Posted on 08/08/2025 3:48:54 PM PDT by Roman_War_Criminal
Five hundred years have passed since the Reformation began, and yet the influence of the Roman Catholic Church remains strong. I’m not referring to the mammoth oligarchy that seeks to dictate the lives of an estimated one billion people, but rather its continuing influence upon churches outside its realm, including many that adhere to the inspiration and inerrancy of Scripture.
While attending Talbot Seminary, I wrote my master’s thesis on Roman Catholic Justification in the Light of Scripture. In my study, I discovered that Catholicism’s key departure from Scripture was its firm insistence that God’s justification of sinners happens at the end of their life. This teaching contradicts what Paul wrote in Romans 5:1: “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
In other words, God justifies us at the moment of our regeneration (see also Titus 3:4-7). Why is it so important to affirm this clear biblical truth?
It’s because the error of placing our justification at the end of one’s life has crept into evangelical churches in various forms that continue to grow in popularity, as well as negate the glorious hope embedded in the Gospel. It does so by. . .
Undoing the Finality of Our Salvation
I’m not aware of when Catholic theologians first decided that God’s justification of the sinner happens at the end of one’s life, but by the time of Reformation, it had become deeply entrenched in the church’s dogma. This teaching provided the church with the means to control the lives of its members from birth to the grave.
As a result, Catholics can never be sure of their salvation since their final destination depends upon their obedience as well as adherence to the church’s sacraments up to the time of last rites. Under such a scenario, how could anyone be certain of the final outcome of their faith?
Scripture tells us a much different story. Not only does it reveal that God justifies us at the moment of our regeneration, but it also provides us with the security of our hope that Catholicism kills. When God justifies the sinner, He declares that person not guilty of all his or her sins, past present, and future.
The word for “justify” in the Greek comes from the law courts of Paul’s day; it depicted a judge declaring the accused “not guilty” of their crimes. For us, it’s the legal declaration of our righteousness that comes solely through faith by grace. God declares us innocent solely because Jesus bore the punishment for our sins on the cross; His blood covers all of our iniquity. Romans 8:1 states the finality of God’s proclamation of our righteousness, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
Later in Romans 8, the apostle elaborates on the permanence of God’s verdict: “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.” (Romans 8:32-34).
For all of us in Christ Jesus, our justification is a done deal. God, who is not bound by time, looked at our entire life and declared us not guilty of all our sins. Who can possibly overturn His verdict? No one can provide Him with evidence that He didn’t already know about.
The belief that one can lose their salvation, or walk away from their faith, reflects the Roman Catholic understanding of justification, which regards it as a process that’s not fully settled until death. The only way to deny the finality of our salvation is to either say that someone can reverse God’s verdict, which is impossible, or somehow repackage the Catholic teaching of when God credits our account with His righteousness. If it happens at the time of our rebirth, it’s an absolute done deal.
Subjecting the Believer to a Works Mentality
The Roman Catholic error regarding justification empowers the church to enforce obedience whether it be to its traditions, its sacraments, or Scripture. Do we see this same works mentality today outside of the Catholic faith? We do.
I have experienced various forms of legalism in my life. Such teachings deceive believers into thinking they must earn favor with God, which is something they already fully possess via their secure righteous standing before Him, i.e., their justification.
Legalism reverses the order of chapters in the book of Ephesians. Instead of encouraging adherence to Paul’s instructions based upon one’s secure righteous standing before God, the works mentality begins with the commands as the way to assure the believer of his or her favor in the Lord’s sight. Paul never intended for chapters 4-6 of Ephesians to be the means of obtaining God’s approval, but rather the result of our permanent “holy and blameless” standing before God (Ephesians 1:3-14).
Once our focus shifts away from Christ and what He has done for us to how we should live, we lose the joy that comes from our security and the peace from knowing we will surely meet Jesus in the air in the future. The works mentality, popular in many Evangelical churches, is a remnant of Catholicism that spotlights our behavior rather than our glorious hope in Jesus’ appearing.
