Progressive Sanctification - Are We Sanctified By Works?

The Debate

There is an ongoing sort of debate on the subject of so-called "Progressive Sanctification".

The usual question goes something like this:

"Is our Progressive Sanctification strictly accomplished by God (monergistic), or is our sanctification dependent on our own efforts and obedience (synergistic)?"

But is that really the right question?

A Typical Definition

Often "progressive sanctification" is not even defined by those who argue one side or the other.  But for our purposes here, Wayne Grudem's definition will do: 

"a progressive work of God and man that makes us more and more free from sin and like Christ in our actual lives" (of course that definition has the defect of including the work of both God AND man "by definition", but we can ignore that for the time being -- the key parts are "more free from sin" and "like Christ" in our actual lives).

First A Theory

Before making several observations below, let me propose a theory:

You know the old saying, "To a hammer, everything looks like a nail"?

Well my theory is that so-called Progressive Sanctification is a somewhat phony idea developed by Legalists.  To a Legalist, everything looks like SOMETHING TO DO! (something to obey, something to strive for, something to work at, or work for -- you get the idea).

Don't get me wrong, it's not that there IS nothing to do.  It's that DOING is not the Alpha nor the Omega, the beginning nor the end.  It's not the foundation, it's not the FOCUS.  Except to the Legalist.

The Legalist sees his mission (and more importantly YOURS!) as Progressive Sanctification, which he defines in his mind, if not on paper, as GETTING BETTER AND BETTER.  Or as he might also think of it,  BEING HOLIER, or where the rubber meets the road, WORKS, LAW, PERFORMANCE!  They are Law-oriented because that's how you measure performance.

He doesn't really grasp that the Alpha and Omega is the Lord Himself.  He Himself, and what He has already done, should be the FOCUS.

6 Observations

There are several problems with that essentially Legalistic view of Sanctification, as reflected in the following observations:

1) Our flesh cannot get better.  In Romans 7:18 Paul wrote, "For I know that NOTHING good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh..."  Your flesh cannot be improved.  Flesh is flesh, and spirit is spirit.

2) Our new nature, on the other hand cannot get better, because it has already been made new and perfect through regeneration.  We have been given a "new heart" (new nature, or new spirit), and not a defective one, which would be absurd.  This new spirit has been made "one spirit with Him" (1 Corinthians 6:17), such that when we "walk according to the Spirit" (i.e., the Holy Spirit), we also walk according to our own new spirit.

3) Those who deal with Sanctification by zeroing in on so-called "Progressive" Sanctification as the main point of Sanctification, are at best in Kindergarten.

Why?

Because a simple word-study of Sanctification will make it obvious that the PRIMARY EMPHASIS OF SCRIPTURE is on the fact that WE ARE ALREADY SANCTIFIED!  I don't want to belabor the point, but it's important, so I've listed some verses below that show not only that we are already sanctified, but that it's been done by God Himself!  Here are some relevant verses:

===========================================
"SANCTIFY them in the truth; Your word is truth." - John 17:17


"so that He might SANCTIFY her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word," - Eph 5:26


"Therefore Jesus also, that He might SANCTIFY the people through His own blood," - Heb 13:12


"by the SANCTIFYING work of the Spirit," - 1 Pet 1:2


"which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are SANCTIFIED." - Acts 20:32


"that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been SANCTIFIED by faith in Me." - Acts 26:18


"SANCTIFIED by the Holy Spirit." - Rom 15:16


"to those who have been SANCTIFIED in Christ Jesus, saints by calling," - 1 Cor 1:2


"Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were SANCTIFIED, but you were justified" - 1 Cor 6:11


"For both He who SANCTIFIES and those who are SANCTIFIED are all from one Father;" - Heb 2:11


"By this will we have been SANCTIFIED through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." - Heb 10:10


"For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are SANCTIFIED." - Heb 10:14


"the blood of the covenant by which he was SANCTIFIED," - Heb 10:29


"But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in SANCTIFICATION," - Rom 6:22


"Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and SANCTIFICATION," - 1 Cor 1:30


"God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through SANCTIFICATION by the Spirit" - 2 Thess 2:13
===========================================

Moreover, you will find that any verse referring to sanctification that has not yet been accomplished, is actually just referring to our APPROPRIATING what is already done, in such a way that we ACT outwardly like that which we already are inwardly in spirit.

For example, "Be holy" ("holy" is the same basic Greek word as "sanctified") doesn't mean you're not already holy.  You are.  "Be holy" simply means ACT in your behavior like what you already are in your spirit and in your relation to God.

4) To the degree that we "walk according to the Spirit", we will not "fulfill the lust of the flesh", but the fruit of the Spirit.

Conversely, to the degree that we "walk according to the flesh", we WILL fulfill the lust of the flesh, or what Galatians 5 calls the "works" of the flesh.

5) Now here's where it gets tricky and why teaching the "Progressive" concept can actually do a DIS-SERVICE to believers.  Simply this: a brand new believer can walk by the Spirit and exhibit the fruit of the Spirit to a lovely degree -- and a believer who has been saved for 60 years can "fall off the wagon", walk by the flesh, and exhibit the works of the flesh to an amazing degree, OUTWARDLY or INWARDLY.

A serious and honest discussion with an old Saint who has walked with the Lord for many years will reveal the truth -- that however they may have "progressed" in some ways, the flesh is still the flesh and the spirit is still the spirit.

And when that old Saint is honest, he will readily admit that he isn't "better" after all.

You may consider that sad, but you shouldn't.  It merely verifies the truth of Scripture that the new nature (spirit, heart) can't get better because it's already made new -- and the flesh can't get better, because there is no good in it.

6) Finally then, what CAN be changed, or improved, or made better?

The best way to answer that is from Romans 12:2, "BE TRANSFORMED BY THE RENEWING OF YOUR MIND".

Wonderful things happen when our minds are renewed by the Holy Spirit through His Word.

A Caution

But there's a big CAUTION here.  And this brings me full circle to the theory I started out with.  The Legalist tends to see everything in terms of WORKS or LAW.  They are Law-oriented because they are Performance-oriented.

