GALATIANS 5
Galatians 5:5 For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of
righteousness by faith.
https://youtu.be/u3Sne2TFlmw Galatians 5
ON VIDEO
.Not under law
.Walk in the Spirit
.Law fulfilled by love
.Against such there is no law
.Fruit of the Spirit
.We wait for the hope of righteousness
.Calvinism- Arminianism
.We are all in process
.Self-control is a fruit
.To be effective in the kingdom you need discipline
.Protestant Reformation- Trent responds
.Legal fiction?
.Backsliding?
.Evangelical reductionism
.You are all 1 in Christ
.MLK Jr.
PAST POSTS [Past teaching I did that relates to today’s
video- Galatians 5- verses below]
GALATIANS [Links]
I quote from these bible books on today’s video [Gal. 5]-
below are my complete studies-
(1335) GALATIANS 5- Paul’s main theme is if we
possess the Spirit as believers [being indwelt by God’s Spirit] then let us
also walk in/by the Spirit, as opposed to trying to please God by the law and
being circumcised. Paul will use the somewhat controversial term ‘ye are fallen
from grace’ which simply means that these Gentile believers started by faith
and went back to the old Jewish system, much like the themes in the book of
Hebrews. Paul says when you go back to the law you have left grace. Christ has
‘become of no effect to you, you who are justified by the law’. This is a good
example of how words and certain phrases can develop over the centuries of
church history and develop a different meaning over time. In essence the bible
does teach that a person can ‘fall from grace’ but this does not describe what
the modern reader might think. The first church father who attempted to
formulate the Christian doctrine of the Trinity was a man named Tertullian, he
lived in the second century and was what theologians refer to as one of the
Latin fathers [as opposed to the Greek ones- Origen, etc.] Tertullian was
famous for the sayings ‘what does Jerusalem have to do with Athens’ and ‘I
believe because it is absurd’ he was resisting the influence of Greek
philosophy on the church, he felt that Greek wisdom was influencing the church
too much. He was trained in law before becoming a theologian [like Luther and
Calvin of 16th century Reformation fame] and he used the words ‘God
is one substance/essence and also three persons’ later church councils would
agree with this language. But the word ‘person’ at Tertullian’s time was the
Latin word ‘personi’ which was taken from the theater and meant a person/actor
who would put on different masks during the play; the word had a little
different meaning then what we think of today as ‘person’. Later centuries
would come to condemn certain Christian groups who seem to have formulated
language on the Trinity that expresses the same thing as what the original
developer of the doctrine meant to say, but because words and their meanings
change over time we get ourselves into disputes that might be getting us off
track. Paul also tells the Galatians that if they become circumcised that they
are obligating themselves to keep all the law. Of course the medical procedure
that many have done in our day is not what he is speaking about, but in Paul’s
day getting circumcised was the religious rite that placed you into the religion
of Judaism, and this is what Paul is refuting among the Galatians, he tells
them not to go down that road. This chapter has lots of good ‘memory verses’,
the famous lists of the works of the flesh versus the fruit of the Spirit are
found here, and it seems pretty clear to me that Paul identified circumcision
with the moral law of the 10 commandments, that is he saw being circumcised as
an act that obligated you to ‘keep all the law’ some theologians are discussing
whether or not Paul meant the law of Moses when speaking about going ‘back
under the law’ some think Paul was speaking only of the ceremonial law and the
system of animal sacrifices when he was telling the gentiles that they should
not go under the law, I believe if you read Paul in context both in this letter
and the book of Romans, that he is speaking of the moral law too, not just the
ceremonial law. All in all Paul exhorts these believers to fight for their
right to be free from the past restraints of religion and bondage, he tells
them to not desire to go back under a system of bondage, that Christ has made
us free from that legalistic way of life and he has liberated us by giving us
the Holy Spirit- if we ‘walk in the Spirit we will not fulfill the lusts of the
flesh, for the flesh lusts against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh,
and these two are contrary one to the other, so that you cannot do the things
that you would’ amen to that.
