Paul asked a great question concerning one of my recent blogs:
In response to today’s email (blog on Rev 3:10), I might just add a thought that helps. Your idea can invoke worry and self-consciousness, which I believe are wrong. Consider, please, the parable of the sheep and the goats. Both the sheep and goats will be ignorant of their works, and why is that? It is my understanding that it is because they will be works of nature, and not effort. We are not conscious of our nature. Sheep are sheep, even the bad ones, and goats are goats, even the good ones.
We should focus our attention not on works, but on the One who is our righteousness (Jeremiah 33:16 and 1 Corinthians 1:30), as Jesus himself tells us (John 15:5). This is the problem I have with what I feel is an inconsistency in your teachings. You are free grace, well and good, but your attitude to focus on works undermines such (1 Corinthians 15:56). I hope I have relayed my thoughts clear enough.
There are several questions there. First, what made the sheep and the goats sheep and goats? Second, did the sheep and goats know about their own works? Third, does focusing on Christ mean we pay no attention to our works? Fourth, does focusing on works undermine a Free-Grace mindset?
First: The sheep represent Gentile believers who survive the Tribulation. The goats represent Gentile unbelievers who survive. The issue with their status is faith in Christ for everlasting life, not their works. The Lord cites their treatment of Jewish believers—which is only a small part of their works—because Matt 24:13 promises that only persevering believers will survive the Tribulation. The central hallmark of perseverance during that time will be the way a person treats Jewish believers.
Second: Yes, the sheep and goats will know about their works. Everyone is aware of their works unless they have dementia.
The sheep will be confused when Jesus says, “I was hungry, and you gave Me food; I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and you took Me in …” (Matt 25:35). They will think He was speaking about their literally helping Him. They will not realize that He is talking about Jewish believers they had helped.
It’s possible that the goats won’t hear what the Lord says to the sheep. That would explain why they, too, will be confused. Morris comments, “These people were not conscious of having failed to render service of any kind to Jesus” (Matthew, p. 640). He adds, “They had not realized that their failure to serve the needy was important” (pp. 640-41). They knew what they had done and not done. Compare Matt 7:21-23.
Third: Focusing on Christ does not negate attention to our works. How can we confess our sins (1 John 1:9) if we are unaware of our works? What is the point of all the exhortations in Scripture to do good works and avoid bad works?
Fourth: Focusing on works may or may not undermine a Free-Grace mindset. It will if our focus is exclusively on the commandments and not on Christ. But neither will we have a Free-Grace mindset if we focus exclusively on Christ and give no attention whatsoever to God’s commands. Paul said that we are transformed “by the renewing of our minds” (Rom 12:2). We can’t have a renewed mind unless we have “the mind of Christ” (1 Cor 2:16).
Some charge that Free Grace is antinomian. They say we don’t care about God’s commands. They say we teach people to do whatever seems right to them. They say we don’t tell them to do what God says is right. But that is a canard. We teach people to do what God says and not do what He forbids. But we make it clear that regeneration is by faith in Christ and His promise of everlasting life, not by works. We also make it clear that good works flow from focusing on Christ, not obsessing on the commandments. Another way to say this is that legalism does not produce righteous behavior.
Keep grace in focus, and you will love your neighbor as yourself.
