Watchtower Study, Week of February 5-11, 2024, God declares us righteous by our faith and by our works, Underlined Answers.

Watchtower Study, February 5-11, 2024, God declares us righteous by our faith and by our works, Underlined Answers.

Yellow: Direct Response.

Dark Yellow: Additional Response.

Light Blue: Additional Points.

“They follow closely the steps of faith that our father Abraham had” (ROM. 4:12).

1. What might we ask when thinking about Abraham's faith?

ALTHOUGH many people have heard of Abraham, most don't know much about him. But we know him very well. For example, we know that the Bible calls him “the father of all those who have faith” (Rom. 4:11). Now, we may wonder if we can follow closely in Abraham's footsteps and have a faith as strong as his. The answer is yes we can.

2. Why is it important that we examine Abraham's example? (James 2:22, 23).

2 Something that will help us have faith like Abraham's is to examine his example. He always obeyed what God commanded him: he moved to a faraway land, lived in tents for many years and was willing to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac. With those actions he showed that he had a strong faith. Because of his faith and works, Jehovah gave him his approval and friendship (read James 2:22, 23). Well, Jehovah wants all of us, including you, to have his approval and be his friends. That's why he had both Paul and James write about Abraham's example. Next we are going to analyze something very important that is mentioned in chapter 4 of Romans and in chapter 2 of James about this servant of God.

3. What verse did Paul and James quote from?

3 Paul and James quoted from Genesis 15:6, which says that Abraham “put his faith in Jehovah, and he considered him righteous.” What does it mean for Jehovah to consider a person righteous? That he is happy with her and he considers her blameless, free of guilt. It is indeed astonishing that Jehovah can hold an imperfect and sinful human being blameless. You probably want Jehovah to see you that way, too, and he can make it happen. Let's see why Jehovah declared Abraham righteous and what we have to do to make him say the same about us.

WE MUST HAVE FAITH SO THAT GOD CONSIDERS US RIGHTEOUS

4. What prevents us human beings from being fair?

4 In his Letter to the Romans, Paul said that all human beings are sinners (Rom. 3:23). How is it possible that God is happy with us and considers us righteous? Paul used the example of Abraham to help all sincere Christians answer that question.

5. Why did Jehovah declare Abraham righteous? (Romans 4:2-4).

5 Jehovah declared Abraham righteous when he lived in Canaan. Why was it that he declared it righteous? It was not because Abraham perfectly obeyed the Law of Moses (Rom. 4:13). How do we know? Because the nation of Israel received that Law more than 400 years later. So why did Jehovah declare Abraham righteous? Jehovah showed him undeserved kindness and declared him righteous because of his faith (read Romans 4:2-4).

6. Why does Jehovah declare a sinner righteous?

6 Right after, Paul explained that when someone puts his faith in God, “he is considered righteous because of his faith” (Rom. 4:5). And he added: “David also speaks of the happiness of the man whom God considers righteous but not because of his works: 'Happy are those whose bad things they have done have been forgiven and whose sins have been covered; happy is the man to whom Jehovah will in no way take his sin into account” (Rom. 4:6-8 ; Ps. 32:1, 2). God completely covers or forgives the sins of people who put their faith in him; He no longer takes them into account. Jehovah views such people as righteous and blameless because of their faith.

7. In what sense were God's servants of the past righteous?

7 Although Abraham, David, and other faithful servants of God were declared righteous, they remained imperfect and sinful. But because of their faith, God considered them blameless, especially compared to people who did not worship Him (Eph. 2:12). In his Letter to the Romans, Paul makes it clear that to be friends of Jehovah it is essential to have faith. So it was with Abraham and David, and the same can be said for us.

WHAT IS THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FAITH AND WORKS?

8, 9. What wrong conclusion have some reached, and why?

8 For centuries, leaders of different Churches of Christendom have had a highly controversial debate about the relationship between faith and works. Some claim that to achieve salvation it is enough to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Perhaps we have heard the phrase “Accept Jesus and you will be saved.” These religious leaders may be referring to Romans 4:6, where Paul speaks of “a man whom God considers righteous, but not because of his works.” On the other hand, others teach that to be saved you must make a pilgrimage to certain sacred places and do good works. Perhaps they rely on what James 2:24 says: “A man becomes declared righteous by his works and not by his faith alone.”

9 In view of these very different beliefs, some Bible scholars have concluded that Paul and James had different views on faith and works. They affirm that Paul thought that it was enough to have faith to obtain God's approval but that James believed that one had to have works. One theologian explained: “James did not understand why Paul was so insistent that someone is declared righteous through faith alone and not through works.” But both Paul and James were writing under inspiration from Jehovah (2 Tim. 3:16). In reality, there is a very simple explanation to understand what each one said. To see what it is, let's analyze the context of his words.

10. What “works” was Paul primarily talking about? (Romans 3:21, 28; see also images).

10 What “works” was Paul talking about in Romans 3 and 4? He was referring primarily to “the works of the law.” What law? The one that God gave to the Israelites through Moses (read Romans 3:21, 28). Some Jewish Christians apparently found it difficult to accept that the Law had been annulled and that it was no longer necessary to do the works that the Law commanded. Therefore, Paul used the example of Abraham to demonstrate that God's approval is not obtained by doing “the works of the law,” but having faith. What he said is very encouraging because it teaches us that we can have God's approval if we have faith in him and in Christ.

