Perhaps no passage of scripture is more frequently quoted in evangelical circles than Ephesians 2:8-9: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.”
Yet these verses hold a very different meaning from the one which has been traditionally assigned them.
We’ve noted that the Greek word translated “faith” often carries the active meaning of faithfulness, loyalty or allegiance.
Moreover, “works of Torah” is not a general way of referring to all human behavior or conduct. Rather, when Paul speaks of “works of Torah,” he’s specifically referring to the law given by God to the people of Israel through the prophet Moses. A crucial insight for understanding the Apostle Paul is that “works of Torah” always applies to Israel according to the flesh.
“The flesh” carries two meanings: (1) Israel was fleshly in the sense that they were hard-hearted & rebellious. In Paul’s epistles, the term “flesh” (Greek: sarx) is often translated as “sinful nature” in order to make this clear. (2) The nation of Israel was composed of the physical descendants of Jacob/Israel.
The close connection between works of Torah, Israel and the flesh becomes even more apparent when we examine Paul’s phrase “so that no one can boast (Greek: kauchesetai).” When evangelicals read “not by works, so that no one can boast,” they automatically think that Paul is referring to any human being who is pursuing righteous behavior in order to obtain a favorable status before God. But that is not the case.
Thankfully in Romans chapter 2 we find a passage were Paul clearly explains the context of “boasting”: “17 Now you, if you call yourself a Jew; if you rely on the law and boast (Greek: kauchasai) in God; 18 if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; 19 if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, 20 an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of little children, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— 21 you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? 22 You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? 23 You who boast (kauchasai) in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? 24 As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”
This text gives us great insight into Paul’s mind, which is always firmly rooted in the long story of God and Israel. God had truly given the nation of Israel a very special status. They were the ones who were called to fulfill the role marked out for humanity from the beginning. God fashioned human beings in his own image so that they might exercise dominion over the world, allowing the creation to flourish. In order to achieve this vocation, Israel was given the Torah so that they might offer God the worship and obedience which he requires. By their faithfulness to the covenant, Israel would receive God’s rich blessing.
Moreover, Israel would be the people through whom God would reveal himself to the whole world. The nations would be able to look to Israel and witness God’s good and wise purposes. In this way, all the peoples of the earth might come to know the one true God and live according to his righteousness. Then they too would enjoy God’s blessing, just as God promised Abraham: “Through your offspring, all nations on earth will be blessed.” (Genesis 22:18)
The nation of Israel could rightfully boast that her God was indeed the one true God. The other nations bowed down before worthless idols. Moreover, the gift of Torah revealed God’s righteous requirements to Israel, unlike the Gentiles who stumbled about in ignorance and darkness. Yet despite their possession of the law, Israel (because of her “fleshly” rebellion) failed to keep it. Rather than being a shining example of God’s wisdom and goodness before the nations, Israel instead brought dishonor upon her God by breaking the law.
Therefore, when Paul in Ephesians 2:9 writes “not by works, so that no one can boast,” we can be absolutely certain that he has in mind the story of fleshly Israel failing to keep Torah.
For Paul, God thus faced a two-fold problem:
(1) The Torah was given only to Israel. The Gentiles were shut out, “excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.” (Ephesians 2:12) But God’s purposes where never meant for ethnic Israel alone. He seeks to rescue and redeem people from every nation.
(2) Israel was “in the flesh”; that is, they were obstinate and rebellious. She had failed in her vocation to be the light of the world. The boast of Israel was nullified by her disobedience.
What was God’s solution to these problems?
(1) Inclusion in God’s people in now on the basis of loyalty (“faith”) to Jesus the Messiah and is thus available to all people and not merely the physical descendants of Israel.
(2) The fleshly status of Israel (and all people) has been rectified by Jesus’ death, resurrection & the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The sinful nature of humanity has been put to death along with Jesus on the cross. “Those who belong to Jesus the Messiah have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” (Galatians 5:24)
All those who are in the Messiah are no longer in the flesh but in the Spirit. As Paul says to the Romans, “You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you.” Crucially, those persons who have been renewed “in the Messiah” and are filled with his Spirit now have the power to live righteously and offer God the obedience he requires.
This brings us back to “the gift of God” which Paul cites in Ephesians 2:8. Under the standard interpretation, salvation is a gift which must simply be accepted through faith. Any effort we might exert to improve our conduct is excluded. Yet when the scriptures speak of the gift of God, they’re often referring explicitly to the Holy Spirit.
For example, early in the book of Acts, Jesus’ gives his disciples the following command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days, you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 1:4-5)
This baptism of the Holy Spirit arrived shortly thereafter on the day of Pentecost. The manifestations of the Spirit attracted a large crowd, giving Peter an opportunity to announce Jesus as the Messiah. When his listeners asked how they might respond to this message, Peter said, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus the Messiah for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift (Greek: dorean) of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:38)
This same language is repeated in the account of the Roman centurion Cornelius. God commanded Peter to preach to the Gentile Cornelius along with his relatives and close friends. While Peter was speaking, “the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the message. All the circumcised believers who came with Peter were amazed, because the gift (dorea) of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also.” (Acts 10:44-45)
In light of these passages, evangelicals must significantly alter their understanding of “the gift of God.” True, our salvation is the result of divine initiative. God has reached down to meet us in our helpless estate. But our response to God’s love in Christ must involve more than merely passive acceptance or belief. Loyal obedience is mandatory.
Such obedience cannot be conjured up by our own unaided efforts. Rather, it’s the Spirit which produces the necessary changes. Nevertheless, we must acknowledge that the imitation of Jesus requires hard work and discipline on our part. The fruit of the Spirit include qualities like love, patience and self-control. Anyone who has attempted to practice these virtues for more than five minutes knows that they require strenuous moral effort.
At the end of the day, the gift of the Holy Spirit is a mystery which defies analogy. But rather than thinking it’s something which must be merely accepted, we might imagine a gift like a bicycle. An avid cyclist would be delighted to receive a new bike, but they must still get on and pedal if they want to reach their destination. And so must we, if we wish to be conformed to the image of the Messiah.
