Our Deeds Count

Our Deeds Count

Ps 62:12 NIV
12 and that you, O Lord, are loving.
Surely you will reward each person
according to what he has done.

Eccl 12:14 NIV
14 For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil.

Matt 5:16 NIV
16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

Matt 7:16-20 NIV
16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

Matt 10:42 NIV
42 And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward."

Matt 16:27 NIV
27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done.

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Matt 25:31-46 NIV
31 "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34 "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' 37 "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' 40 "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' 41 "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.' 44 "They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?' 45 "He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.' 46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

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Matt 26:10 NIV
10 Aware of this, Jesus said to them, "Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me.

Acts 26:20 NIV
20 First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and to the Gentiles also, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds.

Rom 2:5-10 NIV
6 God "will give to each person according to what he has done." 7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. 8 But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. 9 There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; 10 but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.

1 Cor 3:8 NIV
8 The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor.

2 Cor 5:10 NIV
10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.

Gal 6:7-10 NIV
7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

Phil 2:12 NIV
12 Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed — not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence — continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling,

1 Tim 6:18-19 NIV
18 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 19 In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

2 Tim 4:7-8 NIV
7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day — and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

Titus 3:8 NIV
8 This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.

Heb 6:10-12 NIV
10 God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. 11 We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. 12 We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.

James 2:14-17 NIV
14 What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? 15 Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

1 Peter 1:17 NIV
17 Since you call on a Father who judges each man's work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear.

Rev 2:23 NIV
23 I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds.

Rev 20:13 NIV
13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done.

Rev 22:12 NIV
12 "Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.

Spirit Matters - Pt.2

Spirit Matters - Pt.2

1 Cor 2:9-12,14 KJV

9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit : for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
11 For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.
12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

Open and Shut Case

Open and Shut Case

Matt 16:18-19 NIV
18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven , and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."

Matt 18:18 NIV
18 "I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven , and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

Isa 22:20-23 NIV
20 "In that day I will summon my servant, Eliakim son of Hilkiah. 21 I will clothe him with your robe and fasten your sash around him and hand your authority over to him. He will be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. 22I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.

Rev 3:7 NIV
7 "To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write:
These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.

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I think the above can apply to many things but,
in this case, I'm thinking of the canonization of saints
by the Catholic Church.

Protestants believe that all "born again" believers are saints -
both the living and the dead.

Catholics, on the other hand,
acknowledge themselves to be sinners which is why...

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Luke 5:31-32 NIV
31 Jesus answered them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor , but the sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

Luke 15:7 NIV
7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

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Catholics ascribe sainthood to persons
who led exemplary and sacrificial lives.

The Catholic Church meticulously investigates
such persons and, when it makes a decision,
it is binding.

Truth Seeker

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http://www.catholic.org/saints/faq.php#num

Canonization does not "make" a person a saint; it recognizes what God has already done.

Though canonization is infallible and irrevocable, it takes a long time and a lot of effort. So while every person who is canonized is a saint, not every holy person has been canonized. You have probably known many "saints" in your life, and you are called by God to be one yourself.

The Proof of Our Love For Jesus

The Proof of Our Love For Jesus

John 21:15-17 NIV

15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me more than these?"
"Yes, Lord," he said, "you know that I love you."
Jesus said, "Feed my lambs."

16 Again Jesus said, "Simon son of John, do you truly love me?"
He answered, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you."
Jesus said, "Take care of my sheep."

17 The third time he said to him, "Simon son of John, do you love me?"
Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, "Do you love me?" He said, "Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you."
Jesus said, "Feed my sheep.

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Jesus is only interested in one quality in our resume
That quality is our love for Him and our fellow man
We may think we can show our love with mere fancy words
However, Jesus can see through our facade
When Jesus asks for a commitment from us as he did with Peter
In our job descriptions - he expects us to keep our promises

Truth Seeker

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Spirit and Soul - Which is Which?

http://www.contendingforthefaith.org/responses/bible-answer-man/appendix/are-soul-spirit-same.html

Spirit and Soul - Which is Which?

