Are Catholics saved or even christians?

I agree. It seems that people have no problem with compromising the gospel that was once delivered.

Rom 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

What is the gospel of Christ? There is only one.

 

I was addressing Soulman's claim that it was completely about works for Catholics.

The Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification also can not be ignored where it appears Catholics now agree with sola gratia.

 

So, if they're so insincere as to affirm Catholic teaching every time they take the Eucharist, how do you know that they are sincere when it comes to telling you what they believe?

OK. Complete this verse for me: "Broad is the way that leads to _______". I'll give you a hint: the answer is found in Matthew 7:13.

No. The Bible is very clear that there are certain core doctrines one MUST hold to in order to be saved.

Simple: you pick up a history book and the Didache and look at what the church taught. ((And don't let Catholics fool you into thinking that the Didache is a "Catholic book".))

You're making the false assumption that the church prior to the Reformation was the same as the modern day Catholic Church and taught the same things.

Remember, the Reformation began as a defense against the political corruption and heretical doctrines that were creeping into the church, not against things that already existed in the church.

 

I believe that in the interest of all concerned that you should list those cardinal doctrines that ONE MUST BELIEVE IN ORDER TO BE SAVED!

 

The posts on this thread show the danger of man believing that he is the author of his own salvation. Some have blithely consigned a billion or so people to the lake of fire.

 

The two most relevant to this topic are salvation by faith alone, through no work, ritual or merit of the individual and the sufficiency of Christ's atonement.

 

No, God consigns them to the Lake of Fire.

 

I agree completely. I am concerned that the Baptist Churches take in children that first of all I don't believe are accountable and second are old enough to understand what sin and salvation are. But some on this thread are saying that in order to be saved we must hold strictly to all Biblical Doctrines.

 

While I agree with you that this doctrine is right and there is a lot of scripture to support this. I guess the question is where does it say in scripture that believing this doctrine is a requirement for salvation?

 

So you are speaking for GOD now! Then we should see very soon that list those cardinal doctrines that ONE MUST BELIEVE IN ORDER TO BE SAVED!

 

I agree! There are some on this Forum who have questioned my salvation because I am not a dispensationalist or called me a heretic because I believe in the Sovereign Grace of GOD in Salvation.

 

Amy.G

The Scripture you quote states that the gospel of Christ: is the power of God unto salvation. It does not say that anyone else has the ability or power to save anyone. I noted in an earlier post that Salvation is a supernatural transaction between GOD and an individual.

 

While many folks around these parts knock ecumenicalism and I agree that there can be problems with ecumenicalism, I think ecumenicalism has played a major role in the Catholic church becoming more in line with protestant theology over the last 50 years. This still needs to trickle down from the top to the actual level of individual parishes and parishoners, but these things take a while with an organization as large as the Catholic church. They've come a long way since the 1500s and I think it is in large part from Christians putting in the hard work to be obedient to Christ's prayer in John 17 and Paul's urging in Ephesians 4 despite the animosity between groups over deeply held issues.

 

I shall pose a question. I grew up in the Church of England. The Common Prayer Book states that "baptism rids the soul of original sin........" I came to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ during my Confirmation classes at age 13. If I had remained in the Anglican Church, would my salvation be in question because the Common Prayer Book says that baptism (sprinkling) washes me of original sin?

Cheers,

Jim

 

Jim

When I was a young believer and thought that salvation was a cooperative effort between God and man I believed that those in some communions were unsaved because they held beliefs that were not what I considered Biblical. As I matured and God showed me that Salvation was entirely His work I had to give up that foolish belief.

I still believe that there is error in other communions just as I disagree with many things Southern Baptists do. But the foolish errors of man cannot undo the work of God in Salvation else I fear that many would be lost!

OldRegular

 

I agree.....................

 

Sure thing, so am I.

Well show me in the New Testament where salvation happens only when a person can give a point by point doctrinal outline of their understanding of justification.

Show me, seriously. It isn't there.

You don't need to know that the Baptist view of justification is the imputed nature of Christ's righteousness that provides, in a punctiliar act, the grace of God in the life of someone who has confessed and believed Jesus Christ.

To be saved, according to the New Testament, you must have faith in Jesus Christ and confess Him as Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead. That is it.

 

Well since you know my friends better than, and seem happy to question their character, I'll let you judge them.

By broad view I mean I believe more than Baptists are going to be saved. I believe you can be Methodist, Lutheran, non-Denom, Catholic, Presbyterian, Episcopalian, etc and be saved.

So we must be able to doctrinally qualify in order to receive God's grace?

Show me where, in the NT, someone must be able to fill out the appropriate theological questionaire for the Holy Spirit to come into their live.

Also, if I don't believe certain "core doctrines" and am saved, will I lose my salvation?

While some aspects of Roman Catholic doctrine have undergone change through the councils (like Vatican I and II) most of their core doctrine remains pretty unchanged.

Oh I completely disagree with this. Tetzel was pretty well established in the Roman Catholic Church. The practices of indulgences and papal infallibility were also well established.

So what do we do with the millions and millions of faithful Christians who happened to live in times before Baptists existed?

 

If a person is saved, they are a christian, if a person is a christian they are saved, they are the samething.