Exposing The Problem Framework

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Shalom family-

As we continue in this ministry and further expose others to truth, we find the enemy attacking us more and more. This is to be expected. People throw what I refer to as “spiritual slogans” at us constantly; soundbites that seem like wisdom or correction, yet fall apart when questioned:

• “Even the devil can quote scripture.”
• “Stop studying- just believe.”
• “If you can lose salvation, that means you can gain it.”
• “Just follow your heart.”
• “Don’t test God.”

These can be easily debunked with the simple question:

“Where is that found in Scripture?”

People will usually reply with some version of Ephesians 2:8-9 as the ultimate discussion stopper-

To which they are confused when we agree- Yes, correct. We are saved by faith, and not out of works, and it is by the grace of God, so no man can boast.

I want to be clear- that is not up for discussion. Truly, we do not believe that “salvation is out from works.”

So then… where is the disconnect?

It comes when we jump to our own conclusions, based on the church, what we have heard, and what we have been taught.

Many believe that because Paul said we are “saved by faith and not by works”, then that must mean

• Any discussion of obedience must be an attempt to earn salvation
• Any emphasis on God’s commands must be legalism
• Any mention of righteous living must be adding to the gospel

But the problem is, this was never Paul’s argument. And it’s not ours either.

Paul did not teach that God’s instructions were bad. He did not teach that righteousness no longer matters. He did not teach that obedience is opposed to faith.

In fact, something Paul said that many ignore tells us the opposite:

“Do we then nullify the Torah through faithfulness? May it never be! On the contrary, we uphold the Torah.”

– Romans 3:31

Yes, we have faith- that much is clear. But does that mean that we make Torah inactive?

Paul emphatically says- absolutely not.

Therefore, since we know that Scripture does not contradict scripture, we must hold everything Paul says to the lens of Romans 3:31.

Side note: I will mainly be using Romans here because Romans was actually the last letter Paul wrote before His imprisonment letters, at the end of his official ministry. I believe Romans is the most accurate understanding of all his teachings combined, because it was written to correct an assembly of believers who had faith, but not education of what that meant.

You can read our study guide series for Romans here

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Avraham was Counted as Righteous

In Romans 4, Paul goes on to speak of Avraham as an example of faith:

What then shall we say was discovered by Avraham, the father according to the flesh? If indeed Avraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not towards God. For what does the Scripture say? 

“Avraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.”

– Romans 4:1-3

Avraham trusted God.

Because he trusted God, he obeyed God.

His actions did not compete with his faith; they demonstrated it.

And actually- Paul could not have picked a better example. Because Scripture also says of Avraham:

“Avraham obeyed My voice and kept My charge, My commands, My statutes, and My Torah.”

– Genesis 26:5

Maybe you’re asking, “How could he keep Torah before Torah existed?”

There in lies part of the issue- that many have been led to believe that “Torah” = a bunch of rules and regulations.

But Torah is not just one thing; it is the instruction book in which the commands of YHVH live.

Within those commands are statutes, and judgements for not keeping those statutes.

But at the point of Avraham, there were no written commands, statutes, judgements or instructions- and so he was praised because of his obedience to what did exist- the commands and instructions YHVH told him.

His obedience was evidence of his trust. And the nations were blessed through him.

But what does “blessed” mean?

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The Misunderstanding of Prosperity Doctrine

The church, and even the world now, has aligned the word “blessed” with prosperity doctrine. Meaning “If you obey, you will prosper.”

We can seen two glaring problems with this doctrine:

1. If Torah is not valid, then the question becomes, “Obey what?”

Many would say, “Obey Jesus”.

Some would say, “Obey the church.”

Obey Jesus? Absolutely, He is our King. No argument.

Obey the church? Well, that in itself becomes an issue when we realize the “church” is not what it was in the time of the New Testament. Obeying the church becomes obeying traditions of man with a deceptive label.

2. If blessing = Prospering, then why does Scripture tell us the opposite?

• “Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do the faithless live at ease?”- Jeremiah 12:1
• “For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.”- Psalm 73:3
• “There is a futility that occurs on the earth: the righteous get the actions the wicked deserve, and the wicked get what the actions of the righteous deserve.” – Ecclesiastes 8:14
• “The tents of the robbers are at peace, and those provoking God are secure.”- Job 12:6

Messiah Himself even says, “The Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” – Matthew 8:20

If Blessing is accumulation, then why do God’s righteous and chosen in Scripture suffer constantly?

Abel was murdered.

Joseph was enslaved and imprisoned.

Moses was rejected by his people and spent 40 years in the wilderness.

David was hunted by Saul.

Elijah suffered depression and isolation.

