Protestantism preaching of grace, without true repentance, morality and ethics are just as bad as Catholics preaching of salvation by works and sacraments!
As believers, we will bear fruit, or we have no life in us, here illustrated by an apple tree
From my commentaries Ephesians 2 7 How would he in the ages to show her infinite rich grace and his kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. The next time is now, they came to Christ. In Christ, God the Father showed us who he is. In Christ, all of our opportunities. Do not have him, you put yourself without passing anything. 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith. It is not their own work, but God's gift. Grace means "pleasant surprise" and "undeserved favor." Because salvation is a gift, it's free. You do not pay for a gift! A gift can be pricey, but it is the giver who have paid for it. Our salvation was so costly that it cost Jesus his life, but for us it is free. The only thing we should do is accept the gift! The tragedy is that people are lost even if the sin of the bill is paid. Someone must tell them about the gift of salvation so they can take! While all sin is atoned, man must be born again to enter heaven. Why are there so great, "All those who received Him, to them gave He the right to become children of God, those who believe in His name. And these were born .... of God "(John 1:12-13) The gift is free, salvation is finished, and sins are atoned. But when you accept this gift, is a miracle called being born again! It is also by grace alone. "They are born, not of blood, nor of the flesh, nor of man, BUT OF GOD." (John 1:13) The new birth is not of ourselves, it is of God! But this new birth gives us partakers of the divine nature and the start of a whole new life. "The old has gone, the new has come!" 9 It does not rest on the works, that no one should boast. Scripture teaches us clearly that we are saved (justified) by faith in Christ and what he has done on the cross. Faith alone can save us. But we can not stop here without addressing us what James says in James 2:24, "You see that man is declared righteous by works and not by faith alone." There is no contradiction in it. All you need to do is look at the context. James 2 has 26 verses: Verses 1-7 instruct us not to favor. Verses 8-13 are comments on the Act. Verses 14-26 are about the relationship between works and faith. James begins this section by using the example of someone who says he has faith but no deeds. "My brothers! What use is it if someone says he has faith, he does not have works? Can faith save him? "(James 2:24) James talking about a dead faith, a faith that is nothing more than an oral statement, a public confession what you think and not something that comes from the heart. It is empty of life and action. He begins with the negative and shows what an empty faith is (verses 15-17, words without deeds). So he continues to show that this kind of faith is different from the faith of demons (verse 19) Finally, he gives the example of living faith that has words followed by actions. Works follow true faith as a result of faith. James shows that Abraham and Rahab are examples of people who show their faith by works. In short, James is examining two kinds of faith: one that leads to good works and one does not. A is true and the other is false. One is dead and the other alive, therefore: ".. faith is in vain without the deeds? "But he does not contradict the above verses that say that salvation / justification is by faith alone. Note also that James cites the same verses that Paul quotes in Romans 4:3 among a number of verses about justification by faith. James 2:23 says: "Thus, this scripture fulfilled: Abraham believed God, and counted him as righteousness," If James had tried to teach a doctrine that stood in contrast to the other authors of the NT, he would not have used Abraham as an example. Therefore, we see that justification is by faith alone, and that James is talking about false belief, not real faith when he says we are not justified by faith alone. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared in advance ready for us to go into them. Your call is to follow Jesus, but how it specifically will be reflected in your life you need to consult with him about, he has a unique interest in you, and a plan for your life! For Paul was the lead in a dream. The point is that I believe God is leading us easier and more everyday things than we think. God leads his people by means of, among other dreams, thoughts, words, prophecies. He has always done it this way since the beginning, why should he not be able to do it now? Our question is, are we willing to take your fingers long enough out of the ear to try to listen what he has to say and we are willing to not just dismiss it all as just fantasies, and we are all open that God can guide us in these ways, or we get busy building our own way, and our own actions? For Paul, for Europe and for the church was of immense importance that Paul followed what he saw as the voice of God through a dream. For many of the people we have around us, it is essential that we become more responsive above for the leaders and the vocation God is trying to preach into our everyday lives, and that we are actually willing to go on it? To go on the road is definitely not only comfortable, but was it not for the disciples. Imagine the difference it will make for a human life, if the words you have been reminded of God, speaking directly into the life of the man. Everything starts when you let God have greater control in your life, that you listen to the call, he puts in your daily life, the deeds he has already been ready to go into them. For Paul, had his own plans aside, for the plan and call it God. These barriers can just as often come in your life too, the question is whether you build a pole and jump over, or lets you actually God lead you in another direction. (End of quote).
Protestantism of Luther 500 years ago came as a reaction to Catholicism and its emphasis on the disposition authority, works and sacraments!
