Guest Post by Dr. Robert Fastiggi, Professor of Dogmatic Theology
Photo credit: The Virgin and Child with an Angel (c. 1500), by Pietro Perugino (1448-1523) [public domain / Wikimedia Commons]
Dr. Robert Fastiggi, Bishop Kevin M. Britt Chair of Dogmatic Theology and Christology, has been at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit since 1999. Dr. Fastiggi received an A.B. in Religion (summa cum laude) from Dartmouth College in 1974; a M.A. in Theology from Fordham University in 1976; and a Ph.D. in Historical Theology from Fordham in 1987. During his time at Sacred Heart, Dr. Fastiggi has taught courses in Ecclesiology, Christology, Mariology, church history, sacramental theology, and moral theology. He is a member of the Society for Catholic Liturgy, the Mariological Society of America, the International Marian Association, and a corresponding member of the Pontifical Marian Academy International (P.A.M.I).
He served as the executive editor of the 2009-2013 supplements to the New Catholic Encyclopedia and the co-editor of the English translation of the 43rd edition of the Denzinger-Hünermann compendium published by Ignatius Press in 2012. He also revised and updated the translation of Ludwig Ott’s Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma for Baronius Press in 2018. I have compiled several of his articles (a number of them, exclusively) on my blog.
[from private correspondence, with his permission]
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All of the following material is from Dr. Fastiggi, save for a few instances of bracketed comments and my initial question that I asked him (modified a bit presently):
Is the belief that the Blessed Virgin Mary is free from actual sin an infallible one in Catholicism? I looked up Ludwig Ott’s classification and it was sententia fidei proxima. How does that relate to infallibility? Could one hold that Mary did commit or may have committed actual sin and still be a Catholic in good standing, and not be regarded as “anti-Mary” or heterodox? It’s a question that should, I think, be directed towards someone like yourself, who is qualified to address it.
Personally, I certainly believe that she didn’t actually sin — whatever the technical classification is — , because I think that would be fitting, just as her Immaculate Conception and Assumption were. I also think that Holy Scripture teaches her sinlessness in Luke 1:28 and I’ve defended these views for over thirty years.
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I think a strong case can be made that Mary’s freedom from actual sin is infallible by virtue of the ordinary universal Magisterium.
[With regard to how] the Catholic Church understands Rom 3:23: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”: the “all” must have exceptions since Jesus was sinless. Therefore, Mary can also be an exception. I also like to bring up the example of the good angels. They never sinned.
There are several points to make. First, a teaching does not need to be defined to be infallible. Some teachings are infallible by virtue of the ordinary universal Magisterium as Lumen Gentium, 25 teaches. The infallibility of the ordinary universal Magisterium is also taught at Vatican I (Denz.-H 3011).
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There are also definitive teachings of the Church that have not been set forth as revealed by God, but they are nevertheless taught in an infallible and definitive manner. John Paul II’s teaching in his 1994 document, Ordinatio Sacerdotalis (on the reservation of the priesthood only to men) was described by the CDF as having been “set forth infallibly by the ordinary and universal Magisterium.” (Denz.-H 5041). It was not described as a truth revealed by God. In the 1998 Commentary on the Profession of Faith issued by Cardinal Ratzinger and Archbishop Bertone, the teaching of Ordinatio Sacerdotalis is described as belonging to the second level of assent given to definitive infallible teachings that have not been set forth as revealed by God. They are infallible, though, by virtue of the divine assistance given to the Magisterium when it makes a definitive judgment.
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Some of these teachings can be described as within the category of sententia fidei proxima. In other words, they are not declared to be revealed by God, but they have a close or logical connection to what has been revealed by God. Therefore, when Fr. Ludwig Ott describes Mary’s freedom from actual sin as a sententia fidei proxima, he does not, I believe, mean that this teaching is “non-infallible.” Rather he means that it is a truth close to what has been revealed by God. It could, therefore, be understood as belonging to what is known as a “secondary object of infallibility.”
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There are other theological manuals, though, that maintain Mary’s immunity from venial sin during her lifetime is de fide and, therefore, infallible. Fr. Joseph de Aldema, S.J. holds this position in Sacrae Theologiae Summa Vol. III, Tractatus II (Madrid, 1950), p. 318. Fr. de Aldema points to the Council of Trent “where the faith of the Church regarding this privilege is defined” (ubi definitur fides Ecclesiae circa hoc privilegium). Fr. de Aldema has in mind Trent’s Decree on Justification, canon 23, which recognizes that the Church holds that the Blessed Virgin Mary, by a special privilege of God, was able to avoid all sins, even venial sins, throughout her entire life (cf. Denz.-H 1573).
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[Some might] claim that this was not a definition but merely an affirmation of the Church’s long standing belief in Mary’s special protection from personal sins. Trent, though, includes this affirmation within a canon followed by an anathema. This certainly shows that the Church’s belief in Mary’s special protection from actual sin is affirmed within a dogmatic canon of an ecumenical council.
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But even if one were to claim Trent was not defining Mary’s freedom from actual sin, there are other magisterial statements that show this is the teaching of the ordinary universal Magisterium. Here are some examples:
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Pius V, in his 1567, Ex omnibus afflictionibus against the errors of Michael Baius, condemned the view that Mary’s afflictions in life were the result of actual or original sins (Denz.-H 1973).
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Pius IX, in his 1854 Bull, Ineffabilis Deus, defining the Immaculate Conception, taught that Mary was “always and absolutely free from every stain of sin” (ab omni prorsus peccati labe semper libera) [Denz.-H 2800)]. Mary’s freedom from every stain of sin is “always” (semper). This teaching comes from a papal Bull making a dogmatic definition. To say Pius IX was only expressing a “non-infallible” teaching does not seem to take seriously the weight of a papal dogmatic bull.
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Pius XII, in his 1943 encyclical, Mystici Corporis, no. 110, says: “It was she, the second Eve, who, free from all sin, original or personal, and always more intimately united with her Son … ” Here we have the Roman Pontiff, in a major encyclical, affirming the truth that Mary was ‘free from all sin, original or personal.”
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John Paul II, in his General Audience of June 12, 1996, not only taught that Mary was free from all sin (personal as well as original) but she also never had concupiscence (the inclination to sin) because concupiscence comes from sin according to Trent (Denz.-H 1515):
The immunity ‘from every stain of original sin’ entails as a positive consequence the total freedom from all sin as well as the proclamation of Mary’s perfect holiness, a doctrine to which the dogmatic definition makes a fundamental contribution. In fact, the negative formulation of the Marian privilege, which resulted from the earlier controversies about original sin that arose in the West, must always be complemented by the positive expression of Mary’s holiness more explicitly stressed in the Eastern tradition.
* Pius IX’s definition refers only to the freedom from original sin and does not explicitly include the freedom from concupiscence. Nevertheless, Mary’s complete preservation from every stain of sin also has as a consequence her freedom from concupiscence, a disordered tendency which, according to the Council of Trent, comes from sin and inclines to sin (DS 1515). (emphasis added).
I believe Mary’s immunity from personal, actual sin is a logical consequence of her Immaculate Conception, which has been defined de fide. If Mary, as Pius IX, teaches, was “always and absolutely free from every stain of sin,” personal sins would mean she was not “always and absolutely free from every stain of sin.” The position that Mary could have committed personal sins stands in direct contradiction to the teaching of a papal dogmatic Bull.
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I think a good case can be made that Mary’s freedom from personal sin was solemnly taught by Trent and Pius IX. But even if you believe Mary’s freedom [from] personal sin has not been defined, it still has been taught by the ordinary and universal Magisterium.
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To say, however, that this a non-infallible teaching does not do justice to the Church’s consistent affirmation of Mary as all-holy and free from personal sin as well as actual sin.
I should also note that Pius IX, in Ineffabilis Deus, teaches that Mary has “such a plentitude of innocence and sanctity that, under God, none greater can be known and, apart from God, no mind could ever succeed in comprehending.” (Denz.-H 2800). If Mary was able to commit personal sins, we could easily think of a creature of higher holiness: namely one who could never commit personal sins. What Pius IX says in Ineffabilis Deus completely rules out the possibility of personal sin. Although the object of the definition of Ineffabilis Deus is the dogma of Mary’s Immaculate Conception, Mary’s immunity from personal sin has a logical connection to her Immaculate Conception.
7. The truths belonging to this second paragraph can be of various natures, thus giving different qualities to their relationship with revelation. There are truths which are necessarily connected with revelation by virtue of an historical relationship; while other truths evince a logical connection that expresses a stage in the maturation of understanding of revelation which the Church is called to undertake. The fact that these doctrines may not be proposed as formally revealed, insofar as they add to the data of faith elements that are not revealed or which are not yet expressly recognized as such, in no way diminishes their definitive character, which is required at least by their intrinsic connection with revealed truth. Moreover, it cannot be excluded that at a certain point in dogmatic development, the understanding of the realities and the words of the deposit of faith can progress in the life of the Church, and the Magisterium may proclaim some of these doctrines as also dogmas of divine and catholic faith.
8. With regard to the nature of the assent owed to the truths set forth by the Church as divinely revealed (those of the first paragraph) or to be held definitively (those of the second paragraph), it is important to emphasize that there is no difference with respect to the full and irrevocable character of the assent which is owed to these teachings. The difference concerns the supernatural virtue of faith: in the case of truths of the first paragraph, the assent is based directly on faith in the authority of the Word of God (doctrines de fide credenda); in the case of the truths of the second paragraph, the assent is based on faith in the Holy Spirit’s assistance to the Magisterium and on the Catholic doctrine of the infallibility of the Magisterium (doctrines de fide tenenda).
I believe Mary’s immunity from personal sin has a logical connection to the dogma of the Immaculate Conception. It is a definitive infallible teaching of the ordinary universal Magisterium. It requires definitive assent. To describe this teaching as “non-infallible” shows a lack of appreciation of its logical connection to the dogma of the Immaculate Conception. Moreover, such a position contradicts the expressed teaching of Pius IX in a dogmatic papal bull as well as other papal teachings.
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Photo credit: The Virgin and Child with an Angel (c. 1500), by Pietro Perugino (1448-1523) [public domain / Wikimedia Commons]
Summary: Dr. Robert Fastiggi, professor of dogmatic theology, explains how and why a belief in Mary’s sinlessness is infallible by virtue of the ordinary magisterium and other factors.
37:26 what’s going on in a lot of these fathers [is] that most of the times when the fathers are talking about . . . things that look like works contribute to your justification, usually what’s going on is, 1) they’re just talking about how committing mortal sin destroys faith, 2) they’re talking about how receiving the sacraments saves or how hearing the word or whatever saves, or 3) they’re talking about good works meriting rewards in heaven: perhaps different levels of reward. All three of those are compatible with the Lutheran view . . .
What Roman Catholicism needs to show is that the fathers are saying that works contribute to justification in a sense stronger than any of those three. Let’s look at First Clement . . . We . . . reiterate how strong Clement’s language of justification by faith alone is . . . you could read
this to any normal well read theologian without mentioning the author and it would clearly come across as an espousal of justification by faith alone. He says that we are justified before God . . . then he goes on to say [we]:
are not justified by ourselves or by our own wisdom or understanding or godliness or works which we have wrought in holiness of heart, but by the faith through which from the beginning almighty God has justified all men to whom the glory be forever and ever. Amen. [from 1st Clement, ch. 32]
39:40 the only good Roman retort to this would be an appeal to “oh yeah, he’s only talking about initial justification, that is, that moment in time where man for the first time is is translated or moved from the state of being a child of wrath standing under God’s condemnation and then transferred into this state of grace whereby his sins are forgiven and he enters into a relationship with God.” And yeah, the Roman Catholic might be able to say “yeah that is without works; that is without any good deeds or anything,” but notice here and and be careful in reading the words of Clement here because not only is this to impose a category and conceptualization which is absent from Clement’s work . . . but it would also seem to run quite contrary to Clement’s own definition, because here he is talking about the justification of all men forever not just some initial point or initial translation and he’s also excluding works done in holiness of heart.
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We have to take in all of the relevant elements of his letter together, so that, if indeed he mentions works in conjunction with justification elsewhere, then we have to explain why he doesn’t in this portion. The Catholic distinction between initial and subsequent justification would harmonize the two motifs. Or we can assert that Clement contradicted himself, or the good folks at the Scholastic Lutherans channel can interact with the sort of things I bring up here and propose another explanation. But the latter is like pulling teeth: to get Protestants to interact with serious critiques of their explanations (let alone to interact with our arguments). I hope for a change that this will prove to be an exception.
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I would contend that in chapter 32, Clement is opposing salvation by works, or what was later to be the heresy of Pelagianism, and asserting grace alone, with which Catholicism fully agrees. Even when we talk about works, as the Bible does (connecting it to salvation and justification at least a hundred times) it’s always good works understood to be enabled and ultimately produced by God’s grace. They’re not self-generated. They originate in God’s power, grace, and will, and we cooperate with Him and perform them. Then he pronounces them to be meritorious (a biblical doctrine for which I have found fifty passages in support). The Council of Trent is very clear about this.
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If chapter 32 was all we had from Clement, or all he wrote about this topic, then sure, I agree that it would sound, at least prima facie, like he believed in faith alone. But we also have other portions that address the topic of faith and works in connection to justification and salvation, which disprove that take, and which, as usual in these patristic discussions, are ignored by our three Lutheran apologists. They present a partial truth or a half-truth. It’s extremely common in Protestant patristics, especially on an amateur, lay, non-scholarly level. I frequently cite Protestant scholars like Schaff or Pelikan or Kelly who do not selectively cite in this fashion. But it’s endemic in popular lay Protestant apologetics.
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and that is really key to understand here because only justified believers — only the regenerate people — are able to do works in holiness of heart because outside faith there is no holiness of heart so he’s also excluding good works done by the believers, which shows that he is not talking about those initially justified but all believers. . . . he says this is how almighty God has justified all men from the beginning and and and only by trying to read in foreign categories can you try to frame it in a different manner . . .
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I think he is simply expressing the belief in justification by faith, that we agree with when it is applied to initial justification. I have compiled fifty passages about justification by faith also. It’s a biblical doctrine. But Protestants make a false dichotomy between those and the hundred, and fifty about the role that works and merit play in the process of salvation. We incorporate all of them into our theological understanding. We deny justification by faith alone, but not justification by faith itself. What is “foreign” is to separate sanctification from justification, a thing — as Protestant church historian Alister McGrath asserts — that no one did until Philp Melanchthon in the 16th century.
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45:18 we can easily come up with a coherent understanding . . . without like trying to to conjure up some artificial contradiction between his two statements on justification
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They bring up a few other things, too, but I want to see how they would respond to my argument from other statements of Clement’s, that I shall now present. It’s easy to set up a “triumphant” explanation if one ignores any serious contrary views.
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In chapter 30 St. Clement wrote:
Let us clothe ourselves with concord and humility, ever exercising self-control, standing far off from all whispering and evil-speaking, being justified by our works, and not our words.
In the next chapter he stated about Abraham:
For what reason was our father Abraham blessed? Was it not because he wrought righteousness and truth through faith?
Then Clement teaches justification by faith in chapter 32. We totally agree, as to initial justification. We simply believe that good works (which are meritorious) are necessary after initial justification. But in talking about salvation, it’s clear that he thinks that faith and works are both required, not only faith:
For, as God lives, and as the Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost live — both the faith and hope of the elect, he who in lowliness of mind, . . . has observed the ordinances and appointments given by God— the same shall obtain a place and name in the number of those who are being saved through Jesus Christ, . . . [58]
And again: “On account of her faith and hospitality, Rahab the harlot was saved” (chapter 12), and: “He [Abraham], in the exercise of obedience, went out from his own country, and from his kindred, and from his father’s house, in order that, by forsaking a small territory, and a weak family, and an insignificant house, he might inherit the promises of God. . . . On account of his faith and hospitality, a son was given him [Abraham] in his old age” (chapter 10), and: “On account of his hospitality and godliness, Lot was saved out of Sodom” (chapter 11), and: “It is requisite, therefore, that we be prompt in the practice of well-doing; for of Him are all things. And thus He forewarns us: ‘Behold, the Lord [comes], and His reward is before His face, to render to every man according to his work.’” (chapter 34).