And so here's the CAUTION -- Please get this:

If you renew your mind from the Scriptures with a Law or Rules or Performance orientation, you will actually be brainwashing yourself to quench the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Grace!  The Law actually becomes the very power of sin (1 Corinthians 15:56).

BUT -- if you renew your mind from the Scriptures with a GRACE orientation, you will be in step with the Spirit of Grace, and you will "be-being-filled" with the Holy Spirit, and you will facilitate communing with Jesus Christ, and you will facilitate walking by the Spirit, and thus facilitate "not fulfilling the lust of the flesh".

But here's a SUB-CAUTION:

This process can be fragile as you "progress".

The world, the flesh and the devil are continually seeking to deceive you; to pull you from the path of renewing your mind; to bring you into temporary "insanity"; to steal or cloud what you know, if only long enough to cause you to stray from the Word, and from prayer, and from Grace, and from gazing into the face of Jesus Christ.

Don't be discouraged.

"But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit." - 2 Corinthians 3:18

It's not "work to be better", though we "work out our salvation".  It's He who is at work in us both to will and to do for His good pleasure. (Philippians 2:12)

It's not "laboring and striving to be better", though "we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God" (1 Timothy 4:10).

"The man who has struggled to purify himself and has had nothing but repeated failures will experience real relief when he stops tinkering with his soul and looks away to the perfect One. While he looks at Christ, the very things he has so long been trying to do will be getting done within him. It will be God working in him to will and to do." - A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God

ADDENDUM (2/20/12):


Hoping it may shed some further light on the subject, here is a response I wrote to a friend in a recent conversation:
------------------------------
You wrote, "Grace saves & sanctifies. But in sanctification, grace is our teacher & we participate thru obedience (read Titus 2:12)."

1. Technically, of course, GOD saves and sanctifies (indeed He already has), BY Grace, but your point there is well taken.

2. It's not through OBEDIENCE that we "participate", it's through FAITH. Any so-called obedience that is not of faith is sin, even if it looks good (Rom. 14:23).

3. That FAITH by which we "progress" is a gift from God, by grace.

4. We are already sanctified, just as we are already holy (same Greek root). Many verses make this clear. Just do a word study of "sanctify", "sanctified", "holy", "holiness", etc.

5. Verses that SEEM to indicate a progressive or growing holiness or sanctification are merely calling for us to ACT like or BEHAVE like what we already are.

This is a foundational principle for interpreting the New Covenant: "here's what's already done -- now walk in it".

6. Sanctification is distinct from justification as Fabarez points out, but both are already accomplished! And both are worked out in our actions as we UNDERSTAND and APPROPRIATE the truth of what is ALREADY DONE! 

7. For example, we are already righteous, declared so by God Himself (Justification by Faith). 

But we don't always WALK righteously. The better we understand and appropriate the New Covenant truths, including Justification, the better we will ACT like what we already are. 

8. This is similar to Romans 6, where we are clearly told that we are "dead to sin". (You may say, "I sure don't FEEL dead to sin!") We are then told to "consider" ("reckon", "choose to believe") ourselves dead to sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus (Rom. 6:11). 

Why? First, because it's true. Second, because then we are more likely to ACT like it.

9. We are already Justified (declared righteous) -- now LIVE like it! We are already a new creation with a new heart -- now LIVE like it! We are already Sanctified (set apart, made holy). Now LIVE like it!

10. It's all done! Our "obedience" can add NOTHING to it. That's a form of Legalism. "Having BEGUN by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?" -Gal. 3:3

11. We "participate" by our faith (resulting in obedience) in the same way that we "participate" in our salvation by faith. But as biblical Calvinists, we realize that such faith is itself only the result of God's Spirit in regeneration. Likewise the faith that brings our obedience is God "working in us both to will and to do for His good pleasure".

12. In my blog post (http://www.grace-for-life.blogspot.com/2012/02/progressive-sanctification-are-we.html) I used the Norman Rockwell picture of the boy measuring the "progress" of his height for the purpose of showing that our holiness or sanctification cannot be measured as "progress" in that way.

No one can rightly say, "I'm more holy or sanctified than I used to be." A brand new believer can truly ACT more holy than a believer of 40 years. This means nothing, except that the grace of God is given to him to have the faith for such actions.

13. Having said that, HUMANLY SPEAKING, we do have what are sometimes called the "means" of Grace -- primarily the Word of God and prayer. 

As we properly involve ourselves in these, we renew our minds and may very well "progress" in our understanding and appropriation of WHAT IS ALREADY ACCOMPLISHED in the New Covenant -- and the result will tend to be that we walk by the Spirit more, and by the flesh less.

14. But we don't need to be more sanctified, any more than we need to be more justified, or more dead to sin, or more forgiven, or have more of a "new heart", or any other provision of the New Covenant.

Blessings,
Terry

What Is Spiritual Growth?

Huge amounts of ink or pixels are used in discussing spiritual growth. However, very little ink or pixels are used in clarifying what spiritual growth actually IS.

Most who attempt this tend to parrot others who say things like:

1. Become more obedient to God’s Word,

2. Become more conformed to the image of Christ (whatever that means),

3. Be more like Christ in behavior (as in WWJD?),

4. Develop the fruit of the Spirit.

I’d like to take those one at a time, show where they fall short, and then take a stab at defining what spiritual growth really is.

1. Become more obedient to God’s Word.

The problem with this is it says nothing about motive. An unregenerate person can be more obedient to the “basics” of God’s Word than some fairly “mature” Christians.

And some Christians can appear deceptively “mature”, when they know in their hearts they’re just putting on a show for the Church, while desperately reflecting Romans 7 (”I do the things I don’t want to do”) in their hearts and minds.

2. Become more conformed to the image of Christ (derived from Romans 8:29).

The problem with that is that not only is it usually not defined what “conformed to the image of Christ” means, and if it is defined, it’s usually something along the lines of Number 1 above, or Number 4 (see below).

3. Be more like Christ in behavior (as in WWJD?).

Like Number 1 or Number 2, this can be imitated by unbelievers. For example, I think if the Dalai Llama wore a suit and tie, and attended a typical church — and didn’t talk theology too much — he’d be thought a very godly man, even though he rejects Jesus Christ, and therefore the Father.