Functions of Soul and Spirit
A careful study of the Bible will show that man has a spirit (Job 32:8), that his spirit has a definite function (Rom. 1:9), and that the function of the spirit is different from the function of the soul (Luke 1:46-47). Since all of God's communications with men occur in the spirit, it is crucial that a believer know his
spirit. If he does not know his own spirit, he does not know how to have fellowship with God in the spirit. Not only that, he mistakenly takes the thoughts or emotions of the soul for the activity of the spirit. Confining himself to the realm of the soul, he seldom reaches the realm of the spirit. The Bible clearly shows first that we have a human spirit, second that our human spirit is not synonymous with our soul, and third that it is not the same as the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:16).

The Human Spirit
According to the revelation of the Bible and the experience of believers, the human spirit can be said to have three main functions.
These three functions are conscience (Rom. 9:1; 8:16), intuition (Mark 2:8), and communion (John 4:24).
The conscience is the part of the spirit which distinguishes right from wrong and is not influenced by knowledge stored in the mind; it is rather a spontaneous direct judgment.
The intuition is the "knowing" part of the spirit. All true knowledge originates not in the mind, but in the spirit. The revelations of God and the movements of the Holy Spirit are known to the believer through his intuition.
A believer must, therefore, take care to heed these two aspects of his spirit: the speaking of his conscience and the teaching of his intuition.
Communion is the third function of the spirit, and is related to the worship of God. The soul is not competent to worship God. According to John 4:24, "God is a Spirit and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth."

The Human Soul
Not only does man possess a spirit which enables him to function in the spiritual realm; he also possesses a soul which is the organ of his self-consciousness. The soul is the seat of the human personality.
The ingredients which make us human beings belong to the soul. The intellect, thought, ideals, love, emotion, understanding, decision, choice, and other like qualities are all associated with the soul.
The three main functions of the soul are the will (Job 7:15), the mind (Lam. 3:20, RSV), and the emotion (2 Sam. 5:8; Deut. 6:5).
The will is the instrument for making decisions and choices.
The second function of the soul is the mind, the instrument for thinking. It is in this part of the soul that man reasons and has knowledge (Prov. 2:10).
The third function of the soul is the emotion. This is the instrument of likes and dislikes. Through the emotions we are able to express love or hatred, joyfulness, anger, sadness, or happiness. A shortage in this area will render us insensitive. By a careful study of the Bible we cannot help but be impressed that these three primary functions of the personality belong to the soul.

Vital to Christian Experience
This matter of distinguishing the spirit from the soul is not just something of academic or doctrinal interests. It is vital to our Christian experience. If we do not know our human spirit, how shall God communicate with us (Job 32:8); how shall we worship Him (John 4:24); how shall we receive revelation from God (Eph. 1:17); and how shall we pray properly (Eph. 6:18, praying...in spirit)? These vital experiences are a matter of knowing our spirit. Even serving the Lord must be done in and with our spirit (Rom. 1:9). Many today are satisfied simply to find an open door to serve the Lord, but Paul was regulated rather by the rest in his spirit (2 Cor. 2:12-13).

If you are a Christian, your spirit has been made alive by the Spirit (John 3:6), and today Jesus Christ is with your spirit (2 Tim. 4:22). There is not one verse in the whole Bible which says that your soul was born again or that Christ today is in your soul. Neither is there a single verse which says that we should worship God with our soul (although many Christians try it). But there is a verse which says that if we are going to worship God, we must worship Him in spirit (John 4:24).

May all who read these words be exercised to discern between their soul and their spirit and to walk before God in spirit.

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http://www.kjvbible.org/body.html

Each man and woman born into this world is a being made of three (3) distinct components:

And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and [I pray God] your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(1 Thessalonians 5:23 KJV)

1: The BODY. This is your PHYSICAL component of being. It is flesh made from a collection of unremarkable mineral elements (but is mostly water) and is in harmony with the nature and spirit of this world. It grows, matures, begins to deteriorate, eventually dies, and then decomposes back into its constituent elements and remains a part of the dust of the world. The body is a part of you but is NOT ALL of what defines who YOU are.

