Catholic Verses - 95 Bibles Passages That Confound Protestants?
THE RICH YOUNG RULER'S QUESTION ABOUT SALVATION
Pages 68-69: Luke 18:18-25: "And a ruler asked him, 'Good teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?' And Jesus said to him, 'Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: "Do not commit adultery. Do not kill. Do not steal. Do not bear false witness. Honor your father and mother."' And he said, 'All these I have observed from my youth.' And when Jesus heard it, he said to him, 'One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.' But when he heard this he became sad, for he was very rich. Jesus looking at him said, 'How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.' " Protestants (broadly speaking) deny that works have anything to do with salvation (justification). Catholics believe that faith and works are inextricably tied together in an organic relationship (as are justification and sanctification, which are both ongoing processes). As I have often commented in the course of my apologetics endeavors: this passage and many others like it do not read the way one would (all things being equal) expect them to read, if indeed distinctive Protestant theology is true.
Note: Christian salvation in Jesus Christ is by faith not by your works.
Galatians 3:21-25 Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.
Page 70: In any event, despite the nuances and deeper understanding of scholars, at the popular level Protestants often create a complete dichotomy between faith and works. One gets the impression that if they could somehow go back to the first century and be apostles and disciples of Jesus, they would have written a Bible vastly different from the one we possess. Catholics refuse to separate faith and works, while asserting together with Protestants (it can never be stressed or repeated enough) that grace alone is the cause, ground, and ultimate source of our salvation and justification.
Note: Christian salvation in Jesus Christ is by faith not by your works.
2 Timothy 1:8-11 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began, but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, to which I was appointed a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.
Note: The grace of God should never be identified with your works.