Biblical Injunctions in using Material Wealth to Gain Grace
Proverbs 16:6
“By kindness and piety guilt is expiated,
and by the fear of the LORD man avoids evil.”
Daniel 4:24 (27)
“Therefore, O king, take my advice; atone for your sins by
good deeds, and for your misdeeds by kindness to the
poor; then your prosperity will be long.” NAB
Sirach 3:30
“Water extinguishes a blazing fire:
so almsgiving atones for sin.”
Tobit 4:10-11
“Almsgiving frees one from death, and keeps one from going
into the dark abode.
11 Alms are a worthy offering in the sight of the Most High
for all who give them.” NAB
Sirach 12:3
“No good will come to the man who persists in evil
or to him who does not give alms.”
Sirach 29:12
“Store up almsgiving in your treasure house,
and it will save you from every evil”
Matthew 6:2
“Thus, when you give alms, sound no trumpet before you, as the
hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets,
that they may be praised by men. Truly, I say to
you, they have received their reward. 3 But when you
give alms, do not let your left hand know what your
right hand is doing …”
Luke 11:40
“You fools! Did not he who made the outside make the inside
also? 41 But give for alms those things which are
within; and behold, everything is clean for you.”
Tobit 12:8-9
“Prayer is good when accompanied by fasting, almsgiving, and
righteousness. A little with righteousness is better
than much with wrongdoing. It is better to give alms
than to treasure up gold. 9 For almsgiving delivers
from death, and it will purge away every sin. Those
who perform deeds of charity and of righteousness
will have fulness of life”
This passage from Tobit speaks of the expiation of sin through
faithful works done in love (almsgiving) - another
clear reason why Luther had to throw it out. because
he claimed Faith Alone covers our sins. But let's
look at how the NT deals with this.
Acts 10:3-4
“About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an
angel of God coming in and saying to him,
“Cornelius.” 4 And he stared at him in terror, and
said, “What is it, Lord?” And he said to him, “Your
prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial
before God.”
Remember, this Cornelius was a Roman centurian who was God
fearing in that he respected the God of the Jews,
but did not yet know Christ...yet God still
recognized his almsgiving.
Acts 10:31
“Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your alms have been
remembered before God.”
1 Peter 4:8
“ … love covers a multitude of sins.”
Luke 16:9-13
“And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of
unrighteous mammon, so that when it fails they may
receive you into the eternal habitations. … 13
You cannot serve God and mammon.”
So, we need to ask, Does the Bible teach we can buy grace ?
NO !
These verses do not explain this point, yet we know from the
greater context of Christian teaching that we cannot
buy grace.
It is the disposition of the heart that God cares about. See
Widow's mite
Mark 12:41-44.
The Catholic Church has always required that a person confess
with his lips - receive the Sacrament of
Reconciliation or called Confession - and receive
God's forgiveness of all mortal sins before
obtaining an Indulgence.
This sacrament was clearly required at the time of Martin
Luther, (as it has always been.)
This sacrament requires contrition on the part of the sinner,
and a firm and heartfelt commitment to amend one's
life.
So, the defense of how these Bible verses above do not approve
of the selling of grace, can also be seen as to
apply to the Catholic Church's teaching on
indulgences.
Indulgences and grace were never sold by the Catholic Church,
and she has never taught or proclaimed otherwise.
Articles :
A Proof That The Catholic Church Did Not
Sell Indulgences
Indulgences : Important Distinctions
What Does It Mean to Sell Grace ?
Why Would a Person Need Grace, or an Indulgence,
For A Sin Already Forgiven ?
Correction of Indulgences’ Abuses and
Misunderstandings
|