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See the theme and common thread there? He’s very explicit about the crucial role of works and merit in chapters 21 and 35:
Take heed, beloved, lest His many kindnesses lead to the condemnation of us all. [For thus it must be] unless we walk worthy of Him, and with one mind do those things which are good and well-pleasing in His sight. . . . Let us reverence the Lord Jesus Christ, whose blood was given for us; let us esteem those who have the rule over us; let us honour the aged among us; let us train up the young men in the fear of God; let us direct our wives to that which is good. Let them exhibit the lovely habit of purity [in all their conduct]; let them show forth the sincere disposition of meekness; let them make manifest the command which they have of their tongue, by their manner of speaking; let them display their love, not by preferring one to another, but by showing equal affection to all that piously fear God. Let your children be partakers of true Christian training; let them learn of how great avail humility is with God — how much the spirit of pure affection can prevail with Him — how excellent and great His fear is, and how it saves all those who walk in it with a pure mind. [my italics]
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Let us therefore earnestly strive to be found in the number of those that wait for Him, in order that we may share in His promised gifts. But how, beloved, shall this be done? If our understanding be fixed by faith towards God; if we earnestly seek the things which are pleasing and acceptable to Him; if we do the things which are in harmony with His blameless will; and if we follow the way of truth, casting away from us all unrighteousness and iniquity, along with all covetousness, strife, evil practices, deceit, whispering, and evil-speaking, all hatred of God, pride and haughtiness, vain glory and ambition. [my bolding and italics]
All of this is thoroughly Catholic soteriology. Some, however, might refer to Clement’s statement about Abraham in chapter 31: “For what reason was our father Abraham blessed? Was it not because he wrought righteousness and truth through faith?” Yes, Abraham had faith. He’s the father of faith. He’s renowned for that. But he also had works. Jordan didn’t mention another instance (one of just three) where Abraham is mentioned, in chapter 10: “He, in the exercise of obedience, went out from his own country, . . . in order that, . . . he might inherit the promises of God.” That’s talking about works. One passage is about his faith, another about his works. Faith and works . . . We can’t only mention one and ignore the other. Clement was referring to Romans 4, which is about Abraham’s faith. But James 2:21-24 is also in the Bible:
Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar? [22] You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by works, [23] and the scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness”; and he was called the friend of God. [24] You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone.
James directly ties the “reckoned as righteous” passage to Abraham’s work of being willing to sacrifice Isaac, which “fulfilled” the other passage. It’s not just faith. It’s faith that inherently, organically includes works, which “complete” faith. Genesis also makes it clear that Abraham’s obedience was central to God’s covenant with him:
Genesis 22:15-18 And the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven, [16] and said, “By myself I have sworn, says the LORD, because you have done this, and have not withheld your son, your only son, [17] I will indeed bless you, and I will multiply your descendants as the stars of heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore. And your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies, [18] and by your descendants shall all the nations of the earth bless themselves, because you have obeyed my voice.”
Catholics joyfully agree that Abraham had extraordinary faith. But we don’t ignore the role that his works and obedience played in his being so honored by God, and saved. The author of Hebrews also mentions Abraham’s works. He ties it together with his faith, even in the famous “faith chapter”: “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place which he was to receive as an inheritance . . .” (11:8). For more on Abraham’s justification, see my article: Abraham: Justified Twice by Works & Once by Faith [8-30-23].
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At 48:40 they cite this portion from St. Ignatius of Antioch:
Let none of you be found a deserter. Let your baptism endure as your arms; your faith as your helmet; your love as your spear; your patience as a complete panoply. Let your works be the charge assigned to you, that you may receive a worthy recompense. (Epistle to Polycarp, ch. 6)
49:05 that’s just plain scriptural, right? I mean, that’s language that’s used all the time in the scriptures and so Trent has to assume that the Protestants can’t [or] don’t have any way of reading that language in the Holy Scriptures, and since we think that we do, his response isn’t going to be sufficient.
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Maybe not, or maybe so. But for whatever it’s worth, here is my response:
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I think equally pious, reasonable Christians can hold that he could be referring (in using “recompense”) either to differential rewards in heaven or the reward of heaven itself. I shall contend that it is the latter, and provide reasons for so believing. If it refers to differential rewards, it’s no problem for Catholicism, since we agree that these occur. But if it refers to heaven, it’s a problem for the Protestant sola fide position. The fact that he refers to the possibility of desertion and also includes the corresponding idea of “endure” may mean that — at least at that point — Ignatius had apostasy in mind.
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Thus, “recompense “would seem to be the converse of falling away: staying the course unto salvation itself. A paraphrase, if this is correct, would be: “Don’t fall away. Let your baptism, faith, love, patience, and works in general preclude this eventuality, and lead to the reward of heaven.” In 1 Corinthians 3:14 Paul, I think, refers to differential rewards in heaven. In Colossians 3:24 it seems to be heaven (“from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward”). So Paul uses the notion in two ways.
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In the next chapter (7), Ignatius talks very “Catholic” and states, “I also am the more encouraged, resting without anxiety in God, if indeed by means of suffering I may attain to God, so that, through your prayers, I may be found a disciple [of Christ].” He attains to God and will be found to be a disciple if he suffers (not a word about faith there). This is meritorious works (anathema to Lutheranism and larger Protestantism). Ignatius didn’t stick works into a separate category of “non-salvific sanctification” as Lutherans do.
Then he writes, “Now, this work is both God’s and yours, when you shall have completed it to His glory. For I trust that, through grace, you are prepared for every good work pertaining to God.” Here he expresses the paradoxical biblical notion that our good works, enabled by God’s grace and done in faith, are at the same time God’s works, too. This means they are meritorious: examples of what St. Augustine calls “God crowning His own gifts.” This reflects four statements from St. Paul:
1 Corinthians 3:10 (RSV) According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and another man is building upon it. Let each man take care how he builds upon it.
1 Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God which is with me.
2 Corinthians 1:12 For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience that we have behaved in the world, and still more toward you, with holiness and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God.
2 Corinthians 6:1 Working together with him, then, we entreat you not to accept the grace of God in vain. (in 6:7 Paul said that he did various things by “the power of God”)
In his Epistle to the Smyrnaeans, Ignatius couples “faith and love” three times (Greeting, chapters 6, 13), and he writes:
Let no man deceive himself. Both the things which are in heaven, and the glorious angels, and rulers, both visible and invisible, if they believe not in the blood of Christ, shall, in consequence, incur condemnation. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it.Matthew 19:12 Let not [high] place puff any one up: for that which is worth all is faith and love, to which nothing is to be preferred. But consider those who are of a different opinion with respect to the grace of Christ which has come unto us, how opposed they are to the will of God. They have no regard for love; no care for the widow, or the orphan, or the oppressed; of the bond, or of the free; of the hungry, or of the thirsty. (6)
He places faith and works together; directly reflecting the words of Jesus at the Last Judgment in Matthew 25:31-46, and when he is commenting on grace he immediately brings up various good works. He refers to grace, faith, love, and good works, all in the same context, which is what St. Paul habitually does. Again, in his Epistle to the Trallians, he makes similar connections: “Wherefore, clothing yourselves with meekness, be renewed in faith, that is the flesh of the Lord, and in love, that is the blood of Jesus Christ” (ch. 8). In his Epistle to the Magnesians, he couples “faith and love” three times (chapters 1, 6, 13). In his Epistle to the Ephesians, he again uses the phrase “faith and love” twice (chapters 1, 14). And he associates faith and works:
. . . your name, much-beloved in God, which you have acquired by the habit of righteousness, according to the faith and love in Jesus Christ our Saviour. (1)
For it was needful for me to have been stirred up by you in faith, exhortation, patience, and long-suffering. (3)
. . . faith cannot do the works of unbelief, nor unbelief the works of faith. (8)
. . . making use of the Holy Spirit as a rope, while your faith was the means by which you ascended, and your love the way which led up to God. You, therefore, as well as all your fellow-travellers, are God-bearers, temple-bearers, Christ-bearers, bearers of holiness, adorned in all respects with the commandments of Jesus Christ, . . . (9)
None of these things is hid from you, if you perfectly possess that faith and love towards Christ Jesus which are the beginning and the end of life. For the beginning is faith, and the end is love . . . The tree is made manifest by its fruit; so those that profess themselves to be Christians shall be recognised by their conduct. For there is not now a demand for mere profession, but that a man be found continuing in the power of faith to the end. (14)
This simply isn’t faith alone, folks; no way, no how. Then they move on to the Epistle of Mathetes to Diognetus:
49:33 ultimately why it’s so impressive is it seems to teach . . . [that] he himself took on him the burden of our iniquities; he gave his son as a ransom for us: “the Holy One for transgressors; the blameless One for the wicked; the righteous one for the unrighteous; the Incorruptible one for the corruptible, so on so forth, for what other thing was capable of covering our sins than his righteousness. By what other one was it possible that we the wicked and ungodly should be justified than by the only son of God? Oh sweet exchange oh and searchable operations oh benefits surpassing all expectations that the wickedness of many shall be head hid in a single righteous one and that the righteousness of one should justify many transgressors . . . ” Pretty clearly consistent with what Protestants believe and a lot harder, I think, to square with Roman Catholicism because this righteousness is found in another. . . . the language of imputation here . . . these are like the exact same categories Martin Luther would pick up 1,400 or so years later . . .
* When the fathers talk about good works being rewarded and that we will gain recompenses . . . only if you presuppose the Roman understanding that the recompense and the reward is an increase of our justice before God, only then will these quotations provide any form of support for the Roman Catholic understanding. We Lutherans confess in all of our confessions that God will reward good works done done here on earth that there will be heavenly gifts and rewards for us for the good works we do, but these things have nothing to do with our standing before God, which hinges on Christ’s righteousness, not our works.
Now here is my different take on this letter, with regard to soteriology. Here is the entire chapter that they cited, in the Epistle to Diognetus with regard to justification:
As long then as the former time endured, He permitted us to be borne along by unruly impulses, being drawn away by the desire of pleasure and various lusts. This was not that He at all delighted in our sins, but that He simply endured them; nor that He approved the time of working iniquity which then was, but that He sought to form a mind conscious of righteousness, so that being convinced in that time of our unworthiness of attaining life through our own works, it should now, through the kindness of God, be vouchsafed to us; and having made it manifest that in ourselves we were unable to enter into the kingdom of God, we might through the power of God be made able. But when our wickedness had reached its height, and it had been clearly shown that its reward, punishment and death, was impending over us; and when the time had come which God had before appointed for manifesting His own kindness and power, how the one love of God, through exceeding regard for men, did not regard us with hatred, nor thrust us away, nor remember our iniquity against us, but showed great long-suffering, and bore with us, He Himself took on Him the burden of our iniquities, He gave His own Son as a ransom for us, the holy One for transgressors, the blameless One for the wicked, the righteous One for the unrighteous, the incorruptible One for the corruptible, the immortal One for those who are mortal. For what other thing was capable of covering our sins than His righteousness? By what other one was it possible that we, the wicked and ungodly, could be justified, than by the only Son of God? O sweet exchange! O unsearchable operation! O benefits surpassing all expectation! That the wickedness of many should be hid in a single righteous One, and that the righteousness of One should justify many transgressors! Having therefore convinced us in the former time that our nature was unable to attain to life, and having now revealed the Saviour who is able to save even those things which it was [formerly] impossible to save, by both these facts He desired to lead us to trust in His kindness, to esteem Him our Nourisher, Father, Teacher, Counsellor, Healer, our Wisdom, Light, Honour, Glory, Power, and Life, so that we should not be anxious concerning clothing and food. (ch. 9; complete)
This is discussing initial justification. There is no disagreement here. This is referring to an imputation of righteousness to the believer that Catholics can agree with, per the explanations of former Presbyterian minister and professor Kenneth Howell:
I am puzzled why anyone would say that extrinsic righteousness might be excluded by Trent. The only righteousness that justifies is Christ’s. But Catholic theology teaches that what is Christ’s becomes ours by grace. In fact Canon 10 anathematizes anyone who denies that we can be justified without Christ’s righteousness or anyone who says that we are formally justified by that righteousness alone. . . . Canon 10 says that Christ’s righteousness is both necessary and not limited to imputation i.e. formally. So, imputation is not excluded but only said to be not sufficient. With regard to imputation, if Trent indeed excludes it, I am ready to reject it. But the wording of the decrees does not seem to me to require this. . . .
The Protestant doctrine, it seems to me, has at least two sides. Imputation is the declaration of forgiveness on God’s part because of Christ’s work but it is also a legal fiction that has nothing immediately to do with real (subjective) state of the penitent. Now I think the declaration side of imputation is acceptable to Trent but not the legal fiction side. The difference between the Tridentine and the Reformation views, in addition to many other aspects, is that in the latter view God only sees us as righteous while in the former, Christ confers righteousness upon (and in) us. . . .
What is wrong with the Reformation view then? It is the sola part. Faith is essential but not sola fide. Remission of sins is essential but not sola remissione. Imputation via absolution is essential but not sola imputatione. I remember well how this hit me one day in my journey. So much of Protestantism represents a reductionism of the Catholic faith. The Protestants added their qualifiers (sola) and thereby threw out the fullness of faith. [Trent Doesn’t Utterly Exclude Imputation, July 1996]
But as soon as initial justification occurs, God works together with the believer to make it a real, day-by-day righteousness (not merely a declared or proclaimed righteousness that in fact is not actual righteousness). That’s where the two sides differ, but not on the above. Faith alone without love won’t cut it. Nothing whatsoever in this work contradicts Catholic soteriology. This epistle states, “For what other thing was capable of covering our sins than His righteousness?” Precisely! The Council of Trent in agreement stated in its Decree on Justification (5): “the beginning of the said Justification is to be derived from the prevenient grace of God, through Jesus Christ, that is to say, from His vocation, whereby, without any merits existing on their parts, they are called . . .”
This eloquent work approaches justification much as Paul does (and as Catholics do, rightly understood). He writes about initial monergistic justification — which we Catholics fully accept! But — again like Paul and Catholics — he doesn’t formally separate works from faith as Protestants do, and writes: “. . . to whom He sent His only-begotten Son, to whom He has promised a kingdom in heaven, and will give it to those who have loved Him” (chapter 10). He continues:
Or, how will you love Him who has first so loved you? And if you love Him, you will be an imitator of His kindness. And do not wonder that a man may become an imitator of God. He can, if he is willing. For it is not by ruling over his neighbours, or by seeking to hold the supremacy over those that are weaker, or by being rich, and showing violence towards those that are inferior, that happiness is found; nor can any one by these things become an imitator of God. But these things do not at all constitute His majesty. On the contrary he who takes upon himself the burden of his neighbour; he who, in whatsoever respect he may be superior, is ready to benefit another who is deficient; he who, whatsoever things he has received from God, by distributing these to the needy, becomes a god to those who receive [his benefits]: he is an imitator of God. [chapter 10]
And he writes along these lines in chapter 12:
When you have read and carefully listened to these things, you shall know what God bestows on such as rightly love Him, being made [as you are] a paradise of delight, presenting in yourselves a tree bearing all kinds of produce and flourishing well, being adorned with various fruits.
Once again, I see nothing whatsoever in this work that contradicts Catholic soteriology. But it seems to have some elements (seen above) that contradict Lutheran soteriology. It is what it is. I’m simply describing the nature of the work.
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Summary: I disagree with three Lutherans who claim that Clement of Rome (d. c. 101), Ignatius of Antioch (50-c. 110), and the Epistle to Diognetus (bet. 130-190) taught “faith alone.”
Job 4:17 Can mortal man be righteous before God? Can a man be pure before his Maker?
Job 25:4 How then can man be righteous before God? How can he who is born of woman be clean?
1 Corinthians 6:9-10Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither the immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor sexual perverts, [10] nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor robbers will inherit the kingdom of God.
Galatians 5:19-21 Now the works of the flesh are plain: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, [20] idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissension, party spirit, [21] envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
Ephesians 5:5 Be sure of this, that no fornicator or impure man, or one who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
Hebrews 12:14 . . . the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.
Hebrews 12:22-23 But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, [23] and to the assembly of the first-born who are enrolled in heaven, and to a judge who is God of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
2 Peter 3:13 But according to his promise we wait for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.
Revelation 21:27 But nothing unclean shall enter it, nor any one who practices abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
Revelation 22:15 Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and fornicators and murderers and idolaters, and every one who loves and practices falsehood.
II. Prayers for the Dead in Purgatory
2 Maccabees 12:39-40, 42-45 On the next day, as by that time it had become necessary, Judas and his men went to take up the bodies of the fallen and to bring them back to lie with their kinsmen in the sepulchres of their fathers. [40] Then under the tunic of every one of the dead they found sacred tokens of the idols of Jamnia, which the law forbids the Jews to wear. And it became clear to all that this was why these men had fallen. . . . [42] and they turned to prayer, beseeching that the sin which had been committed might be wholly blotted out. . . . [43] He also took up a collection, man by man, to the amount of two thousand drachmas of silver, and sent it to Jerusalem to provide for a sin offering. In doing this he acted very well and honorably, taking account of the resurrection. [44] For if he were not expecting that those who had fallen would rise again, it would have been superfluous and foolish to pray for the dead. [45] But if he was looking to the splendid reward that is laid up for those who fall asleep in godliness, it was a holy and pious thought. Therefore he made atonement for the dead, that they might be delivered from their sin.
1 Corinthians 15:29 Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their behalf?
Note: St. Francis de Sales (1567-1622), the great Catholic apologist and Doctor of the Church, exegeted this passage in the following way:
This passage properly understood evidently shows that it was the custom of the primitive Church to watch, pray, fast, for the souls of the departed. For, firstly, in the Scriptures to be baptized is often taken for afflictions and penances; as in St. Luke chapter 12 [12:50] . . . and in St. Mark chapter 10 [10:38-39] . . . in which places Our Lord calls pains and afflictions baptism [cf. Matthew 3:11, 20:22-3, Luke 3:16].
