At what point in our walk of faith do we turn to works? Since when do any of us earn the benefits of the Kingdom of God? If we are saved by grace through faith, how can one become “worthy” of healing? The word “saved” (SOZO –Greek) is also rendered in the Bible as “healed.” Think about it. Do you receive gifts or do you earn them? If you earn them, they are no longer gifts; they are wages. Gifts from God are imparted as He sees fit, which means it’s not a question of what we do on our part to receive them, other than receiving them through faith. However, it is a question of what we do with them once we have them. The answer to the first question is simply this: our works are the result of faith that comes from hearing (see Romans 10:17). We listen and obey what we hear the Lord speaking to our hearts. In terms of healing, Jesus is worthy for us to be healed.
Romans 8:16-17 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. And if we are children, then we are heirs; heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ; so that if we suffer with Him, we may also be glorified together.
Since we are joint-theirs with Christ, everything we receive of God is by inheritance.
Your gifts and calling are not the result of what you did or ever will do. Those who received an inheritance never earned it. Things inherited are passed down upon the death of the testator (a person who has written and executed a last will and testament). Through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we received an inheritance that is reserved in heaven. 1 Peter 1:3-5 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has regenerated us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, and unfading, reserved in Heaven for you by the power of God, having been kept through faith to a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time (see also Hebrews 9:13-28). It’s important to be mindful that everything you have (or ever will have) came through Jesus Christ, so you don’t get duped into dead works and faulty theology.
While it is true you cannot earn your calling, nor be good enough to receive those things given to you, God does reward obedience.
He promotes those who have been faithful with what they have. His gifts and rewards are designed to benefit you; not destroy you. That is why it is a good idea to leave what gifts He bestows upon you and how He rewards you up to Him. If we are rewarded in the way we think we should be, we may wind up with things that draw us away from Him. Everything is intended to help conform us to the image of Jesus. Without realizing it, some desire things that may appear to be a good reward, but actually are lusts of the world. For example, some expect great financial wealth, but do not understand how wealth fits in with Kingdom principles. That’s why the Bible says, “But they who will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts which plunge men into destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all evils (or sorts of evil), of which some having lusted after, they were seduced from the faith and pierced themselves through with many sorrows” (1 Timothy 6:9-10). That’s not to say He doesn’t reward people with great finances. When things fit His purposes and we are positioned with a right heart to receive, He will distribute them to us.
When you are faithful with what you do have, He can give you more, which is one reason you should never despise small beginnings.
They provide for greater opportunities when faithfulness is deployed. Faithfulness to God will cause you to be faithful with what you possess as unto Him. We can never legally say, “Look at what my hands have done,” when everything we have, including our abilities, were given to us in the first place. In the end, the Lord will reward everyone according to his or her works. The question is, are they dead works, or works of love and faith?
