Martin Luther in 1517 started the Protestant Church by splitting from the Catholic Church because he didn’t agree with his superiors.
Which already is not Biblical because in Hebrews 13:17 we can read:
Obey your spiritual leaders, and do what they say.
Their work is to watch over your souls, and they are accountable to God.
Give them reason to do this with joy and not with sorrow.
That would certainly not be for your benefit.
Now, to get both Protestants and Catholics mad at me, I will say that I believe Luther was not the first Protestant, but rather Pope Leo IX — but that’s a conversation for another time.
Now let’s get back to Martin Luther, because that’s where most problems in Protestantism come from.
He famously said and taught:
“Be a sinner, and let your sins be strong (or ‘sin boldly’), but let your trust in Christ be stronger, and rejoice in Christ who is the victor over sin, death, and the world.”
He also said:
“Salvation is a free gift of God and received only through true faith in Jesus as redeemer from sin.”
Martin Luther came up with an extremely dangerous doctrine:
Sola fide, sola scriptura, solus Christus, sola gratia
By this, Martin Luther says that you can be saved by Faith Alone (Sola Fide) and you don’t need to do any works and your Faith in Jesus Christ is enough (which is not Biblical).
He also said that you must follow Scripture Alone (Sola Scriptura) and, as you will see soon, he was not following scripture himself — but demanded other people to do this in order for his authority to not be undermined.
Solus Christus (Christ Alone) is again referred to salvation by faith alone in Jesus Christ.
Sola Gratia (Grace Alone) in the belief that salvation comes by divine grace or “unmerited favor” only
In summary, these guys believe that you can do whatever you want because you are already saved and that’s why you can “sin boldly“
“Be a sinner, and let your sins be strong (or ‘sin boldly’) (…)”
We are all sinners, but it doesn’t mean we must keep sinning (at least not on purpose) and never let your sins be strong.
Now, I don’t know if this was the vision Marin Luther left or Protestants after him just perverted his teachings.
Because Martin Luther was okay with the veneration of Saints, but Protestants now call Orthodox & Catholic Christians idolaters.
Even though Martin Luther’s Church is made out of rebellion, which is not Biblical, according to Hebrews 13:17, there are multiple problems with Sola Fide.
The Works Of The Thief
Most Protestants who believe in Sola Fide (salvation without works, by Faith Alone) will always quote the Crucifixion Scene and talk about the Repentant Thief.
Let’s check these verses from Luke 23:
32. Two others, both criminals, were led out to be executed with him.
33. When they came to a place called The Skull, they nailed him to the cross. And the criminals were also crucified—one on his right and one on his left.
(…)
39. One of the criminals hanging beside him scoffed, “So you’re the Messiah, are you? Prove it by saving yourself—and us, too, while you’re at it!”
40. But the other criminal protested, “Don’t you fear God even when you have been sentenced to die?
41. We deserve to die for our crimes, but this man hasn’t done anything wrong.”
42. Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.”
43. And Jesus replied, “I assure you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Many Sola Fide fanboys will claim that this passage confirms that you can be saved by faith alone, and that you don’t have to do anything.
In Luke 12:8-10, we can read:
8. Also, I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men, him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God.
9. But he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God.
The Repentant Thief confessed Jesus Christ before men in Luke 23:42 when he said:
“Jesus, remember me when you come into your Kingdom.”
He confessed Jesus Christ as Lord and God in front of men.
And according to the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14–30) everybody must do as much they can with what they were given.
This thief on the cross, did exactly that by doing the only thing that he could after knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
The Repentant Thief couldn’t do more, so the only thing that he could’ve done was to Confess our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ before men.
But don’t listen to me, let’s listen to James 2:17-26
17. Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
18. But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.
19. You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!
20. But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?
21. Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?
22. Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?
23. And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God.
24. You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.
25. Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?
26. For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
Beautiful! Let’s take them step by step:
17. Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
Saint Apostle James himself told us that faith alone is not enough.
