“The Protestant tradition erred in dividing faith and works. In the 16th century, Protestants claimed that we are saved by “faith alone.” Faith is never alone. It always brings effects with it.”
That isn’t the case. The Roman Catholic Church has, very sadly, missed the point. Because it ignores Ephesians 2 and many other verses, it argues that Protestants ignore James 2 and other verses. And then for all intents and purposes it negates and ignores Ephesians 2 and all verses about being saved by faith not by works.
No, Protestants don’t ignore any of it. We accept them both as true. We are NOT saved by works. But we know if we are saved, if we have truly been reconciled to God and converted to His way and His will for us, then we will do works. And that is the only way to reconcile both types of verses. There is no other way to accept them.
We are told by Jesus Himself that apart from Him, the vine, we can do nothing. And anything done outside f faith is sin. And that the Christian works we do are done by Christ living inside of us. So it’s a matter of being truly converted and born again.
The closely-related issue to the “faith versus works” question is whom do we credit for our salvation? Does the Lord alone save us, or do we get some of the credit? Because Protestants believe that the Lord alone saves us and gets the credit, and our works don’t count anything towards that, then we have to accept what Ephesians 2 and other verses say about us being saved by grace alone, through faith, which is not of ourselves, but a gift to us, so no man may boast.
So here is another way of looking at this as well.
God is light, the Bible teaches us. Can any of us claim to be an original source of light, like God is? Who else besides God can be an ORIGINATOR of light? Any light that we have in us, does any of it come originally from us, or does it ALL come from God? I know what I believe.
For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life. (Ephesians 2:8-10)
So does the Protestant Bible have the Letter of James in it?
I really don’t understand how protestants don’t believe the Letter of James.
God can only work to will and to do in the life of a believer who already has the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in them through faith in Christ.
We are saved first, then the fruit of the salvation, conformity to the likeness of Christ, follows and proves to the world that our faith is genuine.
It doesn't prove it to God. He already knows.
And the fruit that our lives show isn't simply obeying the law and doing good works. The pharisees did that and Christ called them white washed tombs.
The fruit is this.....
Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
IOW, the character of Christ.
Preach it!
We are saved by faith alone, and the proof of the genuineness of that faith is the fruit of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
But works neither add to nor detract from the actual salvation itself. That's a done deal.
There are rewards for faithful service, for the works we do, but that is not salvation. The reward isn't salvation, or getting to heaven. The reward is crowns we get.
Seems that Catholicism never heard of that.