Jeremiah was beaten and thrown in a cistern.

Job suffered extreme loss.

Stephen was stoned to death.

John the Baptist was beheaded.

Paul was stoned, left for dead, and later imprisoned.

Most of the Apostles died gruesome deaths.

So we must ask ourselves- if being blessed means prosperity on earth, then why does Scripture constantly mislabel the righteous?

Obviously it doesn’t. The problem arises when we view everything as a “reward and punishment” equation that Scripture never establishes. Instead, it reveals something deeper about Covenant with God.

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What it means to be Blessed

The Hebrew concept of “Blessing”- barakhah means something entirely different:

It’s first mention is Genesis 1:22 & 1:28

“And Elohim blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply…”

Here, blessing is life from out of God, purpose and alignment with His order. Nothing more.

In Genesis 12, the same word becomes directed into Covenant:

“And I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you and make you great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and curse those who curse you.”

– Genesis 12:2-3

We see progression: Blessing is now also tied to promise and calling. It is relational, bound to how one relates to God’s chosen purpose.

It is not defined by accumulation, but by relationship, purpose and God enabling life according to His word.

And that’s the point many skip over.

Everything is given out from God- even faith itself.

That is what Paul clarifies in Romans 4:

Now to the one working, his wages are not by way of grace, but by way of what is owed. However to the one who is not working but believing in the One who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness.

– Romans 4:4-5

If righteousness was something produced by human effort, then Grace would be counted as a wage, something earned. But when it comes to gifts of God, everything is received.

So Paul, in context, is not redefining righteousness or saying obedience doesn’t matter- He is giving credit where credit is due: Back to God.

If righteousness is not self-generated, then neither is the faith that brings it.

This is why Paul also says, “according to the measure of faith God has assigned to each one.”- Romans 12:3

The point being made is not that some have more ‘earning power’; the point is that even the capacity to trust God is not a badge of self-achievement- it too is given and received.

• God initiates
• God enables
• Humans respond

But no one can claim credit- therefore no one can claim entitlement.

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The Potter and the Clay

If that is the case, then many will ask, “If even trust is out from God, how can He judge anyone?”

Paul anticipated this and gives us the answer in Romans 9:

O man, who are you, the one answering back to God? Shall the thing formed say to the One who formed it, “Why have you made me this way?”

Does the Potter not have authority over the same lump of clay, to make one unto a vessel of honor, and one however, unto dishonor?

– Romans 9:20-21

(Likely an allusion to the prophet Isaiah 29:16 and 64:8)

If everything originates with God, then we must learn to reframe our mindset from

“Earning vs Not Earning” to “Trusting vs Resisting” God’s way of giving righteousness.

Paul never rejected the righteousness defined by God in His Torah- he rejected the concept of righteousness being credited to man.

The Torah is holy, and righteous and good (Romans 7:12)- but it was never given as a system of self attained righteousness. It was always meant to reveal what righteousness looked like in life which belongs to God.

And it will be righteousness for us if we are careful to do all these commands before YHVH our Elohim, just as He commanded us.

– Deuteronomy 6:25

The problem was never obedience itself.

The problem was trusting in one’s own self.

The issue was believing that righteousness could be achieved apart from God, as though a person could establish their own righteousness through human effort, human tradition, or personal merit.

Scripture teaches the opposite- no one is righteous on their own.

No one can boast before God.

Even faith itself is not something that originates in human greatness. Without God drawing us, teaching us, convicting us, and extending mercy, none of us would seek Him.

Salvation, therefore is entirely dependent upon His grace.

Just as it was when He delievered His people out of Egypt and asked them to obey Him, it is the same for us now.

The saving was the gift- but relationship must follow.

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Grace does not eliminate obedience-

Rather, grace enables it.

God’s instructions reveal what He calls righteous.

The Torah defines sin, justice, holiness, mercy, faithfulness and love.

The commands do not become evil simply because they cannot save on their own.

God’s written instructions do not save us, but they reveal the path of righteous living.

This is why James can say, “Faith without works is dead.”

James is not contradicting Paul- he is exposing a false faith.

A faith that produces no obedience, no repentance, no transformation and no desire to walk in God’s ways is not living faith. It is merely a claim.

True faith acts. Not because works earn salvation, but because genuine trust naturally produces obedience.

The error is not believing that works do not save- they don’t.

The error is assuming that because works do not save, then obedience no longer matters.

Scripture never teaches that conclusion.

Rather, those who are saved by grace are called to walk in the righteousness that God Himself has defined.

Not to earn salvation.

Not to boast.

Not to establish their own righteousness.

But because the God who saves also teaches His people how to live.