"And thou mourn at the last, when thy flesh and thy body are consumed,"
(Proverbs 5:11 KJV)

2: The SOUL. This is who YOU are; it is a part of your SPIRITUAL component. This is your individuality, your "I AM" so to speak (made in God’s image), your "heart." Although your individual soul did not exist before your mother and father procreated you, it will exist forever. It cannot be killed by man:

"And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."
(Matt. 10:28 KJV)

When your body dies your soul (YOU) will leave the body of flesh:

"And it came to pass, as her soul was in departing, (for she died) that she called his name Benoni: but his father called him Benjamin."
(Genesis 35:18 KJV)

3: The SPIRIT. This is the source of power and control for both your body and soul; it is either evil or good, darkness or light, unholy or Holy, unclean or clean, of Satan or of God:

"But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of."
(Luke 9:55 KJV)

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http://www.tripartiteman.org/definition/spirit.html

The Definition of the Three Parts of Man:

The Human Spirit
Our human spirit is also composed of three parts: the conscience, fellowship, and intuition. The conscience is that part which enables us to perceive right from wrong and which, accordingly, either condemns or justifies us. Through the fellowship, we are able to contact God and commune with Him. Finally, through the intuition God imparts to us a direct, particular sense or knowledge which is independent of reason, circumstance, situation, or precedent.

These three faculties of the spirit: conscience, fellowship, and intuition are clearly described in Scripture.

First and most crucial is the spirit

The primary, leading part of the spirit is the conscience. In Romans 9:1 Paul testified, “My conscience bearing witness with me in the Holy Spirit.” When this passage is compared to Romans 8:16, “The Spirit Himself witnesses with our spirit,” it becomes apparent that the conscience is located within the human spirit. The Spirit of God witnesses with our human spirit, yet at the same time our conscience witnesses with the Holy Spirit. By association, then, the conscience must be part of the human spirit.

The Scriptures likewise reveal that the fellowship pertains to the spirit. Christ Himself told us that “God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truthfulness” (John 4:24). Worshipping God is altogether a matter of contacting God in fellowship. Furthermore, Ephesians 6:18 mentions “praying at every time in spirit,” another form of fellowship with God. Based on these verses we can conclude that fellowship is a component of the human spirit.

Worshipping God is altogether a matter of contacting God in fellowship

Finally, we must see in the Scriptures that the intuition is also a part of the spirit. First Corinthians 2:11 says, “For who among men knows the things of man, except the spirit of man which is in him?” This verse shows us that there are things which only the spirit of man knows, and which the soul is unable to know. This function of our intuition has the capacity to know and discern apart from human reason or circumstantial experience. For example, in the gospel of Mark the scribes were silently reasoning within their hearts about the Lord’s statement, “Child, your sins are forgiven.” In response to their reasoning, “immediately Jesus, knowing fully in His spirit that they were reasoning this way within themselves, said to them, Why are you reasoning about these things in your hearts” (2:8). This verse further illustrates that the spirit can have an inner sense and knowledge independent of the reason or outward circumstances upon which the soul’s discernment relies so heavily. This spiritual sense, or intuition, is an essential faculty of the human spirit (Witness Lee, Economy 56-59).

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The Definition of the Three Parts of Man:

The Soul
The soul, the “person” of man, is likewise composed of three parts: the mind, the will and the emotion. God’s Word proves this clearly and definitively.

First, the Scriptures consistently identify the mind as part of the soul. For example, the Psalmist exults, “I will praise You, for I am awesomely and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, and my soul knows it well” (Ps.139:14, italics added).

Knowledge, no doubt, pertains to the mind. In addition, Lamentations 3:20 says, “My soul remembers them well and is bowed down within me.” To remember is another function of the mind. These verses clearly indicate that there is a part of the soul that knows and remembers; this part is the mind.