[parts]
GALATIANS 3
17 For the
law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
John 1
https://youtu.be/hhA-O_mb3Y8 Galatians 3
ON VIDEO
.Abrahamic covenant
.Fulfilled thru Christ
.Law [covenant] came later
.1st promise stands
.Law revealed sin
.Faith in Christ justifies
.Began in Spirit [faith] don’t go back to law [works]
.Christ took the curse of the law on the Cross [tree]
.Law was tutor- to bring us to truth
.Jesus is the Truth
.No more need for the tutor
.Father of many nations
.Legal and actual justification
.Luther- Trent [16th century]
.Legal fiction?
.Mercy seat
[parts]
(820) ROMANS
2:1-13 ‘Therefore thou art inexcusable, o man, whosoever thou art that
judgest’. Now, this chapter will run with the theme ‘who do you think you are
to judge, you do the things that you say are wrong’. Yikes, this type of
preaching convicts us all. But we need to understand that Paul is saying a
little more [well, a lot more!] than this. Here’s where we need to do some
history. This letter is addressed to believers in Rome, those ‘called to be
saints’. Paul is also giving one of his strongest defenses of his theology, he
realizes that a large Jewish population are also at Rome [Acts 28]. By the time
of this letter the lines are being drawn between ‘Paul’s gospel’ [the true
gospel] and the ‘Jewish law gospel’ coming from the Judaizers out of Jerusalem.
The main fight is over whether or not Gentile believers need to be circumcised
and come under the law in order to ‘be saved’ [Acts 15]. Now the mentality of
the Jewish mind was ‘we have been given Gods precepts [true] and because we are
the inheritors of the law and moral standards of God, this puts us in a better
class than the Gentiles’ [false]. In essence the law was supposed to reveal
mans sin to himself, it was to show us our need for a Savior. But in the
legalistic mind it created enmity between Jew and Gentile. This is what it
means when Paul writes the Ephesian letter and says ‘the middle wall of
partition has been removed in Christ’ this ‘middle wall’ is referring to the
law and how it divided Jew and Gentile. So here Paul is saying ‘you Jews who are
trusting in the fact that you were the recipients of the law, who use the law
as a measuring rod to justify yourselves. This measuring rod was actually given
to show you your sin. Did it never occur to you that the very fact that the
‘rod’ says “don’t commit adultery, don’t steal” that these things are actually
sins that you yourselves do [the legalistic Jews]. And yet the very rule [law]
of God that you are using to justify yourselves, this law you actually break!’
Now you are beginning to see the context. And not only were they breaking the
law, but at the same time they were saying to Paul's Gentile churches ‘unless
you get circumcised, you are not accepted with God’. The Gentile believers were
actually born of God and stopped doing the things that the law commanded them
not to do. They were ‘fulfilling the law by nature’. So Paul is really rebuking
this hypocritical mindset that said to the Gentile believers that they weren’t
saved. And at the same time the ‘judgers of the law’ were actually breaking the
law, while the Gentle converts were keeping it by nature! In this context verse
one means a lot. Now to an important verse ‘for not the hearers of the law are
just before God, BUT THE DOERS OF THE LAW SHALL BE JUSTIFIED’. Just the fact
that this statement is made by Paul in this letter is amazing. Paul will spend
lots of time in this letter saying ‘those who try and become justified by
keeping the law are missing it’. He will go over and over again stating that
trying to become righteous by works and law keeping are futile. Yet here he
says ‘the doers of the law SHALL BE JUSTIFIED, not the hearers’. Keep in
context what I just showed in the beginning of the chapter. The New Testament
has a theme that I have hit on before [read the Hebrews 11 commentary on this
site]. The theme is ‘men are justified’ [declared legally righteous] by faith.
