Leadership Thought: Protestants and Roman Catholics Agree There Is Only One Way to Heaven.

Dear Friends,

One of our members recently handed me a reprinted article dated Nov. 3, 1999. It was from the Wall Street Journal, and it was titled “By Grace Alone.”  In reading it, I discovered that Roman Catholics and Protestants are much closer theologically than I had ever imagined. Maybe it was my fault for not knowing what Pope Paul 11 had said in 1999 when he declared that Roman Catholics and Protestants share the same beliefs regarding justification by faith alone.

It was 504 years ago that that Roman Catholics and Protestants went their separate ways over the issue of how one enters heaven. It was Martin Luther who boldly proclaimed that it is faith alone that saves an individual and opens the door to eternal life. Prior to that time the Roman Catholic church had emphasized that it was not just one’s faith but a combination of one’s faith and good works that led to salvation. It is faith alone, or faith plus works that justifies a person and opens the doorway to eternal life?

When Luther nailed his 95 theses to the church door in Wittenberg, he sent spiritual shockwaves around the world. The Protestant church was birthed. It separated from the Roman Catholic Church over a number of issues, but foremost among them was the difference regarding the pathway to salvation. Now after 504 years of separation, the Roman Catholic Church and the Protestant Church are much closer theologically than I had imagined.

In 1999 at a conference between Protestant Lutherans and Roman Catholics the churches resolved their long-standing debate over how one is saved. The Roman Catholic Church acknowledged that they were wrong in what they were teaching.

I quote from the Wall Street Journal, “The doctrine of works, Luther charged, had the effect of convincing bad people, abetted by the Catholic church's then practice of selling indulgences, that they could buy their way into heaven. The Catholic Church put an end to indulgences in 1562 at the council of Trent. But the dispute over justification, and the Catholic Church’s official condemnation of Lutheran teaching, persisted until Sunday.”  

On a Sunday 24 years ago, the Roman Catholic church under Pope Paul 11 “conceded the theological debate to Luther: agreeing that it is by grace alone, in faith in Christ’s  saving work and not because of any merit on our part , we are accepted by God and receive the Holy Spirit.”

This was a significant step in mending an important theological difference separating the two churches. At this conference in Augsburg, Germany it was announced that there was agreement between Protestants and Roman Catholics regarding how one enters heaven. It was declared that salvation is the result of faith, and faith alone, and not a combination of faith plus one’s works. This was a startling concession by the Roman Catholic Church.

I share this because I recently was communicating with a Roman Catholic friend of mine who was upset by a comment I had made in quoting Isaiah 64:6 which states “all our good works are as filthy rags.” I was making the point that no matter how good our good works may be, they will never be good enough to open the doorway to heaven.  

Our good works have nothing to do with our salvation. They are simply a product of our salvation. Our good works spring from our understanding and acceptance of God’s  amazing grace that saves sinners such as you and I. When we realize what Christ did for us on the cross, we desire to show our love for Him by serving Him by serving others. 

It has been said that the only good work that saves is the good work that was done for us upon the cross.

What good work could the penitent thief do on the cross that might save him. The answer is none. His hands and feet were nailed to a cross, and there was nothing he could accomplish that could earn his way into heaven. So helplessly, he tuned to Jesus saying, “Remember me when you come into your kingdom” (Luke 23:42). And Jesus turned to him and said, “Today you will be with me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43).

Luther and Pope Paul 11 were right. There is only one way to heaven and that is through “faith alone, by grace alone, through Christ alone. If you haven’t made that decision, and if you are trusting in your own efforts and your good works to help get you into heaven, stop trying and start trusting, and simply put your faith in Christ alone for your salvation.

Yours in faith and friendship,

Tom

It is true that “faith without works is fruitless, but it is also true that works without faith is rootless.”