If one trusts in Mary, indulgences, the Mass, the Eucharist, the Magisterium, the Church Canon, to supplement the sufficiency of Jesus to save by faith, alone…you are NOT a Christian.
It is ONLY by faith in Jesus as Lord believing that He died to pay your sin-debt that one enters into covenant relationship with the Father and receives the indwelling Holy Spirit as Guarantor of that relationship (John 3:16-18; Ephesians 1:13-14).
Christian response,
An overwhelming number of the Jewish population today is lost in self-righteousness (Romans 10:2-4), some are atheists, some are agnostics, some are enslaved by Law and a works salvation (a perverted form of Judaism) in pursuit of making themselves worthy of God’s mercy when our Lord has clearly told the Jew that works of the Law will never save them but only by faith-belief in the One God has sent into the World, Yeshua Messiah, to make atonement for their sin via the bloody cross at Golgotha will provide acceptable atonement (John 3:16-18) yet these Jews fight and clamor for their own self-righteousness in arrogance and stubbornness; for this reason, “unbelief,” only a remnant of Jews will escape the “second death” in Perdition and that remnant primarily manifesting in the Tribulation dispensation who see the 2nd-Advent of Messiah and enter into the Millennial Kingdom as servants of Messiah.
Who is Allah; What is Islam; Who is Muhammad; What is their role in eschatology?
Islam is a curse in and of itself and it was born out of adultery (sin) between Abraham and Hagar, Sarah’s handmaid (servant). The child born of this sinful union was Ishmael…a true “wild donkey” of a man as is apparent by the behavior of his descendants the Ishmaelites.
From the descendants of Ishmael, the World was burdened with the tribes of the Ishmaelites who birthed a 7th-Century pedophile murdering demon-possessed thief named Muhammad whose demonic religion, Islam, eventually formed the Islamic Caliphate which butchered, murdered, by the sword untold thousands of Jews, Christians, men and women and children over the following 1400-years until temporarily halted in the early 20th-Century. It is obvious that Islam’s “Allah” is Satan masquerading as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14) via the Arabic Moon God and that Islam via Iran (an Islamic coalition) will soon conspire with Russia and China and come against Jerusalem, Israel most likely during the final 3.5-years of the coming Tribulation dispensation; this nuclear threat/war with Israel will culminate in the death and suffering of many millions in that Day (Zechariah 14:12) and will initiate the 2nd-Advent of Messiah Jesus and the Millennial Kingdom.
Islam is the Kingdom of Darkness in our midst; Islam is eternal death and suffering via spiritual-demonic deception; Islam garners for Satan what he coveted in the Kingdom i.e. praise and worship and adoration that belongs exclusively to the Living God, Father-Son-Spirit. Islam is the reality within Time reflecting the struggle initiated by Satan in the Kingdom and that struggle having been extricated from the Kingdom and placed upon this Earth to be dealt with by the Son of God who entered Time specifically to destroy the works of the Devil/Allah/Satan (1 John 3:8b).
What is “living in the law?”
Christian response,
Living in the Law suggests one is attempting to keep a set of rules, often the moral law or Law of Moses/Decalogue, in order to attain righteousness (a right standing) with God through self-righteousness, human effort…this is often referred to as legalism.
God has clearly noted, beginning in Genesis 3:21, that mankind cannot earn his way to God’s favor but only by faith in the Son, Jesus Christ, as Lord and Messiah, believing that Jesus died to pay your sin-debt, will covenant relationship with the Father be initiated and the Holy Spirit given as the Gift and Guarantor of that relationship along with the promise of eternal life (John 3:16-18; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Ephesians 2:8-9).
No one but Jesus is justified by Law as Jesus is the only One who could keep the Law in mandated perfection (Matthew 5:17; James 2:10; Galatians 3:10).
What path are you on? Life or Death?
Israel/Jacob-Judaism cannot save you from death in Hell; Arabia/Muhammad-Ishmael-the Koran cannot save you from death in Hell. Believing in Jesus Christ as your Lord, your Messiah, believing that Jesus died to pay your sin-debt and receiving HIS righteousness imputed into your life by faith is the only One—the Only Way–the Only Truth–the Only Path to life in Eternity. Any path other than Jesus is a dead-end.