The will is also part of the soul. Job had much to say about the will, for example, “So that my soul would choose strangulation and death rather than my bones” (Job 7:15). He also said, “My soul refuses to touch them…” (6:7). Both choosing and refusing are functions of the will, a part of the soul.

Tell me, you whom my soul loves

Finally, we can see from the Word that the emotion is part of the soul. In Song of Songs 1:7, the Shulamite speaks to her beloved, “Tell me, you whom my soul loves.” Second Samuel 5:8 records the opposite feeling: “And David said on that day, Whoever would strike the Jebusites, let him go up to the watercourse and strike the lame and the blind, who are hated by David’s soul….” And in Psalm 86:4, David experienced a change in feeling: “Cause the soul of Your servant to rejoice…” Since love, hate and rejoicing are clearly expressions of the emotions, it is obvious that the emotion is the third faculty of the soul (Witness Lee, Economy 55-56).

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The Definition of the Three Parts of Man:

The Body
The body of man with its five senses is that part which contacts the physical world. This physical body as man’s outward frame is God’s provision for his existence; without it man would be unable to exist in the material realm. Originally, man was created with a pure, undefiled body. But due to man’s fall his body was changed in nature, transmuted, thus becoming the fallen flesh full of lust. Hence, man’s body is a corrupted body as Paul observed in Romans 7:18, “For I know that in me, that is, in my flesh, nothing good dwells” (Witness Lee, Basic 41).

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The Definition of the Three Parts of Man:

The Heart–A Composition of the Soul and the Conscience (The Leading Part of the Spirit)
Man’s heart, as revealed throughout Scripture, is a composition of all the parts of the soul as well as of the primary part of the spirit, namely the conscience.

It may strike the reader as odd to hear that the heart is not a separate and distinct component of man, but rather a composition of several other parts.

Nevertheless, the Bible clearly indicates, as outlined below, that all three components of the soul–the mind, will, and emotion–also comprise the heart, together with the leading part of the spirit–the conscience.

In order to see that the mind is a part of the heart, we must read Genesis 6:5: “And Jehovah saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.” Furthermore, as Matthew 9:4 reports, “Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, Why are you thinking evil things in your hearts?” Both “thoughts” and “thinking” relate to the mind, evidence that the mind, as a part of the soul, is simultaneously a part of the heart.

To identify the will as pertaining to the heart, we must consult Acts 11:23: “Who, when he arrived and saw the grace of God, rejoiced and encouraged them all to remain with the Lord with purpose of heart.”

In addition, the second half of Hebrews 4:12 speaks of the Word’s ability to discern, “the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Both “purpose” and “intentions” are functions of the will, indicating that the will, likewise, is part of the heart.

Several other portions of the Word prove that the emotion is part of the heart. In John 16:6, the Lord tells His disciples, “But because I have spoken these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.” Later in that same chapter, the Lord continues, “Therefore you also now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and no one takes your joy away from you.” Since sorrow and rejoicing, human emotions, are so evidently linked here to the heart, we can say that man’s emotional faculty is also part of the heart. The scriptural references cited in the above three paragraphs clearly demonstrate that the soul with its three parts (mind, will, and emotion) is a key component of the heart.

Finally, the Word makes it clear that the leading part of the spirit (the conscience) is also integrally related to the heart. Hebrews 10:22 strongly links these two: “Having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience.” Additionally, 1 John 3:20 warns, “Because if our heart blames us, it is because God is greater than our heart and knows all things.” Blame and condemnation are the primary functions of the conscience, further proof that our conscience is part of our heart. In summary, it is the conscience, along with the three parts of the soul, that compose man’s heart (Witness Lee, Economy 59-61).

Give Me Some Living Water, Lord

Give Me Some Living Water, Lord

John 4:13-15 NIV

13 Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

15 The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water so that I won't get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water."

Once Saved, Always Saved ( NOT !)

Once Saved, Always Saved ( NOT !)