4. Develop the fruit of the Spirit.

This probably comes closest of the four to real spiritual growth, but again, one can *appear* to have love, joy, peace, patience, etc., without even having the Spirit. Or if they do have the Spirit, they can be walking by the Flesh, but “faking” the Fruit.

So...

What is REAL spiritual growth, biblically speaking (what is often called sanctification)?

First, the word “sanctification” or “sanctified” (”set apart” or “holy” is the idea) is almost always used in Scripture for something that is *already* accomplished. We are already “sanctified” by God for Himself.

But the idea we want to get at is this thing we call *Progressive* Sanctification, or Spiritual Growth.

Here’s my attempt at a biblical definition (with special emphasis on key ideas):

Progressive Sanctification is UNDERSTANDING more and more the ETERNAL TRUTHS of God, particularly those of the NEW COVENANT, and living accordingly.

1. “UNDERSTANDING” means that we actually appropriate the truths through the renewing of our minds, as opposed to just acknowledging them to be true.

For example, all believers would agree that Romans 8:28 is true, “God causes all things to work together for good to those who love Him...”

But the more we really “get” that, appropriate it, and really understand it intellectually AND experientially (in our feelings), the more we will actually live accordingly.

The change in us may be visible to others (I would complain less, for example, because I know God is working it for good), or it may be invisible (I would have peace in tragedy, for example).

2. “ETERNAL TRUTHS” means those truths which are not visible or temporal, but are true nonetheless, because God has declared them to be true in the invisible eternal realm.

For example, Romans 6:11 says that we are “dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus”.

We may say, “I don’t FEEL dead to sin, or LOOK like I’m dead to sin. Unfortunately I can sin with the best of them when I’m not walking close with the Lord! What do you MEAN dead to sin? Are you crazy?”

Spiritual growth brings us to the point of realizing the truth of Romans 6:11, EVEN WHEN IT LOOKS TOTALLY UNTRUE! (Sorry for shouting.)

Or how about, “There is no longer any condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus”? I may FEEL condemned, or that God is frowning and angry with me when I behave badly. But it’s simply not true. His favor and intense love for me are not dimmed in the least by my sin, which is paid for and forgiven already, for eternity!

Spiritual growth means I’m APPROPRIATING that truth more and more.

3. “NEW COVENANT” is perhaps the most important concept of Scripture in “rightly dividing the truth” of the Word of God.

Hebrews 11 makes it clear that the Old (Mosaic) Covenant is obsolete, and the ETERNAL TRUTHS of the New Covenant have been accomplished in Christ, through His death, burial and resurrection.

These truths include all kinds of invisible truths like:

- our sins are already forgiven, past, present and future

- we are righteous (what we call Justification, declared righteous by God) — “Yes,” you say, “but only in God’s eyes.” — whoa…whose eyes COUNT, yours or God’s? — see, that’s spiritual growth

- we are new creations now, who love Jesus and hate sin

- we are dead to sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus

- we have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer we who live, but Christ lives through us

- we are no longer under Law, but under Grace (Rom. 6:14) — this is one of the most ignored verses in Scripture.

Try this experiment: Go to the 5 most biblically knowledgeable people you know and ask them to complete the sentence from Scripture: “For sin shall no longer be master over you, because...” Very few will complete the sentence from Rom. 6:14, because very few understand that we are no longer under Law, but under Grace (a radical New Covenant truth in itself).

FINALLY...

When we do indeed understand more and more these eternal truths, our behavior will be affected, but it’s not the behavior which is the spiritual growth.

Was "Saint" John Paul II A Great Spiritual Leader?

As many of you know, Pope John Paul II was “canonized” or officially declared a “Saint” by the Roman Catholic Church, on May 1, 2011.

Aside from the fact that Sainthood cannot biblically be given by the Roman Catholic Church, as I pointed out here, because all true believers in Jesus Christ are called saints in the Bible, it seems a good time to revisit the question whether John Paul (or any Pope, in this context) can legitimately be called a great spiritual leader at all — having just celebrated Reformation Day (October 31).

The following is not meant as a personal attack on Catholic folks, many of whom are my friends and family whom I love, nor as a personal attack on John Paul, or Popes in general. I find the current Pope Francis to be a likable guy, despite his appalling theology, which is constantly at odds with the Word of God, the Bible.

It’s about truth. As Jesus spoke to God the Father, “Thy Word is truth.” And that truth is found in the Bible, which is “inspired” by God, or literally, “God-breathed” — not in the words of mere men, “ex cathedra” or not.

I liked Pope John Paul II. He was kindly, charming, hard-working; a genius who spoke many languages, and he shared some of my own views on moral issues, such as the evil of killing our unborn, so I’m grateful for his influence in those areas.

And I wouldn’t judge his final destination, heaven or hell, because it’s God Who saves, by grace through faith, and none of us knows what may happen, even on a death bed.

But was John Paul a great spiritual leader? Particularly in this website about Grace, I must say “no”, for three reasons:

1) He taught and supported a religion of “grace” plus works. The Bible says clearly that if works is added to grace for salvation, it’s no longer grace (“But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace.” –Romans 11:6)

Look at some excerpts from the Catechism of the Catholic Church (this is the “new” “modern” “open-minded” one…you should see the Traditional One!):

“. . Baptism is the first and chief sacrament of forgiveness of sins because it unites us with Christ, who died for our sins and rose for our justification, so that ‘we too might walk in newness of life,'”(Catechism of the Catholic Church, par. 977). [note this first of seven sacraments obtains the forgiveness of sins]

“In every circumstance, each one of us should hope, with the grace of God, to persevere ‘to the end’ and to obtain the joy of heaven, as God’s eternal reward for the good works accomplished with the grace of Christ,” (CCC, par. 1821). [note "as God's eternal reward for the good works"]

“Moved by the Holy Spirit and by charity, we can then merit for ourselves and for others the graces needed for our sanctification.” (CCC, par. 2010) [note we not only merit for ourselves, but for others]

And since the Catholic Church obviously teaches that salvation includes man’s works, then it follows that the failure of man’s works can destroy that salvation and damn him again, after he’s been “justified”. The solution: more works! Read the following:

“Christ instituted the sacrament of Penance for all sinful members of his Church: above all for those who, since Baptism, have fallen into grave sin, and have thus lost their baptismal grace and wounded ecclesial communion. It is to them that the sacrament of Penance offers a new possibility to convert and to recover the grace of justification. The Fathers of the Church present this sacrament as ‘the second plank (of salvation) after the shipwreck which is the loss of grace.” (CCC, par. 1446).

