The heart of the Gospel message.


 Augustine speaks to a young friend, reminding him that Paul says we can only be saved by faith, and not by good deeds.  You see, Augustine says, we need a mediator in Jesus Christ, having given his precious blood for the sake of any in mankind that would only believe!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

faith, teachings of the natural world, look here haters, a visage marred; nations sprinkled

"Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than Godly edifying which is in faith."   Our Lord uses the world to teach us, and in the world, our teachings, our textbooks and classroom that we too take up, each day. "Display me as a token for the good; that they which hate me may see it, and be ashamed, because thou hast helped me and comforted me, O Lord." Psalm 86 "...his visage was more marred than any man,  and his form more than the sons of men; so shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him; for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider." -Isaiah 52
Read more

A word in season, to him that is weary: via Isaiah.

The spirit of the letter is quickened unto the prophet Isaiah: "Come down, and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon. Sit on the ground: there is no throne, O daughter of the Chaldeans: for thou shalt no more be called tender and delicate. Thou saidst, I shall be a lady for ever: so that thou didst not lay these things to heart, neither did remember the latter end of it. Thou that art given to pleasures, that dwellest carelessly, that sayest in thine heart, I am, and none else beside me; I shall not sit as a widow, neither shall I know the loss of children." "I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and the shall become drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine: and all flesh will know the Lord is the salvation and redemption." "And to the believer? Where is the bill of they mother's divorcement, whom I have put away? Of which of my creditors have I sold you? For iniquities, you have sold yourselves. When I came was there no m...
Read more

The wheat and the chaff.

I speak these things to you through a glut of faith, knowing full well having received the grace of God in ways without measure. Faith assures of one thing:  not in regards the drinking of alcohol, or the marrying of one woman, or tossing teacups or petticoats in pews or planting George Washingtons like apple seeds. Faith assures us that an implacable, indifferent universe which part and parcel of the Lord our God is good. 100%. In doubt, the absence of God, we are, in fact, in a theological version of hell, that which is enunciated so graciously in textbook language to reflect a great myriad of troubles. A world of troubles, but a world imbued with a some small piece of faith that propels one over and above such unmerciful. We have all, indeed, received mercy, just as all have sinned(Romans 3:23): and not merely that the just have received mercy, or the faithful have received mercy, but included are those which exist in the impolite corners of the inner regions of hell, including ...
Read more