"Are you saved?" asks the fundamentalist.
"I am redeemed," answers the Catholic, "and like the apostle Paul I am working out my salvation in fear and trembling, with hopeful confidence - - - but not with a false assurance - - - and I do all this as the Church has taught, unchanged, from the time of Christ."

Catholicism and Fundamentalism
Karl Keating
p. 176

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Matt 10:22 NIV
22 All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.

John 15:6 NIV
6 If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.

1 Cor 15:2 NIV
2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.

Gal 6:9 NIV
9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

2 Tim 2:12 NIV
12 if we endure,
we will also reign with him.
If we disown him,
he will also disown us;

Heb 6:4-6 NIV
4 It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, 6 if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.

Heb 10:26-28 NIV
26 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.

2 Peter 2:20-22 NIV
20 If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. 21 It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them. 22 Of them the proverbs are true: "A dog returns to its vomit," and, "A sow that is washed goes back to her wallowing in the mud."

Our Lives At Sea

Our Lives At Sea

God puts us on a lifeboat
Whose purpose is to promote
Our spiritual improvement
Living our lives as He meant

With our family and others
We're all to live as brothers
Learning from our mistakes
To do this... for heaven's sakes

The waters may at times be rough
Proving we're really not so tough
Don't lose sight of God waiting on the shore
Soon you'll see what Providence has in store

At times some may go overboard
In saving them lies a great reward
Our Lord watches over our strife
Reaching out to us to save our life

Rowing toward the same heavenly goal
Is the way to save our eternal soul
If we let faith, hope and love be our beacon
Our resolve will never weaken

Truth Seeker

Redemption, Salvation, Sanctification, and Justification, in the Light of Purgatory

Redemption, Salvation, Sanctification, and Justification, in the Light of Purgatory