Adhering to the False Teaching of Replacement Theology
The refusal of a great many churches today to recognize the prophetic significance of Israel also mirrors Catholicism’s teaching on Bible prophecy.
Replacement Theology, or amillennialism, is the longstanding belief of the Roman Catholic Church. Augustine, a fifth century theologian, popularized the teaching that the church is the new Israel, which replaced the church in God’s prophetic program. He denied the future restoration of Israel and applied the Lord’s many promises to do so to the church, albeit spiritually.
Because Israel’s miraculous reappearance as a nation on May 14, 1948, contradicted its long held beliefs, the Vatican refused to recognize Israel as a nation until the end of 1993, a full forty-five years later. Why the delay apart from their realization that Israel’s astounding rebirth refuted their longstanding amillennial beliefs?
What does today’s popularity of Replacement Theology in Bible-believing churches have to do with a biblical understanding of justification? I provide a full answer to this question in my previous article: Can God Change His Mind about Israel? Or About Us?
Based upon Romans 11:28-32, I explain how God’s unfailing mercy lies at the heart of His continuing faithfulness to us as well as to Jacob’s descendants. He will not renege on any of His promises to His people, whether it be to the nation of Israel or to us as New Testament saints. Chapters 9-11 in the book of Romans were not a rabbit trail in Paul’s line of thought, but rather a critical part of it as he showed how the promised future restoration of Israel demonstrates the Lord’s unfailing mercy not only to the Jewish nation, but also to all justified saints, which He proclaimed in Romans 8:31-38.
Identifying the Church as God’s Kingdom
From its inception, the Roman Catholic Church believed it was God’s physical kingdom on earth and hence a political entity, which directly results from its adherence to Replacement Theology, which teaches that the church is just such a realm. Its role as a governing power during the Dark Ages has long since faded, but not this exalted view of itself.
The Vatican is officially the “Vatican City State.” This came about via the 1929 Lateran Treaty between the Holy See and the Kingdom of Italy through which it became an officially recognized independent governing state. The US sends an ambassador to the Vatican, just like it does for other governing entities.
Unfortunately, the Reformation didn’t change the perception of the church as God’s corporal kingdom on earth. Many churches, deeply steeped in amillennialism or its offshoots, continue to teach that Jesus is now reigning over the nations in fulfillment of such passages such as Psalms 2 and 46 as well as Revelation 20:1-10.
During the past few decades, Dominion Theology has grown exponentially in popularity. It asserts that the church will bring about millennial conditions on the earth and rule over it before Jesus’ returns. Is this not a variation the long ago kingdom aspirations of the Vatican?
The Bible teaches that as New Testament saints; we are heirs to a kingdom rather than current possessors of it (Ephesians 1:12-14; James 2:5). Paul couldn’t have been more clear when he said: “flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable” (1 Corinthians 15:50). When Jesus appears, He will transform our lowly bodies into ones like His, immortal and incorruptible (Philippians 3:20-21; 1 Corinthians 15:51-55). He will make us fit to inherit His kingdom that’s coming to the earth.
The Bible never identifies the church as a kingdom, but rather describes it as the “body of Christ” with Jesus as its Head. The picture of body life in Romans 12:3-8 is most certainly not that of a kingdom, but rather of functioning entity were all its members enjoy an equal standing. Furthermore, the role of the leaders of a kingdom differs radically from the humble servant leadership Jesus prescribed for His Church (Mark 10:42-45; see also 1 Peter 5:1-5).
Why does this matter? It signifies that we are not now enjoying the glories of God’s promised kingdom on the earth as those who adhere to Replacement Theology claim. The good news is that in the future, we will participate in God’s spectacular kingdom on earth with immortal bodies in a realm devoid of wars, government corruption, overt wickedness, and injustice.
