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The sermon strongly separates the covenant of works from the covenant of grace: human morality and religious effort cannot earn God’s favor, and works performed for self-salvation remain sinful. Genuine good works arise from conversion by the Holy Spirit and function as evidence that a person has passed from death to life. They also serve as a Christian’s public testimony, making holy conduct a form of preaching Christ. Spurgeon warns that persistent sinful inconsistency undermines assurance, while assuring repentant sinners that Christ gives forgiveness, a new heart, holiness, and perseverance.
Theological center: Justification is by grace through faith apart from works, but the same grace that saves sinners regenerates them and produces holiness as evidence of spiritual life.
Applications: Live in holiness · Examine your spiritual life · Practice consistent Christianity · Believe in Christ
Primary texts: Titus 2:14 · Ephesians 1:6 · 1 John 3:14
“Zealous of good works.” Titus 2:14 WE shall not be afraid of leading any of you into a legal spirit this morning through what we shall say, for after our frequent exhortations to avoid anything like trusting in your works, attended as they have been, we trust, by the Holy Spirit, we are not afraid that you will so misunderstand us as to suppose that when we speak of good works today, we shall in any way whatever wish you to imagine that they can promote your eternal salvation. We labored when here the Sabbath morning before last, to let you know the difference between the two covenants, the covenant of grace and the covenant of works. [See sermon #69, The Allegories of Sarah and Hagar] We shall beg you to remember what we then said, and if by any slips of the tongue we should say anything that should look like legality, we beg you will put the two together, and wherein we shall err from the great truth of justification by faith, to reject our testimony. “Zealous of good works.” There are some who hear us preach high doctrine and constantly declare that we are saved by grace through faith, and that not of ourselves, it is the gift of God, who, therefore, suppose that we cannot preach good works, and that we could not preach a good sermon of exhortation to Christians to live in holiness. Well, we will not say that we can preach a good sermon, but we will say that we will try and preach one as to that matter that shall be as good as theirs, and as much lead the children of God to live in holiness as any of their exhortations can do, grounded as they are on trusting in the flesh, and based on threatenings, regulations, and promises which they hope will induce God’s children, but which are well enough for slaves, though of little avail in operating on the true-born believer. The children of God are a holy people—for this very purpose were they born and brought into the world that they should be holy. For this they were redeemed with blood and made a peculiar people. God’s end in election, the end of all His purposes, is not answered until they become a people “zealous of good works.” Now, this morning, we shall first of all tell you the nature of good works, for there are many things called good works that are not so at all. Secondly, we shall trace good works to their origin—find where good works came from. Thirdly, we shall attempt to show you the use of good works. And we shall close up by endeavoring to prove that our doctrines, those of free, distinguishing, discriminating grace, have a tendency to make us who believe them “zealous of good works.” I. F…