Redemption doesn’t mean that each person is automatically saved.
Salvation, as opposed to redemption, has to do with
each individual. Salvation --- to put it in the baldest
terms possible - - - simply means to get into heaven. If I
get into heaven, I’m saved. If I don’t, I'm not - - - and
that means the alternative is hell. Salvation is the cru-
cial issue for everyone.
Jesus accomplished the work of redemption, but
there is still something for us to do so that the re-
demption will be effective for us. Even the fundamen-
talists admit this, since they say a person must accept
Jesus as personal Savior and Lord. But what does the
New Testament say about salvation? "The one who
believes and is baptized will be saved" (Mk 16:16).
So at the very minimum, we have to do two things:
believe, and be baptized. But the whole tenor of the
New Testament presupposes that this is only the be-
ginning. After baptism, a person needs to persevere in
living a holy life.
This brings us to sanctitication. What does that
mean? It means to be holy. Holiness doesn’t come
automatically. It’s a lifelong struggle. We can’t be
content with simply aiming for salvation, to get in un-
der the wire. The goal is the full development of life
in Christ. St. Paul wrote to the Ephesians: "You were
taught to put away your former way of life, your old
self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, and to be
renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to clothe
yourselves with the new self, created according to the
likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness"
(Eph 4:22-24). St. Paul didn’t think it was enough to
have simply been converted to Christ. No, he kept on
straining ahead to the goal, the fullness of life in
Christ. His attitude is not "Christ has done it all, so I
can sit back and relaxl” He talks about effort. He talks
about work.
St. Paul also wrote, "Work out your own salva-
tion with fear and trembling" (Phil 2:12). To work it
out means we still have something to do. He said too
that "I am now rejoicing in my sufferings for your
sake, and in my flesh I am completing what is lacking
in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is,
the Church" (Col 1:24). What could be lacking to the
sufferings of Christ? Evidently St. Paul does not mean
here that the redemption is ineffective; that would
contradict the rest of his writings. The redemption is
all-sufficient. But it points out that we still have some-
thing to do. The redemption is accomplished. But sal-
vation is not. The salvation of each person now living
on earth hangs in the balance. In some mysterious
way, as members of Christ’s Mystical Body, our suf-
ferings can contribute to the salvation of others.
To bring this all back to our discussion on purgatory,
the objection that purgatory detracts from
Christ’s redemption is not at all valid. If Christ had
not redeemed us, we could do absolutely nothing to
obtain salvation, far less sanctification. The redemp-
tion wrought by Jesus is the absolutely necessary con-
dition for us to be saved. But once that condition was
in place, once the redemption was done, we have to
do our part to profit by it.
The idea that Jesus has done it all, so we need
do nothing, is one that detracts from human dignity.
God treats us as free and responsible persons. He
doesn’t treat us as if we were babies, totally incapable
of doing anything for ourselves. We’ve had our part in
sin; shouldn’t we also do our part to make up for the
effects of sin?
In regard to the second objection, that purgatory
de-emphasizes the importance of faith by emphasiz-
ing works, the following observations are in order.
· First, purgatory is not something that we do, it’s
something we undergo. lt’s a passive purification. It’s
something God does; our role is to submit to it. God is
the one who purifies us in purgatory. It’s not some-
thing we do on our own.
Second, this objection really concerns the nature
of justification. Again, the issue is much deeper than
purgatory. What do we mean by justification? Simply
put, justification means to get right with God. It’s
what happens when a sinner converts. lt means to do
away with sin and put on the Lord Jesus Christ. How
are we justified? Through faith and baptism. But the
crucial difference is between the fundamentalist
and the Catholic idea of what the state of justification
actually is.
Fundamentalists see justification as a legal im-
putation of justice to us from God, that God declares
us clean. But in reality, they say, justification does not
actually make us clean. lt does not truly purge us from
the guilt of our sin. The sins remain, but God over-
looks them. Think of a garbage heap covered with
snow, and you have the idea. The garbage is still
there; it just looks good on the outside.
Catholic doctrine, instead, is that by justification
God truly cleanses us of sin. God makes us righteous,
or holy, not just externally, but in a radical, internal
way. The person’s inner being is reconciled to God in
such a way that sin no longer remains. God declares us
clean because we really are clean, and not because he
chooses to overlook our sins. He gets rid of our sins.
They’re forgiven; they’re gone. This is a much more
profound view, and one that is in accord with the New
Testament. For example, St. Paul says, "So whoever is
in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed
away; behold, new things have come (2 Cor 5:17
NAB). That doesn’t sound like sin is merely covered
over. In Titus 3:5, he also says that God saved us "ac-
cording to his mercy, through the water of rebirth and
renewal by the Holy Spirit." The idea of a rebirth and
renewal also speaks of a true, inner regeneration.

Excerpted from
"Purgatory - The Purifying Power of God's Healing Love"
pp. 21-24
by Marianne Lorraine Trouve, FSP

Forgive Me, Lord

Forgive Me, Lord

Forgive me, Lord, for all my wrongs,
I need Your help, to keep me strong.
I need Your love from day to day,
To show me how, to find my way.

The night is dark, and I am sad,
I pray to Thee, to make me glad.
In heaven above, I hope to be
To worship You, for eternity.

For all my sins, I feel contrite,
A deep desire, to set things right.
In humble prayer, I ask Your grace,
My only dream, in heaven, a place.

And thru my life stay by my side,
In all my needs, be Thou my guide
To help me find, in faith above,
That peace of mind, which comes with love.

Francis X. Wadland

You Can Take It With a Grain of Salt

You Can Take It With a Grain of Salt


















Revelation 8:8-9 NIV

8 The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, (God used man's technology,an oil drilling rig, against him?)
all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. (burned and collapsed into the Gulf of Mexico?)
A third of the sea turned into blood, (a third of the Gulf became covered with spilled oil?)
9 a third of the living creatures in the sea died, (birds, fish, and various sealife?)
and a third of the ships were destroyed. (not being able to fish, their usage was destroyed?)

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In his vision, St. John could only describe what he saw using things he was familiar with. Therefore, an oil rig might have resembled a mountain, oil might have resembled blood. It stands to reason that the sealife died because of the blood (oil). The ships could be taken to mean "the fishermen" who lost their livelihood... not necessarily the destruction of the ships themselves.

