Salvation By Grace Alone

[Bookcat]

There are different senses in which the term salvation is used in Scripture.

 

[porthos11]

Do you power your works, or are your works powered by grace?

If you say you power your works, it is one thing.

If you say any work you do is powered by grace, it is grace alone.

If you keep your salvation, isn’t it the gift of perseverance? A gift of grace, not a work of man?

Yes, and this is part of the mystery of predestination. Anyone who makes it to heaven would have done so by grace alone. Unlike Calvinism, however, we do not deny free will and man’s free will is as much a factor in one’s salvation as is the sufficient grace given to man, as well as the infallible decree of predestination. One is always saved by grace alone, but grace is always effective with man’s free response.

HOW, however the divine decree, grace, and free will are all reconciled is not defined by the Church. They all need to be affirmed on pain of heresy, but multiple schools of thought are permitted for as long as none of these essentials are denied. Catholics can adhere to multiple theories on predestination, grace, and free will. Double-predestination, of course, is out.

 

[Roseeurekacross]

I haven’t read all the replies on this thread. Yesterday the subject of Grace and Faith was our Homily.
The Priest gave this story. …

Parishoner ’ Father is it true we can’t give ourselves faith, faith is a gift from God.
Priest ’ yes that’s true’

Parishoner ’ then its no point to go to mass, do good deeds, live a Christian life. We can’t save ourselves. Only God can save us. We can’t increase our faith one bit, or even have faith, without the gift from God.
Priest ’ yes its true only God can save us. We can’t save ourselves, we can’t increase faith, of ourselves.

Parishoner. ’ what are we to do then’
Priest ’ God has abundant and overflowing Grace for each and everyone of us. Pray for Grace, ask for Grace. God is only too happy to gift Grace if we but ask.

Grace for the gift of Faith.

Then we have the gift of Grace, and pray to increase Faith , Hope and Charity in ourselves and others. And live a Christian life keeping the Commandments and paying heed to the Gospels and the Beatitudes.

Grace increases also, with Communion and Confession.

 

[Wesrock]

Do you power your works, or are your works powered by grace?

If you say you power your works, it is one thing.

If you say any work you do is powered by grace, it is grace alone.

If you keep your salvation, isn’t it the gift of perseverance? A gift of grace, not a work of man?

It is 100% God and 100% me. At the same time. But without God in my works, there is no merit to them.

 

[Wesrock]

‘Sola Gratia’ was one of the Big Five Solas of the Reformation, and here you are agreeing with it.

As noted in your link, it had already been affirmed nearly 1,000 years prior to the reformation.

 

[fhansen]

It is 100% God and 100% me. At the same time. But without God in my works, there is no merit to them.

Yes, we cannot possibly be saved without the grace of God. Heck, we don’t even know the way home, much less have the means to get there on our own. We’re lost. And yet He doesn’t save us without us. We’re asked, we’re drawn, we’re expected, to participate in maintaining and increasing our justice, and the Parable of the Talents as others have mentioned describes this dynamic, of cooperating with grace, quite well. This is how we work out our salvation with He who works in us. When I respond to God’s call, to feed the poor or visit prisoners etc, I’m cooperating with grace, just as I did at the beginning with the response of faith; I’m investing the talents given, and then even more grace is granted. And I can always say “no” at any point; I can always turn back away from God.

 

[Vico]

In Catholic theology, are you willing to say that salvation is by grace alone, without adding any clauses whatsoever onto that?

Under the influence of God given grace, each person makes a free choice for or against God with the free will given by God. To choose to make an act of faith is a supernatural gift of God. The Catholic Church has not determined if God’s grace is intrinsically efficacious or not, there are two positions of Thomism and Molinism. God’s grace can be efficatious or merely sufficient.

 

[venite_adoremus]

Ah, in discussions of this ilk I am always reminded of what my pastor said during my inquiry class. “That depends,” he taught, “entirely on how you define what grace is.” If grace is seen in the vein of “God is doing me a favor,” the discussion is quite different from when grace is seen as “God implanting His divine life within me.” Capital G Grace is not limited by its type, be it sanctifying or actual.

If by grace (or The Grace) we are saved, by faith, and not by works, it also depends on where you put the commas. Are faith and works contrasted, or are grace and works contrasted? Or is the formula of grace and faith together contrasted with works, e.g. “earning salvation?” Always liked Saint James on this point. “Show me your faith, and I by my works will show you mine.”