This faith also ‘sanctifies’ [which can also be called ‘justified’ a sort of
progressive justification. James uses this in his letter. Paul says in
Galatians ‘having begun in the Spirit [legal justification] are you now made
perfect by the flesh’ [law keeping]. Now the New Testament teaches that God
wants people to actually ‘be righteous’. Johns 1st epistle uses this
as the marker of whether or not you are a child of God ‘by this we know… those
that do what is righteous are born of God, those that do evil are not’. In
Jesus judgment scenarios ‘those that have DONE good are raised to life, those
that have done evil to damnation’. So Paul in essence is saying ‘God ‘justifies’
[using the term in a ongoing- futuristic sense] the righteous, not the ones who
only hear the law [the Jewish legalists] but those who by nature do it’ [Paul’s
gentile converts]. Got it? This distinction is very important. One of the
historic reasons why the Protestant and Catholic churches are divided is over
this issue. The Catholic Pope [Leo] who initially condemned Luther did so on
grounds like this. The Pope who succeeded Leo re-read all of Luther’s
documents, in an honest effort to bridge the schism, and came to the same
conclusion. Now I like Luther and side with him more so than the Pope, but one
of the problems was some of Luther’s writings seemed to say ‘Justification is
solely by faith [true] therefore sin hardily’ [false]. Now Luther didn’t intend
to come off this way, but that’s the way it sounded. So the Catholic doctrine
fell more on the side of ‘Gods grace makes you righteous, God cant declare
people actually righteous until they actually are righteous’ this is called the
‘Legal fiction’ argument. They said Luther’s idea was a ‘legal fiction’. In
essence some of what the Catholic scholars were saying was correct. Now God
does declare us righteous at the moment of belief, before we actually ‘become
totally righteous in practice’. But the error of the Catholic argument saying
‘God cant declare you righteous until you are’ was missing the point. When God
says ‘you are righteous’ then you are! God doesn’t lie. But I understand the
Catholic point. I think Paul understood it too. In this chapter Paul says ‘not
the hearers of the law, but the doers shall be justified’.
[parts]
. ROMANS 8-10
VIDEO- [I cover stuff on the
videos that are not in the post- here are a few]
.Council of Trent- what did the
Church say?
.Do we get the final say- at the
Judgment?
.What are the Catholic virtues-
did Paul teach them?
.Augustine, Calvin, Whitfield and
Wesley.
.Infusion or Imputation? How bout
both!
At the bottom I added some quotes
from the Catechism of the Catholic church- to show that the official teaching
of the church DOES NOT TEACH SALVATION BY THE LAW- BUT BY CHRIST.
. REMINDER- This is a commentary
I wrote years ago- the videos are new.
.CHAPTER 8- FEW POINTS;
1-
Did God choose us to believe- or did we choose
him?
2-
When Paul says ‘he makes our bodies alive’ is he
only speaking about resurrection?
3-
Does God use difficulty- or is it to be rebuked?
4-
Was Paul a ‘hyper- Calvinist’?
(839)ROMAN 8:1-4 ‘There is
therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not
after the flesh [sinful nature] but after the Spirit [new nature]’. Now, having
proved the reality of sin and guilt [chapter 7] Paul teaches that those who
‘are in Christ’ are free from condemnation. Why? Because they ‘walk according
to the Spirit’ the ‘righteousness of the law is being fulfilled in them’.
Having no condemnation isn’t simply a ‘legal function’ of declared
righteousness, and Paul didn’t teach it that way! Paul is saying ‘all those who
have believed in Jesus and have been legally justified [earlier arguments in
chapters 3-4] are now walking [actually acting out] this new nature. Therefore
[because you no longer walk according to the flesh] there is no condemnation’!
This argument helps bridge the gap between Catholic and Protestant theology,
part of the reason for the ongoing schism is over this understanding. After the
Reformation the Catholic Church had a Counter Reformation council, the council
of Trent. They dealt with a lot of the abuses of the Catholic Church, things
that many Catholic leaders were complaining about before the Reformation. They
did deal with some issues and reformed somewhat. To the dismay of the more
‘reform minded’ Catholics [with Protestant leanings] they still came down
strong on most pre reform doctrines. This made it next to impossible for the
schism to be healed. But one area of disagreement was over ‘legal’ versus
‘actual/experiential’ justification. The Catholic position was ‘God can’t
declare/say a person is justified until they actually are’ [experientially].
The Protestant side [Luther] said ‘God does justify [legal declaration] a
person by faith alone’. Like I taught before, both of these are true. The Catholic
view of ‘justification’ is looking ahead towards a future reality [The same way
James speaks of justification in a future sense- He uses the example from
Genesis 22, when Abraham does a righteous act] while the Protestant view is
focusing on the initial legal act of justification [Genesis 15]. Here Paul
agrees with both views, he says ‘those who walk after the Spirit [actually
living the changed life] have no condemnation’.
