Imagine a lottery where everyone wins. Not everyone believes in the lottery, or accepts the lottery. Many people are not reading the entire ‘rules’ of the lottery, and therefore are being misled into promises of winning by simply believing that the lottery exists. A Catholic understands that the lottery money was freely given to each person who wants to play, but we also know that we still have to buy a ticket and scratch it off in order to win the prize. For the sake of argument, let us also imagine we must believe in the lottery to win it. It’s not the action of buying the ticket that will give us the money. We need to not only buy it, we had to believe it in the first place. A Catholic has to believe, and go through the act of scratching off the ticket. So there are two parts to winning. You can’t have one without the other. You can’t just go buy a ticket and win, if you don’t believe. We are told in the Bible to believe, and to do. Furthermore, a Catholic also believes that we can lose that money in an instant if we break the rules of the lottery. Most Protestants also believe this concept, but there are many that believe that once the believe in the lottery, they are set for life, no matter what they say or what they do. This is an entirely different subject all together, so for now, I will try to stick to the subject/doctrine of Sola Fide - that is, Faith Alone. (Although they seem to intertwine quite a bit)!
Though there are many scriptures that do provide proof that Faith is necessary for salvation, there are also scriptures that seem to say the exact opposite to this Protestant claim. This can be either confusing or completely disregarded by Protestants. These scriptures do not fit into their “Faith Alone” doctrine. Here are some examples of those scriptures:
"Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deluding yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his own face in a mirror. He sees himself, then goes off and promptly forgets what he looked like." James 1:22-25
"If I have prophetic powers and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing" 1 Cor. 13:2
"Do not be amazed at this, because the hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and will come out, those who have done good deeds to the resurrection of life, but those who have done wicked deeds to the resurrection of condemnation." John 5:28-29
"There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test him and said, 'Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?' Jesus said to him, 'What is written in the law? How do you read it?' He said in reply, 'You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.' He replied to him, 'You have answered correctly; do this and you will live.'" Luke 10:25-28
One of the strongest scriptures against Sola Fida might just be this one:
James 2:1-26 (King James Version)
1My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. 2For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; 3And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: 4Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts? 5Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him? 6But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats? 7Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called? 8If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well: 9But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors. 10For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. 11For he that said, Do not commit adultery, said also, Do not kill. Now if thou commit no adultery, yet if thou kill, thou art become a transgressor of the law. 12So speak ye, and so do, as they that shall be judged by the law of liberty. 13For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment.
14What doth it profit, my brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and have not works? can faith save him? 15If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, 16And 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? 17Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone. 18Yea, 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. 19Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. 20But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? 21Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? 22Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? 23And 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. 24Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only. 25Likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received the messengers, and had sent them out another way? 26For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
Jesus, Our Lord Himself, gave us many examples of things that we must "do", in order to have eternal life. He never taught that believing alone was all we needed! Even the early churches understood this very clearly (and they were the closest people to his teachings, and the very same people that Protestants relied on to get their Bible from). Funny how they trust those early people to write the Bible, but they don’t trust they way the practiced the word back then.
Here are some things that Christ commanded us to “DO”:
Christ said we must be baptized: John 3:3-5 ESV
Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you" (Matt. 28:19–20).
(If belief was all that was necessary, wouldn’t Christ have said something like “Go and teach them to believe in me, instead of observing all that is commanded of us”..Take a look at those last few words.....ALL that He commanded of us.. Which means there was more than just the simple act of believing in Him)
Mark 16:16 ESV /
Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
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Keep The Commandments:
Scripture is very clear that if you do certain things, you will not get to heaven. All of the things listed are direct sins against the 10 commandments. (Commandments. Hmm, a strange word. Funny, how Moses never told us that those commandments were an outline of things we shouldn’t do, but wouldn’t be able to help ourselves.. So believe in Jesus and try not to do them and you’ll still be saved). No, scripture is clear that we not only should NOT do these things, but if we do, we will lose our salvation (without repentance after the fact).
1 John 2:4 ESV
“Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him.”
Galations 5:19 (King James Version)
19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 21 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.”
1 Cor 6:9-11 (King James Version) “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, 10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. 12 All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any”.
Ephesians 5 (King James Version)
“Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;
2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour.
3 But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; 4 Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. 5 For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
Revelations 21: 7-8 (King James Version)
“7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
The following is a very clear scripture of Christ outlining some deadly sins. I’d like to preface by it saying that Prostestants like to read more into it, when it is actually very easy to understand if you just read it.
This scripture talks about two kinds of sins - one that leads to death (a mortal sin), and one that does not lead to death (a venial sin):
1 John 5:16-17 (Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition)
16 He that knoweth his brother to sin a sin which is not to death, let him ask, and life shall be given to him, who sinneth not to death. There is a sin unto death: for that I say not that any man ask 17 All iniquity is sin. And there is a sin unto death.
Or if you would like, here is the King James version of the above scripture:
1 John 5:16-17 King James Version (KJV)
16 If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it. 7 All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death.
I thought all sin was sin? That they were all equal? What does it mean when it says that some sins lead to death, while others do not? Doesn't make sense unless you are Catholic or belong to a Protestant religion who also believes in deadly sins vs non-deadly sins..