One problem I used to have with this book is that I'd ask myself "are all these events going to happen globally?" I've personally come to the conclusion that these plagues, or whatever, will be located in various parts of the world at different times (they won't be simultaneous). Therefore, an earthquake in Haiti, a volcano in Iceland... you get the picture.

St. John was shown these catastrophes while exiled in Patmos, an island in Greece. He was given a whirlwind tour of the End Times which spanned an unknown period of time. The visions themselves may have taken hours, days, weeks... I don't know.

Another confusing aspect of Revelation for me used to be: Will these cataclysmic events all come directly from the Hand of God? Today, it is quite clear to me that they won't... some of them will come from God thru the hand of man (witness the BP Gulf of Mexico oil spill).

What's more, and don't laugh, some of these plagues will emanate from curses - - - some directly from God and some from other nations (which will remain nameless for the time being). That's why we need exorcists, deliverance ministries, and spiritual warriors to step up and unite in prayer and ask God for discernment.

Truth Seeker

God's Promise

God's Promise

He never said the way would be
A straight and easy one for me.
He never meant that I should rest,
When work is what I do the best.
He never planned the best there is,
For me without my hand in His,
And never once did he ordain
I'd taste the joy but not the pain.

He never told me I would find
Contentment without peace of mind,
Nor did he issue a decree,
Compelling time to wait for me.
But He has promised life beyond
This fragile earth I walk upon,
And through the darkness of the night,
To be the Way, the Truth, the Light.

Grace E. Easley

Approach God With Assurance

Approach God With Assurance

Hebrews 4:16 NIV
16 Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

The Imitation of Christ - BOOK 1 - 1st Chapter

The Imitation of Christ
Thomas à Kempis
BOOK ONE
THOUGHTS HELPFUL IN THE LIFE OF THE SOUL

The First Chapter
IMITATING CHRIST AND DESPISING ALL VANITIES ON EARTH

HE WHO follows Me, walks not in darkness," says the Lord. By these words of Christ we are advised to imitate His life and habits, if we wish to be truly
enlightened and free from all blindness of heart. Let our chief effort, therefore, be to study the life of Jesus Christ.

The teaching of Christ is more excellent than all the advice of the saints, and he who has His spirit will find in it a hidden manna. Now, there are many who hear the Gospel often but care little for it because they have not the spirit of Christ. Yet whoever wishes to understand fully the words of Christ must try to pattern his whole life on that of Christ.

What good does it do to speak learnedly about the Trinity if, lacking humility, you displease the Trinity? Indeed it is not learning that makes a man holy and just, but a virtuous life makes him pleasing to God. I would rather feel contrition than know how to define it. For what would it profit us to know the whole Bible by heart and the principles of all the philosophers if we live without grace and the love of God? Vanity of vanities and all is vanity, except to love God and serve Him alone.

This is the greatest wisdom -- to seek the kingdom of heaven through contempt of the world. It is vanity, therefore, to seek and trust in riches that perish. It is vanity also to court honor and to be puffed up with pride. It is vanity to follow the lusts of the body and to desire things for which severe punishment later must come. It is vanity to wish for long life and to care little about a well-spent life. It is vanity to be concerned with the present only and not to make provision for things to come. It is vanity to love what passes quickly and not to look ahead where eternal joy abides.

Often recall the proverb: "The eye is not satisfied with seeing nor the ear filled with hearing." Try, moreover, to turn your heart from the love of things visible and bring yourself to things invisible. For they who follow their own evil passions stain their consciences and lose the grace of God.

