Matthew 22: Faith Gets You In, Works Keep You There

Introduction

"Do you want to celebrate your life? Do the work of God." On October 10, his birthday, Pastor Enrico, who leads BE Church in Verona with Andrea, insists on preaching. For six years, ever since they became the church's pastors, he has let no one take his place that week.

This message closes his "trilogy of works." In the previous weeks, he had called the church to act rather than point fingers at problems, and then to bear fruit that lasts. This time, he tackles a subject he announces as "a bit harder": the link between faith, works, and salvation.

He starts from an apparent contradiction between Paul and James and resolves it with a parable of Jesus, the wedding of the king's son in Matthew 22. His conviction fits in one sentence: faith brings us into salvation, and righteous works allow us to remain in it.

Outline of the Message

1. Raising the Cup of Salvation

Every week of the series began with Psalm 116:12-13: "What will I give to Yahweh for all his benefits toward me? I will take the cup of salvation, and call on Yahweh's name."
Raising this cup, the pastor explains, does not mean "toasting with Jesus." It means showing your salvation and showing yourself as a child of God.
Creation is waiting for the sons of God to be revealed (Romans 8:19), and it is by our works that we show who we are.
Jesus told the Pharisees who did not believe in him to at least believe his works (John 10:37-38). His works testified to who he was. Ours testify that we are saved people.
God does not want a people who use their discernment to point a finger at sin, but a people who act and bring the solution, who is Jesus Christ.

2. Paul and James: An Apparent Contradiction

Paul writes in Galatians 2:16 that a person is not justified by the works of the law, but through faith in Jesus Christ.
James writes in James 2:20-21: "But do you want to know, vain man, that faith apart from works is dead? Wasn't Abraham our father justified by works, in that he offered up Isaac his son on the altar?"
So are we saved by faith or by works? The pastor points out that even Martin Luther, a great defender of salvation by grace, reportedly wanted to remove the letter of James from the Bible.
For him, the Bible is perfect as a whole and does not contradict itself. Faced with such passages, God simply asks us for one more effort to grasp the full revelation of his Word.

3. Three Kinds of "Sons of God"

The pastor reads Genesis 6:1-3, a text dear to him: the sons of God take the daughters of men as wives, and Yahweh says, "My Spirit will not strive with man forever." Who are these sons of God? The mystery is not solved, but it is partly what pushed him to study the Word in depth.
The Bible calls three groups "sons of God": the angels, as in the book of Job; the people of Israel, whom God calls his son; and, in the New Testament, all those who have received Jesus (John 1:12).
Salvation is the most central theme of the Christian life, and yet it is often taken lightly. Some teach that we should not worry about it since God is a loving Father.
It is true that God loves us and that Jesus died for all (2 Corinthians 5:15). But the Bible also says that not everyone will be saved. According to the pastor, through the sacrifice of Jesus, God gave us the opportunity to be saved, but not the certainty of our salvation, and it is up to us to take care of it.

4. Faith Brings You Into the Promised Land

At the gates of Canaan, Moses sends out twelve spies. Ten come back saying: the land is good, but there are giants and fortified cities, so let's turn back.
Only Joshua and Caleb declare: "If God is with us, we will conquer this land." The people follow the opinion of the ten and wander forty years in the desert.
The promised land is an image of the paradise to come. Hebrews 3:19 gives the reason: "they were not able to enter in because of unbelief."
So Paul is right: it is faith that justifies us and gives us access to salvation.
Accepting Jesus is the best choice of your life, not because nothing bad will ever happen to you again. In the promised land too, there are giants and walls. But the God who brought you in will go with you through every difficulty: "He will be your shield and your breastplate against those giants."
To the one who has not yet taken this step, or who has drifted away and struggles to come back, he says: have faith in this God, he will not abandon you.

5. Being in the Hall and Being Thrown Out

For those who have already believed, a question arises: can we stop caring about a salvation obtained by faith?
The pastor recalls two other pictures of paradise. Satan was in God's presence, and he was driven out of it. Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden, and they were expelled from it.
One could object that Satan is an angel and that Adam lived before grace. But Jesus, who had already come to earth, tells the parable of the wedding feast (Matthew 22:2-13).
The king is God, who is preparing the wedding of his Son. The first guests, the people of Israel, refuse to come, mistreat and kill the servants, the prophets. The king then sends for everyone found at the crossroads, "both bad and good": that is us, who are not from Israel and whom God has included in his plan.
The king notices a man without wedding clothing: "Friend, how did you come in here not wearing wedding clothing?" The man is speechless, and he is thrown out. "He was inside," the pastor insists, like Satan in heaven and Adam in Eden.
What is this clothing? Revelation 19:7-8 answers: the bride of the Lamb has made herself ready, "It was given to her that she would array herself in bright, pure, fine linen, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints."
We are not saved by works. But the clothing that allows us to remain at the feast is made of righteous works.

