``Where the
Bishop is, there let the multitude of believers be;
even as where Jesus is, there is the Catholic Church'' Ignatius of
Antioch, 1st c. A.D
Grace, Faith, and Works
The
Catholic position on salvation can be summed up thus: We are saved by
Christ's grace alone, through faith and works
done in
charity inspired by the Holy Spirit.
Sola gratia!
Grace alone -- but a grace we have to co-operate with. Thinking that
all one has to do is pray the "Sinner's Prayer" once to be saved is
wrong. Thinking that all one has to do is be a "good person" to be
saved is wrong.
"We are saved by 'Faith alone'": No!
It takes more
than simply knowing Jesus is the Messiah to be saved; even the Evil One
knows Who Christ is.
James 2:14-26
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.
Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had
received the messengers, and had sent them out another way? For as the
body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead
also.
The
Bible and the Catholic Church don't separate the "works of faith,"
preceded and caused by grace, from salvation (see relevant
Scripture below) You can have all the faith in the world, enough to
move mountains, but if you don't have charity, you are nothing:
I Corinthians
13:2 2
If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all
knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not
love, I am nothing.
"We can work our way into Heaven": No!
The Catholic
Church and Her Bible condemn the idea that one can work his way to
Heaven on his own merit or that God "owes" a person for doing the right
things.
All our works get their merit only from Jesus' sacrifice on
our behalf. We can do "works" 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a
year for the rest of our lives, but without Christ's grace, they are
nothing. Works have no merit in themselves -- and faith without works
is not enough. We are saved by grace alone -- a grace that we accept
neither "by faith alone" nor "by works alone," but "by faith that
works in charity" (Galatians 5:6).
Something I came across on the Internet demonstrates the obvious
importance of works. Below is a (albeit rather smart-alecky) joke
letter to a pastor who preaches "faith alone":
I am a former
Catholic who was recently saved through the Grace of Jesus Christ. All
my life I knew I was a homosexual. The Catholic Church told me that I
had to refrain from what I was in order to be saved! I never knew that
my good works meant nothing! To think, I would have spent my entire
life struggling not to engage in homosexual activity, just to wind up
in Hell! I now realize that Salvation is through the finished work of
Christ ALONE, and not from good works. I am now living as an active
homosexual in the freedom of Jesus Christ!
The pastor,
almost completely misunderstanding Catholicism but who has an entire
ministry devoted to "saving Catholics", responded in part by saying:
It is true that
a person is not saved by his works and that salvation is completely of
grace. However that does not mean that works have nothing to do with
salvation.
Well, "pastor,"
that's what Catholics have been saying all along!
The bottom line: all salvation comes from the grace of Christ's
Sacrifice and only from the grace of His Sacrifice. Salvation
is a free gift -- a gift that is not "owed" to us, that God didn't have
to offer us, and that we could never "earn" on our own -- that we accept
by faith and works. Christ doesn't
have to give us this gift of salvation; we don't "deserve" this gift,
we can't "earn" it; but He, in His endless Love for us, offers it
nonetheless. We have to believe this gift exists (have faith) and then
open our hands to receive it (obey, inspired by the grace given to us).
An analogy: there is a train called "Grace" that is the one
and only route to Heaven and which is fueled by Christ's Passion,
Resurrection, and Ascension alone. Some Protestants seem to
believe that all one has to do is believe the train exists and all will
be well. They accuse Catholics of thinking that belief in the train is
unecessary, that we can give out free soup in the train station and,
thereby, bypass the train altogether. But what Catholics actually
believe is that the train -- Grace -- is the only way to
Heaven, that it is the only means by which we are saved, that
we can't take another route and can do nothing about getting to Heaven
without that train. But we also teach that we have to believe
in the train's existence and board it through repentance and
obedience to what Christ teaches. God is the Conductor of the train,
completely Sovereign, and can go off the tracks if need be to pick up
those who are truly and invincibly ignorant of the train's existence
but who are of good will, obey the natural law, and whom He deigns
to save. If, when, and how He might do such a thing is completely
up to Him and not for us to bicker about. It is to us to do
what He has taught us: to believe, repent, love God and neighbor, and
preach the Gospel.
Born Again?
