Discussion Jumpstarter
Study leader reference - not a definitive answer
Question 6
The speaker’s key distinction is “all works of the law are works, but not all works are works of the law,” with categories like “works of God,” “good works,” “works of the flesh,” and “works of the law”—where have you seen Romans/Galatians flattened so that “works of the law” effectively becomes “all human effort,” and what changes if that flattening is wrong?
Another way to ask: The speaker says “works of the law” are only one kind of works, not the same as all effort. Where have you seen Romans and Galatians read like “works of the law” means “anything humans do,” and what changes if that reading is wrong?
Discussion Jumpstarter
Direct Answer
The speaker claims a common flattening happens when “works of the law” is treated as “all human works,” so even good obedience gets condemned as legalism. If that flattening is wrong, Romans and Galatians are not attacking Spirit-powered good works, but specifically opposing ceremonial boundary-markers (like circumcision) being used to justify or rank believers.
- He states the rule: “All works of the law are works, but not all works are works of the law.”
- He lists categories: “works of God… works of good… works of the law… works of the flesh,” insisting they are not the same.
- He defines “works of the law” mainly as “ceremonial works”: “circumcision, certain eating rituals, Sabbath.”
- He claims faith-alone advocates “get rid of the good works, and… shove them under… works of the law,” making everything confusing.
- He describes a lived example: in Bible studies, when a passage “sounded like you need to obey,” people warned, “you’re about to be works of the law… works-based salvation.”