[parts]
NOTE- Erasmus disagreed with Luther on the doctrine of
Predestination- which I covered in the last video. Luther was for it- Erasmus
was what we would call ‘Free Will’.
In his writings- which were very influential- he wrote in Greek
and Latin- the language of the elites.
He did this on purpose- for his target was the influential leaders
of the Church.
He rejected offers of money- because he did not want to align
himself with any particular movement- so he could be an independent writer with
no strings attached.
He had many criticisms of the Catholic Church- and was very
influential for the later reforms- those we see at the Council of Trent [Though
the church criticized him- they said he ‘Laid the egg that hatched the
Reformation’].
He taught that the church/priests/popes should be the servants of
the people-
He rejected the idea that the Priests/leaders made up the ‘whole
of the church’- but he believed all believers made up the true church.
Erasmus was a firebrand in his own way- rejecting the language
that Luther and some of the reformers used [they were vulgar at times]-
Luther respected the works of Erasmus- he thanked Erasmus for
debating with him on the nature of Justification by Faith-
He disagreed in the end- but said this debate was at the heart of
the gospel- and was glad that Erasmus was willing to engage.
RENAISSANCE ARTISTS-
The famous renaissance artists- DaVinci- Michelangelo- Raphael-
used their artwork as a form of knowledge- the images taught things- they were
not just paintings.
DaVinci’s most famous work was his painting on the ceiling of the
Sistine chapel in the Vatican.
It took him 4 years to complete.
The renaissance period- from about the 13/14th century
to the 17th- [though there was a sort of Renaissance that took
place- yes- in the Islamic world before the European Renaissance] was marked by
what we term Humanism.
Today we associate this term with ‘secular Humanism’ which often
has a bad connotation- especially among Christians.
But it meant something different back then.
It was a new focus on breaking the limits off of man- and for man
to excel in knowledge and skill- and to see man as having value.
There was somewhat of a break away from the church in a sense- in
that the church and its teachings were not the only source of wisdom for man.
But- Jesus himself taught that ‘the Sabbath was made for man- not
man for the Sabbath’- so- the Humanist spirit- elevating the value of man- does
have a Christian basis in my view.
Leonardo daVinci [15/16th century] was what we refer to
as a true Renaissance man- meaning his knowledge was in many fields- not just
art.
He actually considered himself a sculptor first- then an artist-
though he is most famous for his Fresco mentioned above.
1989 The
first work of the grace of the Holy Spirit is conversion, effecting
justification in accordance with Jesus’ proclamation at the beginning of the
Gospel: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”38 Moved
by grace, man turns toward God and away from sin, thus accepting forgiveness
and righteousness from on high. “Justification is not only the remission of
sins, but also the sanctification and renewal of
[parts]
Basically the media have been turning up the heat on why
Perry and all the other stoops [that would be Christians] are denying science.
I have written- and posted lots about this in the past. Most people are not
aware of the overwhelming amount of science that challenges the most common
ideas about evolution.
I’ll just hit on one- Abio Genesis. This is the belief that
life can spontaneously generate from dead matter. This view is false-
scientifically false. It is also commonly held with the false view of the
spontaneous generation of all things.
Many media folk hold to a belief that the Big Bang theory
shows us that all things have come from no-thing. Actually- this is a
scientific impossibility. This idea- creation ‘Ex Nihilo’- is false.
Einstein’s theory did show us that matter had a beginning
point- called the Point of Singularity- yet today we have absolutely no
scientific proof that all things came from nothing- yet most media folk do
indeed believe this.
So this topic really is one where the media have created
their villain [the back water Christians] and their hero [the false idea that
science has proved all types of stuff- that is has not!]. Yet they hope that if
they run with the narrative long enough- then hopefully they will never be
found out- you know- opening that car door and seeing their man- the man they
assured the whole world was gone- yet he lives to see another day.