Many
non-Catholics, in their confused zeal for Jesus, are constantly asking
Catholics if we are "born again," admonishing us that unless we are
"born again" we cannot be saved. But you see, Catholics, like St. John
the Evangelist in the third chapter of his Gospel, relate the phrase
"born again" to the results of Baptism.
Baptism is how we enter into the New Covenant, in the same way the
Hebrews and Israelites entered the Old Covenant through circumcision
(which, you'll note, was done to infants).
When many Protestants use the phrase "born again," they seem to be
referring to an "emotional experience." They often expect instant
transformation (which can certainly happen), speaking in
tongues, miracles, etc. as some sort of "proof" of having been "born
again."
Traditional Catholics most certainly agree that repentance (what we
call "metanoia") is necessary and that inner transformation (what we
call "theosis" or "sanctification") is the goal, but we are very
conscious of not confusing "feelings" with "faith." These are two
different things, and mere "feelings" can lie: ask anyone who's ever
been "love-bombed" in a cult, experienced cocaine or Ecstasy, been to a
Woodstock-like music festival, or is just having a really excellent
day. Oceanic "feelings of oneness" and "happiness" can be had in pagan
religions (read about Greek and Roman "bachanalias" sometime), through
natural or artificial chemicals, through the feeling of "falling in
love," through hypnosis, through highly sensual experiences, and other
things that have nothing to do, inherently, with Christ. The ancient
Greeks babbled in tongues, and glossolalia is still practiced today
among Voudun ("Voodoo") cults, during Japanese seances, and by other
false religions and in other cultures all over the world. These sorts
of experiences must be discerned, and the spirits must be tested!
Remember what Christ said would happen even back in the first century:
Matthew 24:24
For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew
great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall
deceive the very elect.
It is important
to test the spirits and not devalue reason and doctrine! Know that the
fruits of the Spirit are love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness,
goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance according to Galatians
5:22-23. The fruits of the Spirit are not out of control shaking,
screaming, running around, falling down, "holy laughter," vocalizations
that don't edify the Church, a "feeling" that doctrine and religion are
now unimportant, etc. One should be more in control of one's
self after an encounter with the Holy Spirit, not less.
As to "personal
relationship with Jesus, " think of the great Saints -- everyone from
Thérèse de Lisieux to St. Francis -- are these people not "born again"
in the Protestant sense of "having a deep relationship with Christ"
while still remaining 100% believers in traditional Catholic doctrine?
Read about the life of St. Patrick and then talk to me about a
"personal relationship" with Jesus that some Protestants think
Catholics just don't understand.
What of our holy martyrs like Maximilian Kolbe or Nikolaus Gross,
murdered by Nazis because of the virtue compelled by their Catholic
faith? What about Joan of Arc, martyred for her refusal to deny the
divine origins of the voices that led her to defeat the English? If you
want "personal relationship with Jesus," read the writings of St.
Teresa of Avila or St. John of the Cross!
Have you been saved?
Another
question Catholics often hear is, "Have you been saved?" Catholics,
though, don't see eternal salvation as a one-time event that one can
pinpoint and relate to others by saying, for example, "I was saved at
5:30 pm on 23 October 1988 when I got on my knees and accepted Jesus
Christ as my Lord and Savior." We think of salvation, ultimately, as a
process that is begun with faith and Baptism (or just Baptism in the
case of infants) and is then "worked out" (Phillipians 2:12) as we
endeavor to "put on Christ." Additionally, we don't see salvation as
something that can't be lost (2 Peter 2:20-21). Even St. Paul himself,
the one who did more than anyone else to spread the Gospel, wasn't sure
of his own salvation. He wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:27
But I keep under
my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I
have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.
Who are we to be
more "sure of our salvation" than the Apostle Paul?
Most sincere Catholics (there are plenty of mere "cultural Catholics")
are, of course, able to speak of specific events such as the first time
they truly "got it" that Jesus is Lord or that the Church and its
Scriptures are true; many are able to tell specific stories of
experiences of the Holy Spirit. Many have wonderful stories of
healings, consolation, and miracles. But to speak of "having been
saved," in the past tense, is something we tend not to do unless we are
speaking about our Baptism, at which time we were first justified. We
speak, instead, of "being saved," in the present tense, as we
obey Him after Baptism and endeavor to keep accepting the gift of
salvation which we could never earn on our own.