6. The Movie Ticket: What Are You Doing Against God?

The pastor compares salvation to a movie screening. To get in, you need a ticket: that is faith.
But if, during the film, you throw popcorn at the other viewers, stand up and shout, the staff will come and make you leave. "Faith allows us to enter, but righteous works are what allow us to stay."
Hence a first question: what are you doing against God?
Satan's sin is pride. "Have we never been proud, never boastful?" The pastor clarifies that he is not comparing anyone to Satan, but that our sin is not so different.
Adam's sin is disobedience. Even after our baptism, how many lies, refused pardons, and neglected acts of love toward our neighbor are there?
And our sin influences those around us, like Adam's. "Parents, do you think a swear word at home or your complaints at the table do not influence your children?" On Monday, at work or at school, your attitude will speak too.
"Glory to God": through the life and death of Jesus, we can come to him every day with a broken and repentant heart, and he forgives us.

7. What Are You Doing for God?

Works are not only about the evil we do, but also about the good we neglect. The pastor takes up an illustration from an American preacher.
If Andrea asks him to do the dishes and he answers, "Is this a divorce-level issue?", she will say no. The next day, the floor, then the laundry to hang out: never a divorce-level issue. Yet this daily refusal to do good can end up becoming one.
With God, it is the same. If I do not pray today, if I do not read the Bible, if I do not forgive my brother, will I lose salvation? No. But day after day, these choices take us away from him, not because God gets angry, but because we move away ourselves.
The rich young man asks Jesus how to obtain eternal life. He has kept all the commandments since his youth: he does nothing against God. When Jesus asks him to give away his possessions, he answers, in essence: "That, I cannot do." Jesus concludes: "it is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God" (Matthew 19:24).
God does not want us 99% holy and 1% in the world. "God wants us 100% his."
The pastor names these works: praying and having moments of sincere intimacy with God, reading the Bible and immersing yourself in the Scriptures, fasting, being part of a local church, giving tithes and offerings, serving with excellence, punctuality, and commitment, and, for husbands, loving your wife as Christ loved the church.
He finally quotes Matthew 25: "Most certainly I tell you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me." Works for God are the ones we do for one another: hugging someone who needs it, calling someone who feels alone, praying for someone going through a hard time.
This is the fine linen the church will be clothed with on the day of the wedding of the Lamb. His closing prayer: a church that no longer lives for itself, but for the one who died and rose again for it.

Key Takeaways

Faith in Jesus is what brings you into salvation, just as Joshua and Caleb entered the promised land.
Righteous works are the wedding clothing: they do not save you, but they allow you to remain at the feast.
Two questions need to be asked: what are you doing against God, and what are you doing for God?
It is not only the evil committed that separates you from God: the good neglected day after day also takes you away from him.
Works for God are lived toward one another: a call, a prayer, a hug.

Personal Application

Have you already taken the step of declaring Jesus as Lord and Savior of your life? What is still holding you back?
What giants or walls make you doubt today that God is with you?
In your everyday life, what are you doing against God: a lie, a refused pardon, an attitude that influences your children or your colleagues?
What good do you keep putting off, telling yourself that "it is not a divorce-level issue": prayer, reading the Bible, serving?
Who around you needs a call, a visit, or a prayer this week?

Verses Cited

Frequently Asked Questions

Do Paul and James contradict each other on faith and works?

For Pastor Enrico, it is an apparent contradiction, because the Bible does not contradict itself. Paul (Galatians 2:16) states that we are justified by faith in Christ, James (James 2:20-21) that faith apart from works is dead. The pastor reconciles the two with the parable of the wedding feast: faith brings us into salvation, and righteous works allow us to remain in it.

What does the wedding clothing represent in the parable of Matthew 22?

The pastor connects the parable to Revelation 19:8, where the bride of the Lamb is clothed in bright, pure, fine linen, and where it is specified that the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. The man without wedding clothing was already in the hall, but he was thrown out of it.

What works does Pastor Enrico invite people to practice?

Praying, reading the Bible, fasting, being part of a local church, giving tithes and offerings, serving with excellence and punctuality, loving your wife as Christ loved the church, and practicing works of love and mercy toward others, such as a call to someone who is alone or a prayer for someone going through a hard time.