[Mr Rogers]

Luther wrote, "Faith is a living, unshakable confidence in God's grace; it is so certain, that someone would die a thousand times for it. This kind of trust in and knowledge of God's grace makes a person joyful, confident, and happy with regard to God and all creatures. This is what the Holy Spirit does by faith. Through faith, a person will do good to everyone without coercion, willingly and happily; he will serve everyone, suffer everything for the love and praise of God, who has shown him such grace. It is as impossible to separate works from faith as burning and shining from fire. Therefore be on guard against your own false ideas and against the chatterers who think they are clever enough to make judgments about faith and good works but who are in reality the biggest fools. Ask God to work faith in you; otherwise you will remain eternally without faith, no matter what you try to do or fabricate."

[Belteshazzar]

Thanks, Mr Rogers, I’ve always rather liked that one.

[1010RD]

I do like Luther as far as he goes, but doesn’t work affect faith as well?

Ezekiel 16:49-50 (New International Reader’s Version)

49 “Here is the sin your sister Sodom committed. She and her daughters were proud. They ate too much. They were not concerned about others. They did not help those who were poor and in need. 50 They were very proud. They did many things that were evil in my sight. I hated those things. So I got rid of Sodom and her daughters, just as you have seen.”

As above, failure in works leads to faithlessness. The failure in works is called a sin by God himself. Abomination is not following the Divine Will, not fulfilling all righteousness as best we can, not hearkening and acting.

Faith obviously comes first, but we must knock and only then is the door opened. Don’t the parables speak of the difference efforts, our efforts make to our salvation? I don’t mean to imply that we can make it on our own, without the Blood of the Lamb - Jesus Christ - but His theme throughout is action not words, no?

Why has baptism lost its ordinal powers among Baptists? No Priesthood? The following of false traditions?