This then is the sense of that Scripture: if the dead rise not again, what is the use of mortifying and afflicting oneself, of praying and fasting for the dead? And indeed this sentence of St. Paul resembles that of 2 Maccabees 12:44 [“if he were not expecting that those who had fallen would rise again, it would have been superfluous and foolish to pray for the dead”]. (The Catholic Controversy, translated by Henry B. Mackey, Rockford, Illinois: TAN Books, 1989, from the 1886 edition (London and New York); originally 1596, 368).
2 Timothy 1:16, 18 May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiph’orus, for he often refreshed me; he was not ashamed of my chains, . . . [18] may the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that Day — and you well know all the service he rendered at Ephesus.
III. God in Conjunction with Fire
Exodus 3:1-2, 4Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Mid’ian; and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. [2] And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush; and he looked, and lo, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. . . . [4] When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!”
Exodus 13:21-22 And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night; [22] the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people.
Exodus 14:24 And in the morning watch the LORD in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down upon the host of the Egyptians, . . .
Exodus 19:18 And Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and the smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain quaked greatly.
Exodus 24:17 Now the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel.
Numbers 14:14 . . . thou, O LORD, art seen face to face, and thy cloud stands over them and thou goest before them, in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night.
Deuteronomy 4:11-12 And you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, while the mountain burned with fire to the heart of heaven, wrapped in darkness, cloud, and gloom. [12] Then the LORD spoke to you out of the midst of the fire; you heard the sound of words, but saw no form; there was only a voice.
Deuteronomy 4:24 For the LORD your God is a devouring fire, . . .
Deuteronomy 4:33, 36 Did any people ever hear the voice of a god speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and still live? . . . [36] Out of heaven he let you hear his voice, that he might discipline you; and on earth he let you see his great fire, and you heard his words out of the midst of the fire.
Deuteronomy 5:4 The LORD spoke with you face to face at the mountain, out of the midst of the fire,
Deuteronomy 5:22-23 “These words the LORD spoke to all your assembly at the mountain out of the midst of the fire, the cloud, and the thick darkness, with a loud voice; and he added no more. And he wrote them upon two tables of stone, and gave them to me. [23] And when you heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, you came near to me, all the heads of your tribes, and your elders;
Deuteronomy 9:15 So I turned and came down from the mountain, and the mountain was burning with fire; and the two tables of the covenant were in my two hands.
Deuteronomy 33:2 He said, “The LORD came from Sinai, . . . he came from the ten thousands of holy ones, with flaming fire at his right hand.
Nehemiah 9:19 thou in thy great mercies didst not forsake them in the wilderness; the pillar of cloud which led them in the way did not depart from them by day, nor the pillar of fire by night which lighted for them the way by which they should go.
Psalm 50:3 Our God comes, he does not keep silence, before him is a devouring fire, round about him a mighty tempest.
Isaiah 4:5 Then the LORD will create over the whole site of Mount Zion and over her assemblies a cloud by day, and smoke and the shining of a flaming fire by night . . .
Daniel 7:9-10 As I looked, thrones were placed and one that was ancient of days took his seat; his raiment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was fiery flames, its wheels were burning fire. [10] A stream of fire issued and came forth from before him;
Zechariah 2:5 For I will be to her a wall of fire round about, says the LORD, and I will be the glory within her.
2 Thessalonians 1:7 and to grant rest with us to you who are afflicted, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire,
Hebrews 12:29 for our God is a consuming fire.
Revelation 1:14, 16 . . . his eyes were like a flame of fire, . . . [16] . . . and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.
Revelation 2:18 . . . the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire . . .
Revelation 19:12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, . . .
IV. God in Conjunction with Light
Isaiah 60:19-20 The sun shall be no more your light by day, nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you by night; but the LORD will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. [20] Your sun shall no more go down, nor your moon withdraw itself; for the LORD will be your everlasting light, . . .
Matthew 17:2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his garments became white as light.
1 Timothy 6:16 who alone has immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, . . .
Revelation 22:5 And night shall be no more; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they shall reign for ever and ever.
Revelation 22:16 “I Jesus have sent my angel to you with this testimony for the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright morning star.”
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V. The Nature and Experience of Direct Encounters with God
Exodus 3:5-6 Then he said, “Do not come near; put off your shoes from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” [6] And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
Exodus 34:29-30, 35When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, with the two tables of the testimony in his hand as he came down from the mountain, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. [30] And when Aaron and all the people of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. . . . [35] the people of Israel saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face shone; . . .
Deuteronomy 5:5, 24-26 while I stood between the LORD and you at that time, to declare to you the word of the LORD; for you were afraid because of the fire, and you did not go up into the mountain. . . . [24] and you said, `Behold, the LORD our God has shown us his glory and greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire; we have this day seen God speak with man and man still live. [25] Now therefore why should we die? For this great fire will consume us; if we hear the voice of the LORD our God any more, we shall die. [26] For who is there of all flesh, that has heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of fire, as we have, and has still lived?
Deuteronomy 18:16 just as you desired of the LORD your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of the LORD my God, or see this great fire any more, lest I die.’
Isaiah 6:1-5 In the year that King Uzzi’ah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and his train filled the temple. [2] Above him stood the seraphim; each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. [3] And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory.” [4] And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. [5] And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”
Revelation 1:17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand upon me, saying, “Fear not, . . . ”
VI. Purgatory as a Cleansing, Purifying, Chastising, Sanctifying Process
Leviticus 16:30 for on this day shall atonement be made for you, to cleanse you; from all your sins you shall be clean before the LORD.
Numbers 12:1, 9-14 Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married, for he had married a Cushite woman; [9] And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them, . . . [10] and when the cloud removed from over the tent, behold, Miriam was leprous, as white as snow. And Aaron turned towards Miriam, and behold, she was leprous. [11] And Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord, do not punish us because we have done foolishly and have sinned. [12] Let her not be as one dead, of whom the flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his mother’s womb.” [13] And Moses cried to the LORD, “Heal her, O God, I beseech thee.” [14] But the LORD said to Moses, “If her father had but spit in her face, should she not be shamed seven days? Let her be shut up outside the camp seven days, and after that she may be brought in again.”
Numbers 31:23 everything that can stand the fire, you shall pass through the fire, and it shall be clean. . . .
Deuteronomy 8:5 Know then in your heart that, as a man disciplines his son, the LORD your God disciplines you.
2 Samuel 7:14 I will be his father, and he shall be my son. When he commits iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men;
2 Samuel 12:13-14 David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.” And Nathan said to David, “The LORD also has put away your sin; you shall not die. [14] Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the LORD, the child that is born to you shall die.”
2 Chronicles 7:3 When all the children of Israel saw the fire come down and the glory of the LORD upon the temple, they bowed down with their faces to the earth on the pavement, and worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, . . .
Job 5:17-18 Behold, happy is the man whom God reproves; therefore despise not the chastening of the Almighty. [18] For he wounds, but he binds up; he smites, but his hands heal.
Job 23:10 . . . when he has tried me, I shall come forth as gold.
Psalm 51:2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!
Psalm 51:7, 9-10 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. . . . [9] . . . blot out all my iniquities. [10] Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me.
Psalm 66:10-12 For thou, O God, hast tested us; thou hast tried us as silver is tried. [11] Thou didst bring us into the net; thou didst lay affliction on our loins; [12] thou didst let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet thou hast brought us forth to a spacious place.
Psalm 94:12 Blessed is the man whom thou dost chasten, O LORD, and whom thou dost teach out of thy law
Proverbs 3:11-12 My son, do not despise the LORD’s discipline or be weary of his reproof, [12] for the LORD reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights.
Proverbs 17:3 The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and the LORD tries hearts.
Proverbs 30:12 There are those who are pure in their own eyes but are not cleansed of their filth.
Isaiah 1:25 I will turn my hand against you and will smelt away your dross as with lye and remove all your alloy.
Isaiah 4:4 . . . the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion and cleansed the bloodstains of Jerusalem from its midst by a spirit of judgment and by a spirit of burning.
Isaiah 6:6-7Then flew one of the seraphim to me, having in his hand a burning coal which he had taken with tongs from the altar. [7] And he touched my mouth, and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin forgiven.”
Isaiah 48:10 Behold, I have refined you, but not like silver; I have tried you in the furnace of affliction.
Jeremiah 9:7 . . . thus says the LORD of hosts: “Behold, I will refine them and test them, . . .
Jeremiah 30:11 . . . of you I will not make a full end. I will chasten you in just measure, . . .
Jeremiah 33:8 I will cleanse them from all the guilt of their sin against me, and I will forgive all the guilt of their sin and rebellion against me.
Ezekiel 36:25, 33 I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. . . . [33] . . . On the day that I cleanse you from all your iniquities . . .
Ezekiel 37:23 They shall not defile themselves any more with their idols and their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions; but I will save them from all the backslidings in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them; . . .
Daniel 11:35 and some of those who are wise shall fall, to refine and to cleanse them and to make them white, until the time of the end, for it is yet for the time appointed.
Daniel 12:10 Many shall purify themselves, and make themselves white, and be refined; but the wicked shall do wickedly; and none of the wicked shall understand; but those who are wise shall understand.
Zechariah 13:1 “On that day there shall be a fountain opened for the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to cleanse them from sin and uncleanness. . . .
Zechariah 13:9 And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. . . .
Malachi 3:2-3 But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? “For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap; [3] he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, till they present right offerings to the LORD.
Judith 8:27 . . . the Lord scourges those who draw near to him, in order to admonish them.
Wisdom 3:1-6 But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment will ever touch them. [2] In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died, and their departure was thought to be an affliction, [3] and their going from us to be their destruction; but they are at peace. [4] For though in the sight of men they were punished, their hope is full of immortality. [5] Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good, because God tested them and found them worthy of himself; [6] like gold in the furnace he tried them, and like a sacrificial burnt offering he accepted them.
Sirach 2:5 For gold is tested in the fire, and acceptable men in the furnace of humiliation.
Matthew 3:11 . . . he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. (cf. Luke 3:16)
John 15:2 Every branch of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.
Romans 5:3-5 More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, [4] and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, [5] and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us.
Romans 8:17-18 and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. [18] I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
1 Corinthians 3:12-15 Now if any one builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw — [13] each man’s work will become manifest; for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. [14] If the work which any man has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. [15] If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
1 Corinthians 11:32 But when we are judged by the Lord, we are chastened so that we may not be condemned along with the world.
2 Corinthians 4:17 For this slight momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison,
2 Corinthians 7:1 Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, and make holiness perfect in the fear of God.
Philippians 1:6 And I am sure that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.
1 Thessalonians 2:4 . . . God who tests our hearts.
Titus 2:13-14 . . . our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, [14] who gave himself for us to redeem us from all iniquity and to purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds.
Hebrews 12:5-11 And have you forgotten the exhortation which addresses you as sons? — “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor lose courage when you are punished by him. [6] For the Lord disciplines him whom he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.” [7] It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? [8] If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. [9] Besides this, we have had earthly fathers to discipline us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? [10] For they disciplined us for a short time at their pleasure, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. [11] For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant; later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
James 1:12 Blessed is the man who endures trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life which God has promised to those who love him.
1 Peter 1:4-7 and to an inheritance which is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, [5] who by God’s power are guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. [6] In this you rejoice, though now for a little while you may have to suffer various trials, [7] so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold which though perishable is tested by fire, may redound to praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 4:12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal which comes upon you to prove you, as though something strange were happening to you.
1 Peter 5:10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, establish, and strengthen you.
2 Peter 1:9 For whoever lacks these things is blind and shortsighted and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
1 John 1:7-9 but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. [8] If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. [9] If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 3:2-3 Beloved, we are God’s children now; it does not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. [3] And every one who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.
Revelation 3:19 Those whom I love, I reprove and chasten; . . .
Revelation 22:14 Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates.
VII. Sanctification is Directly Related to Salvation (Purgatory Continues the Process After Death)
Luke 3:9 . . . every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire [hell].
Acts 15:8-9 And God . . . [9] . . . cleansed their hearts by faith.
Acts 26:18 . . . those who are sanctified by faith in me.
Romans 6:22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the return you get is sanctification and its end, eternal life.
1 Thessalonians 3:12-13 . . . may the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all men, as we do to you, [13] so that he may establish your hearts unblamable in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.
1 Thessalonians 5:23 May the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly . . .
2 Thessalonians 2:13 . . . God chose you from the beginning to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.
1 Peter 1:2 chosen and destined by God the Father and sanctified by the Spirit for obedience to Jesus Christ . . .
2 Peter 3:11, 14 Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of persons ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, . . . [14] Therefore, beloved, since you wait for these, be zealous to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace.
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* Practical Matters: I run the most comprehensive “one-stop” Catholic apologetics site: rated #1 for Christian sites by leading AI tool, ChatGPT — endorsed by popular Protestant blogger Adrian Warnock. Perhaps some of my 4,900+ free online articles or fifty-five books have helped you (by God’s grace) to decide to become Catholic or to return to the Church, or better understand some doctrines and why we believe them.
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Summary: I collect 110 Bible passages that contain various elements of the doctrine of purgatory, including fire, cleansing, purifying, chastising, sanctification, prayers for the dead, etc.
Also, Other Related Issues Such as the Thief on the Cross
Photo credit: Image by Kenny Burchard from his YouTube channel (Catholic Bible Highlights), where I am a partner, from the video, “BAPTISM NOW SAVES YOU – Fridays With Dave!!” (10-25-24).
Baptism is an outward display of excepting the ransom of Jesus. However, it’s the resurrection that gives you life.
It’s both. The cross saves us, and baptism is one of God’s sacramental means by which he does so, with us cooperating with His plan.
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It’s the efficacy of the blood which saves us. The blood is applied by faith. In His resurrection the Lord has formed a new creation and we enter it through the indwelling Holy Spirit. Baptism speaks of association with Christ in His death. Dead to sin and to the world. Read Colossians ch. 3 v 1-5.
Of course it does. No one disputes that. It’s only your unbiblical “either/or” false dichotomies that we oppose.
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***
J[oseph] Mengele [the notorious Nazi murderer] had a brag to the end of his rather long life: He had a one-way ticket to heaven. He was re-baptized in Spain during his journey out of Europe to Argentina. The evidence of this event alone has made me walk away.
Baptism saves and renders one free of sin at the moment it is given, but then we have to continue in the faith. It’s no automatic “ticket to heaven” that applies no matter how evil one might be. This is the same error as “faith alone” + “eternal security” whereby a person can never lose their salvation once attained, no matter what they do. It’s grossly unbiblical. If someone continues after baptism in serious, mortal sin (and I’m pretty sure Mengele did, and never repented), baptism no longer saves them. Paul and the author of Hebrews warned about this many times. I think an unrepentant Nazi murderer undeniably qualifies for such a falling away and likely damnation. God is not mocked. It would be similar to what St. Paul writes about receiving the Holy Eucharist in Holy Communion improperly:
1 Corinthians 11:27-20 (RSV) Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. [28] Let a man examine himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. [29] For any one who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself. [30] That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died.
This situation also strikes me as somewhat similar to the sin of simony, described in the Book of Acts:
Acts 8:17-23 Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. [18] Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, [19] saying, “Give me also this power, that any one on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” [20] But Peter said to him, “Your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! [21] You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. [22] Repent therefore of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. [23] For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.”
In other words, at issue is a corruption or cynical manipulation of a sacrament or other spiritual aspect for one’s own gain. If Mengele thought that baptism would save him apart from a profound repentance and change of life, he was sadly mistaken. Note that in Simon’s case, also, “Even Simon himself believed” and had been baptized (8:13). But Peter’s severe language expresses a distinct possibility that he could be damned if he didn’t repent of his post-baptismal sin. Fr. John A. Hardon, SJ, in his Modern Catholic Dictionary defines “apostasy” as “The total rejection by a baptized person of the Christian faith he once professed.” Thus, a person may reject even the extraordinary baptismal graces received at baptism (helpfully summed up by Fr. Hardon in the same work).
Jesus excoriated the Pharisees for this sort of thing, because they emphasized works at the expense of the more important ethical responsibilities:
Matthew 23:23-28 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law, justice and mercy and faith; these you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. [24] You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel! [25] “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you cleanse the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of extortion and rapacity. [26] You blind Pharisee! first cleanse the inside of the cup and of the plate, that the outside also may be clean. [27] “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. [28] So you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but within you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
This goes back to an Old Testament theme of wholehearted, non-hypocritical worship and a righteous life:
Jeremiah 14:7, 10, 12 . . . our backslidings are many, we have sinned against thee. . . . [10] Thus says the LORD concerning this people: “They have loved to wander thus, they have not restrained their feet; therefore the LORD does not accept them, now he will remember their iniquity and punish their sins.” [11] The LORD said to me: “Do not pray for the welfare of this people. [12] Though they fast, I will not hear their cry, and though they offer burnt offering and cereal offering, I will not accept them; but I will consume them by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence.”
Amos 5:12, 14, 21-24 For I know how many are your transgressions, and how great are your sins — you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe, and turn aside the needy in the gate. . . . [14] Seek good, and not evil, that you may live; and so the LORD, the God of hosts, will be with you, as you have said . . . [21] I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. [22] Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and cereal offerings, I will not accept them, and the peace offerings of your fatted beasts I will not look upon. [23] Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen. [24] But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
Proverbs 15:8 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD, but the prayer of the upright is his delight.
