What a bizarre thing for Sean Penn to tweet.
(media.greatawakening.win)
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Do Protestants intentionally misunderstand the Church’s teaching? Catholics don’t believe you can earn your way into heaven. But you can certainly earn your way out of it. Faith alone is not sufficient.
God forgives all who ask and repentance, a change in conduct, will follow if the person is truly sorrowful; as God has already worked within them through His Spirit to cause them to recognize their sins and need for salvation, He will continue to work within them to bring about a change of character, and thus works.
Given the above, there is no need for a priest to prescribe an act of penance for an individual to receive forgiveness. When this is done, that is salvation by works.
To reiterate, salvation, and consequently forgiveness, is a free gift from God. You cannot earn it and you cannot buy it; if you could, it would cease to be a gift.
An even more egregious example is when the church authorities used to sell indulgences, literally freedom from purgatory for a price. I can't help but think of what Peter said to Simon the sorcerer when the latter thought he could buy access to the Holy Spirit:
As a side note, while not an act of penance in the typical sense, a formative experience for Martin Luther as he came to understand salvation by faith was when he climbed the Scala Sancta in Rome during a pilgrimage. To quote Wikipedia:
Amen
No, Catholics intentionally misunderstand that you are saved by Faith and Faith alone.
To my understanding, if a sin can only be absolved by a priest of the Catholic Church, then Jesus has already been disregarded, since He is our high priest. There is only one name by which we are saved, and that is the name of Jesus Christ.
So I can earn my way out of Heaven? And who gets to say whether I have earned my way out of Heaven? A Pope? A Bishop? The Bible (misinterpreted if so) ? So unless I do all that is required of me, I earn my way out of Heaven? Can you not see this is just another way of saying it is a works based salvation? It still makes my being in Heaven someday dependent on Jesus PLUS me being a good decent moral upstanding person
I grew up going to church with my Aunt, latter day saints stuff, after getting saved years later in a Bible Believing church I asked her " Do you know for certain you are going to heaven?" her reply "As long as I keep doing everything that I am doing" I would assume that would be your reply also, as long as you keep doing what you are doing and don't "un-earn" your way out of Heaven.
I am going to Heaven, no ifs, ands, or but's about it, not because I have done anything extra special on this earth to earn or keep my salvation, but because Jesus Christ has Paid in Full the price for every one of my sins. I will be singing His Praises Forever for the Great Mercies and Love He has shown to poor lost helpless sinners.
Can you imagine being in the ocean drowning after your boat has capsized and the Coast Guard coming along and pulling out a 3 page questionnaire to determine if you are worth saving? You are not saved as a Catholic, you are still filling out your resume to see if God thinks you are worth saving.
The truth is : God knows you are painfully weak and immoral, with a sin nature that is bent on wrong doing and that no matter how good you try to be, you will never be good enough to enter Heaven apart from the Righteousness of Christ being given to you. The great truth that Martin Luther discovered as a monk was " The Just Shall Live By Faith " God's Word. "Abraham believed God and was imputed unto him for Righteousness." Justification is a legal term. A sinner is given the Righteousness of Christ the moment he is saved. I am standing before the Gates of Heaven waiting to enter and I am clothed in the Righteous Robes of Christ. Will your Pope be able to accuse me dressed before God in these Perfect Robes? I think not. My good works mean nothing, The Righteousness of God provided for me is my only sure hope.
Does everyone who says Lord Lord enter heaven?
Exactly. If you are counting on your ability to not un-earn your way out of Heaven you will be in dire straights. Isaiah 53:11 "He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities." The first "He" is God the Father. The one He is looking at that is in travail is His Son, Jesus Christ. God the Father shall see of the travail of Jesus Christ, His Son, on the Cross, being Judged in our place for the all the sins of men, and God the Father shall be satisfied. His wrath for our sins will be satisfied. Says nothing about "He shall see of the good way that men have lived after believing that Jesus died to save them, and He shall be satisfied" You are still depending on your good works to get to Heaven, therefore you are only half trusting Jesus Christ. Ephesians 2:8-9 " For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." So millions will be singing the Praises of God one day in Heaven, Praise to the Lamb that was slain, who has redeemed us out of every nation and kindred, and trout007 will be off in the corner singing " Praise be to me, because I was able to keep myself from un-earning my way out of Heaven, and now God owes me my place here " and I tell you that angels will fly straightway to where you are and snatch you up and cast you into outer darkness and your boasting will be heard no more in those sacred halls. Isaiah 55:8-13 " For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off." May you cast your every hope of Heaven on Jesus Christ today. Jeremiah 29:13 "And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart."
Why is it that you do not know the speech and thoughts of a truly saved person? salvation is and intimate personal relationship with our Lord. I do not need a Priest to confess to, I walk with Jesus every moment of every day. Listen to the words of of a Christian Hymn
A friend I have called Jesus, Whose love is strong and true, And never fails howe’er ’tis tried, No matter what I do; I sinned against this love of His, But when I knelt to pray, Confessing all my guilt to Him, The sin-clouds rolled away.
Sometimes when clouds of trouble Bedim the sky above, I cannot see my Savior’s face, I doubt His wondrous love; But He, from Heaven’s mercy seat, Beholding my despair, In pity bursts the clouds between, And shows me He is there.
When sorrow’s clouds o’ertake me, And break upon my head, When life seems worse than useless, And I were better dead; I take my grief to Jesus then, Nor do I go in vain, For heav’nly hope He gives that cheers Like sunshine after rain.
Oh, I could sing forever Of Jesus’ love divine, Of all His care and tenderness For this poor life of mine; His love is in and over all, And wind and waves obey When Jesus whispers, “Peace, be still!” And rolls the clouds away.
Jesus wants you to be this close to Him today. Bow your heart to Him today, tell Him that you are a sinner and that you believe that He, and He Alone is able to save you, then thank Him for redeeming you. Serve Him out of love and gratitude for what He has done for you. Not out of fear that you might offend Him some way by your shortcomings, He knows you are made of clay, He knows you will have failures, He loves you unconditionally. Please Lord Jesus, give this person ears to hear and eyes to see who Jesus is in all His Glory and Majesty today.