Acts of penance may be such things as prayer, saying the Rosary, reading the scripture, saying a number of “Our Father’s” or “Hail Mary’s”, doing good works, fasting, etc.

Hold on, I gotta breathe in some fresh air of the Word of God, here:

“You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? (Galatians 3:1-3)

2) John Paul also affirmed the Council of Trent, even traveling to Trento, Italy for the 450th Anniversary of the Council, and giving his approval. Among many other unbiblical teachings, the Council of Trent curses with damnation all of us who teach salvation “by grace through faith, not of works”. Excerpts can be viewed at http://www.carm.org/catholic/trent.htm .

3) Like many false teachers, John Paul was deceptive in his public speeches, opening the gates of heaven to almost anyone from Protestants to Buddhists, Hindus, etc., ignoring the words of Jesus, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

Whether by deliberate deception, or personal confusion, John Paul spoke out of both sides of his mouth when it came to whom are children of God. At best his sloppiness has caused masses (no pun intended) of people to miss the pure beautiful gospel of faith alone, by grace alone, in Jesus Christ alone. At worst, he deliberately said whatever itching ears wanted to hear, in order to win the crowds.

Either way, he could not qualify as a great spiritual leader.

Let me say, I have a particular love for Roman Catholics. I was once a member of the Roman Catholic Church myself, and my wife Michele was raised Roman Catholic. Many of our family members are of that faith.

If you are a Roman Catholic, or anyone who thinks that heaven can be earned by Sacraments or good works of any kind, I have terrific news for you:

Jesus died on the cross for our sins. He was buried and rose again from the grave, to give eternal life to all who will believe on Him and trust that His work on the cross was enough…who will believe that He meant it when He said on the cross, “It is finished.” Whoever will may come to Him. God calls all men everywhere to repent, to change their minds. No works can earn it. It’s a free gift of God. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.

If you want to learn more about this Jesus Christ, I recommend starting with reading the Book of John in the Bible.

Was Pope John Paul II A Great Spiritual Leader?

I liked Pope John Paul II. He was kindly, charming, hard-working; a genius who spoke many languages, and he shared some of my own views on moral issues, such as the evil of killing our unborn, so I'm grateful for his influence in those areas.

And I wouldn't judge his final destination, heaven or hell, because it's God Who saves, by grace through faith, and none of us knows what may happen, even on a death bed.

But was John Paul a great spiritual leader? Particularly in this website about Grace, I must say "no", for three reasons:

1) He taught and supported a religion of "grace" plus works. The Bible says clearly that if works is added to grace for salvation, it's no longer grace ("But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace." --Romans 11:6)

Look at some excerpts from the Catechism of the Catholic Church (this is the "new" "modern" "open-minded" one...you should see the Traditional One!):

". . Baptism is the first and chief sacrament of forgiveness of sins because it unites us with Christ, who died for our sins and rose for our justification, so that 'we too might walk in newness of life,'"(Catechism of the Catholic Church, par. 977). [note this first of seven sacraments obtains the forgiveness of sins]

"In every circumstance, each one of us should hope, with the grace of God, to persevere 'to the end' and to obtain the joy of heaven, as God's eternal reward for the good works accomplished with the grace of Christ," (CCC, par. 1821). [note "as God's eternal reward for the good works"]

"Moved by the Holy Spirit and by charity, we can then merit for ourselves and for others the graces needed for our sanctification." (CCC, par. 2010) [note we not only merit for ourselves, but for others]

And since the Catholic Church obviously teaches that salvation includes man's works, then it follows that the failure of man's works can destroy that salvation and damn him again, after he's been "justified". The solution: more works! Read the following:

"Christ instituted the sacrament of Penance for all sinful members of his Church: above all for those who, since Baptism, have fallen into grave sin, and have thus lost their baptismal grace and wounded ecclesial communion. It is to them that the sacrament of Penance offers a new possibility to convert and to recover the grace of justification. The Fathers of the Church present this sacrament as 'the second plank (of salvation) after the shipwreck which is the loss of grace." (CCC, par. 1446).

Acts of penance may be such things as prayer, saying the Rosary, reading the scripture, saying a number of "Our Father's" or "Hail Mary's", doing good works, fasting, etc.

Hold on, I gotta breathe in some fresh air of the Word of God, here:

"You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? (Galatians 3:1-3)

2) John Paul also affirmed the Council of Trent, even traveling to Trento, Italy for the 450th Anniversary of the Council, and giving his approval. Among many other unbiblical teachings, the Council of Trent curses with damnation all of us who teach salvation "by grace through faith, not of works". Excerpts can be viewed at http://www.carm.org/catholic/trent.htm .

3) Like many false teachers, John Paul was deceptive in his public speeches, opening the gates of heaven to almost anyone from Protestants to Buddhists, Hindus, etc., ignoring the words of Jesus, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."

Whether by deliberate deception, or personal confusion, John Paul spoke out of both sides of his mouth when it came to whom are children of God. At best his sloppiness has caused masses (no pun intended) of people to miss the pure beautiful gospel of faith alone, by grace alone, in Jesus Christ alone. At worst, he deliberately said whatever itching ears wanted to hear, in order to win the crowds.

Either way, he could not qualify as a great spiritual leader.

Let me say, I have a particular love for Roman Catholics. I was once a member of the Roman Catholic Church myself, and my wife Michele was raised Roman Catholic. Many of our family members are of that faith.

If you are a Roman Catholic, or anyone who thinks that heaven can be earned by Sacraments or good works of any kind, I have terrific news for you. Jesus died on the cross for sins. He took the penalty for the sins of His people. He was buried and rose again from the grave, to give eternal life to all who will believe on Him and trust that His work on the cross was enough...who will believe that He meant it when He said on the cross, "It is finished." Whoever will may come to Him. God calls all men everywhere to repent, to change their minds. No works can earn it. It's a free gift of God. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.

Listen to "Grace For Life" Radio Program.