Many Protestants tend to see salvation in legal terms: "I believe,
therefore, I am saved because that is God's promise to me. As long as I
believe, I can't lose my salvation because the terms of the contract
are that I simply believe and I will be saved." Catholics see salvation
more in terms of kinship, our adoption into God's very family, our
becoming, literally, true children of God and inheriting
Christ's sonship through Jesus' sacrifice. We see "working out our
salvation" as those things we, inspired by the Holy Spirit, are called
to do as children of God, in the same way that a child honors
an earthly parent -- and we see God's gift of eternal salvation to us
as an inheritance from our Father rather than a "pay-off" for
having fulfilled a "contract" by a simple assertion of faith. And as a
father can "disinherit" a child if that child no longer treats him as
father and freely walks away from his inheritance, so our Father in
Heaven can "disinherit" those who don't treat Him as Father (Romans
11:22; Galatians 5:4; Hebrews 6:4-6; 2 Peter 3:17-18). For more
in-depth information, read the transcript of this debate on "justification" between
Scott Hahn, Catholic and former Presbyterian minister, and Dr. Robert
Knudson of Westminster Seminary.
To sum up
So, here's how
a Catholic would answer the standard questions from Protestants:
Q.
Have you been "born again"?
A.
Yes, when we are baptized, we are "born again of water and
Spirit" (John 3).
Q.
Do you have a personal
relationship with Jesus?
A.
Some Catholics
are good Catholics and have a deep personal relationship with Jesus by
trusting in Him and receiving His Sacraments. Other Catholics are mere
"cultural Catholics" who call themselves "Catholic" because they were
baptized once, but don't believe what Christ's Church teaches or don't
have the will to practice what His Church commands. Such Catholics are
"dead members" of the Church and must be restored by faith and the
Sacraments.
Instead of the "Sinner's Prayer," each year at the Easter Vigil,
Catholics renew their Baptismal promises by rejecting Satan and all of
his works, and by affirming their faith in God the Father, in Jesus
Christ His only Son our Lord, and in the Holy Ghost. Yes, a Catholic
could go through the Vigil by rote and not mean it, just as a person
can say the "Sinner's Prayer" and not mean it. Christ is the Judge of
men's souls, however, and He knows who truly has faith.
Q.
Have you been
"saved"?
A.
Those Catholics
who have faith and obey the will of the Father are being saved,
by the grace of Christ alone. Catholics who don't have faith and don't
obey the will of the Father will not be saved unless they repent and
begin to have faith and keep the commandments.
Q.
If you were to
die tonight, do you know for an absolute certainty that you would go to
Heaven?
A.
No more than St.
Paul did when he wrote to the people of Corinth. But we do have the
assuredness of knowing that God keeps His promises, that He is good and
merciful and just, and that He so loved the world that He sent His
only-begotten Son so we might not perish but have everlasting life if
we believe, repent, obey, and trust in Jesus.
Q.
By what means
are we saved?
A.
By the grace of Christ Whose Blood was poured out for us at
Calvary. This Sacrifice is the only means of salvation; by Christ and Christ
alone may a man be saved. There is no other way to the
Father.
Q.
Why was His
Sacrifice necessary? Why did He have to die?
A.
God is infinite
Justice and Perfection. Because He is infinite, our sins offend Him
infinitely. There is such a chasm between God in His vast perfection
and us in our creaturely weakness that nothing we could do could
possibly assuage Him for our offenses. But as much as we deserve death,
He loves us still and wants us with Him for eternity. In order to
restore His honor and maintain the perfection of His justice, there had
to be an infinite Sacrifce of appeasement. So, God Himself took on
flesh by the Holy Ghost and the Virgin Mary
and became man, not only to teach us with His words, but to save us
with His Blood. Only God Himself could save us from the effects of our
offending Him because we are so imperfect and weak.
Q.
What must we do
to accept the fruits of this Sacrifice and be saved?
A.
