Are You Practicing Dead Works?

Have you ever sat down to read your Bible and kept your eye on the clock because you only had a few minutes to fit your reading in for the day? And then you felt relieved when you believe you have done your part to merit God’s blessing. You are NOT alone.

Many Christians think that praying makes you right with God. But that is a dead work. WHAT? Praying does not make you right with God. God’s Spirit dwells in you and that makes you in right standing with Him. 

So, if you pray and know beyond any doubt that you are right with God – therein lies the power in your life. See the difference? One is a dead work trying to earn God’s righteousness in your life and the other is from an understanding of God’s grace. 

“Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God” Hebrews 6:1.

Dead Works Do Not Bring Life

If you study the Bible because you think that doing so makes you right with God, you are wrong. That is dead work. Revelation knowledge is different from head knowledge. Head knowledge stops there – in your mind. Revelation knowledge comes from your spirit by hearing God’s voice (the Rhema Word) in your heart. It is what gives you that ‘aha’ moment when you see, hear, and taste the words God is speaking through His Word to your inner person. 

If you study the Bible knowing that you are already in right standing with your Heavenly Father, you are not bound by the clock to make sure you get your allotted reading time in for the day. 

You may only read one verse, but it comes alive in your heart when your motive changes from one of obligation to one of relationship.

In this verse, the Bible tells us to repent from dead works, or good works, that many try to do to gain righteousness with God. Dead works do not bring life. 

Remain Under God's Righteousness

God wants you to operate out of a personal desire to have a love relationship with Him, not out of a sense of religious obligation.

When you understand that righteousness comes from Christ separate from your works, your confession will change to one of thanksgiving for what God has imputed to you. You will realize that even when you are tempted to sin, you can confess that you remain under the righteousness of God, and the temptations, addictions, and bondages fall away. 

Realize deeply that God loves you unconditionally despite your failures and imperfections. God certainly does not want you to sin, but if you do, you can rest assured that there is no condemnation against you because Christ has already paid for your sin – past, present, and future. (Romans 8:1)

God sent His Son to die for you when you were still a sinner. He died ONCE for all sins. His love for you does not have conditions. When you pray, thank God for the cleansing righteousness in your life. 

God saved you by His grace when you believed. You cannot take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. (Ephesians 2:8–9)

Look at the story of the rich young ruler in Luke 18 which helps us to understand how we are justified ONLY by faith – not our works. 

Justification by faith produces hope, peace, joy, and a heart for Jesus that results in good fruit. 

Attempting to be justified by works produces fear, anxiety, and an inability to produce lasting fruit because you will never feel like you are doing enough or that you are worthy to receive God’s blessings. 

The rich young ruler wanted to be justified by his works and the Lord gave him the law to bring him to the end of himself but he was found lacking in the first commandment which is “You shall have no other gods before Me” Exodus 20:3.

Money was his god and he walked away sorrowful when the Lord asked him to sell all that he had and give to the poor.

Now, look at Zacchaeus. The Lord did not give him any commandment but pure grace. And what happened? Zacchaeus gave half his wealth to the poor and made a public commitment to repay fourfold everyone he had stolen from.  

The law demands. The rich young ruler could not follow and it resulted in fear, guilt, and sorrow.  But grace supplies and produces generosity, holiness, and inward heart transformation.

Are you trying to be justified by works through the law or by faith through the power of God’s grace?

Believing you are justified by your works results in fear of judgment and failure. If something bad happens – it reinforces that fear. If things are going well, you may be in fear that you could lose God’s blessings or protection if you make a mistake or sin.

In this scenario, your constant companion of insecurity, dread, anxiety, and a variety of fears will rob you of the joy of living.

Our justification is from faith to faith – not faith to works. It is accomplished from start to finish by faith and FAITH ALONE.