The first question asked during the baptismal rite: what are you asking for? Faith. Because faith leads to eternal life = the state of grace. There’s nothing I can do to earn that. It is the gift of God. But I must act to receive it.

 

[LatinRight]

It is 100% God and 100% me. At the same time. But without God in my works, there is no merit to them.

God bless Wesrock and every readers of the CAF.

There is a crucially important statement in your above post which unfortunately many Christians don’t know or don’t understand even in this thread.

You said:
“Without God (God’s free gift of actual grace) in my works, there is no merit.” In the bracket is added.

As God’s child/elect we may work all our long Christian life 7/24 from our baptism until we die, but if we do these works without God’s actual grace, at the judgment of our works (1 Cor.3:12-15) all our works are wood, hay and straw, rejected by God and all our works goes up in smoke and we enter into heaven without any reward.

This is a great loss because our position and glory in heaven is determined by God according to the outcome of the judgment of our works.

To do good works/supernatural works we must know the differences between:
a. The works done by the co-operation with God’s gift of actual grace.
b. The works done by the co-operation with the spirit of fear and the spirit deception.

IN ORDER TO KNOW THE ABOVE DIFFERENCES FIRST WE MUST KNOW

1. The way God saves us.
2. The way God protects our salvation.
3. The conditions of our good works/supernatural works which God rewards.

1. THE WAY GOD SAVES US

JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH ALONE? by James Akin

Quote: “In fact, in TRADITIONAL WORKS OF CATHOLIC THEOLOGY, one regularly encounters the statement that FORMED FAITH IS JUSTIFYING FAITH. If one has formed faith, one is justified. Period. End quote. Emphasis mine.

**Sola fide formata = FORMED FAITH ALONE
THE COMPOSITE OF GOD’S GIFT OF FORMED FAITH:

a. BELIEF (Unconditional BELIEF in what God says.)

b. HOPE (Unconditional TRUST in God.)

c. CHARITY (Unconditional LOVE for God.)**

HOW TO READ THE NEW TESTAMENT By Etienne Charpentier

Nihil obstate: Father Anton Cowan

Imprimatur: Monsignor John Crowley, VG Westminster, 28 May 1985

Quote: “There is ONE CENTRAL QUESTION here: how can we become RIGHTEOUS and be SAVED?

We NOT justified by what we do (works, observing law) but by FAITH IN CHRIST.

Salvation is NOT a matter of achieving but RECEIVING IT FREELY from God hands, in faith.” End quote.

JOINT DECLARATION ON THE DOCTRINE OF JUSTIFICATION by the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church

4/37 We confess together that good works - a Christian life lived in faith, hope and love - FOLLOW JUSTIFICATION and ARE ITS FRUITS.

ANNEX TO THE OFFICIAL COMMON STATEMENT

C) Justification takes place "by grace alone“ (JD 15 and 16), by faith alone, the person is justified „apart from works“ (Rom 3:28, cf. JD 25).

D) "Whatever in the justified precedes or follows the free gift of faith is neither the basis of justification nor merits it“ (JD 25).

1. The doctrine of justification is measure or touchstone for the Christian faith. No teaching may contradict this criterion. In this sense, the doctrine of justification is an "indispensable criterion which constantly serves to orient all the teaching and practice of our churches to Christ“ (JD l8).

KEY TO UNDERSTAND GOOD WORKS / SUPERNATURAL WORKS

KNOWING we have been, Justified/Saved "by grace alone“ (JD 15 and 16), by faith alone, apart from works (Rom 3:28, cf. JD 25).

As we see above, the balance between faith and works is 100 % faith and 0 % works.

The above balance makes for us the possibility that our 100 % works could be good works/supernatural works, all 100 % works could be done freely out of sheer love for the Glory of God and for others.

As good Children/Elect of God we should work as much as we can, freely out of sheer love for the Glory of God and out of sheer love for others.

THE WAY OF THE DESTRUCTION OF OUR GOOD WORKS / SUPERNATURAL WORKS

If we work for our salvation, which is God’s Free Gift, received by Faith, we do our works with our co-operation with the spirit of fear and with the spirit of deception.

God doesn’t give us actual grace to work for His Free Gift of salvation!!!

Continue

 

[LatinRight]

Continuation

2. THE WAY GOD PROTECTS THE SALVATION OF HIS CHILDREN/ELECT

At baptism every of God’s child/elect is a receiver of God’s gift of Salvation/Everlasting Life and God’s special grace The Gift of Final Perseverance which is an Eternal Assurance of the Salvation/Everlasting Life of every child/elect of God.