Making One’s Obedience and Feelings the Validation of Salvation
I heard a pastor say this in his Sunday sermon, “You are okay if you love the Lord.” No, no, no, no!! The Bible says that all those in Christ are “okay” because the Lord loves us!
Looking to one’s feelings, or even obedience, as the validation of one’s salvation yields the same fruit as the rigors of Catholicism: it traps believers in the same web of insecurity that obstructs their walk with the Lord and turns their focus away from their joyous blessed hope in Jesus’ appearing.
If it’s true that God’s justification of the sinner happens at the moment of our redemption (Titus 3:4-7) and is by its nature wholly irreversible (Romans 8:1 and 26-39), and Scripture teaches that both are true, the Bible must be the sole rock upon which we must base our assurance of eternal life, not our feelings, our love for the Lord, nor our obedience to some standard.
Our assurance of eternal life comes from what Scripture says about us as New Testament saints, i.e., our justification though faith alone by grace.
A biblical understanding of what happens when God justifies us counters the hope-killing remains of Roman Catholicism in today’s churches that rob believers of the joy that comes from knowing the certainty of their salvation. Scripture frees us from the works mentality that results from thinking we can lose our salvation, walk away from our faith, or must work to keep ourselves within God’s favor and love for us.
Sadly, these vestiges of Roman Catholicism persist in many churches outside its realm. Not only do they breed insecurity and a works-based validation of our hope of eternal life, but in many cases these places of worship also dismiss the biblical hope that we will reign with Jesus in His glorious kingdom, one that will include a restored Israel. Our hope in Jesus’ appearing and what happens afterward is not just dry theology, but something that breathes life into our souls each and every day.
If you have not yet placed your faith in Jesus or are unsure of your salvation, please see my article, Jesus is the Only Path to Eternal Life. In it, I explain the saving message of the cross and how you can know that you belong to the Savior.
What is uniquely Catholic doctrine in these? Acts 8:37 is actually contrary to Catholic doctrine, which imagines the very act itself of proper baptism effects regeneration, even without personal whole-hearted repentant faith.
And Matthew 1:23 affirms the virgin birth of Jesus, which is one of basic doctrines that modern day evangelism rose to defend.
Excellent article. Thank you for posting.
No, aside from Catholic distinctives, mere confession itself does not manifests that one is saved. For though he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but we shall live with him by the power of God toward you. Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates? (2 Corinthians 13:4-5)
One is spiritually born of the Spirit (Jn. 3:2-7) by effectual penitent, heart-purifying, regenerating, justifying faith (Acts 10:43-47, 15:7-9; Titus 3:5) in the Risen Divine Son of God (http://peacebyjesus.net/deityofchrist.html) and Lord of all, (Acts 10:43-47, 15:7-9) Jesus the Christ, sent be the Father to be the Savior of the world, (1 Jn. 4:14) who saves sinners by His sinless shed blood. And which faith is imputed for righteousness, (Romans 4:5) yet this is shown in baptism and following the Lord, (Acts 2:38-47; Jn. 10:27, 28) for saving faith is a confessing faith, in word and deed, (Rom. 10:9, 10; Matthew 10:32) manifesting fruits which accompany salvation, (Heb. 6:9, 10) including repentance when convicted of not obeying their Lord. (2 Samuel 12:7-13; Psalms 32:3-6, 51:3; Hosea 5:15; 1 Jn. 1:8-10; 2 Corinthians 7:9-10; James 5:19-20)
And whom such shall go to be with at death or His return (Phil 1:23; 2Cor. 5:8 [“we”]; Heb, 12:22,23; 1Cor. 15:51ff'; 1Thess. 4:17) Glory and thanks be to God.
In contrast to those who were never born of the Spirit or who terminally fall away. thereby forfeiting what faith obtained. (Gal. 5:1-4; Heb. 3:12, 10:25-39)
As do Mormons, etc. It is the "gospel by which ye are saved" and thus "run" that is the issue, that of Rome vs Scripture, which is effectively a lower authority in Catholicism, being a servant compelled to serve her.
