say to you,
tax collectors and prostitutes
are entering the kingdom of God before you.
When John came to you in the way of righteousness,
you did not believe him;
but tax collectors and prostitutes did.
Yet even when you saw that,
you did not later change your minds and believe him.”
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👍 And the one who “did his father’s will” went into the field and WORKED.
 
Here is another interesting verse about “works”.

1st TIMOTHY 5:8 8 If any one does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his own family, he has disowned the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
 
Verses plus the catechism…

James 2:24
24 See how a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.

James 2:26
26 For just as a body without a spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.

Galatians 5:6
6 For in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.

1 Corinthians 13:2
2 And if I have the gift of prophecy and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge; if I have all faith so as to move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing.

John 14:15
15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

Matthew 19:16-17
16 Now someone approached him and said, “Teacher, what good must I do to gain eternal life?” 17 He answered him, “Why do you ask me about the good? There is only One who is good. If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.”

Catechism of the Catholic Church
Faith a free gift from God 162
significance and kinds of works of mercy, 2447
as the fruit of charity, 1829
call to charity, 1694, 2013
communion in charity, 953, 1475
as loving one’s neighbor, 1822-29
 
My favorite is a section starting with Hebrew 10:19 and reading all the way thru 12:29 One of my top favorite sections in the bible! Gives all the Old Testament witness of faith that is the obedience of works. EX: By faith… then some great act of obedience is listed, over and over “By faith he who is called Abraham obeyed…”
 
Here’s a couple more verses.

1st CORINTHIANS 15:1-2 1 Now I would remind you, brethren, in what terms I preached to you the gospel, which you received, in which you stand, 2 by which you are saved, if you hold it fast–unless you believed in vain.

1st TIMOTHY 4:16 16 Take heed to yourself and to your teaching; hold to that, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.
 
St. James (as we saw earlier in the thread from zz912 and Michaelhager) assumes that a saving faith necessarily works. St. Paul likewise assumes you know that a saving faith necessarily works.

Recall the very first time and the very last time St. Paul uses the word “faith” in Romans, he talks of “the OBEDIENCE of faith”. It is like proverbial bookends to the book of Romans as Scott Hahn has said. St. Paul teaches the context of a saving faith is obedient, it necessarily works.

St. Paul assumes you know a saving faith OBEYS, and so does St. James.

ROMANS 1:5 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 . . .

ROMANS 16:26 26 but is now disclosed and through the prophetic writings is made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith . . .

Also St. James and St. Paul both tell us of the importance of loving thy neighbor as ourselves.

JAMES 2:1, 8 1 My brethren, show no partiality as you hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. . . . 8 If you really fulfil the royal law, according to the scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well.

St. Paul talks of this in the exact same way . . .

ROMANS 13:8-9 8 Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. 9 The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not kill, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this sentence, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

St. John suggests the same . . .

1st JOHN 2:3-11 3 And by this we may be sure that we know him, if we keep his commandments. 4 He who says “I know him” but disobeys his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him; 5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly love for God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him: 6 he who says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked. 7 Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment which you had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word which you have heard. 8 Yet I am writing you a new commandment, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. 9 He who says he is in the light and hates his brother is in the darkness still. 10 He who loves his brother abides in the light, and in it there is no cause for stumbling. 11 But he who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.
 
Galatians 3:23 Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. **24 **So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. **25 **But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, **26 **for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. **27 **For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
 
St. Peter warned against certain “ignorant and unstable” men that twist St. Paul’s writings and other Scriptures.

St. Peter warned that people; in following these “ignorant and unstable” men, can get “carried away” and even “lose your own stability”.

But how did St. Peter characterize these “ignorant and unstable” men who themselves lead people astray?

Fortunately Scripture tells us.

St. Peter COULD have correctly characterized some “ignorant and unstable” men who lead people astray as faith-LESS men . . . but he didn’t.

St. Peter COULD have correctly characterized some “ignorant and unstable” men who lead people astray as hope-LESS men . . . but he didn’t.

So how did St. Peter characterize these “ignorant and unstable” men who frequently use St. Paul’s writings and other passages (“as they do the other Scriptures”), that lead people astray?

St. Peter characterized them as LAW-LESS men!

2nd PETER 3:17 17 You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, beware lest you be carried away with the error of lawless (athesmōn) men and lose your own stability.

More context:

2nd PETER 3:15-18 15 And count the forbearance of our Lord as salvation. So also our beloved brother Paul wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, 16 speaking of this as he does in all his letters. There are some things in them hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other scriptures. 17 You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, beware lest you be carried away with the error of lawless men and lose your own stability. 18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

2nd PETER 3:17 (From the NIV [A Protestant translation]) Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position.

More on the word “athesmos” here.
From Strong’s (posted on on Biblehub) . . .

QUOTE: athesmos: lawless . . . .
Transliteration: athesmos
Phonetic Spelling: (ath’-es-mos)
Short Definition: lawless
**Definition: lawless, unrestrained, licentious. **

Bold and ul of Scripture and quotes mine.
 
*1 Corinthians 13:1 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. **2 **And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. **3 **If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

**4 **Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; **5 **it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; **6 **it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. **7 **Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

**8 **Love never ends; as for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. **9 **For our knowledge is imperfect and our prophecy is imperfect; **10 **but when the perfect comes, the imperfect will pass away. **11 **When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became a man, I gave up childish ways. **12 **For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall understand fully, even as I have been fully understood. **13 *So faith, hope, love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
 
Here is a passage from Hebrews.

HEBREWS 6:9-10 9 Though we speak thus, yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better things that belong to salvation. 10 For God is not so unjust as to overlook your work and the love which you showed for his sake in serving the saints, as you still do.
 
Another Hebrews passage.

**
HEBREWS 12:28-29** 28 Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe; 29 for our God is a consuming fire.
 
1 PETER 2:21 For to this you have been called because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His steps.
 
A couple of Saint Paul’s pearls:
Acts 26:19-20 (RSVCE)
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19 “Wherefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, 20 but declared first to those at Damascus, then at Jerusalem and throughout all the country of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God and perform deeds worthy of their repentance.
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Colossians 3:17 (RSVCE)
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17 And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
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po18guy. Thank you for bringing up Acts 26:19-20 (bold mine).

ACTS 26:19-20 19 “Wherefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, 20 but declared first to those at Damascus, then at Jerusalem and throughout all the country of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God and perform deeds worthy of their repentance.

That reminded me of St. John the Baptist in Matthew chapter 3 (bold and ul mine) with the call to repentance, bearing fruit, and avoidance of the sin of presumption.

MATTHEW 3:1-2, 6-10 1 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” . . . . 6 and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. 7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bear fruit that befits repentance, 9 and do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. 10 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
 
What does Jesus expect from us so we can be cleansed from all unrighteousness by Jesus’ blood in the context of 1st John chapter 1?

Thankfully the Holy Spirit through St. John and Sacred Scripture tells us what! We need to be cleansed by the blood of Jesus.

OK. HOW do we receive that blood (in this context)?

IF we CONFESS our sins!

1st JOHN 1:7, 9 7 but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. . . . . 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

We are also called here to “walk” in a state of grace or “walk in the light”.
 
How about the father of the faithful doing works…

Gen 22:10
“Then Abraham reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son”

Shows not only the physical work (in this case the would be work) but more importantly how our faith drives or forms our works and not the other way around. I’m pretty sure Abraham would have liked to have gotten away with just saying to God - “isn’t my faith good enough”.

Peace to all!!!
 
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