It is in many ways crucial that we study history, at least so we have a wise understanding why things are as they are and how things hang together. Katolikere and Catholicism had been supreme for approx. 1200 years in Europe and actually the then known world in terms of faith and religion. From the simple faith that began with Jesus and the apostles did it through the 1,500 years developed into a belief that the head was actually in many ways completely foreign to what Jesus and the apostles stood for and taught. This is really a great program and I would advise everyone to familiarize themselves with this and have one or more articles on this topic so feel free to send it to me and I will post it here on the blog. Just want to write about this here and now that I give readers a glimpse into the history and development time. Had such. Catholics embraced Protestantism, I'm sure we had a much healthier and biblical faith today. But unfortunately it is the case almost always when God does something new that can not keep the old churches and movements with or prior to the expiry of a certain number of years and have a greater acceptance and understanding of what is new and strange, universal and accepted . This is something that most people know that this is it!
Where do we stand today?
After 500 years of Protestantism and where it came from several denominations and spiritual movements through Luther and the reformers started about. 500 years ago, we arrived again at a crossroads, I would say. This is also a huge topic and you are reading this and are interested in church history and development within Christianity. So send us articles on the subject and we'll post it here on the blog as I think it's relevant. History and development, understanding and insight here is how I see it is crucial and very interesting thing is why as they are!
Decision time today!
As the Catholic church has a lot of deception in it, so has Protestantism today. Let me just take the example about the Pope. Here is what the Catholic church claims: 1 Vicarus Christi. That the pope is God's representative on earth. 2. That the Pope is infallible when he speaks In Cathetra. 3. DKK maintains a legend that there should be a direct apostolic suksjesjon ("original order") from Peter to the present pope. This whole thing is just nonsense, and 100% unbiblical, and so I could have continued. But what is the Reformed churches and churches of today? A grace of preaching that is mostly accepted where grace covers almost everything, not to say everything. What is not allowed today? In fact, there is the church and Catholics Katoslek much better than what the Protestants as they hold much more firmly on God's word and what they have always stood for when it comes to morals and ethics.
Faith will bear fruit, fruit that lasts
This we are talking about is of vital and essential. We know that Luther wanted to remove James and other things from the bible when it spoke of the faith should have works with it. Is not much of it as "hanging" again today within its most congregations and movements? Than is not so much with ethics, morality and faith to bear fruit? There is grace and nonsense from morning to evening and soon there is nothing left from the original simple faith that Jesus and the apostles made and brought forward?
Jesus himself talked about he would find faith when he came back, is what we see today?
Luke 18 8b. But when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on earth? Jesus used the word "pistin πίστιν" of faith here. When the word is used, it is most often used in the context of looking at and note how faith manifests itself, "the fruits of faith." Not only the purely theoretical and doctrinal beliefs, but the faith that we find in the book of James, and in Jesus and Paul's teaching and all others. How to translate Luke 18.8b right? Here is the Norwegian translation is wrong and misleading, "But when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on earth?". Here in James 2 26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead. This is a synonymous verse that speaks of the same kind of faith. It is the same word of faith which is used here as in Luke 18, but here it is just translated but not in Luke 18.8. Here is another example of mistranslation that the whole Bible, especially the NT is full of, never rely on the Bible, you read that it is just translated. How could and should this scripture has been translated for that purpose shall be and be true and biblical: "When the Son of Man comes, will he ask for it is a scarce belief that prevails in an active life." There is a shortage of faith with deeds when Jesus comes. To translate Matt. 7. 23 correct: "It should be obvious to them, those not recognized by me and I am not with them when their life was in lawlessness!" When will this section be so, "Matt. 7. 21 Far from all that says to me Lord! Lord! will enter the coming kingdom, but it makes my Heavenly Father. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, Lord! Lord! we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in your name, and done many miracles in your name? It should be obvious to them, they are known not by me, and I'm not with them when their life was in anarchy ».
Since there is so much mistranslation and false and unbiblical understanding of scripture. So it leads again to the delusion and deception. That's what we want through Smyrna Oslo and try to be a counterweight for!
We as believers to bear fruit, if we are to remain a teacher saved the font!
