32 Bible Verses about Salvation Not By Works

By grace (Greek: charis, divine favor, loving-kindness) you have been saved through faith. It is not from you. It is the gift from God! It is not the result of works. So no man should boast.

I do not reject the grace (totally undeserved gift) of God: for if righteousness is [gained] through the law, then Christ died for nothing.

God did what the Law could not do, because human nature was weak. He sent his own son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering and do away with sin. So he condemned sin in sinful human nature.

So then it does not depend on mans will or effort, but on God who shows mercy.

If it is by grace then it is no longer on the basis of works. Otherwise grace is not grace (undeserved kindness). But if it is of works then it is not by grace. Otherwise works are no longer works.

Behold, I Paul say to you, that, if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you.

You who seek to be righteous by Law are separated from Christ. You have fallen away from grace.

Through him all who believe are justified from all things. You could not be justified through the Law of Moses.

No flesh will be justified before God by works of the law. Knowledge of sin comes from the law. But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets. God makes people righteous through their active faith in Jesus Christ. God does this to all who believe in Christ, because there is no difference at all.read more.
For all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God being justified freely by his grace (as a gift) through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. God displayed Christ publicly as propitiation (atonement) by his blood through faith. It demonstrated his righteousness. It was through the forbearance of God that he passed by the sins that had taken place before. It showed his righteousness at this present season that he might himself be righteous, and the justifier of he who has faith in Jesus. Where is the boasting? It is excluded. Is it by law? Is it by works? No, it is by a principle of faith. We reason therefore that a man is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. Or is God the God of the Jews only? Is he not the God of the nations also? Yes, of the nations also. If God is one he will justify the circumcised by faith, and the uncircumcised through faith.

What shall we say about Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh? If Abraham was declared righteous by works, he could boast, but not to God. For what does the scriptures say? Abraham believed Jehovah, and it was counted to him as righteousness. (Genesis 15:6)read more.
The pay is counted to the man who works. It is not as grace but as a debt. He who does not work but believes in him who justifies (absolves) the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. David also pronounces blessing on the man, to whom God counts righteousness apart from works, saying: Blessed are those whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.

But Israel, pursuing after a law of righteousness, has not attained to that law. Why? It is because it was not based on the principle of faith, but on that of works. They have stumbled at the stumbling stone.

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and do not have love, I have become like loud sounding brass, or a clashing cymbal. If I have the gift of prophesy, and know all secrets and all knowledge, and though I have all faith so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Yet we know that a man is not righteous by the works of the law, but through faith in Jesus Christ. We believed on Christ Jesus, that we might be righteous by faith in Christ, and not by the works of the law. The works of the law justify no one.

Those who are of the works of the Law are under a curse. For it is written, Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all things written in the book of the Law, by obeying them. The fact that the Law justifies no man before God is evident. The righteous will live by faith. The Law is not based on faith. He that does them will live by them.

Is the Law then against the promises of God? God forbid! If a law had been given which could impart life, righteousness would have been from the Law.

Now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how is it that you turn back again to the weak and poor fundamental things? Do you want to slave for them all over again? You observe days and months, seasons and years. I fear for you, that I have labored for you to no purpose (and failed).

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision means anything, nor uncircumcision, but faith working through love.

For neither is circumcision anything, nor uncircumcision anything, but a new creature is.

We are those with true circumcision who worship by the Spirit of God. We glory in Christ Jesus, and put no confidence in the flesh. I might have confidence even in the flesh. If any other man thinks to have confidence in the flesh, I have more! I was circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;read more.
as touching zeal, persecuting the church; as touching the righteousness which is in the law, found blameless. Things that offered gain to me I count a loss for Christ. I count all things to be loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. I suffered the loss of all things. Yet I count them as refuse (garbage) (dung) that I may gain Christ. I want to be united with him. I no longer want a righteousness of my own that is gained by obeying the law. The righteousness from God is by faith in Christ.

If you died with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to ordinances: Do not handle. Do not taste. Do not touch. These are the precepts and doctrines of men.read more.
These have, indeed, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body. But these are not of any value against the indulgence of the flesh.

God has saved us and called us with a holy calling. This is not according to our works, but according to his purpose and grace that was granted us in Christ Jesus, from all eternity.

When the kindness of God our Savior, and his love toward man, appeared, not by works done in righteousness, which we did, but according to his mercy he saved us, through the washing of regeneration (restoration) (spiritual rebirth) and renewing (renovation) of the Holy Spirit.

We who believe enter into the rest. As God said: I swore in my anger: 'They shall not enter into my rest.' Yet God's works were completed from the foundation of the world. Somewhere God said this about the seventh day: God rested on the seventh day from all his works. Again: They shall not enter into my rest.read more.
It remains for some to enter into it. Those who first received the good news did not enter in because they did not obey and lacked faith. He determines a certain day by saying through David: Today, after so long a time; just as it was said before, Today, if you will listen to his voice, do not harden your hearts. (Psalm 95:7) If Joshua had given them rest, he [God] would not have spoken afterwards about another day. There remains then a Sabbath rest for the people of God. He who enters into his rest also rests from his own works, just as God did from his.

Therefore leaving the elementary truths of the doctrine of Christ let us move on to maturity. Let us not lay again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God. We should not repeat the basic teachings about baptisms, and of the laying on of hands (setting apart for holy tasks), and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.

Whoever obeys the whole law and yet stumbles in one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who said: Do not commit adultery, also said: Do not murder (Greek: phoneuo: kill, slay, murder). Now if you do not commit adultery, but you commit murder, you have become a transgressor of the law.

No flesh will be justified before God by works of the law. Knowledge of sin comes from the law.

He then spoke this illustration to some who trusted in themselves. They were very self-righteous. They looked down on others: Two men went to the temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed like this: God, I thank you, that I am not like the rest of men, extortionists, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector.read more.
I fast twice per week. I give tithes of all that I get. But the tax collector stood far away and would not lift up so much as his eyes to heaven. He beat his breast, saying: God, be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you the tax collector and not the Pharisee was right with God when he went home. He who exalts himself will be humbled! He who humbles himself will be exalted!

I also tell you, your righteousness must be greater than the scribes and Pharisees or you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven.

No one can ever redeem (buy back) his brother or pay God a ransom for his life. The price to be paid for him is so costly it can never be paid

([Psalm of Solomon]) If Jehovah does not build the house, it is vain for the builders to work on it. If Jehovah does not protect a city, it is vain for the guard to stay alert. It is vain to work hard for the food you eat by getting up early and going to bed late. Jehovah gives food to those he loves while they sleep.

All of us have become unclean, and all our righteous acts are like permanently stained rags. All of us wither like leaves, and our sins carry us away like the wind.

They will throw their gold and silver away in the streets like garbage (like an abhorrent thing), because neither silver nor gold can save them when Jehovah pours out his fury. They cannot use it to satisfy their desires or fill their stomachs. Gold and silver led them into sin.