[note- those of you who are interested in more on Evolution-
on my Blog if you go to the February posts of each year- I have studies on
Evolution and one on Genesis- you might find them helpful in the coming
debate].
[parts]
SIMONY
AND CHEAP TRICK-https://youtu.be/MESJeDV7il0
ON VIDEO-
.A.P. article review
.Simony
.Peter/Simon- showdown
PAST POSTS-
Simony (pron. [ˈsaɪ.mə.ni] or [ˈsɪ.mə.ni]) is the act of selling church offices and roles. The practice is named after Simon Magus,[1] who is described in the Acts of the Apostles 8:9–24 as having offered two disciples of Jesus, Peter and John, payment in exchange for their empowering him to impart the power of the Holy Spirit to anyone on whom he would place his hands. The term also extends to other forms of trafficking for money in "spiritual things".[2][3] Simony was also one of the important issues during the Investiture Controversy. Wikipedia
. [1770] TREASURY OF MERIT
Let’s pick up where we left off 2 posts back. We were
talking about Martin Luther and the events that led up to the Protestant
Reformation.
In order to understand the key act that caused the protest-
we will have to teach some Catholic history/doctrine.
In the 16th century Pope Julius began the effort
to build St. Peters basilica in Rome. He got as far as laying the foundation
and died. Pope Leo the 10th would pick up after him.
The church needed to raise money for the project- and the
German prince- Albert- would play a major role.
It should be noted that both Catholic and Protestant
scholars agree that the Popes of the day were pretty corrupt. They came from
what we call the Medici line of Popes.
If you remember last month I wrote a post on the
Renaissance- I talked about the Medici family and how they played a major role
in supporting the Renaissance that took place in the 13th century in
Florence Italy that would spread to the region.
Well this very influential family also played a big role in
who would get top positions in the church.
At the time of Luther and prince Albert- if you had the
right connections and the money- you could literally buy a position in the
church.
Albert already held 2 Bishop seats- and there was an opening
for an Archbishops seat in Mainz [Germany] and he wanted that one too.
It should be noted that official Canon law [church law] said
you could only hold one seat at a time- Albert was bidding on his 3rd one! And
he was too young for all of them.
So even the Pope and the officials held little respect for
what the church actually taught at the time.
So Albert opens up negotiations with Leo- and the bidding
starts AT 12,000 Duckets [money] Albert counters with 7,000- and they agree on
10,000. How did they justify the numbers? 12- The number of Apostles. 7- The 7
deadly sins. 10- The 10 commandments.
Yes- the church was pretty corrupt at the time.
So Albert works out a plan with Leo- he will borrow the
money from the German banks- and pay the banks off by the Pope giving Albert
the right to sell Indulgences.
What’s an Indulgence?
Okay- this is where it gets tricky.
The ancient church taught a system called The Treasury of
Merit. This was a sort of spiritual bank account that ‘stored up’ the good
deeds of others over the years.
You had the good deeds of Jesus at the top- but you also had
Mary and Joseph- the 12 Apostles- and other various saints thru out time.
The way the ‘bank’ worked was you could tap into the account
by getting a Papal indulgence- a sort of I.O.U. that had the Popes guarantee
that it would get so much time out of Purgatory for a loved one.
The actual sacrament that accesses the account is called
Penance [confession].
When a penitent does penance- he confesses his sin to the
priest- and he is absolved by the authority of the church that the priest has.
The priest usually tells the person ‘say so many Hail Mary’s- Our Father’s’ and
that’s a form of penance.
One of the other things the church practiced was called Alms
Deeds. This term is found in the bible and it means giving your money to the
poor- it is a noble act that Jesus himself taught.
In theory- part of the sacrament of penance was tied into
Alms Deeds- you can access the account thru the practice of giving to the poor-
which also meant giving to the church that helps the poor- and in the hands of
the Medici line of Popes- meant outright giving money to the Pope.
So now you see how the abuse worked its way into the pockets
of the faithful.
Albert now had the permission from Leo to sell these
indulgences in Germany- and he would pick a certain corrupt priest to sell them
in a place called Saxony- the region where Luther operated out of.
