Fewer topics have sparked more religious debate among Christians than the age-old "Faith verses Works" question. As I understand it, one side believes that faith in Jesus Christ and accepting Him as our Savior is the only thing that is required for Salvation, while the other side believes that certain works, rights, or ordinances must be followed in order to be saved. This seemingly simple question can get very involved, and there have been many wonderful discussions and talks given on the subject. Instead of answering the question, "Are we saved by our works, or by faith alone?" I will focus specifically on what members of the Church believe.
The question:
"Do Mormons believe we are saved by works or by faith alone?"
The short answer:
We are saved by the Atonement of Christ as we do our best to keep the laws and ordinances of His Gospel. We must both accept Him and obey Him.
The long answer:
Neither extreme makes much sense to me. To claim that we are saved by our works is like saying we're supposed to earn our way into Heaven. But according to Paul, "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). If our good works earn us a place in heaven, then sin undoes our progress and causes us to fall into spiritual debt. King Benjamin further explains why it is impossible for us to get out of this debt by ourselves: "And now, in the first place, he hath created you, and granted unto you your lives, for which ye are indebted unto him. And secondly, he doth require that ye should do as he hath commanded you; for which if ye do, he doth immediately bless you; and therefore he hath paid you. And ye are still indebted unto him, and are, and will be, forever and ever; therefore, of what have ye to boast?" (Mosiah 2:23-24).
On the other hand, some have claimed that once we accept Jesus as our Savior, nothing more is required of us. But the Savior made it clear that we still have need to keep His commandments. In John 3:5 for example, He makes it clear that baptism is required: "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." Also, in His parable of the sheep and the goats (Matthew 25:31-46), the Savior warned that those who neglected to show kindness and generosity to those around them were not fit for the Kingdom of Heaven. These two scriptures demonstrate the ordinance of baptism and then continued faithfulness necessary to be saved. These could rightfully be considered "good works."
How then do we reconcile these two points of view? We could never do anything to earn our place in Heaven, but we also know there are things we need to do while on this earth. James explained it best: "faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. . . . shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works" (James 2:17-18). In other words, it's not that our works themselves save us, but rather without them, we can't truly claim that we have faith. That makes sense; if we say we believe in Jesus Christ but are not willing to keep His commandments, then do we really believe in Him?
Furthermore, it's not even our faith in Him that saves us. What does save us is His Atonement. The Atonement is what brings us from our current fallen state back into the presence of God. (Note: Atonement = at-one-ment, or to make one.) The details of our Saviors infinite Atonement would merit an entire discussion on its own, so suffice it to say that Jesus paid the debt that all of us owe because of our sins and mistakes; he paid it in full. But that doesn't mean we all get off scott-free. By paying the debt for us, He became our new creditor. But it's okay, because His terms are much easier than those exacted by Justice alone.
By far my favorite analogy is that of the Mediator. I highly recommend you read the entire story here. In summary, a man accrued a great debt, and when it came due, he was unable to pay. If he did not pay, he would be thrown in prison, but it was impossible for him to pay; he did not have the money. His creditor was ready to seize his possessions and take him away, but then the man's Friend stepped in. The Friend offered to pay the man's debt if the man would accept Him as his new creditor. The terms would not be easy, but it would be possible. He wouldn't have to go to prison, and he could keep his possessions.
Let's dissect the parable. The man represents each of us. The debt is our sins, mistakes, and shortcomings that make us unworthy to be in God's presence. The man's first creditor is the law of justice, that demands that all debts be paid or that the consequences be suffered. Being imprisoned would mean being shut out of the presence of God forever. It is obvious then that the man's Friend is Jesus. He is both willing and able to pay the debt, and He has already done so and become our new Creditor. So do we save ourselves from prison by making payments to our Creditor? Not exactly; it would be impossible to be saved if we did not make the payments, but He is the one that made it possible in the first place.
If this parable is an accurate representation of our relationship with the Savior, then all that remains is to determine how we "make payments" to Him. He has asked nothing more or less than our best. Nephi explained that "it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do" (2 Nephi 25:23). And what exactly is "all we can do?" As Jesus taught, we are to "love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. . . . this do, and thou shalt live." (Luke 10:27-28, emphasis added). We will always fall short of that lofty goal. But thanks to His Atonement, if we accept Him as our Savior and do our best to keep all of His commandments, He will make up the difference.
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