Does James teach a works salvation? No…allow me to explain…
Grace (unmerited favor unattainable by human effort) through faith (believing-trusting) that Jesus Christ is Lord who suffered and died to pay your sin-debt is the KEY to initiating covenant relationship with the Father and receiving the Holy Spirit as Guarantor of that relationship (Ephesians 2:8-9; 1:13-14; John 3:16-18). No man or woman is saved by their works of self-righteousness and this was demonstrated as early as Genesis 3:21 as Adam sought to cover his sin and shame with fig-leaves that were rejected by Elohim who subsequently covered Adam and Eve in an imputed robe of righteousness (animal skins) Himself through the shedding of innocent blood. In fact, on your best day your works of righteousness are a filthy, bloody, menstrual cloth in the nose of God (Isaiah 64:6).
Not until such time that you have initiated covenant relationship with the Father through faith in Jesus as Lord, alone, will your works of obedience, righteousness, be accounted to you as justification as it is your works of righteousness done through the indwelling Holy Spirit that validate your faith as legitimate saving faith…you are a new person with new goals and aspirations in Jesus and good works naturally flow through sanctification. But…those works can never supplant or replace the necessity for faith in Jesus, FIRST.
Why did God the Father remove the promise of the Gospel from Israel as His purveyors of Truth and give that promise to the Gentiles?
Christian response,
The Gospel of Jesus Christ was ordained “before the beginning of Time” (2 Timothy 1:9-10) as the battle strategy by which the Son of God, Jesus Christ, would “destroy the works of the Devil” (1 John 3:8b) as our entire creation is the resultant of a rebellion led by the Devil and that rebellion necessitating extrication from the Kingdom (Luke 10:18) where nothing impure is permitted to exist (Revelation 21:27).
God the Father, during the creation narrative and immediately subsequent to the Fall, demonstrated, articulated, that He would defeat His nemesis, Satan (Ezekiel 28:11+), through His own selfless love apart from the works of humankind (Genesis 3:15; Genesis 3:21-fig leaves); unfortunately, God’s plan to set apart a special people group through whom He would codify His Law, Law being the arbiter of free will, and ultimately introduce Himself in flesh was stymied by free will which manifest in the defilement of the Adamic and Noahic generations via their obscene perversity and compromise with the Devil (Genesis 6); therefore, God destroyed all but eight by water and began anew through Noah.
Soon, God commissioned Abraham as a Patriarch of a people group through whom He would reveal Himself to mankind and ultimately destroy the works of the Devil via selfless love and sacrifice via Messiah. To this end, God made a covenant with Abraham and promised Abraham that through him every family of the earth would be blessed (Genesis 12:3); this, referencing the Gospel of Jesus Christ that would be the property, the divine possession, of Abraham’s seed and through these people God originally planned to proselytize the entire Earth with the Gospel via the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16-20; Jeremiah 31); in fact, Jesus clearly articulated the truism that He had come only to the lost sheep of Israel (Matthew 15:24-25).
Unfortunately, Israel’s children rejected the Gospel message; Israel’s children rejected their Messiah and falsely accused Him of blasphemy; Israel’s children conspired with the Roman authorities to murder their Messiah upon a tree; Israel’s children demanded that Messiah’s blood be upon them and their children; therefore, God ultimately took the Gospel intended for Israel’s children and gave that Gospel and the responsibility for the Great Commission to the Gentiles until such time the fullness of the Gentiles entering the Kingdom will have come to fruition (Romans 11:25; Acts 13:64).
For this reason, the Jew, the Israelite, continues to reject the Gospel of Jesus Christ, Israel continues to reject their Messiah and for this reason i.e. “unbelief,” only a remnant of Israel’s children will escape the “second death” in Perdition (Isaiah 10:22; Romans 9:27); that remnant being those who witness Messiah’s second-advent and wail and mourn for the One they have pierced and subsequently believe in Jesus as their Lord and Messiah who died for them (John 19:37; Zechariah 12:10).
Though man’s free will reigns paramount, God’s eschatological Plan is undeterred via His omnipotence. God works through and around our personal decisions, our free will, to bring His eschatological will to fruition. God’s will be done! Amen!
