Brothers and sisters,
I need a little help understanding the relationship between faith and works, particularily why we deny sola fide when some Bible verses seem to reject it.
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. - EPHESIANS 2:8-9
Thank you. In Christ,
Joe V.
This is a good question, which is often misrepresented by both Catholics and Protestants. I suggest reading the fifth session of the Council of Trent for a full explanation of Catholic dogma.
In summary: it is impossible for man to justify himself before God. This teaching is one of the most consistent threads in the Bible, both Old and New Testament. Salvation does not come from within us, from our human efforts. God does not need any of our works, so there is no way we could ever earn salvation. This is what Romans 4 teaches, and that is what the above passage teaches.
Faith is the key, the prerequisite if you will, to friendship with God. Without faith, we can do heroic works of charity our entire life, and the result would still be an eternity in hell.
What the Catholic Church teaches, is that once we believe, our works become meritorious. That is, by grace, Christ Jesus is working through us in whatever we do. Therefore, the Father sees our works done in Christ Jesus and we receive an increase in merit, "treasures in heaven" in the words of Our Lord.
The key distinction to keep in mind is between works done in grace, and works done apart from grace. The latter is what St. Paul refers to as works of the Law. The Jews believed that they could earn salvation by following the correct rites and slaughtering enough animals. That mentality wasn't from God though, which is why Jesus came and told the Pharisees to clean the filth from the inside of the cup, before they polished the outside.
