To be saved, you must believe in the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 16:31). However, that's not all. Sacred Scripture clearly shows other things you must also do to be saved:
The only Church that meets all the requirements of Salvation is the Holy Catholic Church.
- You must endure to the end. Matthew 10:22, Matthew 24:13, Mark 13:13.
- You must accept the Cross (suffering). Matthew 10:38, Matthew 16:24-25, Mark 8:34, Luke 9:23, Luke 14:27.
- You must be baptized with water. Mark 16:16, Titus 3:5, I Peter 3:20-21.
- You must be a member in God's true church. Acts 2:47.
- You must confess your sins. James 5:16, I John 1:9.
- You must keep the Commandments of God. Matthew 5:19-20, Matthew 7:21.
- You must heed the words of St. Peter, the first Pope. Acts 11:13-14, Acts 15:7.
- You must eat the flesh and drink the blood of Jesus Christ. John 6:51-58, I Corinthians 10:16, I Corinthians 11:23-29.
- Our justification comes from the grace of God. Grace is favor, the free and undeserved help that God gives us to respond to His call to become children of God, adoptive sons, partakers of the divine nature and of eternal life. CCC 1996, John 1:12-18, John 17:3, Romans 8:14-17, 2 Peter 1:3-4.
11 comments:
I seems that you have narrowed it down that the only folks that will be with our Lord in Heaven are those that are members of the RCC.
Still praying for you my friend in Christ Jesus. Lloyd
Dear Lloyd,
We will be praying for you when I attend my Rosary group next Thursday
I understand what you are saying. I agree with all, except the one where I must belong to the RCC, in order to be saved. The scripture you cited tells about the saving of at least 3000 souls. At that time in history, many off shoots of Christianity were trying to blend with the pagan beliefs. To belong to the 'True church' meant to belong to the unadulterated teaching of Christ.
Thank you Michael, I can use lots of prayers. Also, pray for the millions of Christians that are in the same predicament as I am...Not a member of the RCC. God bless, Lloyd
When did the Church established by Jesus Christ get the name Catholic?
Christ left the adoption of a name for His Church to those whom he commissioned to teach all nations. Christ called the spiritual society He established, "My Church" (Mt. xvi, 18), "the Church" (Mt. xviii, 17).
In order to have a distinction between the Church and the Synagogue and to have a distinguishing name from those embracing Judaic and Gnostic errors we find St. Ignatius (50-107 A.D.) using the Greek word "Katholicos" (universal) to describe the universality of the Church established by Christ.
St. Ignatius was appointed Bishop of Antioch by St. Peter, the Bishop of Rome. It is in his writtings that we find the word Catholic used for the first time. St. Augustine, when speaking about the Church of Christ, calls it the Catholic Church 240 times in his writings.
Not all Catholics will go to heaven, but all who go to heaven are Catholics. How? Those who die as non-Catholics, if at their last moment convert, they are baptised by the Lord Himself, become Catholics, and enter heaven.
Now this "last moment" can be anytime. It can be a split fraction of second after the hospital's EKG goes flat. Therefore, even though other people around the deceased's deathbed consider him to die as a Protestant/Muslim/Hindu/Buddhist/atheist, who knows? Maybe he goes to heaven as a Catholic! Thanks to the Lord's mercy.
While I adhere to the Church's teaching Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus, and I fully support evangelization to non-Catholics, I really don't think we should judge others in this matter; that's God's prerogative. We sow the seed, we plow the soil, we add the fertilizers, but in the end it is God who grows the plants.
Outside the Church There is No Salvation
The following is a summary of the teaching of the Magisterium Church, and of the Church Fathers and Doctors, on the dogma expressed in the words, "Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus." Further details, arguments, and explanations can be found at the blog, Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus, from which much of this material has been summarized.
In brief, the Church's understanding of this doctrine is that all who are saved receive the grace of salvation in and through Christ; this grace always contains a reference to Christ's mystical body, the Church, and brings the justified person into a mysterious contact with that Church.
Hence also, those who know God's plan to save men as members of his mystical body, are obliged to be united to this Church, and commit a grave fault by rejecting it.