The Stations of The Cross

The Stations of The Cross

1. Jesus is condemned to death
2. Jesus receives The Cross
3. Jesus falls the first time
4. Jesus is met by His Blessed Mother
5. Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus to carry His Cross
6. Veronica wipes the Face of Jesus
7. Jesus falls the second time
8. The women of Jerusalem mourn for Our Lord
9. Jesus falls the third time
10. Jesus is stripped of His garments
11. Jesus is nailed to The Cross
12. Jesus dies on The Cross
13. Jesus is taken down from The Cross
14. Jesus is placed in The Tomb

The Message of the Cross

The Message of the Cross

******* These passages could have been written especially for the mentally-ill. TS *******










1 Cor 1:18-31 NIV
18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written:
"I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate."
20 Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22 Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to
Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength.
26 Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him.
30 It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31 Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."

Life is One Long Test

Life is One Long Test

Matt 10:38 NIV
38 and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.

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Matt 16:24 NIV
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

Luke 9:23 NIV
23 Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

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Rom 8:18 NIV
18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.

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James 1:12 NIV
12 Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

A New Creation

A New Creation

2 Cor 5:16-17 NIV
16 So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

1 Cor 6:19-20 NIV
19 Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.

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I believe that, in order for it to survive, the Roman Catholic Church must shed its old coccoon and metamorphose into a new creature. It's either that or face the consequences.

Truth Seeker

Our Unseen Friend

Our Unseen Friend

God assigns our Guardian Angels to us when we're conceived.
Each Angel's mission is, quite simply, to assist
in our immortal souls' attainment of eternal life and, if possible,
to keep our mortal bodies safe from harm and evil.
After Jesus and Mary, our Guardian Angels are our best friends.
They know our lives like a book.
They know why we did something or didn't do something.
They are our reliable witnesses.
They're our constant companions even when we're alone.
They are accurate recorders of our virtues and our sins.
Our trespasses cause them grief because they know
they'll have to testify to them in front of God.
Whatever we wish to be kept secret,
they'll have to blurt out loud on Judgment Day.
Our thoughts are never hidden from them.
The current world population is roughly 7 billion;
that means there's that many Guardian Angels on earth.
I'm sure that they network with each other with the goal
of assuring the salvation of their assigned keeps.
Sometimes, we may wonder, why we meet certain people.
Besides Divine Providence as an explanation, I think our
Guardian Angels might be involved for our best intentions.
Likewise, we at times part ways with certain people for similar reasons.
We should pray to our Guardian Angels and those of our loved ones
and thank them for their constant protection.

Truth Seeker

Supreme Accountability and Stewardship

Supreme Accountability and Stewardship

Mat 18:21-35 NIV

The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant

21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?"
22 Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.
23 "Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. 25 Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
26 "The servant fell on his knees before him. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay back everything.' 27 The servant's master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.
28 "But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he demanded.
29 "His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, 'Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.'
30 "But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened.
32 "Then the master called the servant in. 'You wicked servant,' he said, 'I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn't you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?' 34 In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
35 "This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart."

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Luk 19:11-27 NIV

The Parable of the Ten Minas

11 While they were listening to this, he went on to tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once. 12 He said: "A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. 13 So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. 'Put this money to work,' he said, 'until I come back.'
14 "But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, 'We don't want this man to be our king.'
15 "He was made king, however, and returned home. Then he sent for the servants to whom he had given the money, in order to find out what they had gained with it.
16 "The first one came and said, 'Sir, your mina has earned ten more.'
17 " 'Well done, my good servant!' his master replied. 'Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.'
18 "The second came and said, 'Sir, your mina has earned five more.'
19 "His master answered, 'You take charge of five cities.'
20 "Then another servant came and said, 'Sir, here is your mina; I have kept it laid away in a piece of cloth. 21I was afraid of you, because you are a hard

man. You take out what you did not put in and reap what you did not sow.'
22 "His master replied, 'I will judge you by your own words, you wicked servant! You knew, did you, that I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in, and reaping what I did not sow? 23 Why then didn't you put my money on deposit, so that when I came back, I could have collected it with interest?'
24 "Then he said to those standing by, 'Take his mina away from him and give it to the one who has ten minas.'
25 " 'Sir,' they said, 'he already has ten!'
26 "He replied, 'I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but as for the one who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away. 27 But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them here and kill them in front of me."