ILLUSTRATION

Images of Paul and three “works of the law” that the Law of Moses required. 1. Someone sewing a little blue string on the edge of a garment. 2. The Passover meal: a roast lamb, unleavened bread and bitter vegetables. 3. A man washes his hands while another pours water on them. Paul told the Jewish Christians living in Rome that it was not necessary to perform works of the Law, but to have faith. (See paragraph 10). 

11. What “works” was James talking about?

11 Now, the “works” mentioned in James chapter 2 are not “the works of the law” that Paul spoke of. James was referring to the activities that Christians carry out in their daily lives. These works indicate whether a Christian has authentic faith in God or not. Let's analyze two of the examples that Santiago used.

12. How did James explain the relationship between faith and works? (See also images).

12 In the first example, James said that Christians had to be impartial and treat all people equally. He showed them that if they treated a rich man kindly but despised a poor man, even though they claimed to have faith, their deeds actually demonstrated the opposite (James 2:1-5, 9). In the second example, he talked about someone who saw a brother or sister who needed clothes or food but did nothing to help them. Even if that person claimed to have faith, since he was not demonstrating it with actions, he was of no use. James wrote, “Faith alone without works is dead” (James 2:14-17).

ILLUSTRATION

Images of the disciple Santiago and an example of an act of kindness. A first-century couple gives food and clothing to a poor, older woman while others, who are well dressed, chat in the background. James told Christians that they should demonstrate their faith through works, such as being impartial and doing good things for others. (See paragraphs 11 and 12). 

13. What example did James mention to make clear that we must demonstrate with works that we have faith? (James 2:25, 26).

13 To talk about someone who demonstrated faith by his actions, James mentioned the example of Rahab (read James 2:25, 26). This woman had heard about Jehovah and she knew that he was helping the Israelites (Josh. 2:9-11). What did she do to show that she had faith in Jehovah? She protected two Israelite spies from being killed. As a result, like Abraham, this woman was declared righteous despite being imperfect and not an Israelite. Her example teaches us that it is very important to demonstrate with works that we have faith.

14. How do you explain the difference between what Paul and James wrote?

14 As we have seen, Paul and James spoke about faith and works from different perspectives. On the one hand, Paul told Christians of Jewish origin that they would never earn Jehovah's approval by performing the works of the Law. And, on the other hand, James explained that all Christians must demonstrate their faith by doing good works.

15. Name some ways we demonstrate our faith with works. (See also images).

15 When Jehovah says that we must closely follow in the footsteps of Abraham's faith to consider ourselves righteous, he does not mean that we must do exactly what he did. In fact, there are many ways to demonstrate with works that we have faith. We can gladly welcome those new to the congregation, help brothers who are in real need, and do good things for our family members. All this pleases Jehovah (Rom. 15:7; 1 Tim. 5:4, 8; 1 John 3:18). One of the most important ways to demonstrate our faith is by preaching with enthusiasm (1 Tim. 4:16). We can all prove by our works that we have faith that Jehovah's promises will be fulfilled and that his way of doing things is the best. And, if we do, we can be absolutely sure that God will declare us righteous and will consider us his friends.

ILLUSTRATION

Images of brothers and sisters who demonstrate with works that they have faith. 1. A brother greets a man in a wheelchair and his companion as they arrive for the meeting. 2. A sister writes a letter. 3. A couple preaches in the cart. Does your faith compel you to do works that please Jehovah? (See paragraph 15).

HOPE STRENGTHENS OUR FAITH

16. What was the relationship between Abraham's hope and faith?

16 In Romans chapter 4, we find another valuable lesson taught by Abraham's example: it is very important to have hope. Jehovah promised that, through Abraham, “many nations” would be blessed. What a wonderful hope! (Gen. 12:3; 15:5; 17:4; Rom. 4:17). However, when Abraham was 100 years old and Sarah was 90, they still had no children. From a human point of view, it could have been easy for them to lose hope. Although this was a severe test for Abraham, he “relied on hope and had faith that he would be the father of many nations” (Rom. 4:18, 19). And, over time, that hope was fulfilled: Abraham became the father of Isaac, the son he had long awaited (Rom. 4: 20-22).

17. How do we know that it is possible for God to declare us righteous and consider us his friends?

17 Like Abraham, we can get Jehovah to declare us righteous and consider us his friends. Therefore, referring to Abraham, Paul said: “The words 'was considered' were not written only for him, but also for us, who will be considered righteous because we believe in him who raised Jesus from the dead” (Rom. 4). :23, 24). We need to have the same three things as Abraham: faith, works and hope. In the next article, we will analyze what Paul said about hope in Romans chapter 5.

WHAT WOULD YOU ANSWER?

What did Paul mean when he wrote that “a man is declared righteous by faith and not by works of the law”?

Paul used the example of Abraham to demonstrate that God's approval is not obtained by doing the works of the law, but by having Faith. What he said is very encouraging because it teaches us that we can have God's approval if we have faith in him and in Christ. 

According to what James said, what relationship is there between faith and works?

A close relationship, just like a check with or without funds in the bank, a faith without works is dead. Even if someone claimed to have faith, since he was not demonstrating it with actions, he was of no use. James wrote that faith alone without works is dead.

In what ways can we demonstrate with works that we have faith?

We can gladly welcome those new to the congregation, help brothers who are in real need, and do good things for our family members. All this pleases Jehovah. Also one of the most important ways to demonstrate our faith is by preaching with enthusiasm.