Proverbs 21:27 The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination; how much more when he brings it with evil intent.
If a man observes religious rites and rituals but doesn’t act in accordance with them, they in effect become worthless, as God Himself says:
Hosea 6:6 For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God, rather than burnt offerings.
Jesus reiterates this:
Matthew 7:18-21 A sound tree cannot bear evil fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. [19] Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. [20] Thus you will know them by their fruits. [21] Not every one who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. . . .
Am I to understand that you left Christianity — or specifically Catholic Christianity — because of this? If so, I respectfully submit that it’s not an adequate reason at all. You received some incorrect teaching.
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Baptism saves at the moment it is given. We then have to continue to be vigilant and endure till the end, because we can lose salvation, as the Bible also teaches many times. Baptism doesn’t guarantee salvation in that sense.
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Water saves?
According to the Bible, yes: as a sacrament (physical means to receive God’s grace), and if done with the right intent, with a trinitarian formula.
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Baptism is necessary unless one can’t possibly do it: thief on the cross.
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Is it possible that perhaps the thief was baptized three years earlier?
Yeah, it’s possible. But if so, it doesn’t change the principle of not being bound to a sacrament if one is unable to obtain it for whatever reason. God is a merciful God. He doesn’t let people go to hell for eternity for a thing like that. He knows their hearts.
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Matthew 27:41-44 So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him, saying, [42] “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. [43] He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him; for he said, `I am the Son of God.'” [44] And the robbers who were crucified with him also reviled him in the same way.
This shows that he was still likely an unbeliever, since he was still mocking Christ while being crucified. He repented, however, before he died. Therefore, almost certainly he wasn’t baptized. But then someone noted that he could have been a baptized follower of Jesus who then fell away. Sure, that’s possible. We simply don’t know. But in any event, it doesn’t change the principle of a possible baptism of desire.
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I think you have to ask yourself a question. How were Old Testament Believers saved? How are New Testament Believers saved? Also does God the Father use the same way to Save Believers throughout the ages of both Testaments? That is a key to the entirety of the Bible as a whole! How was Abraham, Moses, Aaron, King Saul, King David, Noah saved or was there Salvation for them Under the Sacrificial System?
The OT saints were saved by faith (Hebrews 11) and by the works they did by God’s grace, just as we are today. And they were saved by Jesus’ death on the cross, applied backwards in time. They did rituals by which God blessed them, like circumcision and offering sacrifice at the Temple and observing the Jewish holidays. An exception doesn’t disprove the rule. That’s what the thief on the cross is. It doesn’t follow that no one should ever be baptized and regenerated in that way because it wasn’t possible for the thief on the cross to do so. God is bigger than the sacraments.
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Baptism does not mean can never turn away. Disciples walked away after the bread of life discourse. I walked away for over twenty years. God didn’t walk away.
I agree with you. I never said otherwise. I believed as an Arminian evangelical and now as a Catholic that one can fall away, and baptism is no prevention of that, if we develop the evil will to fall away and reject God. I was never a Calvinist. I almost believed in eternal security, but I always thought that it was possible to reject God (the unforgivable sin).
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The Bible teaches that we are saved by Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross on our behalf, entirely due to by God’s grace, accepted by means of our faith, which organically contains within itself good works, without which it is “dead.” These works include the willing reception of baptism and the Holy Eucharist: both of which the Bible states many times, play a role in saving us (along with a host of other good works). It’s not only baptism. But baptism does regenerate.
NOTE: some argue that Mengele legitimately repented near the end of his life and received baptism. Of course, such a thing is possible, if exceedingly unlikely. And in such cases, that would be true repentance, and the baptism could indeed save such a person rom hell. I was concentrating above on cases where there is no repentance and baptism is being manipulated and abused.
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* Practical Matters: I run the most comprehensive “one-stop” Catholic apologetics site: rated #1 for Christian sites by leading AI tool, ChatGPT — endorsed by popular Protestant blogger Adrian Warnock. Perhaps some of my 4,800+ free online articles or fifty-five books have helped you (by God’s grace) to decide to become Catholic or to return to the Church, or better understand some doctrines and why we believe them.
Or you may believe my work is worthy to support for the purpose of apologetics and evangelism in general. If so, please seriously consider a much-needed financial contribution. I’m always in need of more funds: especially monthly support. “The laborer is worthy of his wages” (1 Tim 5:18, NKJV). 1 December 2021 was my 20th anniversary as a full-time Catholic apologist, and February 2022 marked the 25th anniversary of my blog.
Summary: I tackle some questions concerning baptism: particularly whether it can be manipulated by evil men (like Mengele) to gain salvation, & the issue regarding the thief on the cross.
I shall now proceed to offer a critique of common Protestant attempts to ignore, explain away, rationalize, wish away, overpolemicize, minimize, de-emphasize, evade clear consequences of, or special plead with regard to “the Catholic Verses”: ninety-five biblical passages that provide the foundation for Catholicism’s most distinctive doctrines. . . .
I will assert – with all due respect and, I hope, with a minimum of “triumphalism” — the ultimate incoherence, inadequacy, inconsistency, or exegetical and theological implausibility of the Protestant interpretations, and will submit the Catholic views as exegetically and logically superior alternatives.
The dates of Calvin’s various Commentaries are as follows:
1540 Romans
1548 All the Epistles of Paul
1551 Hebrews, and the Epistles of Peter, John, Jude, and James
1551 Isaiah
1552 Acts of the Apostles
1554 Genesis
1557 Psalms
1557 Hosea
1559 Twelve Minor Prophets
1561 Daniel
1562 Joshua
1563 Harmony of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy
1563 Jeremiah
1563 Harmony of Three Gospels and Commentary on St John
I use RSV for biblical citations. Calvin’s words will be in blue.
A complete listing of this series will be on my web page, John Calvin: Catholic Appraisal, under the subtitle: “Bible vs. ‘Faith Alone’ vs. John Calvin”.
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Matthew 19:16-17, 20-21 And behold, one came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do, to have eternal life?” [17] And he said to him, “. . . If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” . . . [20] The young man said to him, “All these I have observed; what do I still lack?” [21] Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”
A blind confidence in his works hindered him from profiting under Christ, to whom, in other respects, he wished to be submissive. Thus, in our own day, we find some who are not ill-disposed, but who, under the influence of I know not what shadowy holiness, hardly relish the doctrine of the Gospel.
I see no “blind confidence in . . . works” in the passage. He asked sincerely how one achieved eternal life, assuming that a “good deed” would accomplish it. Jesus didn’t rebuke his confidence in the notion that a good man must do good works (since the Old Testament is chock-full of such injunctions); far from it, He reinforced his line of questioning and train of thought by asking whether he kept the commandments. That’s what Jesus thought was the “road” to salvation. He didn’t challenge him by asking, “why do you ask me about works? Don’t you know that they have nothing to do with salvation and are done only in gratefulness to God for a salvation already attained?” The text is massively contrary to Protestantism’s faith alone.
Asked by the man what he still lacked, Jesus said that it was the willingness to sell all that he owned (i.e., another work; not an exhortation to faith and assenting belief). Thus, the rich young ruler’s rejection of Jesus’ advice wasn’t based on “blind confidence” in his works, but rather, on the unwillingness to do one extraordinary work that Jesus said would save him. His fatal flaw was placing possessions above allegiance to God (a form of idolatry). Nothing here upholds faith alone at all. A theoretical Protestant who hypothetically was writing part of the Bible, could never have written the passage this way. Jesus twice emphasizes that works save a soul; never mentioning faith or belief in Himself (though those things are also true and necessary). The point is that Jesus highlighted that which Protestants falsely claim has nothing to do with salvation. How can this be? Well, we’ll see what else Calvin says about it.
But, in order to form a more correct judgment of the meaning of the answer, we must attend to the form of the question. He does not simply ask how and by what means he shall reach life, but what good thing he shall do, in order to obtain it. He therefore dreams of merits, on account of which he may receive eternal life as a reward due; and therefore Christ appropriately sends him to the keeping of the law, which unquestionably is the way of life, . . .
This is beyond silly, and is special pleading. If the man assumed some doctrine of meritorious works, Jesus certainly didn’t disabuse him of what Protestants think is a false notion by inquiring if he kept the commandments, did He? Again, He would have had to make the “elementary” point that works have nothing to do with salvation. But He didn’t, because it would be a falsehood. If Jesus sent him to the law, and the law had nothing to do with salvation, this would be unjust and wrong. He would be deceiving him. Yet Calvin, not grasping this point, dumbfoundedly thinks it is “appropriate” that Jesus directed Him there, and not to faith.
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***
Keep the commandments. This passage was erroneously interpreted by some of the ancients, whom the Papists have followed, as if Christ taught that, by keeping the law, we may merit eternal life.
That’s exactly what it teaches. Asked what achieves eternal life, Jesus replies with an inquiry as to whether he kept the commandments. It couldn’t be more clear than it is. Then when the man confirmed that he had done so, Jesus required another work (giving away all he had).
As we are all destitute of the glory of God, (Romans 3:23,) nothing but cursing will be found in the law; and nothing remains for us but to betake ourselves to the undeserved gift of righteousness.
Then why didn’t Jesus make precisely this same point, if it’s the bottom line? That’s the essence of discussion on this passage. Why in the world — presupposing faith alone soteriology for the sake of argument — didn’t Jesus do that? I have addressed Romans 3:23 elsewhere. Calvin thinks in this way, but Jesus expresses nothing whatever in this exchange that would suggest any agreement on His part.
And therefore Paul lays down a twofold righteousness, the righteousness of the law, (Romans 10:5,) and the righteousness of faith, (Romans 10:6.) He makes the first to consist in works, and the second, in the free grace of Christ.
And Calvin pits the two against each other, as if they are antithetical. Paul, on the other hand, doesn’t do that. He expressly connected works to salvation twice in the same epistle, and in three others:
Romans 2:6-7, 10, 13 For he will render to every man according to his works: [7] to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; . . . [10] but glory and honor and peace for every one who does good, . . . [13] For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified.
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Romans 8:17 . . . heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.
Philippians 2:12-13 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; [13] for God is at work in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
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Colossians 3:23-24 Whatever your task, work heartily, as serving the Lord and not men, [24] knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward;
1 Timothy 4:13-16 Till I come, attend to the public reading of scripture, to preaching, to teaching. [14] Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophetic utterance when the council of elders laid their hands upon you. [15] Practice these duties, devote yourself to them, so that all may see your progress. [16] Take heed to yourself and to your teaching; hold to that, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.
Hence we infer, that this reply of Christ is legal, because it was proper that the young man who inquired about the righteousness of works should first be taught that no man is accounted righteous before God unless he has fulfilled the law, (which is impossible,) that, convinced of his weakness, he might betake himself to the assistance of faith.
Giving away all that he owned implicitly would require faith, for sure, but it was also a meritorious work, since Jesus said that doing it would bring him eternal life. So Jesus taught that works can save, then He taught that an extraordinary work that would require a lot of faith would ultimately save, in the case of this man (it’s nowhere taught that it’s required of every man). He never gets to a faith alone explanation of salvation, and remember, the question was about how one gains eternal life.
Neither scenario is true, according to Protestants, who deny that works have anything directly to do with salvation. So why does Jesus assert twice that they do? He is teaching false doctrine: so consistent Protestants must say. Since that is clearly impossible, we must throw out faith alone rather than reject our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ as a false teacher and false prophet. This is perhaps the clearest rejection of faith alone in the New Testament. It’s unanswerable, and a fatal blow to the false doctrine in and of itself.
When Paul says, that the doers of the law are justified, (Romans 2:13,) he excludes all from the righteousness of the law.
Huh? How is it that Calvin can turn upside down a clear saying of Paul, and not feel in the least conflicted about it? This is one utterly confused man. Jesus said basically the same thing as Paul:
Matthew 7:21 Not every one who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. . . .
St. John concurs:
Revelation 20:12-13 . . . And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, by what they had done. [13] . . . and all were judged by what they had done.
Many Protestants want to flip this around, too, and fundamentally change its meaning, and teach that one can simply say “Lord, Lord” in the sinner’s prayer or suchlike, get justified for all time in one second as a result (which justification Calvinists assert can never be lost: which most Protestants do not believe), and deny any necessity for good works in connection with ultimate salvation, which contradicts at least a hundred Bible passages.
This passage sets aside all the inventions which the Papists have contrived in order to obtain salvation.
I don’t see how. I think it sets aside all the inventions that Protestants have contrived with regard to a vastly unbiblical “workless” salvation.
For not only are they mistaken in wishing to lay God under obligation to them by their good works, to bestow salvation as a debt
God is never under any obligation or “debt” to us, strictly speaking. But He chooses to mercifully grant merit to us as a reward insofar as we follow His will, by His grace and power. His works become our own:
1 Corinthians 15:10, 58 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God which is with me. . . . [58] . . . be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
Philippians 2:13 . . . God is at work in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
It’s like a parent teaching a small child to read. The child then learns and reads something, and is rewarded by the parent. Was that the parent’s work or the child’s? Of course it is both. It’s a false dichotomy to deny that. The child didn’t generate the ability to read by himself or herself. Rather, it was a joint effort: ultimately brought about and caused by the parent, but the child also worked and was rewarded for the work that was only made possible in the first place by the parent. That’s God and us, and it’s why we can obtain merit for our good works and reward for same: up to and including salvation itself: so the Bible repeatedly teaches.
let every man who endeavors to regulate his life by obedience to Christ direct his whole attention to keep the commandments of the law.
Yes, let them do so. And let them understand that this is tied to salvation in the Bible. Calvin denies it, but he can’t overcome or overthrow all of the abundant biblical data.
The law must have been dead to him, when he vainly imagined that he was so righteous; for if he had not flattered himself through hypocrisy, it was an excellent advice to him to learn humility, to contemplate his spots and blemishes in the mirror of the law. But, intoxicated with foolish confidence, he fearlessly boasts that he has discharged his duty properly from his childhood.
Again, there is no textual evidence in the passage suggesting all of this, which is Calvin’s imagining and superimposition only. If he was in fact a rank hypocrite, Jesus (knowing all things, including this man’s thoughts and life) would have surely pointed it out to him, and rebuked it, just as He often did with the Pharisees. Instead, he accepts his word that he had observed the commandments from his youth (implying that he indeed had done so), and then strongly implied that his remaining sin, keeping him from salvation, was pride of possessions, or the idolatry of placing them above a full heartfelt obedience to God.
That’s a serious sin, too, without question, but it’s a different one from what Calvin dreams up, with no textual support; hence only a statement of his prior presupposition and therefore, eisegesis (i.e., improperly reading into a biblical text what isn’t there). Calvin believes that no one can ever possibly adequately observe the Mosaic Law. Jesus seems to think that this man did. Giving away all we have is not part of the Mosaic Law, as far as I know.
Calvin agrees in this section, writing, “I confess that we are nowhere commanded in the law to sell all.” So that was a separate issue, distinct from questions of Law-observance. The man asked Jesus what it was that he still lacked. If it were imperfect observance of the law, Jesus would have told him so, because that, too, would have been a thing that he lacked or fell short in fulfilling. But He didn’t. He moved onto a non-law consideration. Therefore, it logically follows that the man had indeed kept the law, as far as that goes: the very thing that Calvin vehemently denies (“if he had known himself thoroughly, as soon as he heard the mention of the law, he would have acknowledged that he was liable to the judgment of God”).
But if we are not prepared to endure poverty, it is manifest that covetousness reigns in us.
If it is expressly Gods will for us, yes. But it’s clearly not His will for most people. The Bible is not against rich men per se. Abraham and Joseph of Arimathea were rich men, without the slightest hint of condemnation in the Bible about their state. Calvin is too sweeping and legalistic. Anyone caring for a family has to be above the poverty level. That’s why, in the Catholic Church, when one wants to heroically renounce possessions and self-will, they are usually urged to be celibate, because such deprivations are much easier to undergo without a family to provide for. Jesus refers to His disciples leaving families, even wives, to follow Him. And in so doing, He said that they would receive eternal life as the reward.
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Photo credit: Anonymous Dutch portrait of John Calvin, c. 1550 [public domain / Wikimedia Commons]
Summary: One of a series examining how John Calvin (1509-1564) exegeted biblical passages in his Commentaries that (in my opinion) refute the novel Protestant doctrine of “faith alone”.
I shall now proceed to offer a critique of common Protestant attempts to ignore, explain away, rationalize, wish away, overpolemicize, minimize, de-emphasize, evade clear consequences of, or special plead with regard to “the Catholic Verses”: ninety-five biblical passages that provide the foundation for Catholicism’s most distinctive doctrines. . . .
I will assert – with all due respect and, I hope, with a minimum of “triumphalism” — the ultimate incoherence, inadequacy, inconsistency, or exegetical and theological implausibility of the Protestant interpretations, and will submit the Catholic views as exegetically and logically superior alternatives.