Beware of the False Gospel of Discipleship

The Seriousness of a False Gospel

There is a huge mistake being made today in many pulpits, books and other forms of Bible teaching.

It is not trivial.

And it is not being "picky" to point it out.

It's serious.

It's serious because it's a "different gospel" or "another gospel" (Galatians 1:6).

And the Apostle Paul wrote, "But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!" (Galatians 1:8)

What The True Gospel Is

Before looking at the false gospel in question, it should be noted what the true Gospel is. This is not a simple task, although the Gospel itself is simple enough for a child to understand.

The reason it's not that simple to simply state the gospel is because it is somewhat expandable in it's content.

In other words, when we say the Gospel involves believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, we can expand greatly such things as "what does 'Lord' mean?", "who IS Jesus Christ?", "what does it mean to 'believe'?", etc.

Still, for our purposes here we need to state it with a certain amount of simplicity in order to contrast it with the "false gospel of discipleship", remembering that the Gospel is "Good News".

So let's plow ahead and arrive at a useful and simple definition.

Let's look at two Scripture passages for some guidance:

"Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures..." (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)

This passage indicates the basic historical events of the gospel -- the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

"He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2 Corinthians 5:21)

This passage, along with several others, indicates the substitutionary nature of the Gospel -- that we needed His righteousness, and He had to take our sins on Himself and pay for them on the cross.

Again, all of this is quite expandable, but we can capsulize the true "Good News" (Gospel) as follows:

The Gospel is the Good News that since we have all been born sinful and deserving of the wrath of God, but since God loves us, He sent His Son Jesus Christ to Earth as a Man, and that this Jesus died on a cross for our sins, was buried, and rose again from the dead -- and that whoever believes in Him as Lord and Savior will not perish, but have eternal life as a free gift.

There is a lot packed into that, yet it is very simple, and is based on faith so simple that a child can (as Scripture capsulizes it) "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved" (Acts 16:31).

Faith alone. Sola Fide, as the phrase was put in the Reformation. "Not of works, lest any man should boast", as Paul put it to the Ephesians.

What The False Teaching Of Discipleship Is

The false gospel of discipleship typically takes a form like this:

"It's not enough to just believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior, and believe that He died for your sins and rose again. The gospel also includes that you must DO what Jesus said in many places in the Gospels.

"Among other things, you must 'deny yourself, take up your cross and follow him', Matthew 16:24.

They in effect say that we must be WORTHY to be saved (a ridiculous thought) since Jesus said we're not worthy of Him unless we take up our cross and follow Him (Matthew 10:37,38), which they say is part of the gospel of salvation, and a requirement for salvation.

As one prominent Pastor put it (echoed in song by a prominent Christian musician, and repeated as though it were Scripture), "To give all that you are, for all that He is; this is the gospel according to Jesus."

Of course that's NOT the Gospel. That's legalism.

We don't need to become worthy before we become His, and we don't buy or earn "all that He is" by our own "giving" of ANYTHING.

His eternal life and salvation that He gives us are FREE (Romans 6:23, "...the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.")

The Confusion Of This False Teaching

The problem with this false teaching is that it demands the question, "How much must I deny myself to be saved?" Or, "How much must I take up my cross?" "What cross?" "How long?" "Have I really given ALL that I am for all that He is?" "How can I tell?" "And what if I think I've given all that I am, but I really haven't?" "Or what if I think I've given all that I am, but I take something back?"

And on and on go the demonic whispers to undermine the simple faith of a true believer who is confused by what it was that brought him salvation.

And think of the confusion of a lost person hearing such a message! "What indeed must I DO to be saved?", they are wondering!

And the teacher of this false "gospel of discipleship" cannot even answer this simple question, because they have grown up Kudzu-like vines of "works" that choke and confuse the truth of the gospel of faith alone.

The absurdity of this false gospel should be obvious just by comparing two verses on discipleship spoken by the Lord Himself (follow me closely here, please):

Matthew 16:24 reads, "...he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me."

If that was a requirement for INITIAL salvation, then how would one explain the parallel verse in Luke 9:23?: "...he must deny himself, and take up his cross DAILY and follow Me."

See my point? If one has to take up his cross DAILY in order to be saved, how many DAYS must he take it up? Will he be saved if he takes it up for three days? One hundred days?

Preposterous!

Besides, Romans 1:16 says that the Gospel is THE POWER OF GOD FOR SALVATION TO THOSE WHO BELIEVE! There's no power in setting standards of behavior for the lost in order for them to attain salvation! That's not Good News!

Yet these teachers continue imposing standards of DISCIPLESHIP upon the lost who are not even disciples yet! In order for them to believe the simple gospel!

Sidenote: they will almost always say something like, "Now this isn't works salvation". But denying it doesn't make it so. They are blind to the fact that it really IS works salvation. Like the Roman Catholic teacher who imposes works and sacraments on the people and calls it "faith".

And believers in congregations all over the place buy into that false teaching, after they themselves have already been saved by simply believing the Gospel!

No wonder Paul wrote the Galatians with a rare emotional rant of shock and anger because they had so soon allowed themselves to be entangled in "works plus faith" teachings.

And yet his words for the sheep were not nearly as angry as his words for the teachers themselves.

May these teachers of the "false gospel of discipleship" repent, and begin preaching the true Gospel of faith apart from works.

A Word About Soteriology

Soteriology is the Doctrine of Salvation (Greek soter means savior). It's the study of HOW we are saved. It's an important and biblical and fascinating study.

But Soteriology is not the Gospel either.

The Gospel is basically a truth proclaimed, not a detailed explanation of the process of regeneration, believing the Gospel, justification, sanctification and glorification -- each with voluminous words of clarification and controversy.

I feel compelled, however, to point out one thing from our study of biblical Soteriology.

Faith in Jesus Christ is itself a gift from God. It's not something we manufacture. He must open our hearts and reveal Jesus Christ to us, or we will not believe.

Yet wonderfully, if He does open our hearts and reveal Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we can't NOT believe. This is what theologians call "Irresistible Grace".

Not that God brings us kicking and screaming into His family, but that He opens our hearts and we see Him with new eyes and a new heart, and we believe in Him.

How does faith come? The Bible itself says that it comes from hearing the Word of God.

