Wednesday, June 29, 2022

Synergism and Believing as a "work" (εργον) in John 6:27-29

  

IS BELIEVING A WORK?

 

John 6:27-29 says, “’Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of man will give to you . . .’ Then they said to him, ‘What must we do, to be doing the works of God?’ Jesus answered them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.’” Jesus tells His listeners that they should “labor” for the food which endures to eternal life. If Sola Fide is true, why is He telling them to labor for anything in regard to eternal life? Then when they ask what they must “do” to be doing the works of God, what does Jesus say? He says that believing in Him is the work of God that they must do. Believing is a work, at least according to Jesus Christ.

 

Some will say, “Wait a minute, John, Jesus says that believing is a work of God, not a work of man.” Leaving aside for a moment the question of whose work it is, it needs to be pointed out that the Word of God very clearly states that the act of believing is a work. Which is the point I’m making. Now, once we’ve made the point using the Bible that believing is indeed a work, then the question becomes: Whose work is it? Is it a work of God, a work of man, or a work of God and man? . . . a Sola Fide theological system says it has to be the work of God, since man can do no works that impact his eternal life. That results, however, in the position that God believes for us, that He has faith for us. If that were true, then we would have universal salvation, because God wants all men to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4), so He would obviously believe for all men. Yet what Sola Fide adherent believes in universal salvation? None that I know of.

 

It is indeed a work of God, but as the context of John 6:27-29 clearly shows, it is a work that God does through man and with our cooperation. Jesus tells the people to labor for the food that endures to eternal life. The people obviously want to follow Jesus’ instructions, so they ask him what it is they have to do. Did Jesus say, “Why do you ask what work you can do? Do you not know that you can do no work to receive the food which endures to eternal life?” No! that would be a pretty ridiculous thing for Him to say right after He told them they needed to “labor” for that very food. So, this “work of God” being spoken of here, believing in Jesus Christ, is a work that man does. The act of believing is indeed a work—a work of man, but a work of man done by the grace of God. God’s work through man; man’s work by God. Believing is a work. At least, according to Jesus. (John Martignoni, Blue Collar Apologetics: How to Explain and Defend Catholic Teaching Using Common Sense, Simple Logic, and the Bible [Irondale, Ala.: EWTN Publishing, Inc., 2021], 133-34)