The dates of Calvin’s various Commentaries are as follows:
1540 Romans
1548 All the Epistles of Paul
1551 Hebrews, and the Epistles of Peter, John, Jude, and James
1551 Isaiah
1552 Acts of the Apostles
1554 Genesis
1557 Psalms
1557 Hosea
1559 Twelve Minor Prophets
1561 Daniel
1562 Joshua
1563 Harmony of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy
1563 Jeremiah
1563 Harmony of Three Gospels and Commentary on St John
I use RSV for biblical citations. Calvin’s words will be in blue.
A complete listing of this series will be on my web page, John Calvin: Catholic Appraisal, under the subtitle: “Bible vs. ‘Faith Alone’ vs. John Calvin”.
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Psalm 7:10 My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart.
He declares, that as God saves the upright in heart, he is perfectly safe under his protection. Whence it follows, that he had the testimony of an approving conscience. And, as he does not simply say the righteous, but the upright in heart, he appears to have an eye to that inward searching of the heart and reins mentioned in the preceding verse.
Accordingly, I cite his comment on Ps 7:9 also:
Accordingly there follows immediately after the corresponding prayer Direct thou the righteous, or establish him; for it is of little importance which of these two readings we adopt. The meaning is, that God would re-establish and uphold the righteous, who are wrongfully oppressed, and thus make it evident that they are continued in their estate by the power of God, notwithstanding the persecution to which they are subjected.—For God searcheth the hearts. The Hebrew copulative is here very properly translated by the causal particle for, since David, without doubt, adds this clause as an argument to enforce his prayer. He now declares, for the third time, that, trusting to the testimony of a good conscience, he comes before God with confidence; but here he expresses something more than he had done before, namely, that he not only showed his innocence, by his external conduct, but had also cultivated purity in the secret affection of his heart.
None of this proves faith alone, or refutes the Catholic view of infused justification. Calvin simply notes that “they are continued in their estate by the power of God.” Of course we fully agree. That doesn’t preclude our necessary cooperation with God. But the point is that we must be righteous to be saved. Calvin hasn’t shown that it’s merely imputed righteousness and not an actual holiness of behavior. He provides nothing that Protestants need in order to determine that this verse supports rather than disproves the notion of faith alone.
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Isaiah 1:27Zion shall be redeemed by justice, and those in her who repent, by righteousness.
Because the restoration of the Church was hard to be believed, he shows that it does not depend on the will of men, but is founded on the justice and judgment of God; as if he had said, that God will by no means permit his Church to be altogether destroyed, because he is righteous. The design of the Prophet, therefore, is to withdraw the minds of the godly from earthly thoughts, that in looking for the safety of the Church they may depend entirely on God, . . . though men yield no assistance, the justice of God is fully sufficient for redeeming his Church. And, indeed, so long as we look at ourselves, what hope are we entitled to cherish? How many things, on the contrary, immediately present themselves that are fitted to weaken our faith! It is only in the justice of God that we shall find solid and lasting ground of confidence.
Calvin commits the same mistake that he did regarding the previous verse: he refers solely to God’s primary and ultimate causational role in salvation, while ignoring man’s part in the transaction. Since he denies man’s free will, this makes consistent sense within his own paradigm, but it’s unbiblical. God saves the righteous. We must cooperate with God’s grace and become more righteous, as opposed to merely being declared righteous when we really aren’t. The entire context of the chapter makes that abundantly clear:
Isaiah 1:16-21 Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your doings from before my eyes; cease to do evil, [17] learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow. [18] “Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. [19] If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; [20] But if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the sword; for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” [21] How the faithful city has become a harlot, she that was full of justice! Righteousness lodged in her, but now murderers.
It’s interesting how many of these themes appear in the NT in conjunction with salvation:
“He saved us, . . . by the washing of regeneration” (baptism: Titus 3:5); “. . . our bodies washed with pure water” (Heb 10:22).
“Cleanse out the old leaven” (1 Cor 5:7); “let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, and make holiness perfect” (2 Cor 7:1); “our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience” (Heb 10:22).
“A sound tree cannot bear evil fruit” (Mt 7:18); “those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment” (Jn 5:29); “There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil” (Rom 2:9).
“do good . . . and you will be sons of the Most High” (Lk 6:35); “those who have done good, to the resurrection of life” (Jn 5:29); “glory and honor and peace for every one who does good” (Rom 2:10); “They are to do good, to be rich in good deeds, . . . so that they may take hold of the life which is life indeed” (1 Tim 6:18-19).
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you . . . have neglected the weightier matters of the law, justice and mercy and faith; these you ought to have done, . . .” (Mt 23:23).
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed” (Lk 4:18).
“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (Jas 1:27).
Isaiah26:2 Open the gates, that the righteous nation which keeps faith may enter in.
When the Prophet calls the nation “righteous and truthful,” he not only, as I mentioned a little before, describes the persons to whom this promise relates, but shews the fruit of the chastisement; for when its pollution shall have been washed away, the holiness and righteousness of the Church shall shine more brightly. . . .
Now, as the Prophet foretells the grace of God, so he also exhorts the redeemed people to maintain uprightness of life. In short, he threatens that these promises will be of no avail to hypocrites, and that the gates of the city will not be opened for them, but only for the righteous and holy. It is certain that the Church was always like a barn, (Matthew 3:12) in which the chaff is mingled with the wheat, or rather, the wheat is overpowered by the chaff; but when the Jews had been brought back into their country, the Church was unquestionably purer than before. . . . though the Church even at that time was stained by many imperfections, still this description was comparatively true; for a large portion of the filth had been swept away, and those who remained had profited in some degree under God’s chastisements.
There is not much to disagree with here –at least, prima facie; it reads very “Catholic”; even including themes not unlike the purifying processes of purgatory. But, as in the previous passages, Calvin basically is highlighting what God did, and ignoring the role of human beings cooperating with the God’s saving and enabling grace, per his theological system, which is insufficiently biblical.
Ten verses later (26:12), we see a synergistic, “both/and” passage (“thou hast wrought for us all our works”) that exhibits the notion of our works — truly ours! — being at the same time, God’s, much like 1 Corinthians 15:10: “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God which is with me.” Other translations help to elaborate upon this passage’s meaning:
NIV . . . all that we have accomplished you have done for us.
KJV . . . thou also hast wrought all our works in us.
NKJV . . . You have also done all our works in us.
Amplified . . . You have also performed for us all that we have done.
CEV . . . everything we have done was by your power.
GNB . . . everything that we achieve is the result of what you do.
We still do something. And because we cooperate and do what God makes possible, by His grace (as with all good works), we achieve merit in doing them; as St. Augustine famously wrote, “Merit is God crowning His own gifts.”
Isaiah 32:17 And the effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust for ever.
He now promises a different kind of repose, which will be a striking proof of the love of God, who has received them into favor, and will faithfully guard them. . . . that different kind of repose, on the other hand, which the children of God obtain by a religious and holy life, and which Isaiah exhorts us to desire, shewing that we ought fearlessly to believe that a blessed and joyful peace awaits us when we have been reconciled to God.
In this way he recommends to them to follow uprightness, that they may obtain assured peace; for, as Peter declares, there is no better way of procuring favor, that no man may do us injury, than to abstain from all evil-doing. (1 Peter 3:13.) But the Prophet leads them higher, to aim at a religious and holy life by the grace of God; . . .
Part of this “procuring favor” and that which we “obtain by a religious and holy life” is doing the good works which the Bible teaches are crucial to salvation itself. But Calvin carefully avoids any such implication. I submit that my hundred passages cannot all be dismissed simply by ignoring the author’s intent when it contradicts Calvinism. He almost “backs into” Catholic soteriology, but in the final analysis skirts around it.
Isaiah 33:15-16 He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly, who despises the gain of oppressions, who shakes his hands, lest they hold a bribe, who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed and shuts his eyes from looking upon evil, [16] he will dwell on the heights; his place of defense will be the fortresses of rocks; his bread will be given him, his water will be sure.
No man, indeed, can be so holy or upright as to be capable of enduring the eye of God; for “if the Lord mark our iniquities,” as David says, “who shall endure?” (Psalms 130:3.) We therefore need a mediator, through whose intercession our sins may be forgiven; and the Prophet did not intend to set aside the ordinary doctrine of Scripture on this subject, but to strike with terror wicked men, who are continually stung and pursued by an evil conscience, This ought to be carefully observed in opposition to the Popish doctors, by whom passages of this kind, which recommend works, are abused in order to destroy the righteousness of faith; as if the atonement for our sins, which we obtain through the sacrifice of Christ, ought to be set aside.
Ah! Now we see the incipient anti-Catholicism that never lurks very far beneath the surface of Calvin’s commentary. Note how he creates a false dichotomy (a common feature of his theology and methods of argumentation). As soon as dreaded “works” are brought into play at all, they must be denigrated, as if the Bible doesn’t teach that they play a real role in salvation (always alongside grace and faith, which are antecedent to them). My hundred Bible passages are designed to cut through this falsehood and to relentlessly refute it from the Bible. Works are not in opposition to “the sacrifice of Christ”; rather, they naturally flow from it. They are how we show or prove that we are in Christ: as Jesus Himself taught:
John 15:2, 4-6, 8 Every branch of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. . . . [4] Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. [5] I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. [6] If a man does not abide in me, he is cast forth as a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and burned. . . . [8] By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be my disciples.
So why does Calvin pit our good works against the sacrifice of Christ on our behalf, as if the two things are intrinsically antithetical? Who knows? But we know that this emphasis — whether Calvin was aware of it or not — is a result of placing man’s false, nonbiblical traditions above the Word of God in Holy Scripture. The irony, of course, is that this is what Calvin always accuses Catholics of doing.
Isaiah 48:18-19 O that you had hearkened to my commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness like the waves of the sea; [19] your offspring would have been like the sand, and your descendants like its grains; their name would never be cut off or destroyed from before me.”
Yet it would be foolish to attempt to penetrate into his secret counsel, and to inquire why he did not add the efficacy of the Spirit to the external word; for nothing is said here about his power, but there is only a reproof of the hard-heartedness of men, that they may be rendered inexcusable.
Here Calvin appears to wonder “aloud” why God isn’t a good Protestant in what he conveyed to the Jews, and why He doesn’t mention grace and/or the Holy Spirit every time He referred to commandments and works. When Calvin is stumped for ideas, he usually waxes eloquent and sophistical, as in this instance. He can be as clever as he is wrong.
Isaiah 56:1Thus says the LORD: “Keep justice, and do righteousness, for soon my salvation will come, and my deliverance be revealed.
He . . . points out the source and the cause why it is the duty of all to devote themselves to newness of life. It is because “the righteousness of the Lord approaches to us,” that we, on our part, ought to draw near to him. The Lord calls himself “righteous,” and declares that this is “his righteousness,” not because he keeps it shut up in himself, but because he pours it out on men. In like manner he calls it “his salvation,” by which he delivers men from destruction.
Again, Calvin superimposes the late Protestant doctrine of imputed, external, justification, by only stressing that God’s righteousness is in play, and not also our righteousness, from Him, which is related to salvation. The good works that regenerated, initially justified believers do are simultaneously God’s own. Therefore, He gets ultimate credit for them, while at the same time they are truly our own, too. That’s the biblical, Hebraic “both/and” outlook on life and theology. Many Bible passages teach this:
Mark 16:20 And they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them . . .
Romans 15:17-19 In Christ Jesus, then, I have reason to be proud of my work for God. [18] For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has wrought through me to win obedience from the Gentiles, by word and deed, [19] by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Holy Spirit, . . .
1 Corinthians 3:9 For we are God’s fellow workers . . .
1 Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God which is with me.
1 Corinthians 15:58 . . . be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.
2 Corinthians 6:1 Working together with him, . . .
Philippians 2:12-13 . . . work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; [13] for God is at work in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
Five of the next six verses in the chapter highlight good works as the path to the salvation alluded to in verse 1:
56:2 “Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who holds it fast, who keeps the sabbath, not profaning it, and keeps his hand from doing any evil.”
56:4-5 For thus says the LORD: “To the eunuchs who keep my sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, [5] I will give in my house and within my walls a monument and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name which shall not be cut off.
56:6-7 “And the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, to minister to him, to love the name of the LORD, and to be his servants, every one who keeps the sabbath, and does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant — [7] these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; . . .
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Summary: One of a series examining how John Calvin (1509-1564) exegeted biblical passages in his Commentaries that (in my opinion) refute the novel Protestant doctrine of “faith alone”.
Photo credit: Historical mixed media figure of John Calvin produced by artist/historian George S. Stuart and photographed by Peter d’Aprix: from the George S. Stuart Gallery of Historical Figures archive [Wikimedia Commons / Creative CommonsAttribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license]
This is a reply to John Calvin’s Acts of the Council of Trent with the Antidote (Nov. 1547), specifically his comments on the Sixth Session of the Council of Trent (Jan. 1547), regarding justification. The online treatise is taken from Selected Works of John Calvin: Tracts and Letters, Vol. 3: Tracts, Part 3; edited and translated by Henry Beveridge (Edinburgh: Calvin Translation Society, 1851). I have a hardcover copy of this volume in my own library: a reprint from Baker Book House (Grand Rapids, Michigan, 1983).
John Calvin’s words will be in blue; citations from Trent in green. I use RSV for biblical citations.
It was indeed an absurd dream, but they are still more grossly absurd when they give it as their opinion, that none of all the things which precede Justification, whether faith or works, merit it. What works antecedent to Justification are they here imagining? What kind of order is this in which the fruit is antecedent in time to the root? In one word, that pious readers may understand how great progress has been made in securing purity of doctrine, the monks dunned into the ears of the reverend Fathers, whose part was to nod assent, this old song, that good works which precede justification are not meritorious of eternal salvation, but preparatory only. If any works precede faith, they should also be taken into account. But there is no merit, because there are no works; for if men inquire into their works, they will find only evil works.
Posterity will scarcely believe that the Papacy had fallen into such a stupor as to imagine the possibility of any work antecedent to justification, even though they denied it to be meritorious of so great a blessing! For what can come from man until he is born again by the Spirit of God?
Such works as repentance, any good thing that they do, by prevenient grace, the sort of general theistic belief that Paul refers to in Romans 1:20: “Ever since the creation of the world his invisible nature, namely, his eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made.” Or, “the law written upon their hearts”:
Romans 2:13-16 For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified. [14] When Gentiles who have not the law do by nature what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. [15] They show that what the law requires is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or perhaps excuse them [16] on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus.
Or the virtuous pagan beliefs that Paul built upon in Athens, to preach the gospel:
Acts 17:22-23, 27-28 . . . “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. [23] For as I passed along, and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, ‘To an unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. . . . [27] . . . he is not far from each one of us, [28] for `In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your poets have said, `For we are indeed his offspring.’
Or the faith of the Roman centurion who came to Jesus, at whom Jesus “marveled” and said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith” (Lk 7:9). Calvin believes in total depravity; i.e., that human beings can do no good whatsoever before they are regenerated, and that even ostensibly good actions are inevitably tainted by evil in some fashion. But the anonymous psalmist in 112:5-6 refers to the “righteous” (Heb. tob), as does the book of Proverbs repeatedly: using the words “righteous” or “good” (11:23; 12:2; 13:22; 14:14, 19), using the same word, tob, which appears in Psalm 14:2-3. References to righteous men are innumerable (e.g., Job 17:9; 22:19; Ps 5:12; 32:11; 34:15; 37:16, 32; Mt 9:13; 13:17; 25:37, 46; Rom 5:19; Heb 11:4; Jas 5:16; 1 Pet 3:12; 4:18, etc.). See my articles:
Very different is the reasoning of Paul. He exhorts the Ephesians to remember (Ephesians 2) that they were saved by grace, not by themselves nor by their own works.
We don’t deny that, so it’s a moot point or a non sequitur.
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Scripture, . . . opposes faith to works . . .
Really?:
Matthew 7:21 Not every one who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. . . .
Matthew 19:16-17, 20-21 And behold, one came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do, to have eternal life?” [17] And he said to him, “. . . If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” . . . [20] The young man said to him, “All these I have observed; what do I still lack?” [21] Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”
Matthew 19:29 And every one who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life. (cf. Mk 10:29-30)
Luke 3:9 (+ Mt 3:10; 7:19) . . . every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
John 5:28-29 . . . all who are in the tombs will hear his voice [29] and come forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment.
Romans 1:5, 17 through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, . . . [17] For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, “He who through faith is righteous shall live.” (cf. Acts 6:7)
Romans 2:13 For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified.
Romans 16:26 . . . the obedience of faith
Galatians 5:6 . . . faith working through love.
1 Thessalonians 1:3 . . . your work of faith . . .
2 Thessalonians 1:11 . . . work of faith by his power,
Hebrews 11:8 By faith Abraham obeyed . . .
James 2:14, 17, 20-22, 24, 26 What does it profit, my brethren, if a man says he has faith but has not works? Can his faith save him? . . . [17] So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. . . . [20] . . . faith apart from works is barren . . . [21] Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar? [22] You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by works, . . . [24] You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. . . . [26] . . . faith apart from works is dead.
In the tenth chapter, they inveigh against what they call The Vain Confidence of Heretics. This consists, according to their definition, in our holding it as certain that our sins are forgiven, and resting in this certainty. But if such certainty makes heretics, where will be the happiness which David extols? (Psalm 32) Nay, where will be the peace of which Paul discourses in the fifth chapter to the Romans, if we rest in anything but the good-will of God?