In three words,
"Believe, repent, and obey." We must:
believe and trust
in Christ (John 3:16);
repent and be baptized in the Name of the Father, Son,
and Holy Ghost for the remission of sins (Matthew 28:19, John 3:3-5,
Acts 2:38);
obey the will of
the Father and keep the commandments (Matthew 7:21, Matthew
19:16-19);
eat the Body of Christ (John 6:51-69) -- but not
unworthily, and only after discerning the Lord's Body lest we eat
damnation onto ourselves (I Corinthians 11:23-30);
judge ourselves
(1 Corinthians 11:28-31) and, when we fall, confess our sins to those
to whom Christ has given the authority to forgive sins in His Name, and
to obey that authority when it comes to what is bound and loosed
(Matthew 9:5-8, Matthew 18:18, John 20:21-23, 2 Corinthians 5:18);
love God with
all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love our neighbors as
ourselves (Mark 12:30-31).
Relevant Scripture
1 Samuel 2:30
Wherefore the LORD God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house,
and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now
the LORD saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will
honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.
Matthew 7:21
Not every one who says to me, "Lord, Lord," shall enter the kingdom of
heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
Matthew 10:22
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that
endureth to the end shall be saved.
Matthew 19:16-19
And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing
shall I do, that I may have eternal life? And he said unto him, Why
callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if
thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. He saith unto him,
Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit
adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness,
Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as
thyself.
Matthew 22:14 For many are called, but few are chosen.
Matthew 24:13
But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
Mark 4:14-19
The sower sows the word. And these are the ones along the path, where
the word is sown; when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes
away the word which is sown in them. And these in like manner are the
ones sown upon rocky ground, who, when they hear the word, immediately
receive it with joy; and they have no root in themselves, but endure
for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of
the word, immediately they fall away. And others are the ones sown
among thorns; they are those who hear the word, but the cares of the
world, and the delight in riches, and the desire for other things,
enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful.
Luke 13:2-9
And Jesus answering said unto them, Suppose ye that these Galilaeans
were sinners above all the Galilaeans, because they suffered such
things? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise
perish. Or those eighteen, upon whom the tower in Siloam fell, and slew
them, think ye that they were sinners above all men that dwelt in
Jerusalem? I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all
likewise perish.
He spake also this parable; A certain man had a fig tree planted in his
vineyard; and he came and sought fruit thereon, and found none. Then
said he unto the dresser of his vineyard, Behold, these three years I
come seeking fruit on this fig tree, and find none: cut it down; why
cumbereth it the ground? And he answering said unto him, Lord, let it
alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it:And if it bear fruit, well: and if
not, then after that thou shalt cut it down.
John 15:6
If a man does not abide in me, he is cast forth as a branch and
withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire and
burned.
John 3:1-7
Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the
Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we
know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform
the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him." In reply
Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of
God unless he is born again." "How can a man be born when he is old?"
Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his
mother's womb to be born!" Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no
one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the
Spirit [Baptism]. You should not be surprised at my saying, `You must
be born again.' [This entire chapter is about baptizing, John the
Baptist, "ceremonial washing", etc.]
John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that
whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting
life.
John 5:28-29
Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are
in the graves shall hear his voice, And shall come forth; they that
have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done
evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.
Acts 26:15-20
And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou
persecutest. But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared
unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both
of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which
I will appear unto thee; Delivering thee from the people, and from the
Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, To open their eyes, and to turn
them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that
they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which
are sanctified by faith that is in me. Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was
not disobedient unto the heavenly vision: But shewed first unto them of
Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea,
and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.
Romans 2:6
God will render to every man according to his WORKS.
Romans 2:13
For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the DOERS of
the law shall be justified.
Romans 8:17
And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ;
if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified
together.
Romans 8:29-30
For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to
the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many
brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and
whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he
also glorified. [Note that the verbs here are in the past tense; Paul
is undoubtedly referring to those who've died in a state of grace and
whose justification and santification have been completed. And don't
read this verse out of context of the one that came 12 verses before it
-- Romans 8:17, which says that our glorification depends on our
suffering along with Christ, and Matthew 22:14 that says "For many are
called, but few are chosen." Being "called" doesn't mean automatic
justification.]
