Posted on 04/26/2015 9:50:11 AM PDT by Gamecock
The Reformation was a return to the Word of God unencumbered by rationalist, a priori assumptions about what the nature of things must be. The church had always read the Word of God but it had done so under the control of a set of assumptions chief among which was that God can only call a human “righteous” if he is, in himself, properly, inherently, intrinsically righteous. So, the medieval church set up a scheme whereby a sinner might progressively become righteous by medicinal grace and cooperation with that medicine infused into us by the sacraments. In the medieval and later Romanist program, God was said to recognize as just those who are completely sanctified. The Protestants rejected that scheme as contrary to the biblical teaching that sinners are justified by divine favor alone (sola gratia), through faith alone (sola fide) which rests and trusts in Christ alone as the Righteous One. According to the Protestants, Christ alone is intrinsically, inherently, personally, actually righteous. He alone has condign merit and his righteousness and merit is credited to or imputed or reckoned to and counted to those who believe.
Because of the scheme set up by the medieval church and adopted by Rome at the Council of Trent (1545–64) required our personal sanctification as the precondition to justification and that by grace (and cooperation with grace) Rome had a powerful incentive to multiple the sources of medicinal grace. Thus, between the 9th and 13th centuries the number of “sacraments” grew from the two instituted by our Lord to seven. Well, formally there are seven but in reality Rome is a veritable fountain of medicine and, as my colleague Dan Borvan said recently on the Theology You Should Know podcast, a “factory of merit.” Rome manufactures sacraments, spigots of grace, at will. Most recently, in the papal bull (from bulla or a seal) Misericordiae vultus (the countenance of mercy) Rome has declared that on December 15, 2015, the door to the Basilica of St John Lateran “the Holy Door will become a Door of Mercy through which anyone who enters will experience the love of God who consoles, pardons, and instils [sic] hope.”
This is a terrific illustration of why the biblical, Protestant doctrine of sola fide is so important. Without it the church is rootless, aimless and left to its own devices, to what Paul, in Colossians 2:23 called “will worship” (ἐθελοθρησκίᾳ):
These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting will-worship (ἐθελοθρησκίᾳ) and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are aof no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.
The ESV translates this the noun ἐθελοθρησκίᾳ as “self-made religion.” That’s just right but I use “will worship” because that ‘s the way our forefathers spoke. They wanted to highlight the difference between worshipping God the way he has commanded and worshipping God the way that we think is right. They called the latter approach “will worship” to capture the centrality of the human will as opposed to the divine will. The noun is composed of two roots. The first is the root word for the will or “to choose” and the second for worship.
Rome is all about man-made, self-imposed (or rather church-imposed) worship and theology. In contrast, the Reformed churches confess that we made in worship only that which God has commanded (see Belgic Confession articles 7, 32; Heidelberg Catechism 96–98; and Westminster Confession ch. 21).
What hath will worship to do with justification and salvation sola fide? Much in every way. Just as God has revealed and appointed the way he will be worshipped, so he has also appointed the one instrument through which sinners can become righteous. Whereas Rome says that justification is sanctification and the faith is itself a powerful virtue, i.e., it is sanctification because it is formed by charity, Scripture teaches no such thing. Rather Scripture repeatedly contrasts faith, in the act of justification, as trusting, resting, leaning, receiving Christ and his righteousness. When Paul, in Romans 1:17, quoted Habakkuk 2:4, “The just shall live by faith” he understood faith not as a virtue wrought within us by infused medicine and our free cooperation with that medicine. Rather, he understood it as a divine gift (Ephesians 2:8) that receives Christ and all that Christ has done for us. That’s why just before the quotation he wrote that “the righteousness of God is revealed from faith unto faith” (ἐκ πίστεως εἰς πίστιν). Faith is not powerful except insofar as it lays hold of Christ and his righteousness. It is not revealed from faith unto sanctification. It is not revealed from faith unto cooperation with infused medicine. No, it is revealed from faith unto faith because faith, resting, receiving, trusting in Christ is the only instrument. Nevertheless, Christ, not faith, is powerful. Faith, in itself, is an empty hand. As Luther said, “Wir sein Pettler. Hoc est verum.” We are beggars. this true. It’s against this background that we confess in Heidelberg 61:
61. Why do you say that you are righteous by faith only?
Not that I am acceptable to God on account of the worthiness of my faith, but because only the satisfaction, righteousness and holiness of Christ is my righteousness before God and I can receive the same and make it my own in no other way than by faith only.