If the above protection of the Salvation/Everlasting Life of God’s Child/Elect would fail and even one God’s Child/Elect would end up in hell, then God would lose His omniscience. – DE FIDE Dogma. (The highest level of binding theological certainty.)

KEY TO UNDERSTAND GOOD WORKS / SUPERNATURAL WORKS

As we see above the Salvation/Everlasting Life of every Child/Elect of God is protected by God’s special grace The Gift of Final Perseverance, which is an Eternal Assurance of the Salvation/Everlasting Life of every Child/Elect of God.

Because the above protection, a Child/Elect of God don’t need to work for the reason to keep their salvation.

God is the One who protects the Salvation/Everlasting Life His Children/Elect.

Because the above protection of God, every Child/Elect of God has the chance that all their 100 % works can be done freely out of sheer love for the Glory of God and can be done freely out of sheer love for others.

THE WAY OF THE DESTRUCTION OF OUR GOOD WORKS / SUPERNATURAL WORKS

If we work for the reason to keep our salvation, we do our works with our co-operation with the spirit of fear and with the spirit of deception.

God doesn’t give us actual grace to work for the reason to keep our Salvation/Everlasting Life because His special grace The Gift of Final Perseverance is the Eternal Protection of our Salvation/Everlasting life!!!

Continue

 

[LatinRight]

Continuation

**3. CONDITIONS THAT OUR WORKS (OUR DEEDS) COUNT FOR ANYTHING

Conditions MUST BE PRESENT to make SUPERNATURAL MERIT possible.**

The meritorious work must be morally good, that is, in accordance with the moral law in its

object, intent, and circumstances.

It MUST be done FREELY, WITHOUT any EXTERNAL COERCION or INTERNAL NECESSITY.

It MUST be SUPERNATURAL, that is, AROUSED and ACCOMPANIED by ACTUAL

GRACE, and proceeding from a SUPERNATURAL motive.

Strictly speaking only a person in the STATE OF GRACE can merit, as defined by the

Church (Denzinger 1576, 1582).

JUSTIFICATION IN CATHOLIC TEACHING by Jimmy Akin

Quote: “The essence of supernatural love is unselfishness—doing something NOT

BECAUSE IT WILL HELP US SOMEHOW, but because we want to do it out of SHEER

LOVE for the other person, whether that person is God or one of our fellow human beings out of the love of God.

This is THE ONLY KIND of love that ultimately pleases God and therefore the ONLY

KIND that ultimately gets us a reward IN heaven.” End quote. Emphasize mine.

**If we not set free to love freely, ** we cannot love.

**If we not set free to freely decide to work, ** we cannot do supernatural work/merit.

We cannot please God with the work we MUST do, because we cannot do it FREELY,

WITHOUT any EXTERNAL COERCION or INTERNAL NECESSITY. **– The work we

MUST do is NOT supernatural work, because we do it for our own interest!!!**

**Supernatural work is: **

Doing something, DECIDED FREELY without the fear of hell,

**work done **NOT BECAUSE IT WILL HELP US SOMEHOW,

**but because **we want to do it out of SHEER LOVE for the Glory of God, or help other person out of sheer love.

THE KEY TO UNDERSTAND GOOD WORKS / SUPERNATURAL WORKS

“The essence of supernatural love is unselfishness—doing something NOT

BECAUSE IT WILL HELP US SOMEHOW, but because we want to do it out of SHEER

LOVE for the person or for the GLORY OF GOD.

The works we must do we do it for our own interest, this works contains no love neither for God, nor for other person.

The works we do out of SHEER LOVE for the person or for the GLORY OF GOD contains love.

The only our work is good work/supernatural work which contains love for God or for others.

This the only work rewarded by God at the judgment of our works (1 Cor.3:12-15).

For easy understanding consider, our works as a vessel which contains the love which given through our works to God’s Glory or to others. – God rewards the love that the work/vessel contains.

The work done for our own interest contains neither love for God nor love for others.

And as far as God’s rewards concern, these works are empty works/vessels, wood, hay and straw, goes up in smoke at the judgment.

THE WAY OF THE DESTRUCTION OF OUR GOOD WORKS / SUPERNATURAL WORKS

If we work for the reason to achieve our salvation that is not good works/supernatural works.