18. But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.
We must follow the example of the Saint Apostle James and show our faith by our works.
19. You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble!
It’s not enough to just believe in God, because even demons and satan himself believe in God… even more than we do, and they are more afraid than we are…
But what makes us different are the things we do – our works.
20. But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?
(…)
26. For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
Don’t be foolish and don’t listen to the lies some Protestants tell you because faith without works is dead, as the body without the spirit is dead.
Such a powerful pain to highlight the importance of works.
Please, take your time and think about this question from James 2:14
14. What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone?
This implies that nobody got saved by faith alone, without works.
If the argument above, about the Repentant Thief, still doesn’t seem clear, let’s read from Hebrews 10:26 to see what Saint Apostle Paul, has to say:
26. Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received knowledge of the Truth, there is no longer any sacrifice that will cover these sins.
If we got to know our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the Truth, the Way, and the Life… and we know that our sins are damaging our souls and decreasing are chances of salvation…
… and we keep sinning… “there is no longer any sacrifice that will cover these sins.”
The Repentant Thief got to know the Truth while on the Cross, and he Confessed our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ before men.
Now, what happen to that demonic teaching of Martin Luther about “sin boldly”??
It’s just a demonic lie, so stay away from it.
Another Bible verse that highlights how important works are, is James 5:20
20. You can be sure that whoever brings the sinner back from wandering will save that person from death and bring about the forgiveness of many sins.
Through your works, you can save souls, and also bring about the forgiveness of your sins.
But let’s read the implications of this verse beyond that. Since you can save a person from death – it means that person was not saved “by default” as many Protestants believe.
In Luke 6:46 we can read:
46. “So why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say?”
We must follow the teachings of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and do what He told us to do in order to be saved.
Then in Matthew 7:21 we can read:
21. “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter.
Who will enter the Kingdom of Heaven?
“Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter.”
Then in John 5:29 we can read:
29. (…) Those who have done good will rise to experience eternal life, and those who have continued in evil will rise to experience judgment.
Who will experience eternal life?
“Those who have DONE good (…)”
In 2 Corinthians 5:10 we can read:
10. For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in this earthly body.
Is it just me or Saint Apostle Paul tells us that we will get what we deserve based on what we have DONE?
In Romans 2:6-7 we can read:
6. He will judge everyone according to what they have done.
7. He will give eternal life to those who keep on doing good, seeking after the glory and honor and immortality that God offers.
Who will receive eternal life from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ?
How are we going to be judged?
We will be judged according to what we have DONE, and the Lord will give eternal life to those who keep on DOING good.
Again, Faith is extremely important but “faith without works is dead”
In Romans 3:31 we can read:
31. Well then, if we emphasize faith, does this mean that we can forget about the law? Of course not! In fact, only when we have faith do we truly fulfill the law.
In Galatians 6:6-10 we can read:
7. Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant.
8. Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit.
9. So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.
10. Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith.
Man, as if Saint Apostle Paul wrote this for Protestants…
“Don’t be misled”
“You will always harvest what you plan”
“So let’s not get rired of doing what is good.”
“At the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing IF we don’t give up.”
“Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone (…)”
Do I need to add anything to this?
Let’s read something about the Judgement Day.
In Revelation 20:12 we can read:
12. I saw the dead, both great and small, standing before God’s throne. And the books were opened, including the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to what they had done, as recorded in the books.
We will be judged according to what we have done.
In 1 John 2:3-4 we can read:
3. And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments.
4. If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth.
I’m cofindent you got my point.
There is no such thing as salvation without works.
Sometimes I wonder if these Protestants who believe in Sola Fide of Sola Scriptura actually read The Bible.
If you know somebody that might benefit from this article, please share it with that person – or even better, try to explain these things yourself face to face.
We must save our brother and sisters from these heresies.
Remember James 5:20
20. You can be sure that whoever brings the sinner back from wandering will save that person from death and bring about the forgiveness of many sins.
God bless