By Grace Through Faith
A Sermon on Ephesians 2:8-10
Originally preached Jan. 8, 1956
Scripture
8For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should …
Sermon Description
Salvation is the result of God’s grace alone. In this sermon on Ephesians 2:8–10 titled “ By Grace Through Faith,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones preaches that no one is saved by anything they do or any merits they earn, but it is wholly the result of grace. For in their sin, no one is able to do anything pleasing to God nor able to even believe the good news of the gospel without the work of the Holy Spirit giving them a new heart. This is contrary to what many have believed and taught throughout the centuries. Some say that grace is good but not sufficient to save, whereas some have gone as far as saying that by the works of the law alone people can be saved and made right with God. But the apostle Paul clearly denies any such teaching in his insistence on the power of God’s grace alone. For through grace God gives people the gift of faith. It is faith that is the instrumental cause of justification and by it believers are united to Christ and receive the benefits of His life, death, and resurrection. Listen as Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains this great doctrine of justification by faith alone that is the very heart of Christianity and without it there is no true gospel.
Sermon Breakdown
- We are Christians entirely and solely as a result of God's grace. Grace means unmerited, undeserved favor. Salvation comes entirely from God's side, in spite of us.
- The fact that we are Christians gives us no grounds for boasting. Not of ourselves, lest any man should boast. This is the crucial test of our view of salvation.
- We tend to boast of our works. But going back to works is going back under the law, which condemns us. Good works are the result of salvation, not the cause of it.
- We also tend to boast of our faith. But faith is not the cause of salvation either. Faith is the instrument through which salvation comes to us by grace. We must be careful not to say that our believing saves us.
- Our being Christians is entirely the result of God's work. We are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works. It is not our decision that makes us Christians, but God's work.
- A Christian is a new creation, with the life of God in his soul. He is made after the image of Christ, meant to be like Christ.
- If it were not of grace, we would all be hopeless. But because it is of grace, because we are God's workmanship, we will be made perfect. God will complete the work he has begun in us.
Sermon Q&A
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones on Ephesians 2:8-10: Questions and Answers
What is the central message of Ephesians 2:8-10 according to Dr. Lloyd-Jones?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, Ephesians 2:8-10 provides the clearest statement in Scripture about what makes a person a Christian. The central message is that salvation is entirely by God's grace, not by human works or effort. As he states, "We are Christians entirely and solely as the result of God's grace." This is the foundation of the Christian position, and he emphasizes that if we're not right at this beginning point, we'll be "wrong everywhere."
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones define "grace" in this sermon?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones defines grace as "unmerited, undeserved favor." He explains that grace is "an action which is entirely disinterested on the part of God." More importantly, salvation "not only comes from God's side, it comes to us in spite of us." He emphasizes that grace is not "God's response to anything in us" but rather comes to us despite our sinful condition as described in the earlier verses of Ephesians 2.
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the crucial test of our understanding of salvation?
The crucial test of our understanding of salvation, according to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, is whether our idea of how we became Christians gives us any grounds for boasting or being proud of ourselves. He states firmly: "Does your idea as to how you've become a Christian give you any grounds whatsoever for being proud of yourself for boasting? Does it in any way reflect credit upon you? If it does, according to this statement, and I don't hesitate to say it, you are not a Christian."
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones explain the relationship between faith and salvation?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones clarifies that faith is not the cause of salvation but rather the instrument or channel through which salvation comes to us. He states: "Faith is not the cause of salvation. Christ is the cause of salvation. The grace of God in the Lord Jesus Christ is the cause of salvation." Faith is "just the medium through which the grace of God bringing salvation to me enters into my life." He warns against turning faith into a work by thinking that "by believing on the Lord Jesus Christ, a man saves himself."
What is the proper understanding of "good works" according to this sermon?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that the proper understanding of good works is that they are the result of salvation, not the cause of it. He says people wrongly think, "If I only do this and I don't do that, and I live a good life, and I go out and help others by these good works, I will become a Christian." Instead, "God makes us Christians in order that we may do good works, not good works leading to Christianity, but Christianity leading to good works."
Furthermore, the "good works" God desires are not merely moral behaviors or occasional kindnesses, but a Christ-like life characterized by "disinterested love" and "loving God with all the heart and soul and mind and strength, and our neighbor as ourselves."
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones mean when he says Christians are God's "workmanship"?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that the phrase "we are His workmanship" means that becoming a Christian is entirely the result of God's work, not our own decision or effort. Christians are not merely improved versions of their old selves but are "a new creation" who have been "made anew after the image and the pattern of the Son of God himself."
He emphasizes that a Christian is one "who has been put into Christ, and the life of Christ has come into him." This work is comparable to God's creation of everything "out of nothing at the beginning." God "comes to men and He makes him anew and gives him a new nature, makes a new man of him."
Why does Dr. Lloyd-Jones believe that philosophical objections to the doctrine of grace are problematic?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones argues that philosophical objections to the doctrine of grace arise when people "bring in their philosophy, by which I mean their ideas, instead of taking the plain statements of the apostle." He says people often object by saying, "I can't see this. If that is so, well, then I don't understand how God can be a God of love."
He states that once we begin philosophizing in this way, "you're bound to be in trouble." This approach means leaving the Scriptures as our foundation and introducing "your own ability, your own understanding, and your own theories and ideas," which has "constantly been the trouble" with understanding these verses.
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones contrast the Pharisees' approach to religion with true Christianity?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones points out that the Pharisees were "not mere talkers" but people who genuinely performed religious duties. They fasted, gave tithes, and were morally upright. However, they resented Christ's teaching precisely because they had built their position upon their works and their own righteousness.
In contrast, "The gospel makes paupers of us all. It condemns us everyone. It strips us and makes us all naked." Christianity teaches that our best works are "not good enough in the sight of God" and that salvation comes not through our righteousness but through God's grace in Christ. The Pharisees couldn't accept this because "if you take that from them, they've got nothing."
What hope does Dr. Lloyd-Jones offer for the Christian's ultimate sanctification?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones offers the hope that, since salvation is entirely God's work, believers can be confident of their ultimate sanctification despite their ongoing struggles with sin. He states, "Thank God, it is by grace, because it is God's work, because I am God's workmanship, I know that in spite of myself, in spite of the sin that yet remains within me, I shall be made perfect."
He assures his listeners: "If he started working in you, he'll go on with it until it's completed." God will continue His sanctifying work, sometimes through chastisement if necessary, until "every spot and wrinkle and every such thing shall have gone forever. And we shall stand in the presence of God, faultless and blameless and with exceeding joy."
The Book of Ephesians
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.