If we work for the reason to keep our salvation that is not good works/supernatural works.

If we work for the reason to get reward in heaven that is “usury,” it is not good works/supernatural works.

God bless Wesrock and every readers of the CAF.

LatinRight

 

[LatinRight]

God bless every readers of the CAF.

2. THE WAY GOD PROTECTS THE SALVATION OF HIS CHILDREN/ELECT

At baptism every of God’s Child/Elect is a receiver of God’s gift of Salvation/Everlasting Life and God’s special grace The Gift of Final Perseverance which is an Eternal Assurance of the Salvation/Everlasting Life of every Child/Elect of God.

If the above protection of the Salvation/Everlasting Life of God’s Child/Elect would fail and even one God’s Child/Elect would end up in hell, then God would lose His omniscience. – DE FIDE Dogma. (The highest level of binding theological certainty.)

An important addition to my post # 29.

Every Child/Elect of God, WITHOUT God’s special grace The Gift of Final Perseverance would end up in hell.

God bless every readers of the CAF.

LatinRight

 

[po18guy]

In Catholic theology, are you willing to say that salvation is by grace alone, without adding any clauses whatsoever onto that?

It looks like you are fishing for agreement. What Catholics mean by grace alone is almost certainly different from what you mean by the same term.

Anyway, what we say here does not matter. What the Church teaches does.

 

[Tomyris]

It looks like you are fishing for agreement.

Nothing wrong with that! If we could clear up the dispute between Protestants and Catholics that would be fine.

What Catholics mean by grace alone is almost certainly different from what you mean by the same term.

I can’t of course speak for all Protestants. My understanding of grace is that it is more the favor of God, not a substance.

Anyway, what we say here does not matter. What the Church teaches does.

True, but you are also supposed to accurately state what the Church teaches. This is Catholic Answers, not Catholic Opinions, not Catholic Thoughts.

Thanks for being on this thread.

 

[ahs]

‘Sola Gratia’ was one of the Big Five Solas of the Reformation, and here you are agreeing with it.

Of coarse we agree with salvation by God’s Grace alone (as most simply understood…with no further qualifications). The problem isn’t in the fact that we can only be saved by God’s Grace; the problem is with the fact that “alone”, as used in the “Five Solas” comes with a great deal of protestant baggage and gets misconstrued into something else by some protestants/independents/etc.

I have seen some argue that “Sola Gratia” is to be understood such that people do not even have to cooperate with God’s Grace and accept His free gift of salvation. Salvation, in that case, is forced upon us. This, of coarse, brings up huge theological problems leading to double-predestination. The extreme positions lead to those who are damned being so-condemned because of God, not because of their own failure to accept salvation.
For those who are not saved, was it something THEY did not do, or was it something Christ did not do for them? In that extreme case I am describing , the only logical conclusion is that it is something God did not do for them.

 

[ahs]

True, but you are also supposed to accurately state what the Church teaches. This is Catholic Answers, not Catholic Opinions, not Catholic Thoughts.

Thanks for being on this thread.

This is just the forums of Catholic Answers, with a bunch of lay people who, for the most part, know about as much of out faith as the average non-Catholic knows about theirs. But we do strive for consistency.
The formal apologetic answers are from the staff Apologists, and that section has been moved to the main Homepage of the website at a button called “Ask your Question Here”, or something like that.
But, many of us in the forums do strive to speak within the teachings of the Church, and provide them verbatim if we can. Here is a link that will get you started on the exact Catholic Doctrines on “save by grace”. (Click each search result for the full paragraph, and then you can “enter at this paragraph” to see the surrounding text for the full topic.)
ccc.scborromeo.org.master.com/texis/master/search/?sufs=0&q=saved+by+grace&xsubmit=Search&s=SS

And here are more than 220 hits for the topic of “salvation” (which is obviously an important topic to the Church ).
ccc.scborromeo.org.master.com/texis/master/search/?sufs=0&q=salvation&xsubmit=Search&s=SS

 

[James248]

Continuation

**3. CONDITIONS THAT OUR WORKS (OUR DEEDS) COUNT FOR ANYTHING

Conditions MUST BE PRESENT to make SUPERNATURAL MERIT possible.**

The meritorious work must be morally good, that is, in accordance with the moral law in its

object, intent, and circumstances.

It MUST be done FREELY, WITHOUT any EXTERNAL COERCION or INTERNAL NECESSITY.