It is not by walking under arches (Rome’s Jubilee in 2000) nor will it be by walking through a magic door in December 2015 that we shall be justified and saved. It is only by faith, which looks only to Christ’s perfect righteousness, to his satisfaction of God’s justice (righteousness) for us. There is no other instrument. Baptism does not lay hold of Christ. The Lord’s Supper does not lay hold of Christ. They are divinely instituted sacraments that promise justification and salvation to all who believe. They seal those promises to those who do believe but they are not the instruments by which sinners lay hold of Christ. Only true faith lays hold of Christ and all that he has done for us.
By walking under arches or through doors all you gain is a little exercise. Without true faith in the only Savior you are still outside of Christ, outside of his righteousness, and outside of acceptance with God (justification) and salvation from his righteous wrath. Why is sola fide important? Because Christ is the only way to the Father, the only Savior and faith is the only instrument by which we gain Christ.
Because it takes good, Christian conservatives’ attentions away from the real problems we are facing by creating a FReeper circular firing squad.
Nope.
Any problems a Christian faces here is the worst it will ever be for us.
Conversely, the problems faced here by a nonbeliever is as good as it will ever get.
The time spent on our problems here are nothing compared to eternity.
Which will happen sooner rather than later if we bicker amongst ourselves, Christians, instead of taking care of the issues at hand.
Unless you’re trying to slice my head off in the name of your religion, or violate any of my other rights in the name of it, I really don’t care what flavor of Judaism or Christianity you are.
"Stop being afraid of those who kill the body but can't kill the soul. Instead, be afraid of the one who can destroy both body and soul in hell. " (Mat 10:28)
You miss the forest for the trees, and for that I feel sorry for you.
Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness.
I believe it was after this, that Abrham began a life of good works, in gratitude to God, not as a means to establish that righteousness. Would I be correct in my assumption? 🇵🇭😃😄😀😂😱🙀
My life experience has shown me that the folks who want to "just get along" because there are other problems that are bigger are the same people who disappear when it comes time to deal with the bigger problems.
As far as why Faith Alone is so important it's because on this alone your salvation rests. What good is it to be right on everything else and then find yourself in front of the White Throne Judgement because you didn't believe The Gospel.
Great article! Thanks.
And who was the first one on this thread stirring the pot with criticisms of causing trouble?
Don’t start a circular firing squad if you don’t want to see one.
Still here, eh?
Because the only place it occurs in the scriptures is in James ? What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. Yea, a man may say, Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without thy works, and I will shew thee my faith by my works. Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God. Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.
James, Catholic chapter two, Protestant verses fourteen to twenty four,
as authorized, but not authored, by King James.
Real faith produces works. Real faith saves. Works don't contribute to Salvation, but are evidence of being saved.
Suggest you read Hebrews 11. People are acting through faith and therefore saved.
Everyone is known by their fruits (works).
Would that be ESV, revision of 1971, revision of 2007, revision of 2011 ... ? Odd how Protestantism did not have a more accurate translation until one of these dates; it tosses the KJV under the bus and effectively admits they've been winging it all along since the great rebellion.
Real faith produces works. Real faith saves. Works don't contribute to Salvation, but are evidence of being saved. Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Do all things without murmurings and disputings: That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain. Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all. For the same cause also do ye joy, and rejoice with me. But I trust in the Lord Jesus to send Timotheus shortly unto you, that I also may be of good comfort, when I know your state. For I have no man likeminded, who will naturally care for your state. For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ's. But ye know the proof of him, that, as a son with the father, he hath served with me in the gospel. Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand. He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
Phillipians, Catholic chapter two, Protestant verses twelve to twenty two,
First Corinthians, Catholic chapter six, Protestant verses nine to ten,
Galatians, Catholic chapter five, Protestant verses nineteen to twenty one,
Revelation, Catholic chapter twenty two, Protestant verses ten to fifteen,
as authorized, but not authored, by King James, but abandoned by Protestantism for more accurate translations
Suggest you read Hebrews 11. People are acting through faith and therefore saved.
I love Hebrews. They are our witnesses.
Yes, let's test those words. Are the Jews, at least, the least of Jesus' brethren ?
Can you re-phrase this question? I'm not sure of what you are asking.
The King James is not as accurate of a translation as the ESV. I know there are plenty of KJV only folks out there, but that is a fact. Still it is a far better rendering than The Latin Vulgate
And for those out there who are lurking here is a comparison of translation philosophies:
But it still all came down to faith didn’t it. Everything else was simply evidence of faith.
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