But those who are, without their fault, unaware of this plan of God, can be saved without belonging visibly to the Church, and only united to it through the mysterious bond of grace and charity working in their soul, which unites them spiritually with all who have grace, unites them with the Church.
In this sense they are saved in and through the Church; without belonging to it in this sense (Extra Ecclesiam) they would not be saved.
This doctrine sort of sounds like what the LDS church does for those who are not members... They call this doctrine, "Baptism of the Dead". Does the RCC also have this doctrine? Just curious. God bless, Lloyd
Baptism of Desire:
That doesn't mean that only those who have been formally baptized can be saved. From very early on, the Church recognized that there are two other types of baptism besides the baptism of water.
The baptism of desire applies both to those who, while wishing to be baptized, die before receiving the sacrament and "Those who, through no fault of their own, do not know the Gospel of Christ or His Church, but who nevertheless seek God with a sincere heart, and, moved by grace, try in their actions to do His will as they know it through the dictates of conscience" (Constitution on the Church, Second Vatican Council).
Baptism of Blood:
The baptism of blood is similar to the baptism of desire. It refers to the martyrdom of those believers who were killed for the faith before they had a chance to be baptized.
This was a common occurrence in the early centuries of the Church, but also in later times in missionary lands. The baptism of blood has the same effects as the baptism of water.
I'm sorry, but I have to disagree with you. Yes, the scriptures you quoted are correct, but it seems you have left out a VERY IMPORTANT one, ACTS 2:38. Repent, (turn away from your sins and don't do them anymore)everyone of you in the NAME OF JESUS CHRIST for the remission of your sins,and you SHALL receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. This is God's command to the Jews who had crucified Christ. asked Peter how they were supposed to be saved. It didn't say anything about joining the Catholic Church. The 'TRUE CHURCH' are those who believe in Christ's Doctrine. Acts 4:12 says when talking about Jesus Christ, Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men,
whereby we must be saved. Anyway, I didn't mean to get on a soap box, but it does seem like you completely left out one of the most important books and scriptures for Salvation. Being saved is a lifetime journey. Yes, it was a gift because He gave it to us, but He bought us with the price of His blood and therefore expects us to Live for Him, have a relationship with Him and abide by His Words. We have to live for Him to stay saved. Oops! There I go again. Sorry, I just get reved up when someone tries to say that their religion is the only ones going to heaven. Don't forget, the Jews are actually God's Chosen People according to the Bible, we Gentiles (anyone other than a Jew) is grafted into the family. We are all now considered to be in the family of God, (those of us who believe in and live for God. Jesus is the way, the truth and the light and we have to believe on Him to be saved. That is the ONLY WAY we will get to heaven. It doesn't matter if we are Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Catholic, Jewish or Jehovah Witness. We will All go to heaven ONLY if we abide by God's Word, and His Word says we must keep His commandments (do everything He tells us to do, not just the ten commandments). OK, I feel better now. Thank you for letting me get on my soap box, I just kind of lose it when someone tells me the only way I'm going to heaven is to be "their" religion. My faith is apostolic Pentecostal, but the church I "belong" to is the Bride of Christ", and His church contains all denominations as long as they believe in Him.
As you told Lloyd, I will keep you in my prayers. We all need all the prayers we can get.
God Bless,
PJ
ACTS 2:38. Repent, (turn away from your sins and don't do them anymore)everyone of you in the NAME OF JESUS CHRIST for the remission of your sins,and you SHALL receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Acts 2: 38 Peter [said] to them, “Repent and be baptized,* every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.u
ACTS CHAPTER 2
* [2:38] Repent and be baptized: repentance is a positive concept, a change of mind and heart toward God reflected in the actual goodness of one’s life. It is in accord with the apostolic teaching derived from Jesus (Acts 2:42) and ultimately recorded in the four gospels. Luke presents baptism in Acts as the expected response to the apostolic preaching about Jesus and associates it with the conferring of the Spirit (Acts 1:5; 10:44–48; 11:16).
u. [2:38] 3:19; 16:31; Lk 3:3.
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