Where, then, is that boldness of which Paul elsewhere speaks, (Ephesians 3:12,) that access with confidence to the Father through faith in Christ? . . . Nay, they overthrow all true prayer to God, when they keep pious minds suspended by fear which alone shuts the door of access against us. “He who doubts,” says James, (James 1:6) “is like a wave of the sea driven by the wind.” Let not such think that they shall obtain anything of the Lord. “Let him who would pray effectually not doubt.” Attend to the antithesis between faith and doubt, plainly intimating that faith is destroyed as soon as certainty is taken away.
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We do have that access, but it’s not the same as absolute assurance of eschatological salvation. St. Paul also warned:
1 Corinthians 9:27 I pommel my body and subdue it, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.
1 Corinthians 10:12 Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.
Galatians 5:1 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand fast, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
Galatians 5:4 You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.
Philippians 3:8-14 Indeed I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as refuse, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own, based on law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith; that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that if possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brethren, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
1 Timothy 4:1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by giving heed to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons.
But that the whole of their theology may be more manifest to my readers, let them weigh the words which follow under the same head. It ought not to be asserted, they say, that those who have been truly justified ought to entertain an unhesitating doubt that they are justified.
That’s not our teaching, which is thoroughly based on Paul’s. We simply deny absolute certainty of the future, including that of our attainment of heaven. This doesn’t equate to constant, anxious doubt, which is merely Calvin’s “either/or” self-delusion. It’s simply the acknowledgment of the obvious reality that we don’t know the future, and that we can possibly fall away from faith. Calvin, of course, denies that it’s possible to fall away, which is equally unbiblical, per the above articles. So each unbiblical error of his is compounded upon others, leading him further and further away from the Bible itself: all the while making the same accusation towards us, of the very thing he is doing..
I am ashamed to debate the matter, as if it were doubtful, with men who call themselves Christians. The doctrine of Scripture is clear. “We know,” says John, (1 John 4:6,) “that we are the children of God.”
Indeed, but how does John say that we know this?:
1 John 2:3-5 And by this we may be sure that we know him, if we keep his commandments. [4] He who says “I know him” but disobeys his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him; [5] but whoever keeps his word, in him truly love for God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him:
1 John 3:24 All who keep his commandments abide in him, and he in them. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit which he has given us.
He doesn’t teach, “we’re absolutely sure because we have faith!” He wasn’t a Calvinist and would have — along with Paul and James and Peter — flunked out of their seminaries. Rather, good works and obeying commandments are how we know, and “knowing” doesn’t mean that it is for all time, into eternity. We can know in the present, because we’re in the present and there is no required speculation about what is to come. That’s Paul’s and John’s teaching. That’s why Paul refers to “lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified” (1 Cor 9:27) and “let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Cor 10:12) and “if possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect; but I press on to make it my own. Brethren, I do not consider that I have made it my own . . . ” (Phil 3:11-13).
And, indeed, they are ignorant of the whole nature of faith who mingle doubt with it.
Again; it’s not doubt per se; rather, it’s a common sense acknowledgment that we don’t know the future. Jesus said, “he who endures to the end will be saved” (Mt 10:22). We don’t know that we’ll do that. But we have a strong faith that God’s enabling power will give us the strength and perseverance to do that, provided we are willing the whole way and don’t “fall away” (Gal 5:4; cf. Mt 13:6-7: parable of the sower). Paul condemns doubt (Rom 14:23), but he still warns about a possible falling away, if one isn’t vigilant and doesn’t “press on” like he does, or as James describes: “he who . . . perseveres, being no hearer that forgets but a doer that acts, he shall be blessed in his doing” (Jas 1:25).
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Summary: Part II of my critical examination of John Calvin’s 1547 treatise, “Acts of the Council of Trent with the Antidote”: regarding the issue of justification by faith, and salvation.
Fifty Bible Passages Stress Faith or Belief, Regarding the Question of Salvation, Compared to a Hundred that Emphasize or Highlight Works (Flowing from God’s Grace Through Our Faith). Who Woulda Thunk it?!
Photo credit: book cover from the Amazon page of the volume, Grace Faith Works: Finding the Biblical Balance (Woodsong: 2nd ed., April 15, 2016), by Larry Monroe Arrowood.
Recently, I compiled 100 Bible passages proving that works had a direct or causal relationship to salvation (always alongside and brought about by grace and faith). As far as I am concerned, that utterly annihilates any semblance of a “faith alone” Protestant soteriology. Catholics are not Pelagians (the old heresy of works-salvation). That view held that human beings could save themselves without the necessary causation of God’s grace. We believe salvation derives initially from His grace, leading to faith, which in turn organically includes good works within itself (since “faith without works is dead”: James 2). The sacraments are also intimately involved in the process, especially baptism, which regenerates.
In light of this project, I became curious about how many passages could be found that mentioned faith or belief in Jesus or hope or trust in God, as the sole means of salvation and/or justification, without also mentioning good works or actions on our part, in the verse or in the surrounding context. In other words, these would be the passages that Protestants would or could point to as evidence of “faith alone.”
Of course they don’t constitute such evidence, because Protestants — if biblically consistent — must also incorporate passages like the hundred I collected, into their overall view. But let’s just assume for the sake of argument that those hundred passages aren’t in the Bible. Are there more about [supposed] “faith alone” for justification and salvation than there are passages about the role of works? Let’s see! I use RSV for biblical citations.
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Note: the Old Testament has the phrase “Believe[d] in the LORD” many times (similar passages abound in the NT as well), but technically, that could simply be taken as belief that He [God or God the Son Jesus in particular] exists and ought to be followed, even as God and/or the Messiah. It doesn’t say that such belief is the sole determinant of salvation. James 2:19: “You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe — and shudder.” Analogously, if I were to collect every passage that commanded or exhorted people to do good works, but didn’t mention salvation, I would have a list of 200.
I did proximity searches of “believe” + “save” / “believe” + “salvation” / “believe” + “heaven” in the Protestant Old Testament and received zero hits; likewise, with “faith” and the other three terms. I did find four instances where “trust” and “save[d]” were together: Ps 22:5; 44:6; 86:2; Is 30:15; two with “trust” and “salvation”: Ps 13:5; Is 12:2, and three with “hope” and “Salvation”: Ps 65:5; 119:81, 166. These nine can be added to the list below. By contrast, in my paper with 100 proofs, I found 22 passage in the OT connecting works and salvation.
Luke 8:12 The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, that they may not believe and be saved.
John 1:12 But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God;
John 3:15-18 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” [16] For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. [17] For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. [18] He who believes in him is not condemned; he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
John 3:36 He who believes in the Son has eternal life; he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God rests upon him. (“obey” implies works and actions as well, showing that in the Hebrew mind, belief and obedient action to God’s commands were inseparable, but I’ll include this anyway, with an “asterisk”: as it were)
John 4:42 They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of your words that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.
John 5:24 Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me, has eternal life; he does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.
John 6:35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to me shall not hunger, and he who believes in me shall never thirst.
John 6:44, 47 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. . . . [47] Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life.
John 7:38-39 He who believes in me, as the scripture has said, `Out of his heart shall flow rivers of living water.'” [39] Now this he said about the Spirit, which those who believed in him were to receive; for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
John 8:24 I told you that you would die in your sins, for you will die in your sins unless you believe that I am he.”
John 11:25-26 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, [26] and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. . . .
John 12:36 While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light. . . .
John 12:46 I have come as light into the world, that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.
John 20:31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.
Acts 10:43 To him all the prophets bear witness that every one who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.
Acts 13:48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of God; and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.
Romans 3:21-26, 28, 30 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from law, although the law and the prophets bear witness to it, [22] the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction; [23] since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, [24] they are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus, [25] whom God put forward as an expiation by his blood, to be received by faith. [26] it was to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies him who has faith in Jesus. . . . [28] For we hold that a man is justified by faith . . . [30] since God is one; and he will justify the circumcised on the ground of their faith and the uncircumcised through their faith.
Romans 4:5 And to one who does not work but trusts him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness.
Romans 5:1-2 Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. [2] Through him we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in our hope of sharing the glory of God.
Romans 8:22-25, 28-30 We know that the whole creation has been groaning in travail together until now; [23] and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. [24] For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? [25] But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. . . . [28] We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him, who are called according to his purpose. [29] For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the first-born among many brethren. [30] And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.
Romans 10:4, 9-11 For Christ is the end of the law, that every one who has faith may be justified. . . . [9] because, if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. [10] For man believes with his heart and so is justified, and he confesses with his lips and so is saved. [11] The scripture says, “No one who believes in him will be put to shame.”
1 Corinthians 1:21 . . . it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.
Galatians 2:16, 20 . . . a man is . . . justified . . . through faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ, . . . [20] I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me; and the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Galatians 3:8, 14 And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, . . . [14] that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Galatians 3:24, 26 So that the law was our custodian until Christ came, that we might be justified by faith. . . . [26] for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.
Ephesians 1:13 In him you also, who have heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and have believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,
Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God —
Colossians 1:23, 27 provided that you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which has been preached to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister. . . . [27] . . . this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
1 Timothy 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope,
1 Timothy 1:16 . . . those who were to believe in him for eternal life.
1 Timothy 4:10 . . . we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe.
1 Timothy 6:12 Fight the good fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
2 Timothy 3:15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings which are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
Titus 1:2 in hope of eternal life which God, who never lies, promised ages ago
Titus 3:7 so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life.
Hebrews 6:1 Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God,
Hebrews 6:11-12 And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness in realizing the full assurance of hope until the end, [12]. . . imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
Hebrews 10:23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful;
1 Peter 1:3, 5, 9 . . . By his great mercy we have been born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, . . . [5] who by God’s power are guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. [9] As the outcome of your faith you obtain the salvation of your souls.
1 John 5:1, 4-5 Every one who believes that Jesus is the Christ is a child of God . . . [4] For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith. [5] Who is it that overcomes the world but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
1 John 5:11-13 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. [12] He who has the Son has life; he who has not the Son of God has not life.[13] I write this to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.
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The total number of scriptural passages, then, indicating the notion of faith / belief for salvation, including the nine Old Testament passages mentioned, is fifty: or half of the 100 passages I found connecting good works and salvation. Now, let me make clear that I am not contending that works are thereby shown as more important than, or twice as important as faith and trust in God in the Bible. No! But what I would vigorously claim, and what Protestants must grapple with (since they believe in inspired, inerrant revelation), is the undeniable fact that the Bible emphasizes or mentions works with regard to salvation more so than faith and belief, etc., by a 2-to-1 margin (at least by my own best reckoning, searching the relevant terms).
This being the case — and I have now documented it — I submit that it’s impossible to maintain that the Bible teaches a “faith alone” position with regard to the way of salvation. Nor does it teach a works-salvation or works alone, Pelagian view. What it teaches is the Catholic view of salvation by grace alone, through a faith that intrinsically includes within itself works (including the sacraments): without which it is dead.
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Practical Matters: I run the most comprehensive “one-stop” Catholic apologetics site: rated #1 for Christian sites by leading AI tool, ChatGPT — endorsed by popular Protestant blogger Adrian Warnock. Perhaps some of my 4,800+ free online articles or fifty-five books have helped you (by God’s grace) to decide to become Catholic or to return to the Church, or better understand some doctrines and why we believe them.
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Or you may believe my work is worthy to support for the purpose of apologetics and evangelism in general. If so, please seriously consider a much-needed financial contribution. I’m always in need of more funds: especially monthly support. “The laborer is worthy of his wages” (1 Tim 5:18, NKJV). 1 December 2021 was my 20th anniversary as a full-time Catholic apologist, and February 2022 marked the 25th anniversary of my blog.
Photo credit: book cover fromthe Amazon pageof the volume, Grace Faith Works: Finding the Biblical Balance (Woodsong: 2nd ed., April 15, 2016), byLarry Monroe Arrowood.I’m not endorsing the book. I don’t know anything about it. I just liked the title, which fit the theme of this article.
Summary: Having compiled 100 Bible passages indicating that works play an important role in salvation, I decided to see how many taught (supposedly) “faith alone”. I found fifty.
Photo credit: self-designed cover of my 2010 book, Biblical Catholic Salvation: “Faith Working Through Love” .
This is my reply to a lengthy comment by “ThornyCrown” underneath the video by my friend, Kenny Burchard, “Why ‘Sola Fidei’ is 100% unbiblical!! [30+ Verses to Highlight!!]” (10-6-24; utilizing my biblical research). His words — and I cite all of them — will be in blue. I use RSV for biblical citations.
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As a die-hard Protestant who left the Roman church 35 years ago,
I’m a die-hard Catholic, who left Protestantism 34 years ago. But I continue to have great respect for evangelical Protestantism and am ecumenical. I simply have some honest disagreements with my esteemed brothers and sisters in Christ, with whom I continue to have a great deal in common. And I’m sure Kenny feels the same way.
I find GREAT fault with this video by what Mr. B does NOT say.
That’s fine; it can be discussed (and I will be doing that), but it would be nice — and I think more sensible — if you responded to what he actually argued. To not do so is, bottom line, simply the old tired tactic of topic-switching and evading the responsibility of interaction with an opposing argument. If the Bible passages we produce (most from myself) are inadequate in your opinion, then by all means, show us (and everyone reading) how and why they are. If you have the superior biblical case, that should be a piece of cake for you; easy as pie (to use two culinary analogies). We’ll have that dialogue with you, but it takes two to dialogue.
It’s quite easy to lecture without the opposing view there to object,
Exactly my point! Since you yourself say you are responding to what Kenny didn’t say, rather than to what he did contend for, you are guilty of the very same thing you now condemn. There is not yet an opposing view because you set off into completely new territory. But I am now replying to you, providing the opposing view to your current off-topic argument, and giving you the courtesy of direct interaction. I respectfully ask that you extend to us the same courtesy.
so kindly allow these next two comboxes to be my objection.
You’re free to talk, as long as you remain civil. But in the future, again, we ask that you please stay on-topic. Otherwise, your comment veers too close to trolling.
First, I have before me a list of 30 people from antiquity who used the phrase “faith alone” or its derivative.
That’s clearly off-topic, since the video is about 30+ Bible passages, not the Church fathers. Secondly, did you do that research yourself or did you simply copy it from someone else? Thirdly, context is all-important in such discussions, so you need to provide documentation as much as possible: preferably to online sources, so context can be examined. Fourth, I did do my own research, in many posts on the same topic, in addition to my three books of patristic citations:
I won’t list them all, but suffice to say, they would obviously disagree with you.
Maybe in some very few cases; someone who simply got it wrong. I suspect, however, that in almost all cases, they do not, when their overall thought is considered. Again, I can prove that because I have done the work. I have time to do such work, as a full-time Catholic apologist, these past 23 years. Here’s what I have collected along these lines:
Marius Victorinus: For faith itself alone gives justification and sanctification (“Ipsa enim fides sola iustificationem dat-et sanctificationem” ).
You provide no documentation. I will do so. This quotation is from his Commentary on Galatians, which can be accessed online (with a little work!). It was published by Oxford University Press in 2005, translated with notes by Stephen Andrew Cooper. Here is the citation in context:
We, says Paul, we have believed in Christ, and we do believe in order that we might be justified based on faith, not works of the Law, seeing that no flesh—that is, the human being who is in flesh—is justified based on works of the Law. So knowing this, if we have believed that justification comes about through faith, we are surely going astray if we now return to Judaism, from which we passed over to be justified based not on works but faith, and faith in Christ. For faith itself alone grants justification and sanctification. Thus any flesh whatsoever—Jews or those from the Gentiles—is justified on the basis of faith, not works or observance of the Jewish Law. (Cooper, 152-153; italics not included, because I doubt that they were in the original)
Catholics agree that initially we are justified by faith alone (and of course, grace alone), contra Pelagianism. We have no beef with that at all. It’s “monergistic” at first. What we are saying is that after initial justification, we are then required to cooperate with God and do good works, if we are to be saved in the end, because “faith without works is dead.” Now, it may be that Marius Victorinus was simply wrong and held to a proto-Protestant view of justification, unlike virtually all other Church fathers (according to the Protestant scholars McGrath and Geisler). Translator Cooper notes that “it is perhaps the earliest Latin formulation of Paul’s theology in those terms [i.e., “faith alone”]” (p. 153).
Isn’t that interesting? Marius Victorinus lived from 290 to 364, so this means — if Cooper is correct — that no Latin Church father used the term “faith alone” for at least 260 years after the death of Christ. The fact that Protestants can find one man is no proof that the Church fathers en masse or as a consensus believed in “faith alone.” One can always find one or a few Church fathers who simply got things wrong. They’re not infallible, in Catholic teaching. But they usually agreed overwhelmingly on orthodox Catholic doctrine. This issue is no exception, as even my own articles alone prove.