It MUST be SUPERNATURAL, that is, AROUSED and ACCOMPANIED by ACTUAL

GRACE, and proceeding from a SUPERNATURAL motive.

Strictly speaking only a person in the STATE OF GRACE can merit, as defined by the

Church (Denzinger 1576, 1582).

JUSTIFICATION IN CATHOLIC TEACHING by Jimmy Akin

Quote: “The essence of supernatural love is unselfishness—doing something NOT

BECAUSE IT WILL HELP US SOMEHOW, but because we want to do it out of SHEER

LOVE for the other person, whether that person is God or one of our fellow human beings out of the love of God.

This is THE ONLY KIND of love that ultimately pleases God and therefore the ONLY

KIND that ultimately gets us a reward IN heaven.” End quote. Emphasize mine.

**If we not set free to love freely, ** we cannot love.

**If we not set free to freely decide to work, ** we cannot do supernatural work/merit.

We cannot please God with the work we MUST do, because we cannot do it FREELY,

WITHOUT any EXTERNAL COERCION or INTERNAL NECESSITY. **– The work we

MUST do is NOT supernatural work, because we do it for our own interest!!!**

**Supernatural work is: **

Doing something, DECIDED FREELY without the fear of hell,

**work done **NOT BECAUSE IT WILL HELP US SOMEHOW,

**but because **we want to do it out of SHEER LOVE for the Glory of God, or help other person out of sheer love.

THE KEY TO UNDERSTAND GOOD WORKS / SUPERNATURAL WORKS

“The essence of supernatural love is unselfishness—doing something NOT

BECAUSE IT WILL HELP US SOMEHOW, but because we want to do it out of SHEER

LOVE for the person or for the GLORY OF GOD.

The works we must do we do it for our own interest, this works contains no love neither for God, nor for other person.

The works we do out of SHEER LOVE for the person or for the GLORY OF GOD contains love.

The only our work is good work/supernatural work which contains love for God or for others.

This the only work rewarded by God at the judgment of our works (1 Cor.3:12-15).

For easy understanding consider, our works as a vessel which contains the love which given through our works to God’s Glory or to others. – God rewards the love that the work/vessel contains.

The work done for our own interest contains neither love for God nor love for others.

And as far as God’s rewards concern, these works are empty works/vessels, wood, hay and straw, goes up in smoke at the judgment.

THE WAY OF THE DESTRUCTION OF OUR GOOD WORKS / SUPERNATURAL WORKS

If we work for the reason to achieve our salvation that is not good works/supernatural works.

If we work for the reason to keep our salvation that is not good works/supernatural works.

If we work for the reason to get reward in heaven that is “usury,” it is not good works/supernatural works.

God bless Wesrock and every readers of the CAF.

LatinRight

No one says we shouldn’t think about working our way to Heaven, but our works mean something to God. Like the servants in the Parable of the Talents, we must account for the gifts God has given us.

The servant who was cast out did absolutely nothing with the money. The master didn’t let him get in to his service.

 

[fhansen]

No one says we shouldn’t think about working our way to Heaven, but our works mean something to God. Like the servants in the Parable of the Talents, we must account for the gifts God has given us.

The servant who was cast out did absolutely nothing with the money. The master didn’t let him get in to his service.

LR’s theology tends to skew more towards Reformed than Roman Catholic.

 

[Ron_Conte]

I’ll just cut to the chase:

1. Actual grace (prevenient grace) is given to all men, and enables them to seek faith, repentance and baptism.
2. After receiving actual grace, men are free to cooperate with it or not to arrive at faith, repentance and baptism.
3. Those who cooperate with actual grace receive sanctifying grace at baptism. Sanctifying grace infuses the virtues of faith, hope and charity into the soul.
4. Those who persevere in sanctifying grace until the end of their lives will receive the Beatific Vision after their death.

newadvent.org/cathen/06689x.htm
newadvent.org/cathen/06701a.htm

Actual grace is divided into two types: prevenient grace (God operating, which we receive without cooperation) and subsequent grace (only received with our cooperation).

Habitual grace is also divided into prevenient and subsequent grace. The initial grace of justification is prevenient. But afterward, we can lose that state of grace (habitual grace) by an actual mortal sin of commission or omission. We cooperate with the state of grace by living a life of love, faith, and hope.

So, there are several grave doctrinal errors in your “cut to the chase” summary above.

James 3:1

 

[James248]

LR’s theology tends to skew more towards Reformed than Roman Catholic.

I’ve noticed.