That’s ridiculous and patently false. Why do you eliminate the Sermon on the Mount and 90% of what Jesus says in the Gospel.
Acts 8:37 is a verse where Philip tells the Ethiopian eunuch that he may be baptized if he believes with all his heart, to which the eunuch responds affirmatively about his faith in Jesus Christ. This verse is omitted in many modern translations because it is not found in the oldest manuscripts of the Bible, but it is included in some versions like the NKJV.
No, my Bible-Apostle-Doctrine-ignorant fellow, my opinion is that Jonathan is very wise to set things straight, and you are very obviously not, and are taking the wrong advice.
Looking at your conclusions, here is God's point of view on it:
Be not righteous over much; neither make thyself over wise: why shouldest thou destroy thyself?Justification is instant, as is the gracious bestowal of everlasting absolute life that proceeds from the pardoning of sins through the confidence in Jesus Messiah and His payment of immaculate blood and water mixed with it. You are on trial right now, and you have not given the freedom-qualifying response for a judicial pronouncement. In prolonging your worldly Romanist attitude, the condemnation you are presently under will be confirmed, There will be no Heaven, not even the (mythical) Purgatory, IMHO.
Be not over much wicked, neither be thou foolish: why shouldest thou die before thy time?
(Ecclesiastes 7:16,17 AV)
What is progressive is sanctification from the mental beliefs and correspondingly displeasing habits over which the Indwelling Spirit gives the regenerated power to overcome, should the disciple reach a maturity in determination to continuously do so. The necessary repentance, in NT Greek unambiguously transliterated metanoia; which is of the same substance, the other face of the coin being pistis,; that is, being fully persuaded, that Jesus exists and Alone saves; wherefore on this appeal to the Mighty Judge, He has guaranteed His immediate judicial response:
"NOT GUILTY OF SIN, PAST, PRESENT, OR FUTURE!"thus setting you on the starting line of progressive sanctification, the path to spiritual maturity, that can deprive the Wicked One's influence over you.
But this doing of works acceptable to the Godhead Trinity can only be performed when the old man is dead, crucified with the Christ of the Cross at the time of the Cross-death, and now resurrected as a new spiritual entity, living in Him; and the purging of those already-pardoned habits is going on by the Power imbued by the new man, a warrior for God. This is the only "purgatory" you will ever see, from which in this life one ma emerge as a fully spiritual adult,, having overcome the Wicked One (but still being nudged by the old man's remains still present in this old husk). From thence one walks in newness of ongoing life, both physically, mentally, and spiritually, in gratefulness pleasing the God of goodness and love.
Why is it that you do not seem to want this? Is the flavor and smell of sin and ensuing death too powerful?
This true understanding that sanctification is only post-operative after justification, not before is not accepted by those deceived by Romanism and its conflicting, blinding, false superstitions.
In short, you have the cart before the horse. Unlike the observant agricultural implement salesman regarding his stance behind all his products except the manure-spreader, you seem to be trudging behind it.
Doesn't make sense. Even one of our "special" loved individuals can understand and willingly, sovereignly submit to an acceptence of Jesus as one's First-born Human Brother and Savior, and experience his care for anyone accountable for their actions, without further prejudical distraction by the Devil's devious con artists, deafened by God's evident truth to which they are exposed. Faith comes (to anyone) by hearing, and hearing by the hrema (spoken) Word of God. They do not even have to know the alphabet to obtain a permanent extension of a life that is abundant with substance and joy in Him.
Even from the Book Rome produced so long ago.
I'm channeling the Grand Inquisitor, and I approve of this message.
This is the final straw!
I'm ripping my "Blessed Assurance" hymnal outta my somgbook!
 'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said, in a rather scornful tone, ' it means just what I choose it to mean, neither more nor less.' 'The question is,' said Alice, 'whether you can make words mean so many different things.' 'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master - that's all.' |
?