We must also eat His Flesh and Drink His Blood in order to have eternal life:
John 6: 51-57 King James Version (KJV)
51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
52 The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat? 53 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. 54 Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. 55 For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. 56 He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.
St. Paul confirms the above in his letter to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 10:16): "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ?"
(I Cor. 11:27-29)
27 Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. 29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.
So not only do we have to eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, we have to do it or lose eternal life. Furthermore, if we drink it unworthily, we cause damnation to ourselves. This is important because it tells us that we can have communion in a worthy or unworthy state. Protestants tout the belief that we are all unworthy, or in other cases say that by the blood we become worthy, yet if that was the case in those times, either everyone would have been able to take communion without concern of their eternal damnation because everyone is unworthy, or in the later situation - once we are saved we will be worthy despite what we do - there would STILL be no concern of eternal damnation - so why did St, Paul bother to tell us that in the first place? This scripture shows us that we can be saved and be worthy or unworthy depending on the state of our soul at the time of our communion. (Mortal sin or venial sin). Don't let it scare you that this makes more sense from a Catholic's perspective rather than the religion you belong to. Just keep an open mind.
Do the 7 corporal works of mercy - (can we get away with not doing those if we just believe?) :
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit upon his glorious throne, and all the nations will be assembled before him. And he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the king will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.' Then the righteous 16 will answer him and say, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?' And the king will say to them in reply, 'Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.' Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, a stranger and you gave me no welcome, naked and you gave me no clothing, ill and in prison, and you did not care for me.' Then they will answer and say, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison, and not minister to your needs?' He will answer them, 'Amen, I say to you, what you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me.' And these will go off to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life." Matthew 25:31-46
"By your stubbornness and impenitent heart, you are storing up wrath for yourself for the day of
wrath and revelation of the just judgment of God, who will repay everyone according to his works: eternal life to those who seek glory, honor, and immortality through perseverance in good works, but wrath and fury to those who selfishly disobey the truth and obey wickedness. Yes, affliction and distress will come upon every human being who does evil, Jew first and then Greek. But there will be glory, honor, and peace for everyone who does good, Jew first and then Greek. There is no partiality with God." Romans 2:5-11
hmm - apparently there will be some judgement for those who did not partake in helping others, or if they disobey the truth. Eternal punishment. I'm just going to do them to error on the safe side, okay?
I think it’s important to note that the previously mentioned scriptures were understood perfectly for centuries. Even before the Bible was printed some 300 years after Christ’s death on the cross, the early church clearly understood that they could lose their salvation, and that there was more to just believing in order to be saved. In fact, it wasn’t until 500 years ago that this became a belief/doctrine by most (but not all) Protestants. I find it very confusing that these very clear scriptures show us that there are things we must do, in order to get to heaven, yet Protestants wrestle with these scriptures and twist them until they no longer make sense. Aren’t the above scriptures the complete opposite of “just believe”, and “don’t worry, if you sin it’s because you can’t help it because we are a fallen people who just can’t help themselves”? If this was the case, then Christ would have not bothered to tell us that if we do this or that, we won’t get to heaven, or if we DON’T do this or that, we won’t get to heaven.
St. Paul wrote of his own prospect of salvation in terms of a present fight, which he was concerned to pursue diligently: "Do you not know that in a race, all the runners compete, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. Well, I do not run aimlessly, I do not box as one beating the air; but I pommel my body and subdue it, lest after preaching to others, I myself should be disqualified" (1 Cor. 9:24-27).
So, St. Paul - after obviously having believed in Jesus, and a preacher of his word, understands very well that he can be disqualified from the race, and that he has to control himself to obtain heaven!
Paul’s letter to the Hebrews is another powerful scripture to this fact (Hebrews 10:26-27): , "For if we sin willfully after having the knowledge of the truth, there is now left no sacrifice for sins, But a certain dreadful expectation of judgment, and the rage of a fire which shall consume the adversaries.
In other words, we can KNOW the truth (the gospel and believe that Jesus died for us), but we can become adversaries of the truth and be consumed by a rage of fire. - hell. We can know God and still go to hell. Are you SURE that your religion’s claims of just believe and you will be saved, is enough? Just double check and make sure. Because IF the early church had the correct interpretation of these scriptures, you are making a deadly decision to believe the lie. On the other hand, I will listen to your side of the story. Please let me know if I’m going to go to hell because I want to follow the 10 commandments, have charity for my neighbor, avoid sins that can cause eternal damnation, and do whatever else I think Christ is asked of me in Holy Scriptures (and perhaps more than you think is necessary). I know it’s a lot more work, but I’m willing to sacrifice a little for the reward. Yes, my Protestant friends, your way is much easier, but I just can’t seem to understand it’s history, it’s scriptural basis, and how your belief fits in with the many other scriptures that seem to say the very opposite. I want to get to heaven, and I want to serve Christ with my whole heart and soul. So please, help me understand why it is you believe the way you do.
I'd like to share a wonderful sermon on this subject as well:
Sermon: Regarding the doctrine of Once Saved, Always Saved
http://www.audiosancto.org/sermon/20060723-Regarding-the-doctrine-of-Once-Saved-Always-Saved.html