St. Paul — over against Marius Victorinus — teaches over and over that good works play a crucial and necessary role in the attainment of salvation (i.e., in anyone who lives after they have been regenerated at baptism):
“As it is written, ‘He who through faith is righteous shall live.’” (Romans 1:17); “To those who by patience in well-doing seek for … immortality, he will give eternal life … glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good” (Romans 2:7, 10); “the doers of the law … will be justified” (Romans 2:13). The “end” of “sanctification” is “eternal life” (Romans 6:22), and indeed we are “saved, through sanctification” (2 Thessalonians 2:13); we’re “fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him” (Romans 8:17; cf. 1 Peter 4:13). He taught that we must do many good things and be fruitful in order to be saved:
Galatians 5:14, 19, 21-23. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” … Now the works of the flesh are plain … those who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such there is no law.
2 Thessalonians 1:8, 11. … inflicting vengeance … upon those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. … To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his call, and may fulfill every good resolve and work of faith by his power …
1 Timothy 4:12, 15-16. … set the believers an example in speech and conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. … Practice these duties, … Take heed to yourself and to your teaching; hold to that, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.
Paul frequently makes many similar points in his letters: “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for God is at work in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:12-13); “work heartily, … knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward” (Colossians 3:23-24); “woman will be saved through bearing children, if she continues in faith and love and holiness” (1 Timothy 2:15); “aim at righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called” (1 Timothy 6:11-12); “keep the commandment … do good … be rich in good deeds … so that they may take hold of the life which is life indeed” (1 Timothy 6:14, 18-19).
Chrysostom… For he makes a wide distinction between commandments and ordinances. He either then means faith, calling that an ordinance, (for by faith alone he saved us) or he means precept, such as… (NPNF1: Vol. XIII, Homilies on Ephesians, Homily 5, Ephesians 2:11-12).
St. John Chrysostom’s overall thought needs to be taken into account. He did not believe in Protestant “faith alone” soteriology. For he also wrote:
Ver. 7. “To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, eternal life.” Here also he awakens those who had drawn back during the trials, and shows that it is not right to trust in faith only. For it is deeds also into which that tribunal will enquire. (Homily V on Romans 1:28: v. 2:7; NPNF1-11)
For “each of us shall give account of himself to God.” In order therefore that we may render up this account with a good defence, let us well order our own lives and stretch out a liberal hand to the needy, knowing that this only is our defence, the showing ourselves to have rightly done the things commanded; there is no other whatever. And if we be able to produce this, we shall escape those intolerable pains of hell, and obtain the good things to come; . . . (Homily XXI on 1 Corinthians 9:1, 11, v. 9:12; NPNF1-12)
As often as you enter in to pray, first deposit your alms, and then send up your prayer; . . . since not even the Gospel hanging by our bed is more important than that alms should be laid up for you; for if you hang up the Gospel and do nothing, it will do you no such great good. (Homily XLIII on 1 Corinthians 16:1, 7, v. 16:9; NPNF1-12)
For to believe is not all that is required, but also to abide in love. (Commentary on Galatians, v. 5:6; NPNF1-13)
“It is the gift,” said he, “of God,” it is “not of works.” Was faith then, you will say, enough to save us? No; but God, saith he, hath required this, lest He should save us, barren and without work at all. His expression is, that faith saveth, but it is because God so willeth, that faith saveth. Since, how, tell me, doth faith save, without works? This itself is the gift of God. . . . He did not reject us as having works, but as abandoned of works He hath saved us by grace; so that no man henceforth may have whereof to boast. And then, lest when thou hearest that the whole work is accomplished not of works but by faith, thou shouldest become idle, observe how he continues, Ver. 10. “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God afore prepared that we should walk in them.” (Homily IV on Ephesians, v. 2:8-10; NPNF1-13)
If faith without a good life is unavailing, much more is the converse true. (Homily V on 1 Timothy, v. 1:20; NPNF1-13)
Let not us either expect that faith is sufficient to us for salvation; for if we do not show forth a pure life, but come clothed with garments unworthy of this blessed calling, nothing hinders us from suffering the same as that wretched one. (Homily X on John, v. 1:13; NPNF1-14)
“Is it then enough,” saith one, “to believe on the Son, that one may have eternal life?” By no means. And hear Christ Himself declaring this, and saying, “Not every one that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven” ( Matt. vii. 21 ); and the blasphemy against the Spirit is enough of itself to cast a man into hell. But why speak I of a portion of doctrine? Though a man believe rightly on the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, yet if he lead not a right life, his faith will avail nothing towards his salvation. Therefore when He saith, “This is life eternal, that they may know Thee the only true God” ( c. xvii. 3 ), let us not suppose that the (knowledge) spoken of is sufficient for our salvation; we need besides this a most exact life and conversation. (Homily XXXI on John, v. 3:35-36; NPNF1-14)
. . . because He had said above, “He that heareth My words and believeth on Him that sent Me,” “is not judged,” lest any one should imagine that this alone is sufficient for salvation, He addeth also the result of man’s life, declaring that “they which have done good shall come forth unto the resurrection of life, and they that have done evil unto the resurrection of judgment.” (Homily XXXIX on John, v. 5:28-29; NPNF1-14)
How long shall we neglect our own salvation? Let us bear in mind of what things Christ has deemed us worthy, let us give thanks, let us glorify Him, not by our faith alone, but also by our very works, that we may obtain the good things that are to come . . . (Homily XLVI on John, v. 6:52; NPNF1-14)
. . . a right faith availeth nothing if the life be corrupt, both Christ and Paul declare . . . (Homily LXIII on John, v. 11:40; NPNF1-14)
Faith is indeed great and bringeth salvation, and without it, it is not possible ever to be saved. It suffices not however of itself to accomplish this, . . . on this account Paul also exhorts those who had already been counted worthy of the mysteries; saying, “Let us labor to enter into that rest.” “Let us labor” (he says), Faith not sufficing, the life also ought to be added thereto, and our earnestness to be great; for truly there is need of much earnestness too, in order to go up into Heaven. (Homily VII on Hebrews, v. 4:11-13; NPNF1-14)
See much more along these lines in my article about St. John Chrysostom, linked above.
Basil of Caesarea:… Let him who boasts boast in the Lord, that Christ has been made by God for us righteousness, wisdom, justification, redemption. This is perfect and pure boasting in God… justified solely by faith in Christ (Chemnitz, Examination of the Council of Trent, Part 1, p. 505)
Again, we are given no primary documentation. But I know that St. Basil rejected faith alone, based on research that I did way back in 2007:
Mere renouncement of sin is not sufficient for the salvation of penitents, but fruits worthy of penance are also required of them. (The Morals, 1, 3)
He who would obey the gospel must first be purged of all defilement of the flesh and the spirit that so he may be acceptable to God in the good works of holiness. (The Morals, 2, 1).
“Turn to your rest; for the Lord has been kind to you.” Eternal rest awaits those who have struggled through the present life observant of the laws, not as payment owed for their works, but bestowed as a gift of the munificent God on those who have hoped in him. (On Psalm 114, no. 5)
They, then, that were sealed by the Spirit unto the day of redemption, and preserve pure and undiminished the first fruits which they received of the Spirit, are they that shall hear the words “well done thou good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things.” In like manner they which have grieved the Holy Spirit by the wickedness of their ways, or have not wrought for Him that gave to them, shall be deprived of what they have received, their grace being transferred to others; or, according to one of the evangelists, they shall even be wholly cut asunder, —the cutting asunder meaning complete separation from the Spirit. (De Spiritu Sancto, chapter 15; NPNF 2, Vol. VIII)
Truly blessed is the soul, which by night and by day has no other anxiety than how, when the great day comes wherein all creation shall stand before the Judge and shall give an account for its deeds, she too may be able easily to get quit of the reckoning of life. For he who keeps that day and that hour ever before him, and is ever meditating upon the defence to be made before the tribunal where no excuses will avail, will sin not at all, or not seriously, for we begin to sin when there is a lack of the fear of God in us. When men have a clear apprehension of what is threatened them, the awe inherent in them will never allow them to fall into inconsiderate action or thought. (Letter 174: To a Widow; NPNF 2, Vol. VIII)
Ignatius of Antioch… His cross, and his death, and his resurrection, and the faith which is through him, are my unpolluted muniments [legal titles] and in these, through your prayers, I am willing to be justified (Epistle to Philadelphians)
But to me Jesus Christ is in the place of all that is ancient: His cross, and death, and resurrection, and the faith which is by Him, are undefiled monuments of antiquity; by which I desire, through your prayers, to be justified.
We are indeed justified by faith, but not by faith alone. St. Ignatius proves that he rejects the latter false doctrine in other statements:
None of these things is hid from you, if you perfectly possess that faith and love towards Christ Jesus [1 Timothy 1:14] which are the beginning and the end of life. For the beginning is faith, and the end is love. [1 Timothy 1:5] Now these two, being inseparably connected together, are of God, while all other things which are requisite for a holy life follow after them. No man [truly] making a profession of faith sins; [1 John 3:7] nor does he that possesses love hate any one. The tree is made manifest by its fruit; [Matthew 12:33] so those that profess themselves to be Christians shall be recognised by their conduct. For there is not now a demand for mere profession, but that a man be found continuing in the power of faith to the end. (Epistle to the Ephesians, ch. 14)
In his Epistle to the Smyrnaeans, Ignatius couples “faith and love” three times (Greeting, chapters 6, 13), and he writes:
Let no man deceive himself. Both the things which are in heaven, and the glorious angels, and rulers, both visible and invisible, if they believe not in the blood of Christ, shall, in consequence, incur condemnation. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it.Matthew 19:12 Let not [high] place puff any one up: for that which is worth all is faith and love, to which nothing is to be preferred. But consider those who are of a different opinion with respect to the grace of Christ which has come unto us, how opposed they are to the will of God. They have no regard for love; no care for the widow, or the orphan, or the oppressed; of the bond, or of the free; of the hungry, or of the thirsty. (6)
He places faith and works together; directly reflecting the words of Jesus at the Last Judgment in Matthew 25:31-46, and when he is commenting on grace he immediately brings up various good works. He refers to grace, faith, love, and good works, all in the same context, which is what St. Paul habitually does. Again, in his Epistle to the Trallians, he makes similar connections: “Wherefore, clothing yourselves with meekness, be renewed in faith, that is the flesh of the Lord, and in love, that is the blood of Jesus Christ” (ch. 8). In his Epistle to the Magnesians, he couples “faith and love” three times (chapters 1, 6, 13). In his Epistle to the Ephesians, he again uses the phrase “faith and love” twice (chapters 1, 14). And he associates faith and works:
. . . your name, much-beloved in God, which you have acquired by the habit of righteousness, according to the faith and love in Jesus Christ our Saviour. (ch. 1)
For it was needful for me to have been stirred up by you in faith, exhortation, patience, and long-suffering. (ch. 3)
. . . faith cannot do the works of unbelief, nor unbelief the works of faith. (ch. 8)
. . . making use of the Holy Spirit as a rope, while your faith was the means by which you ascended, and your love the way which led up to God. You, therefore, as well as all your fellow-travellers, are God-bearers, temple-bearers, Christ-bearers, bearers of holiness, adorned in all respects with the commandments of Jesus Christ, . . . (ch. 9)
This simply isn’t faith alone, folks; no way, no how.
Bernard of Clairvaux… “solam justificatur per fidem,” (i.e., is justified by faith alone) (In Canticum serm. 22.8…PL 183.881):
I need a source in English, preferably with a link. Since St. Bernard isn’t one of the Church fathers, I’ll pass for the time being, since I am already devoting many hours of work to this response.
Obviously, the RCC arbitrarily picks and chooses which early teachers constitute “tradition” and choose only those which they feel are in conformity with the magisterium.
As I have shown in my own research (links above), the Church fathers en masse rejected “faith alone.”
This is dishonest, as was this video by not mentioning them.
The video was about biblical arguments. But charges of dishonesty of this sort aren’t allowed in this channel. Please cease and desist with the insults. “A word to the wise is sufficient.” We can discuss competing theologies without making such insinuations. The Catholic Church and Catholics honestly, sincerely believe what they do, and so do Protestants. The thing is to determine who is right. We do that by making rational, historical, theological, biblical arguments, not making sweeping charges of supposed heart-reading and sin. The great Protestant historian Philip Schaff observed:
If any one expects to find in this period [100-325], or in any of the church fathers, Augustin himself not excepted, the Protestant doctrine of justification by faith alone, . . . he will be greatly disappointed . . . (History of the Christian Church, Vol. 2, 588-589)
Second, Since Mr. B agrees that works of the Mosaic law “definitely” do not justify us (20:30). How nice. Why then are the Ten commandments of the Mosaic law “necessary for salvation” per CCC 2068???????
One must distinguish between the technical phrase “works of the law” (which referred to specifically Jewish works of national identity, per the understanding of some Protestants’ belief in “new perspective on Paul”) and works in general, or commandments. The Ten Commandments are still binding upon Christians. Or do you disagree with that? I imagine that the Catechism states that the Ten Commandments were necessary for salvation because Jesus said the same thing to the rich young ruler, when He asked Him, “what good deed must I do, to have eternal life?” (Mt 19:16). Jesus’ answer was, “If you would enter life, keep the commandments” (Mt 19:17).
St. Paul mentioned four of the ten (Rom 13:9) and then in the same noted that commandments were “summed up in this sentence, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'” Then he teaches that “love is the fulfilling of the law” (13:10) and in context proclaims that “salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed” (13:11). Then in Revelation 14:12, “the saints” are described as “those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus”. Then it is said about the “Blessed . . . dead who die in the Lord henceforth” that “their deeds follow them!” (14:13). Also in the same book Jesus taught that those who did not keep the Ten Commandments, such as “sorcerers and fornicators and murderers and idolaters” (22:15) would not enter heaven. St. John also states, “All who keep his commandments abide in him, and he in them” (1 Jn 3:24). It follows, then, that keeping those commandments are necessary to salvation and entrance into heaven (eschatological salvation).
Third, when we say (and the Bible concurs) that we are not saved by works, we mean ANY works, whether it be from the law, good works we do as a cheerful giver, or good works done in God’s grace. The distinction Mr. B tries to make between works of the law which don’t save — and faith and good works done with God’s grace which DOES save (CCC 1821) cannot stand biblical scrutiny.
Sure it can withstand biblical scrutiny. I’ve produced no less than 100 biblical passages that forbid faith alone. You have ignored them. Why is that: if you are so convinced we are wrong and you are right? You should have counter-explanations for every single one. Instead, you ignore and change the subject. This does not — to put it mildly — bespeak a confidence in your case or the courage of your convictions. Here are two of the clearest ones:
Romans 2:7 For he will render to every man according to his works: [7] to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life;
James 2:14 What does it profit, my brethren, if a man says he has faith but has not works? Can his faith save him?
Mr. B is advocating that anytime we hear we aren’t saved by works, to take that to mean the restriction of only those works emanating from the Pentateuch.
However, this cannot be so because Paul goes on record using the word “law” to designate the Scriptures as a WHOLE, which would mean he is NOT restricting good works of the law only to the Pentateuch, but ANY GOOD WORKS WHATSOEVER right up to this present day.
The Bible teaches that we aren’t saved by works in the sense of Pelagianism works-salvation (salvation by works alone), which the Catholic Church entirely rejects (e.g., Eph 2:8-9). But when Kenny is talking about the phrase “works of the law”, that has a specific meaning, applying to Jews who kept the Mosaic Law in its entirety (which no Christian does). “Works of the law” is a phrase that occurs seven times in Paul’s epistles. Paul also refers to “the law of the Jews” (Acts 25:8) and “the law of Moses” (1 Cor 9:9).
Good works in a generic sense are good! (a = a), and related to salvation: so say at least a hundred biblical passages. Protestants, on the other hand, believe in several things that have no scriptural support at all. The canon of the New Testament is one of those that they will readily admit. I would also contend that sola Scriptura and sola fide are two more things that lack any biblical support at all. But we can produce a hundred biblical passages against faith alone (I did that, myself), and I wrote a book called 100 Biblical Arguments Against Sola Scriptura.
For instance, he appeals to the law in 1 Cor 14:21, but he quotes Isaiah 28:11-12, which of course is NOT part of the Pentateuch. In Romans 3:19, he describes his citations from the O.T. in verses 10-18 as “what the law says”. However, these verses are derived from the Psalms (5:9, 10:7, 14:1-3, 36:1, 53:1-3, 140:3…as well as Proverbs 1:16, and Isa 59:7-8) all of which categorically proves that good works done under the old law– “for salvation”– cannot be restricted to the Mosaic law as is commonly supposed. Thus, we must not seek to qualify the kinds of works which are excluded for justification because the fact is, each and every kind of righteous work is prohibited; i.e., we are not to trust in them AT ALL, nor does God save us by ANY kind of righteousness on our part done with or without the grace of the Holy Spirit.
That’s simply not true, and I have a hundred Bible passages to prove it. So at this point the ball is in your court. In order to dissuade us, you have to produce counter-interpretations of all one hundred that are in line with “faith alone” and not in harmony with the Catholic and biblical soteriology of salvation by grace alone, by faith: to which works are organically connected and required. I dare say that you can’t do so, and that your refusal to even begin that necessary task is already pretty strong evidence that you can’t. You’re welcome to start at any time! We’ll be glad to publish that effort on our video channel and in any blogs I write in reply. And we will always answer and refute any such attempt, that is, unless you convince us, in which case we would be duty-bound to change our minds and become Protestants again. But clearly, that won’t ever happen if you completely refuse to engage in; indeed, run away from, what you must do to refute what we have offered — as you have done in this reply.