Romans 9:15
For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and
I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
Romans 10:9-10
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt
believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou
shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness;
and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Romans 11:17-23
And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive
tree, wert grafted in among them, and with them partakest of the root
and fatness of the olive tree; Boast not against the branches. But if
thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee. Thou wilt say
then, The branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in. Well;
because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by faith.
Be not highminded, but fear: For if God spared not the natural
branches, take heed lest he also spare not thee. Therefore consider the
goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity; but toward
you, goodness, if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will
be cut off. And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall
be grafted in: for God is able to graff them in again. [In other words,
you're "grafted in," a part of the New Covenant -- but don't brag
because you can be cut off]
1 Corinthians 6:9
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 [It doesn't say
"unless these people have had the experiences of "feeling saved" or
having been born again.]
1 Corinthians 9:27
But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by
any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a
castaway. [Even Paul wasn't sure of his own salvation!]
I Corinthians 10:8-12
Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell
in one day three and twenty thousand. Neither let us tempt Christ, as
some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. Neither
murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the
destroyer. Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and
they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world
are come. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he
fall. [NIV: "So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that
you don't fall!"]
I Corinthians 13:2
If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all
knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not
love, I am nothing.
1 Corinthians 13:13
And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of
these is charity. [Charity is greater than Faith!]
Galatians 5:19-21
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.
Galatians 5:4
You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified
by law; you have fallen from grace.
Galatians 5:6
For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor
uncircumcision; but faith which WORKETH BY LOVE.
Ephesians 2:8-9
For BY grace are ye saved THROUGH faith; and that not of yourselves: it
is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Phillipians 2:12
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.
Colossians 1:23-24
If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away
from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was
preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am
made a minister; Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up
that which is behind of [lacking in] the afflictions of Christ in my
flesh for his body's sake, which is the church. [the NKJV and the NIV
translate this last part accurately as: "and I fill up in my flesh what
is still lacking in regard to Christ's afflictions, for the sake of his
body, which is the church."]
1 Thessalonians 1:3
Remembering without ceasing your WORK OF FAITH, and LABOUR OF LOVE, and
patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our
Father;
2 Thessalonians 1:11
Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you
worthy of this calling, and fulfil all the good pleasure of his
goodness, and the WORK OF FAITH with power:
1 Timothy 5:8
But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own
house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel. [RSV:
"...worse than an unbeliever." What is being said here is that
"believing" is not enough!]
1 Timothy 6:17-19
Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded,
nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us
richly all things to enjoy; That they do good, that they be rich in
good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate; Laying up in
store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that
they may lay hold on eternal life.
2 Timothy 2:12
If we endure, we shall also reign with him; if we deny him, he also
will deny us.
Hebrews 6:4-6
For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have
tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit,
and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,
if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, since they
crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open
shame.
Hebrews 10:26-29
For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the
truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain
fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall
devour the adversaries. He that despised Moses' law died without mercy
under two or three witnesses: Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye,
shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God,
and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was
sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of
grace?
2 Peter 2:20-21
For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the
knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again
entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than
the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the
way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the
holy commandment delivered unto them. [the Greek word for knowledge
here is epignosei, which means a knowledge from experience, not
just intellectual knowledge, which would be oida. In other
words, the people being talked about here "knew Christ", they had a
"personal encounter with Christ" and had the experience of "getting
saved"; they didn't just simply "know of Him."]
2 Peter 3:17-18
...beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led
away with the error of the wicked; but grow in the grace and knowledge
of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and
forever.
1 John 2:24
Let that therefore abide in you, which ye have heard from the
beginning. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain
in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father. [in other
words, it is possible not continue in the Father and the Son;
it is possible to fall away]
James 1:21-27
Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and
receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your
souls. But BE YE DOERS OF THE WORD, AND NOT HEARERS ONLY, DECEIVING
YOUR OWN SELVES. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he
is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he
beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what
manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of
liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a
doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. If any man
among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but
deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Pure religion and
undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless
and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the
world.
James 2:14-26
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. Likewise also
was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the
messengers, and had sent them out another way? For as the body without
the spirit is dead, so FAITH WITHOUT WORKS IS DEAD ALSO.
James 5:20
Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his
way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.
Revelation 20:12
And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books
were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life:
and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the
books, according to their works.