The Deity of Jesus Christ is of necessity; otherwise, humankind is destined to death in Hell.Jesus entered Time through the womb of a virgin woman to circumvent the sin-nature passed through Adam’s genome (Romans 5:12) so that He could provide blood atonement for your sin (Leviticus 17:11) and offer you His perfection, His sinlessness, imputed into your life in exchange for your sin IF you will simply believe that He is Lord who died for you to pay your sin-debt (Romans 10:9-10; John 3:16-18; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Genesis 3:21).
No ordinary “man” could die for you and provide you the opportunity to live forever with God; no ordinary flesh can pay your sin-debt because mankind is sinful by nature (Romans 3:23; Romans 7:14+) and God the Father and the Law requires absolute perfection in order to attain righteousness through that Law (James 2:10; Galatians 3:10; Romans 3:20) and ONLY Jesus Christ was/is capable of perfection as Jesus is Elohim manifest in flesh to destroy the works of the Devil for you (1 John 3:8b).
Law Keeper quotes Mark 16:16 suggesting that “faith alone” is insufficient for salvation. Is this true?
Christian response,
First, the last chapter of Mark is not considered inspired text and you’ll find a bracket around these words noting that point but if you desire to use Mark 16:16 as a text for the heresy of a works salvation, let’s do that; what does the text say; unfortunately, you only quoted the portion that under girds your false doctrine.
“16 The one who has believed and has been baptized will be saved; but the one who has not believed will be condemned.” Mark 16:16 (NASB)
Part “a” of Mark 16:16 clearly states that “the one who has believed and has been baptized will be saved.” IT DOES NOT SAY that the one who is “baptized” will be saved; you’re reading into the text something that is not there. The key to salvation is “belief” and not baptism as underscored by overwhelming Scripture relevant to salvation in the New Covenant.Part “b” of Mark 16:16 states “but the one who has not believed will be condemned.” It is true that the one who “believes” and is baptized will be saved but it is also true in accordance with OVERWHELMING evidence from Scripture that the one who “believes” will be saved without any form of baptism just as the one who does not believe is condemned void any form of baptism.
You run afoul of God’s grace when you believe that self-righteousness has anything to do with your salvation and you run afoul of God’s omnipotence when you suggest that you must somehow supplement the work of Jesus on the Cross to pay for your own sin – this is blasphemy. Adam attempted this very thing by covering his sin and shame with fig leaves but Elohim rejected Adam’s work and shed innocent blood to clothe Adam and Eve in a robe of imputed righteousness…God HIMSELF did the work (Genesis 3:21; 2 Corinthians 5:21) In like manner, Jesus Christ is wholly SUFFICIENT in and of Himself to pay for your sin by “FAITH” in HIM alone (Ephesians 2:8-9). You insult the Gospel of Jesus Christ when you think human effort plays a role in supplementing the suffering and blood shed of Jesus Christ for your atonement.
Are works important?
Are works important in the Christian’s life? YES, it is the obedience, love, faithfulness, to the indwelling Holy Spirit during sanctification, the Spirit having been given the faithful SUBSEQUENT to having established covenant relationship with the Father, that validates one’s saving faith as authentic. It is the behavior, the NEW CREATION in Jesus SUBSEQUENT to salvation that verifies one’s faith as SAVING FAITH but works, including the work of baptism, can NEVER supplant faith or make you “more” saved than what simple and pure faith in Jesus as Lord believing that Jesus died for you will provide. Also, YES, every believer in Jesus Christ should be baptized as commanded (Matthew 28:19-20).
Are you antichrist; Are you perishing in sin through unbelief?
One can come to the Father with partial knowledge of what Jesus has done for them at Golgotha and find righteousness and covenant relationship with the Father through faith but once covenant relationship is established and the Holy Spirit indwells the faithful as the Guarantor of that relationship (Ephesians 1:13-14), the Spirit will increase the wisdom and knowledge of God’s faithful via sanctification (1 John 2:27) and they WILL KNOW with certainty that Jesus is God and it is this knowledge that differentiates the true Christian from every religion, sect, cult, existing in the World.
If you don’t know or if you fail to see Jesus as God, you remain in your sin (John 8:24)…you do NOT have covenant relationship with the Father and you are NOT HIS! You are antichrist and you are a servant of the Devil knowingly or unknowingly irrespective of heritage, family, creed or color (2 Corinthians 4:4).