It should be noted that the Catholic Church never taught the
crass act of ‘buying your way out of Purgatory’. The practice of including
giving money as a part of the sacrament of penance was tied into the biblical
principle of giving to the poor- a good thing.
But Tetzel and others abused the official meaning of the
indulgence- and did make it sound like you could by your way out of Purgatory
[in theory- a loved one might be in Purgatory for so many years- and through
the indulgence you are actually getting time off for them- because the good
deeds of others are now applied to the account].
The money Albert would raise- half would go to Rome for the
building of St. peters- and half would go to pay off the banks in Germany- it
was a sad system- and a sad time for the church as a whole.
It would be wrong to judge the entire church at the time as
being corrupt- you did have many sincere Priests and Catholic men and women who
saw the abuses and did not take part in them.
But there was corruption at the top- and this would
eventually lead to the breakup of the church- and the launching of what we now
call the Protestant Movement.
As a side note- it should be said that many Catholics and
Protestants are not aware of the whole treasury of merit system- and the church
never officially changed her position on the doctrine.
There were 3 Church councils since the time [Trent- 1500’s,
Vatican 1- 1800’s and Vatican 2- 1962-65]. The Treasury of Merit never came up
for change.
Obviously Protestants don’t believe in Purgatory- and it’s
not my purpose in these posts to change Catholics into Protestants or vice
versa- but to give all sides a clear view of the issues that divided us- and to
try and be honest- and respectful during the process.
Does the bible teach anything like a Treasury of Merit? Well
actually it does. The bible teaches that the righteousness of Christ is the
treasury that people can access- by faith- and become righteous in the sight if
God.
The idea- applied to Christ- is good.
But in the hands of the Medici Popes- and the ambitious
prince of Germany- it would lead to disaster.
[parts]
The writings of Aristotle would be discovered again during
the time of Thomas Aquinas [13th century Catholic genius/scholar]
and this would lead to Scholasticism [a peculiar school of thought
developed/revived under Aquinas] and give rise to the Renaissance.
Okay- before the birth of Christ- the Jewish people resisted
the imposing of Greek culture upon them- you had the very famous resistance
under the Jewish Maccabean revolt- where the Jews rose up and fought the wicked
ruler Antiochus Epiphanies- and till this day the Jewish people celebrate this
victory at Hanukah.
Eventually Rome would conquer the Greek kingdom and the
Jewish people were allowed to keep their culture and temple- yet they were
still a people oppressed. Hassidism [getting back to the beginning] developed
during this attempt to not lose their Jewish roots- the Pharisees of Jesus day
came from this movement.
Alexander was pretty successful in his attempt to unify
language- even though the bible [New Testament] was written by Jewish writers-
living under Roman rule- yet the original bible is written in the Greek
language.
Bible scholars till this day study the Greek language to
find the truest meaning of the actual words in the bible [I have a Greek
Lexicon sitting right in front of me].
It would take a few centuries before a Latin version
appeared on the scene [the great church father- Jerome- would produce the Latin
Vulgate].
Yet it would be the re- discovery and learning of the Greek
texts [under men like Erasmus- and the Protestant Reformers] that would lead to
the Reformation [16th century] and other movements in church
history.
[parts]
The 6th session of Trent was the one where the
church dealt with justification [how we become saved in Gods sight].
Rome made a distinction between mortal and Venial sin in the
council- the church said that Baptism is the INSTRUMENTAL CAUSE of
justification. Yet faith is the Root- Foundation and Initial act that
justifies.
Rome also taught that Mortal sin kills the grace in the soul
that brings justification- and when a person commits a mortal sin- they need
the ‘2nd plank of justification’ in order to be brought back into a
state of Grace.
This 2nd Plank is the Sacrament of Penance
[confession]. Catholic Moral Theologians use an example to show the difference
between Mortal and Venial sin.
Drinking- if you take a drink [alcohol] not a sin. If you get tipsy- Venial- and if you get flat
drunk- mortal.
This is a true teaching by the way- not making this up.
Catholic scholars are not in total agreement on all the Mortal/Venial
sins.
Some teach that missing Mass on Sunday is a Mortal sin.
I just threw this in to show you the debates that take
place.