Mr. B will agree that no one can be justified by the Mosaic law, explicitly stated in Acts 13:39. Fine. But the problem with Catholicism emerges when you agree (for example) that if obeying one’s parent’s under the Mosaic law was not salvific, then how can you say that obeying your parents under the New Testament IZZZ salvific?
It is in conjunction with faith: all caused by God’s grace. It isn’t, in and of itself. We can say that it’s one thing that helps save one, because Jesus said so (Mt 19:17): honoring parents being one of the Ten Commandments. It’s one of dozens of works that the New Testament mentions as part of the overall equation of salvation. Jesus mentioned three works that helped cause salvation in one saying:
Matthew 25:34-35 Then the King will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; [35] for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, . . .
In another place, He mentioned five actions: the reward for each being eternal life:
Luke 18:29-30 And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there is no man who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, [30] who will not receive manifold more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.”
Etc., etc., up to a hundred biblical passages. . . .
Yet that is exactly what they teach; i.e., God has created a new “system of grace” wherein the good works we do under the new covenant, now become the gateway to heaven. But by doing so, they have attached to their good deeds, a salvific EFFICACY on the same level as the blood of Christ. This is unacceptable and is “another gospel” per 2 For 11:4 which saves no one.
That doesn’t follow. I think I’ve gone through this before with you. To say that “x work plays a role in salvation, alongside faith, caused by grace” is not the same as equating that work in value with the blood of Christ. That simply doesn’t follow, either logically or theologically. But it sounds nice as anti-Catholic rhetoric and polemics. The only problem is that it’s a fallacy and falsehood.
I will continue in one more combox quoting from the #1 RC apologetic book for the last 25 years, Not By Faith Aloneby R. Sungenis, endorsed by all the major Catholic luminaries of today on the inside cover pages.
I believe the #1 Catholic apologetics book is Surprised by Truth, which has sold some half a million copies. My own conversion story is one of the twelve included in it.
To verify what I just said about good deeds having the same blood-cleansing efficacy as Christ’s blood, we read, “Works become JUST AS MUCH a salvific part of the individual’s justification as his faith” (p. 172). There is your equivalency factor, clear as the light of day and it is “100% unbiblical”… to use Mr. B’s video title.
It’s not unbiblical at all. I produced 100 biblical proofs. Christ’s blood brings about the possibility of salvation for anyone who repents and accepts God’s mercy, and is 1000% sufficient for that purpose. But then we have to do our part, which is exercising faith and doing good works. It’s not established by you at all that our faith or whatever good works we do are equivalent to Christ’s blood. I don’t see how they ever could be. Whatever good is in us is ultimately caused by God’s grace. Now, if faith without works is dead, then it logically follows that authentic faith cannot exist without works. And if that is the case, it also follows that works are as important as faith, seeing that the former literally bring the latter “to life”: so to speak.
Before I give more disturbing quotes,
“Disturbing”? What you have given is not “disturbing” in the slightest. I’ve had no problem refuting all or any of it.
the bulk of Mr. B’s time was throwing out the verses that tell us we ought to be good. But no Protestant alive or dead has ever advocated that faith be “dislocated” from works, to use Mr. B’s word. All the “good” passages simply mean that the elect in heaven will have had a GENERAL TENOR of being good, not that their goodness got them there!
That’s untrue. It’s a falsehood. I specifically chose my prooftexts — and Kenny uses my work in his videos –, keeping in mind this very thing: that Protestants would claim that works simply accompany faith, while supposedly having nothing to do with salvation itself. That’s not what the Bible teaches at all. Again and again, it establishes a causal relationship of works and salvation, just as with faith and salvation (grace being the main cause behind both). Matthew 25 (the judgment) and the Jesus and the rich young ruler passage (Matthew 19) show this most clearly. Here are a few more of the clearest of my biblical proofs, in terms of demonstrating a direct causal relationship:
Matthew 7:19, 21 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. . . . [21] “Not every one who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
John 5:29 . . . those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, . . .
Romans 6:22 . . . the return you get is sanctification and its end, eternal life.
Colossians 3:23-24 Whatever your task, work heartily, as serving the Lord and not men, [24] knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward;
2 Thessalonians 2:13 . . . God chose you from the beginning to be saved, through sanctification . . .
1 Timothy 6:18-19 They are to do good, to be rich in good deeds, liberal and generous, [19] thus laying up for themselves a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of the life which is life indeed.
Revelation 20:12-13 . . . And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, by what they had done. [13] . . . and all were judged by what they had done.
The dire difference is that we don’t believe we are saved or justified BYYYY them in any way whatsoever, whereas Catholics DO, which is their fatal error.
We are following clear and relentlessly repeated Scripture in this respect. You are not.
We say, yes, do a million good works to the glory of God, but if you begin to base your hope for HEAVEN on them (explicitly stated in CCC 1821), you are lost.
See the above seven passages in particular for the answer to this. But there are 93 more answers, too.
The “damnable works-righteousness” Mr. B (rightly) says Protestants accuse Catholics of, may be seen in Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma, p. 261. Catholics seek to be, “supernaturally endowed to perform ordinary and extraordinary heroic acts FOR the salvation of the soul”. This is precisely where and why we part company.
Yes, because you depart from Scripture, and we obediently follow it, since it’s God’s inspired revelation. We don’t deign to place our man-made unbiblical traditions above God’s written Word and in contradiction of that same Scripture.
Allegedly, as long as they admit their good works are done under the umbrella of God’s grace, all will be well, or so they think. Instead of a singular confidence in the doing and dying of Christ alone (Romans 5:10) a clever trick is sneaked in through the back door.
Following biblical instructions and teachings isn’t “clever”; rather, it’s wise and spiritually fruitful and pleasing to God. I have nine passages from the letter to the Romans in my collection: proving that Paul rejects “faith alone.”
Specifically, when one has the intention of doing good works under the auspices of God’s grace, this mindset magically qualifies those deeds to become the hinge upon which the door into heaven swings (repeat, CCC 1821). What Catholicism is stipulating is that the power of his grace invigorates them on a path of good deeds, all of which are then instrumental in the verdict of justification (i.e., our right standing before God).
Now to Mr. Sungenis:
“Works are a primary criteria in [God] deciding whether or not the individual is saved” (p. 50).
“Works are the determining factor in our salvation” (p. 215; cf. p. 38 footnote).
“Works are the ultimate factor in the salvation of the individual” (p. 145).
“Salvation is either granted or denied based on works” (p. 159).
“A person’s eternal destiny is dependent on God’s final evaluation of the person’s deeds” (p. 484).
“If done through grace, they [works] are graciously meritorious for salvation”
(p. 102).
“The evaluation of our good works as noted in 1 Cor 3:13-17 and 2 Cor 5:10 will not result in personal rewards only, but “rather a judgment which will determine whether one will be saved” (p. 41).
That’s all biblical, per my 100 proofs. Matthew 25 is particularly clear in this respect.
In light of these audacious claims, there can be no doubt that Catholics have been rightly accused of working their way to eternal life, for that is exactly what they teach. Rather than trust in the mercy of God alone in the face of Jesus Christ (2 For 4:6) so that “no flesh should glory in his presence” (1 Cor 1:29) heavy emphasis is placed on their dazzling “performance rituals” to ensure a spot in heaven, and that being so, we shudder for the salvation of the Pope down to the pauper in the pew.
Contrary to the video’s thesis, “Faith Alone” is 100% biblical. The book on my shelf, “Faith Alone in 100 verses” by Wilkin is a case in point. I will NOT throw that book away after watching this presentation, for it did NOT have the power to persuade those of us aware of the facts Mr. B. OMITTED to say such as doing “heroic acts that save the soul” mentioned above which is downright preposterous.
Now why don’t you deal with my 100 passages, if you are so confident and sure of your belief? What stops you?
Hence, Evangelicals use the logo, “Faith Alone” merely as shorthand that guards against a tug-of-war. That is, a tug-of-war between trusting in our own “right conduct” to open heaven’s gate (per CCC 16) and the fatal error of giving equal trust to the “right conduct” of Christ the Lord!
“At the end of the day, “Faith Alone” brings perfect peace (Isa 26:3) to the one who trusts solely in the OBJECT of their faith, for “the one who believes in him will never be put to shame” (Romans 9:33).
God could have chosen to make “faith alone” the sole criterion of salvation. But He didn’t (as we know from the Bible). He chose to have works directly involved, too, since they are organically connected to faith and can’t be arbitrarily separated from it. The works are derived from His grace just as faith is. God crowns His own gifts, as St. Augustine stated, in choosing to regard our good works as meritorious.
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Summary: I reply to every argument made by a Protestant who objected to Kenny Burchard’s video, “Why ‘Sola Fidei’ is 100% unbiblical!!” yet mostly ignored its evidences.
. . . Proving That “Faith Alone” is a False Doctrine
Photo credit: self-designed cover of my 2013 book, Revelation! 1001 Bible Answers to Theological Topics.
[Bible passages: RSV]
1. The “doers of the law . . . will be justified” (Rom 2:13).
2. The “end” of “sanctification” is “eternal life” (Rom 6:22).
3. We should “abound in love to one another and to all men” in order for God to “establish” our “hearts unblamable in holiness” before Him (1 Thess 3:12-13).
4. We’re “saved, through sanctification by the Spirit” (2 Thess 2:13; cf. Heb 9:14; 10:10, 14).
5. “God . . . saves the upright in heart” (Ps 7:10).
6. If we “repent,” we’ll “be redeemed . . . by righteousness” (Is 1:27).
7. The “righteous” will be saved (Is 26:2).
8. Salvation is the “effect” and “result” of “righteousness” (Is 32:17).
9. “He who walks righteously” will be saved (Is 33:15).
10. “He who . . . speaks uprightly” will be saved (Is 33:15).
11. Those who “hearkened to” God’s “commandments” were saved (Is 48:18).
12. Those who “keep justice” will be saved (Is 56:1).
13. Those who “do righteousness” will be saved (Is 56:1).
14. The “righteous man . . . enters into peace” (Is 57:1-2).
15. Those “who walk in their uprightness” are saved (Is 57:2).
16. “According to their deeds, so will he repay, . . .” (Is 59:18).
17. If we “ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it” then we’ll “find rest for” our “souls” and be saved (Jer 6:16).
18. God commands us to “Obey my voice” in order to be saved (Jer 7:23).
19. God commands us to “walk in all the way that I command you” in order to be saved (Jer 7:23).
20. God will “give to every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings” (Jer 17:10).
21. If we “do justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been robbed” we’ll be saved (Jer 22:3; cf. 21:12).
22. If we “judge the cause of the poor and needy” we’ll be saved (Jer 22:16).
23. If we “obey the voice of the LORD” we’ll be saved (Jer 26:13).
24. “in accordance with their conduct and their deeds I judged them” (Ezek 36:19).
25. “I will . . . requite them for their deeds” (Hos 4:9).
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26. “Seek good, . . . that you may live” (Amos 5:14).
27. “As you have done, it shall be done to you, your deeds shall return on your own head” (Obad 1:15).
28. “A sound tree cannot bear evil fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will know them by their fruits” (Mt 7:18-20).
29. “Not every one who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Mt 7:21).
30. “For the Son of man . . . will repay every man for what he has done” (Mt 16:27).
31. “And behold, one came up to him, saying, ‘Teacher, what good deed must I do, to have eternal life?’ And he said to him, “. . . If you would enter life, keep the commandments” (Mt 19:16-17).
32. “And every one who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will . . . inherit eternal life” (Mt 19:29 + Mk 10:29-30 + Lk 18:26-30).
33. “Come, . . . inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food . . . And they will go away . . . into eternal life.” (Mt 25:34-35, 46).
34. “Come, . . . inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for . . . I was thirsty and you gave me drink. . . And they will go away . . . into eternal life.” (Mt 25:34-35, 46).
35. “Come, . . . inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for . . . I was a stranger and you welcomed me. . . And they will go away . . . into eternal life.” (Mt 25:34-35, 46).
36. “every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire” (Lk 3:9 + Mt 3:10; 7:19).
37. “love your enemies, . . . and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High” (Lk 6:35).
38. “do good, . . . and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High” (Lk 6:35).
39. “lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High” (Lk 6:35).
40. We must “obey the Son” in order to have “eternal life” (Jn 3:36).
41. “all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, . . .” (Jn 5:28-29).
42. “Every branch of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away, . . . He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If a man does not abide in me, he is cast forth . . . and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and burned. . . . bear much fruit, and so prove to be my disciples” (Jn 15:2, 5-6, 8).
43. “in every nation any one who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him” (Acts 10:35).
44. “he will render to every man according to his works” (Rom 2:6).
45. Those who engage in “well-doing” will be given “eternal life” (Rom 2:7).
46. “every one who does good” will be rewarded with “glory and honor and immortality” (Rom 2:7, 10).
47. “. . . heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him” (Rom 8:17).
48. “salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. . . let us conduct ourselves becomingly” (Rom 13:11, 13).
49. “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for God is at work in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Phil 2:12-13).
50. “Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish” (Phil 2:14-15).
51. St. Paul wrote that he had “suffered the loss of all things, . . . in order that I may gain Christ” (Phil 3:8; cf. Mt 19:21).
52. Paul was willing to “share” in the “sufferings” of Jesus “that if possible” he could “attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this . . .” (Phil 3:10-12).
53. Paul thought that those who “labored side by side with me in the gospel” were saved (those whose “names are in the book of life”) (Phil 4:3).
54. “work heartily, as serving the Lord and not men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward” (Col 3:23-24).
55. “remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love . . . For we know, brethren beloved by God, that he has chosen you” (1 Thess 1:3-4).
56. “put on the breastplate of faith and love, . . . For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thess 5:8-9).
57. “inflicting vengeance upon . . . those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. . . . To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his call, and may fulfil every good resolve and work of faith by his power” (2 Thess 1:8, 11).
58. “Yet woman will be saved through bearing children, if she continues in . . . love and holiness, with modesty” (1 Tim 2:15).
59. “set the believers an example in speech and conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. . . . attend to the public reading of scripture, to preaching, to teaching. . . . Practice these duties, devote yourself to them, . . . for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers” (1 Tim 4:12-13, 15-16).
60. “aim at righteousness, godliness, . . . love, steadfastness, gentleness. . . . take hold of the eternal life to which you were called” (1 Tim 6:11-12).
61. “keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach . . . They are to do good, to be rich in good deeds, liberal and generous, thus laying up for themselves a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of the life which is life indeed” (1 Tim 6:14, 18-19).
62. “he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him” (Heb 5:9).
63. “let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, . . . you have need of endurance, so that you may do the will of God and receive what is promised” (Heb 10:24, 36).
64. What does it profit, my brethren, if a man says he has faith but has not works? Can his faith save him? . . . So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. . . . faith apart from works is barren . . . You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by works, . . . You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. . . . faith apart from works is dead” (James 2:14, 17, 20, 22, 24, 26; this is the only time “faith alone” appears in the Bible, and this entire chapter directly refutes the doctrine over and over).
65. “chosen and destined by God the Father and sanctified by the Spirit for obedience to Jesus Christ” (1 Pet 1:2).
66. “if you invoke as Father him who judges each one impartially according to his deeds, conduct yourselves with fear . . . Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth . . . love one another earnestly from the heart” (1 Pet 1:17, 22).
67. But “rejoice in so far as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed” (1 Pet 4:13).
68. “make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue . . . so there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom” (2 Pet 1:5, 11).
69. “make every effort to supplement your faith with . . . self-control . . . so there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom”(2 Pet 1:5-6, 11).
70. “make every effort to supplement your faith with . . . godliness. . . so there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom” (2 Pet 1:5-6, 11).
71. “make every effort to supplement your faith with . . . love . . . so there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom” (2 Pet 1:5. 7, 11).
72. “what sort of persons ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, . . . Therefore, beloved, since you wait for these, be zealous to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace” (2 Pet 3:11-12, 14).
73.”And by this we may be sure that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He who says “I know him” but disobeys his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 Jn 2:3-4; cf. 3:24).
74. “keep yourselves in the love of God; wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life” (Jude 21).
75. “Remember then from what you have fallen, repent and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent” (Rev 2:5).
76. “the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Rev 2:10).
77. “I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first. . . . [23] . . . I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you as your works deserve . . . He who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, I will give him power over the nations” (Rev 2:19, 23, 26).
78. “they shall walk with me in white, for they are worthy. He who conquers shall be clad thus in white garments, and I will not blot his name out of the book of life” (Rev 3:4-5).
79. “Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. [13] And I heard a voice from heaven saying, ‘Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord henceforth.’ ‘Blessed indeed,’ says the Spirit, ‘that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!’ “(Rev 14:12-13).
80. “And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, by what they had done. [13] . . . and all were judged by what they had done” (Rev 20:12-13).
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Summary: Compilation of 80 biblical passages in which a good work or action or deed is said to be one of the direct causes of salvation: all contrary to Protestant “faith alone” soteriology.
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