And so, if you don't consider yourself a believer in Jesus Christ, I recommend that you read the Book of John.

It was written by John the Apostle under the inspiration of God Himself, to bring folks to faith in Jesus Christ.

It was written specifically "...so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name." (John 20:31)

Interestingly, the Book of John says nothing about "denying yourself" or "taking up your cross". Nothing about YOUR works, but only the work that Jesus Christ Himself already did for us on the cross.

In fact, in John 6:28,29, when they asked Jesus, "What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?, He answered, ""This is the WORK of God, that you BELIEVE in Him whom He has sent."

The Beauty of Discipleship

Does that subtitle, "The Beauty of Discipleship", surprise you after what I've just been saying?

It shouldn't.

Although discipleship is not the Gospel -- although discipleship is not the cause of our salvation -- discipleship is a wonderful thing.

When one becomes a Christian, they become a disciple. A disciple is a "learner" and a "follower". Learning of Jesus and following Him is the greatest of privileges.

And the "surrender" involved in following Him is one of the highest things that we are called to do as already-saved believers. To grow in the attitude "not my will but yours be done, Lord" is not only sublimely precious, but the source of great joy.

But to teach this growing, learning, surrendering lifestyle as "the Gospel" -- to teach it as the requirement for being saved -- is to put the cart before the horse.

Beware of the False Gospel of Discipleship

The Seriousness of a False Gospel

There is a huge mistake being made today in many pulpits, books and other forms of Bible teaching.

It is not trivial.

And it is not being "picky" to point it out.

It's serious.

It's serious because it's a "different gospel" or "another gospel" (Galatians 1:6).

And the Apostle Paul wrote, "But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!" (Galatians 1:8)

What The True Gospel Is

Before looking at the false gospel in question, it should be noted what the true Gospel is. This is not a simple task, although the Gospel itself is simple enough for a child to understand.

The reason it's not that simple to simply state the gospel is because it is somewhat expandable in it's content.

In other words, when we say the Gospel involves believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, we can expand greatly such things as "what does 'Lord' mean?", "who IS Jesus Christ?", "what does it mean to 'believe'?", etc.

Still, for our purposes here we need to state it with a certain amount of simplicity in order to contrast it with the "false gospel of discipleship", remembering that the Gospel is "Good News".

So let's plow ahead and arrive at a useful and simple definition.

Let's look at two Scripture passages for some guidance:

"Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures..." (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)

This passage indicates the basic historical events of the gospel -- the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

"He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2 Corinthians 5:21)

This passage, along with several others, indicates the substitutionary nature of the Gospel -- that we needed His righteousness, and He had to take our sins on Himself and pay for them on the cross.

Again, all of this is quite expandable, but we can capsulize the true "Good News" (Gospel) as follows:

The Gospel is the Good News that since we have all been born sinful and deserving of the wrath of God, but since God loves us, He sent His Son Jesus Christ to Earth as a Man, and that this Jesus died on a cross for our sins, was buried, and rose again from the dead -- and that whoever believes in Him as Lord and Savior will not perish, but have eternal life as a free gift.

There is a lot packed into that, yet it is very simple, and is based on faith so simple that a child can (as Scripture capsulizes it) "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved" (Acts 16:31).

Faith alone. Sola Fide, as the phrase was put in the Reformation. "Not of works, lest any man should boast", as Paul put it to the Ephesians.

What The False Teaching Of Discipleship Is

The false gospel of discipleship typically takes a form like this:

"It's not enough to just believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior, and believe that He died for your sins and rose again. The gospel also includes that you must DO what Jesus said in many places in the Gospels.

"Among other things, you must 'deny yourself, take up your cross and follow him', Matthew 16:24.

They in effect say that we must be WORTHY to be saved (a ridiculous thought) since Jesus said we're not worthy of Him unless we take up our cross and follow Him (Matthew 10:37,38), which they say is part of the gospel of salvation, and a requirement for salvation.

As one prominent Pastor put it (echoed in song by a prominent Christian musician, and repeated as though it were Scripture), "To give all that you are, for all that He is; this is the gospel according to Jesus."

Of course that's NOT the Gospel. That's legalism.

We don't need to become worthy before we become His, and we don't buy or earn "all that He is" by our own "giving" of ANYTHING.

His eternal life and salvation that He gives us are FREE (Romans 6:23, "...the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.")

The Confusion Of This False Teaching

The problem with this false teaching is that it demands the question, "How much must I deny myself to be saved?" Or, "How much must I take up my cross?" "What cross?" "How long?" "Have I really given ALL that I am for all that He is?" "How can I tell?" "And what if I think I've given all that I am, but I really haven't?" "Or what if I think I've given all that I am, but I take something back?"

And on and on go the demonic whispers to undermine the simple faith of a true believer who is confused by what it was that brought him salvation.

And think of the confusion of a lost person hearing such a message! "What indeed must I DO to be saved?", they are wondering!

And the teacher of this false "gospel of discipleship" cannot even answer this simple question, because they have grown up Kudzu-like vines of "works" that choke and confuse the truth of the gospel of faith alone.

The absurdity of this false gospel should be obvious just by comparing two verses on discipleship spoken by the Lord Himself (follow me closely here, please):

Matthew 16:24 reads, "...he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me."

If that was a requirement for INITIAL salvation, then how would one explain the parallel verse in Luke 9:23?: "...he must deny himself, and take up his cross DAILY and follow Me."

See my point? If one has to take up his cross DAILY in order to be saved, how many DAYS must he take it up? Will he be saved if he takes it up for three days? One hundred days?

Preposterous!

Besides, Romans 1:16 says that the Gospel is THE POWER OF GOD FOR SALVATION TO THOSE WHO BELIEVE! There's no power in setting standards of behavior for the lost in order for them to attain salvation! That's not Good News!

Yet these teachers continue imposing standards of DISCIPLESHIP upon the lost who are not even disciples yet! In order for them to believe the simple gospel!

Sidenote: they will almost always say something like, "Now this isn't works salvation". But denying it doesn't make it so. They are blind to the fact that it really IS works salvation. Like the Roman Catholic teacher who imposes works and sacraments on the people and calls it "faith".