I am the vine, ye are the branches, "says Jesus to his disciples. "Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire." This sounds strange, of course, for believers today, especially Protestant Christians and in particular free church where there is grace and forgiveness to get to everything without remorse, repentance and renunciation. This is actually a Satanic delusion that crystallizing more and more today, where the Pentecostal \ Charismatic movement is in the driver's seat when it comes to this. We find this Bible such as Nicolaitans doctrine of Revelation. 2. This is from my commentaries Revelation 2 6 But the praise you, you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, as I do. If there were things that lack in the intimate social relationships they had God's word, however dear. Nicolaitans works is actually the apostle John was welcomed in his first letter. That one can sin with the body but still be a living faith. This is in brief what the Nicolaitans works is, to sin with the body yet to be forgiven and live with the Lord. This is of course heresy when sin is widely accepted both in our lives and churches. 14 But I have something against you: You have among you some who adhere to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak how the Israelites were enticed into sin, they had sacrificed to idols and committed adultery. But my congregation continued very serious thing. Things that one had not caught hold of and got out of the church. There had even been accepted, accepted and thus become part of the church. We are facing exactly the same in the Lamentations of Jeremiah, who is resentful and feel uncomfortable after the world has become one with the church 15 Also you have someone with you the same kind, those who adhere to the Nicolaitans doctrine. The church at Ephesus had revealed Nicolaitans deeds. The church here had both accepted, legemilitert and there had been a teaching that the Bible describes as the leaven out of this. It refers to Jesus as the teaching of Balaam the same as Nicolaitans doctrine. Balaam blessed Israel but it led him to sin. He got the young men to commit adultery with the Midianites young girls while in session they worshiped their idols. We see that the life and teachings to conform to God's will and words. (End of quote).
And what if I feel that I can not bear fruit? Will I be taken away? Risking my being "cut down and thrown into the fire"? This is natural and good questions to ask us when we read these texts in the Bible that deal with things we should do. Knowing our Savior can suddenly feel on thin ice and we could lose our courage as Christians. So what Jesus will tell us when he says that we are disciples to bear fruit?
"Not necessarily specific things, but good features" The first thing we should look at when we will delve a bit on this issue, are natural enough to look at what these "fruits", as we disciples must carry, in Galatians 5:22, Paul writes a small list of what he calls the Spirit fruits, and it is this Jesus speaks of "fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness and temperance." This is the fruit that we are disciples to carry. It is not necessarily talking about the only real thing, but of good qualities, which allows us to mean something positive for our fellow man and serve God with it. Had I played Alias, the game where you must guess what or who it is described, in other words, and some had read Galatians 5:22, I think pretty soon I would guess that it was Jesus who was described. These are skills he has, and which he spreads as he goes. So I think we can say that to bear fruit is about to become more like Jesus. "We have to be attached to the rest of the tree" But how should we as His disciples bear these fruits? The image Jesus uses that we are branches on the vine, which is himself, I think gives us the answer we are looking for. Have you seen a branch hanging in thin air and bear fruit ever? Of course not. You need not be world champion in the biology of fruit trees to see that a branch will bear fruit, and barely manage to stay above the ground at all, it must of course have some sort of connection to the rest of the tree. Jesus also says to his disciples: "Whoever remains in me, and I in him, bears much fruit. For without me ye can do nothing. " The crucial thing to bear fruit is therefore to be related to Jesus. Otherwise we can not actually do anything! And I think this is a main point of Jesus' "bear fruit" comparison. That we must be associated with Jesus in order to bear fruit. Otherwise we are not actually able to do this. Being a fruit bearing believers is essential to be preserved in salvation and to grow straight and healthy as a believer. That Catholics exaggerated ethics and morality without emphasizing salvation does not relieve us Protestants to remove morals and ethics from the Christian message and Christian life well? No, it belongs together, we can not detach it from the faith in the Lord Jesus Christ! "Be more like Jesus" For us to bear fruit, it is the one criterion that apply to us disciples. It is that we live with Jesus, close to him, and let us be influenced by him. It is when we can bear fruit, and become more like Jesus. And if you react with concern when you hear Jesus saying things like this, and begins to wonder if this actually includes you, if you can really call yourself a disciple of Jesus, I want to reassure you a bit at the end. The fact that you all ask yourself this question shows that you take the words of Jesus seriously, and wants to believe in him. And it is this which is basically Jesus wants you to have! So be open minded, happy and confident as a believer. Are you sincere and allow Jesus to crop up, you will bear fruit and reach the land of Heaven one day!
Related links: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Christianity http://the-heavenly-blog.janchristensen.net/2011/10/nr-83-hanna-role-model-for-us-all.html http://the-heavenly-blog.janchristensen.net/2011/09/nr-29-purpose-of-our-sanctification.html http://the-heavenly-blog.janchristensen.net/2011/09/nr-49-1000-year-kingdom.html http://www.bible-history.com/ http://www.spurgeon.org/~phil/hall.htm
