Hi there,
Pleasing
So I have really nailed what it is that confuses me, when people say "without faith you can't please God" and "you can't achieve salvation by works": their sentiment is respectable, and their earnestness admirable, but there is a problem with the way, in which they give no way out. You are given no option, it is believe faith (which is an oxymoron) or surrender to God (which may not be what He is asking). But there is a way to understand both these things, from the perspective of inspiration.
Inspiration
If we look at inspiration, which we had when we just started out in faith, we realise that it is actually possible to please God more. How? By taking His Word and doing something with it, something great! We all have the kernel of this seed, when we believe, we trust that we are going to get beyond "sin" and reach "righteousness", and not only righteousness, but righteousness informed by judgment, which intensifies and expands our righteousness, to be more than we could ever have expected it to be.
Works
So it is our "inspiration" that is super-abounding, even as God Love and Grace are super-abounding towards Us. This has a novel effect on our works, too! Our works, become "inspired works of the Holy Spirit". In other words, our Salvation comes to mean more than it originally did, in fact, our works impress God. That is what the whole Great White Throne Judgment is about, we think we are presenting our works to Jesus on His Throne, but God is within Him and reveals openly what we thought would remain a secret.
Assessment
So then, if our works impress God and our inspiration remains strong: greater works than Jesus will we do. This is because, as He said, He is going to the Father. That is, in an Earthly sense, Jesus is going to make the Power of God (to inspire and do good works, even great works) amplified by the Great White Throne. We crush the Devil doing this, because he was not expecting that any kind of good would come from a dead man on a cross. But we have the Resurrection, our works have already been started, and are on their way to being completed in Christ Jesus. This is the mystery! How could anyone do, what Jesus empowers us to do and if we do it together, does the world not become aware that we are His disciples (in doing it)?
So I hope this has been of some encouragement to you, that your inspiration is not lost, nor your greater works forgotten - and above all else, that God is extremely pleased with you.
God bless.
Pleasing
So I have really nailed what it is that confuses me, when people say "without faith you can't please God" and "you can't achieve salvation by works": their sentiment is respectable, and their earnestness admirable, but there is a problem with the way, in which they give no way out. You are given no option, it is believe faith (which is an oxymoron) or surrender to God (which may not be what He is asking). But there is a way to understand both these things, from the perspective of inspiration.
Inspiration
If we look at inspiration, which we had when we just started out in faith, we realise that it is actually possible to please God more. How? By taking His Word and doing something with it, something great! We all have the kernel of this seed, when we believe, we trust that we are going to get beyond "sin" and reach "righteousness", and not only righteousness, but righteousness informed by judgment, which intensifies and expands our righteousness, to be more than we could ever have expected it to be.
Works
So it is our "inspiration" that is super-abounding, even as God Love and Grace are super-abounding towards Us. This has a novel effect on our works, too! Our works, become "inspired works of the Holy Spirit". In other words, our Salvation comes to mean more than it originally did, in fact, our works impress God. That is what the whole Great White Throne Judgment is about, we think we are presenting our works to Jesus on His Throne, but God is within Him and reveals openly what we thought would remain a secret.
Assessment
So then, if our works impress God and our inspiration remains strong: greater works than Jesus will we do. This is because, as He said, He is going to the Father. That is, in an Earthly sense, Jesus is going to make the Power of God (to inspire and do good works, even great works) amplified by the Great White Throne. We crush the Devil doing this, because he was not expecting that any kind of good would come from a dead man on a cross. But we have the Resurrection, our works have already been started, and are on their way to being completed in Christ Jesus. This is the mystery! How could anyone do, what Jesus empowers us to do and if we do it together, does the world not become aware that we are His disciples (in doing it)?
So I hope this has been of some encouragement to you, that your inspiration is not lost, nor your greater works forgotten - and above all else, that God is extremely pleased with you.
God bless.