And believers in congregations all over the place buy into that false teaching, after they themselves have already been saved by simply believing the Gospel!

No wonder Paul wrote the Galatians with a rare emotional rant of shock and anger because they had so soon allowed themselves to be entangled in "works plus faith" teachings.

And yet his words for the sheep were not nearly as angry as his words for the teachers themselves.

May these teachers of the "false gospel of discipleship" repent, and begin preaching the true Gospel of faith apart from works.

A Word About Soteriology

Soteriology is the Doctrine of Salvation (Greek soter means savior). It's the study of HOW we are saved. It's an important and biblical and fascinating study.

But Soteriology is not the Gospel either.

The Gospel is basically a truth proclaimed, not a detailed explanation of the process of regeneration, believing the Gospel, justification, sanctification and glorification -- each with voluminous words of clarification and controversy.

I feel compelled, however, to point out one thing from our study of biblical Soteriology.

Faith in Jesus Christ is itself a gift from God. It's not something we manufacture. He must open our hearts and reveal Jesus Christ to us, or we will not believe.

Yet wonderfully, if He does open our hearts and reveal Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we can't NOT believe. This is what theologians call "Irresistible Grace".

Not that God brings us kicking and screaming into His family, but that He opens our hearts and we see Him with new eyes and a new heart, and we believe in Him.

How does faith come? The Bible itself says that it comes from hearing the Word of God.

And so, if you don't consider yourself a believer in Jesus Christ, I recommend that you read the Book of John.

It was written by John the Apostle under the inspiration of God Himself, to bring folks to faith in Jesus Christ.

It was written specifically "...so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name." (John 20:31)

Interestingly, the Book of John says nothing about "denying yourself" or "taking up your cross". Nothing about YOUR works, but only the work that Jesus Christ Himself already did for us on the cross.

In fact, in John 6:28,29, when they asked Jesus, "What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?, He answered, ""This is the WORK of God, that you BELIEVE in Him whom He has sent."

The Beauty of Discipleship

Does that subtitle, "The Beauty of Discipleship", surprise you after what I've just been saying?

It shouldn't.

Although discipleship is not the Gospel -- although discipleship is not the cause of our salvation -- discipleship is a wonderful thing.

When one becomes a Christian, they become a disciple. A disciple is a "learner" and a "follower". Learning of Jesus and following Him is the greatest of privileges.

And the "surrender" involved in following Him is one of the highest things that we are called to do as already-saved believers. To grow in the attitude "not my will but yours be done, Lord" is not only sublimely precious, but the source of great joy.

But to teach this growing, learning, surrendering lifestyle as "the Gospel" -- to teach it as the requirement for being saved -- is to put the cart before the horse.

When Gracers Go Too Far (Transcript)

When I say, “When Gracers Go Too Far”, I don't mean one can go too far with Grace. Grace is absolute.

I trust that those of you who have listened to or read my teaching of the Word of God know how strongly I believe in Grace. The Bible teaches that Grace is foundational to God's working with man. And if one doesn't have a good grasp on the truth of the New Covenant that we are "no longer under Law but under Grace" (Rom. 6:14), then much of the rest of their theology and practical Christian living will be flawed.

I am a Gracer from start to finish. I believe the Bible teaches that we are not only saved inititally by Grace through Faith, "not of works, lest any man should boast" (Eph. 2:8,9), but that the keeping of our salvation and our ultimate glorification is entirely by Grace through Faith. That our works had nothing to do with our salvation to begin with, and our works have nothing to do with our staying saved and going to heaven.

I believe that there is nothing we can do to make God love us more, and nothing we can do to make God love us less, as believers, as born-again children of God. He has set His love on us and there is nothing that can separate us from that love.

The Issue

Now, having said that, I have noticed something a little disturbing among some other so-called Gracers. There is something I have seen among those who really do glory in the Grace of God, that goes too far.

I want to be kind here, but there is something that I have seen among those who really do glory in the New Covenant of Grace that I believe has made them gullible.

By gullible, I mean that they have embraced as a brother or sister in Christ, anyone who claims to be a Christian, no matter what that person believes.

Under the banner of Grace, these well-meaning Gracers have undermined the Gospel of Grace.

While denouncing works-based salvation, while denouncing Galatianism, where grace and works are mixed together in a false Gospel, while meaning to be Grace-centered, they have stepped over into a strange acceptance of Legalism, even another Gospel, which is not a Gospel at all. And they've done it without even knowing it.

Performance-Based Legalism

Now, I'm going to give a specific example of this. But first, I want to say a few words about that form of “legalism” which I call Performance-Based Christianity, as opposed to Grace-Based. It's that form of legalism that tries to earn God's favor or love by what we do.

There are several other forms of legalism, for example:

1. There is initial salvation by works;

2. There is the Seventh Day Adventist type of legalism, which speaks of initial salvation by grace, but it must be followed by law-works or you end up losing your salvation;

3. There is that extra-biblical type of cultural "legalism", such as "no lipstick", "no pants for ladies", etc.;

4. There is pure Galatianism, which mixes law-works with grace, which of course makes it not grace.

Which Paul points out makes it no longer grace, whereupon one "falls from grace", as the Galatians did in their foolishness, and gets on the ground of Law, which quenches the Holy Spirit, and inflames sin.

The problem with Law-based living is that the one who lives that way must, a. obey all of it, b. obey it continually, c. obey it perfectly.

"Striving to obey God's commandments" won't cut it, and one who lives that way is cursed by his own paradigm.

"For as many as are of the works of the Law are under a curse; for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law to perform them.'" (Gal. 3:10)

But...We are "...servants of a new covenant, not of the letter, but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." (2 Cor. 3:6)

And that New Covenant, of course, is in Jesus Christ, our Lawgiver, Lawkeeper, and Sacrifice Lamb, who became sin for us that we might become the righteousness of God. What a Savior and Friend!

The Disturbing Habit of Some Gracers

Okay, let's get back to the problem I've seen in some Gracers. Those, who have come to see that our salvation from start to finish is completely by Grace, and not works.

Here's the problem. They have stood strong for Grace and against Legalism, but then in the name of Grace, have embraced those in false legalistic religions as brothers and sisters.