The teachings from Trent are referred to as Tridentine.
The Protestants [early on] rejected the belief that a person
can lose Gods grace once he has it- later on the Protestants would divide-
severely- over this teaching- Predestination and the Perseverance of the
Saints.
But early on all the major Reformers did indeed teach this.
Luther believed in the doctrine of Predestination just as
much- if not more- than John Calvin.
But sometimes in these history shows they get this wrong and
say Luther and Calvin disagreed on it- that’s a common mistake that you hear
every so often.
Luther actually wrote a book dedicated to the subject [The
Bondage of the Will] Calvin never wrote a book solely on the subject.
Okay- as we end this brief study of the Protestant
Reformation- you could also call it a primer on Catholic doctrine [short one].
Why is it important that we study this?
In John chapter 17 Jesus said that he desired unity for all
of Gods people- and many of these divisions- which date back 500 years- are
commonly misunderstood on both sides.
It is common in our day to run across an ex Catholic who
might say ‘you know- I left the church because I don’t believe I need to
confess to a priest’ or ‘the Catholic church teaches you are saved by works’.
The original Reformers did not have a problem with
confession- the Lutherans carried the practice over into their communion.
And like I just showed you- the Catholic church rejected the
doctrine of being saved ‘by works’ [Pelagianism] and simply emphasized the
teaching found in the bible- the book of James- and focused more on James than
Paul [who the protestants focus on].
So yes- there are still differences- but if we are not
informed- then it makes it harder to strive for unity- and at the end of the
day God does desire unity for all his people.
The other day I quoted the great Civil rights leader- MLK.
In one of his famous speeches that’s played when we celebrate his life- you
hear Martin say that not only was he seeking unity among the races- but also in
the church.
He said he wanted to see Catholics and Protestants- as well
as Blacks and Whites- sit down together- he referred to us all as Gods kids.
I think we should strive to achieve the desire of Martin-
and Jesus.
Amen.
[parts]
VERSES-
Galatians 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ
hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
Galatians 5:2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be
circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
Galatians 5:3 For I testify again to every man that is
circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.
Galatians 5:4 Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of
you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.
Galatians 5:5 For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of
righteousness by faith.
Galatians 5:6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth
any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
Galatians 5:7 Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should
not obey the truth?
Galatians 5:8 This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you.
Galatians 5:9 A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.
Galatians 5:10 I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye
will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you shall bear his
judgment, whosoever he be.
Galatians 5:11 And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why
do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased.
Galatians 5:12 I would they were even cut off which trouble you.
Galatians 5:13 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty;
only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one
another.
Galatians 5:14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in
this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Galatians 5:15 But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed
that ye be not consumed one of another.
Galatians 5:16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall
not fulfil the lust of the flesh.
Galatians 5:17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the
Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that
ye cannot do the things that ye would.
Galatians 5:18 But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under
the law.
Galatians 5:19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are
these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Galatians 5:20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations,
wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
Galatians 5:21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and
such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time
past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Galatians 5:23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Galatians 5:24 And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh
with the affections and lusts.
Galatians 5:25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the
Spirit.
Galatians 5:26 Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one
another, envying one another.
Matthew
22:36-40King James Version (KJV)
36 Master,
which is the great commandment in the law?
37 Jesus
said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with
all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
38 This is
the first and great commandment.
39 And the
second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
40 On these
two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.
Was
not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered
Isaac his son upon the altar?
Ye
see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.
Likewise
also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received
the messengers, and had sent them out another way?
Herein is my Father
glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my
disciples.
7 But what
things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.
8 Yea
doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge
of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and
do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,
9 And be
found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that
which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by
faith:
10 That I
may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his
sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;
11 If by any
means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.
12 Not as
though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after,
if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.
13 Brethren,
I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting
those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are
before,
14 I press
toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus- Phil.
Beloved,
let us love one another: for love is of God;
and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.
He
that loveth not knoweth
not God; for God is love.
Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to
be the propitiation for our sins.
No
man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.
And
we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
If
a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he
hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?
Note- Please do me a favor, those who read/like the posts- re-post
them on other sites as well as the site you read them on- Thanks- John.#
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