"Without the imputation of righteousness the Gospel is not good news because we can never know if we are standing before God in a justified and therefore saved state. We will have to wait for some ultimate, but by no means guaranteed, salvation. The Gospel is not good news if believers may face thousands of years in purgatory before they come at last to heaven..."
Amen, and what a brilliant point. I never put it together that way before, but there really is no Good News with a ping-pong salvation theology, based on the inner goodness of men to make temporary free will decisions to accept Christ THROUGH a group of ever changing, but always fallible men who say that God wanted THEM, and many others, to be IN BETWEEN the believer and God. Nothing in this leads me to want to search upward and praise the Glory of God. I never realized how important this difference was before. Thank you, Dr. E., for an outstanding post! :)
Well said!
That's why the Church exists -- for ever changing, always fallible men, FK!
Perhaps you need to remember that Protestants are ever changing and fallible men too. The only difference is that the Protestants left the Church to be come self-righteous.
Surely, you can tell me why would God give knowledge to you personally but not to the Church collectively?