Some have gone as far a a form of Universalism, in which they teach that everyone will be saved, because after all, if Jesus paid for the sins of everyone, and unbelief is a sin, then didn't He pay for the sin of unbelief and therefore must welcome everyone into heaven eventually?

They are careful to say that no one EARNED their way into heaven, but everyone makes it anyway. This is, of course, a direct contradiction of the Word of God, which clearly teaches that some will never believe in Christ, and will indeed be thrown into the lake of fire.

But I'm not speaking of these Gracer Universalists. I'm speaking of those Gracers who have, in the name of Grace, embraced works-based religious leaders. This usually involves the works-based religion of Roman Catholicism, and might involve studying the monk Thomas Merton and his meditations. Or it might involve a dialog on the radio or the Internet with a Roman Catholic fellow who is so nice and loving that it is thought that he must be a true believer, and how can I judge him, when I'm not perfect myself? And so on.

And rather than give a detailed theological study of Roman Catholicism and how it so badly disagrees with the Gospel of Grace in the Scriptures, I will attempt to illustrate this disturbing tendency by asking the question:

Was Pope John Paul II a Great Spiritual Leader?

I choose John Paul, because he made so many public statements that sounded gracious, and was so attractive to Bible believing Christians, that if he couldn't be seen as a good spiritual leader, then who could, in the Roman Catholic Church?

To my Gracer friends, if the answer to the question, Was Pope John Paul II a Great Spiritual Leader? is “No”, then I would urge you to not extend your understanding of Grace to include the false Galatianist religion of [so-called] grace-plus-works of which he was a part. Use the Scriptures and your God-given discernment to discern the awful Legalism that his religion embraces.

So, Was Pope John Paul II A Great Spiritual Leader?

First, let me say, I liked Pope John Paul II. He was kindly, charming, hard-working. A genius who spoke many languages, and he shared some of my own views on moral issues, such as the evil of killing our unborn, so I'm grateful for his influence in those areas.

And I wouldn't judge his final destination, heaven or hell, because it's God Who saves, by grace through faith, and none of us knows what may have happened, even on John Paul's death bed.

But was John Paul a great spiritual leader?

In the interest of slaying the dragon of Legalism, I must say "no", for three reasons:

1. He taught and supported a religion of "grace" plus works.

The Bible says clearly that if works is added to grace for salvation, it's no longer grace ("But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace." --Romans 11:6)

Look at some excerpts from the Catechism of the Catholic Church (this is the "new" "modern" "open-minded" one...you should see the Traditional One!):

". . Baptism is the first and chief sacrament of forgiveness of sins because it unites us with Christ, who died for our sins and rose for our justification, so that 'we too might walk in newness of life,'"(Catechism of the Catholic Church, par. 977).

Note this first of seven sacraments actually obtains the forgiveness of sins.

"In every circumstance, each one of us should hope, with the grace of God, to persevere 'to the end' and to obtain the joy of heaven, as God's eternal reward for the good works accomplished with the grace of Christ," (CCC, par. 1821).

Note, "as God's ETERNAL REWARD for the good works".

"Moved by the Holy Spirit and by charity, we can then MERIT for ourselves and for others the graces needed for our sanctification." (CCC, par. 2010).

Note we not only MERIT for ourselves, but for others.

And since the Catholic Church obviously teaches that salvation includes man's works, then it follows that the failure of man's works can destroy that salvation and damn him again, after he's been "justified".

The solution: more works! Listen to the following:

"Christ instituted the sacrament of Penance for all sinful members of his Church: above all for those who, since Baptism, have fallen into grave sin, and have thus lost their baptismal grace and wounded ecclesial communion. It is to them that the sacrament of Penance offers a new possibility to convert and to recover the grace of justification. The Fathers of the Church present this sacrament as 'the second plank (of salvation) after the shipwreck which is the loss of grace.'" (CCC, par. 1446).

Acts of penance may be such things as prayer, saying the Rosary, reading the scripture, saying a number of "Our Father's" or "Hail Mary's", doing good works, fasting, etc.

Hold on, I gotta breathe in some fresh air of the Word of God, here:

"You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? (Galatians 3:1-3)

2. John Paul also affirmed the Council of Trent,

...even traveling to Trento, Italy for the 450th Anniversary of the Council, and giving his approval. Among many other unbiblical teachings, the Council of Trent curses with damnation all of us who teach salvation "by grace through faith, not of works". Excerpts can be viewed at www.carm.org/catholic/trent.htm.

3. Like many false teachers, John Paul was deceptive in his public speeches,

...opening the gates of heaven to almost anyone from Protestants to Buddhists, Hindus, etc., ignoring the words of Jesus, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."

Whether by deliberate deception, or personal confusion, John Paul spoke out of both sides of his mouth when it came to whom are children of God.

At best his sloppiness has caused masses (no pun intended) of people to miss the pure beautiful Gospel of faith alone, by grace alone, in Jesus Christ alone.

At worst, he deliberately said whatever itching ears wanted to hear, in order to win the crowds.

Either way, he couldn't qualify as a great spiritual leader.

Let me say, I have a particular love for Roman Catholics. I was once a member of the Roman Catholic Church myself, and my wife Michele was raised Roman Catholic. Many of our family members are of that faith.

If you are a Roman Catholic, or anyone who thinks that heaven can be earned by Sacraments or good works of any kind, I have terrific news for you. Jesus died on the cross for sins. He took the penalty for the sins of His people. He was buried and rose again from the grave, to give eternal life to all who will believe on Him and trust that His work on the cross was enough...who will believe that He meant it when He said on the cross, "It is finished." Whoever will may come to Him. God calls all men everywhere to repent, to change their minds. No works can earn it. It's a free gift of God. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.

So, in conclusion, I hope my Gracer friends don't see this as some kind of hate piece against Roman Catholics, or any other religion. It's simply a plea to stay consistent in your proclamation of the wonderful Grace of God, and correspondingly to stand firm against Legalism in its all of its forms.

Preach the truth that we have been set free from the Law. We are no longer under Law but under Grace.

We love the laws of God, and we love the fact that He is working in us both to will and to do for His good pleasure. We are His workmanship, and He is working in us His good works which He prepared for us before we were even born.

But we are free from having to perform to get the Lord's love and favor.