I know I was struggling along in my Catholic life, never thinking I could do enough to save myself. It turns out, I was right. I couldn’t do even one thing, to please God. It wasn’t until a commissioned Air Force officer, sat down with me, and literally drew me a picture, and showed me how I could be saved. I am grateful to him and others, who never gave up on me. Praise Jesus for his gift.
That left me in quite a quandary, leaving me without a clear definition of Eternity or that it should influence my existence or behaviors at all.
But finally, the early ingrained childhood experiences with believing church people, youth camps, and a deliberate reading of the entire NT, the impact came to persuade me, a depraved very guilty sinner, that Jesus acceptance of my appeal to Him and The Father was the only way out to bother living my body out until it wore out. That deeply changed my mental state into one that the Bible commended. That change and my begging appeal to the Father God got me forgiveness (=justification), freedom from guilt, and permanent fealty to the Christ of the Bible, not the distant religious godlet of the denomination's liturgy. With that change and opennes to the supporting Spirit-born Friends that Jesus sent my way to comfort, help, and advise me, made al the difference in the world.
That change pinpointed was May 24, 1971, 54 years ago, and has changed only for the better ever since.
From my experiences, I see that all, or perhaps nearly all, of the mainline denominations under extra-local supra-church polity, are exactly those that Brentner speaks of in a negative way. Although I wish he had differentiated between non-catholic "churches" versus the true local faithful independent autonomous Bible=preaching Spirit-led assemblies that exercise church discipline when scripture commands the local elders to exercise it. Nor any deluding infant 'baptisms"; sprinkling, dabbing, christening, that are not consistent at all with a believer's conduct in the local assembly.
Fare thee well, RR! I love and try to lead Romanists to the Real Christ, but to the depth I hate the falsity of ther dogmatism and unscritural teachings that indoctrinat impressionable adolescents while hormones are surging through their brains, that cement them to a rock of unbrlief in the salvation offered by my Heavenly Father.
"But avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and vain.
A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject; Knowing that he that is such is subverted, and sinneth, being condemned of himself" (Titus 3:9-11 AV).
There is a time when only God-commanded rejection will work toward driving thjem nearer to the healing fellowship of the Jesus of the Bible, no matter what others say or condemn you for.
" Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven" (Matthew 10:32-33 AV)
The Jesus that the Romanists is another Jesus of the same kind than the one told of by JWs or Mormons or Islamist, but that is still another, not the Jesus of the Bible that Saul of Tarsus, Paul renamed by Christ, identifies as different from the false christs preached by imitators of The Faith.
Don’t even bother.
Pearls before swine.
They’re not interested in what the faith really teaches, only what some pastor in a cheap suit told them. In the age of the Internet such ignorance is willful blindness.
The only thing Protestants agree upon is that they think the Catholic Church is wrong. That alone should make them rethink their position.
The irony coming from the frippery and pomp Roman Catholics clergy deck themselves out it.
And of course, not true. The thing Born again believers are truly interested in is what Jesus Himself has to say in the Word that GOD Himself gave us, not the confused and untrue theology the Roman church passes off as true in the form of *sacred tradition*, which can NEVER be proved. All it can do is be claimed that its what Catholics always believed, with no evidence to back it up..
The only thing Protestants agree upon is that they think the Catholic Church is wrong.
Repeating a lie doesn't make it true. It just sends you into further deception.
As if Catholics agree on everything to begin with. Except that Prots are *wrong*, in their opinion.
Even to this day, and maybe even now more than ever in my life, have I come to the deeper understanding of how totally incapable I was and am of even contributing the tiniest amount to my salvation.
seems like the closer I walk with Christ, the more obvious and grievous my sin has become. Not that I sin more or wantonly as far too many love to accuse us of, but my awareness of it, IOW, my spiritual sensitivity to it, has increased.
Even if I could from here on out, live a perfectly sinless life, it would never even come close to being able to negate all the sin I’ve committed all my life.
THANK GOD for His amazing grace!
THIS.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.