Holy works of obedience are not useless. They validate a Christian's profession of faith in the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
However, even sanctified works of obedience are never to be added as criteria to the basis for the Christian's justification. We are forgiven our sins, by the grace of God only. Never because of our actions, decisions, lifestyle, etc.
Justification: No works
Sanctification: Validated by evidence of Holy Spirit fruit
This to me violates the logical law of contradiction. Being human, popes can only be fallible at all times.
Fine, but you must admit that it is impossible for any fallible person to form doctrine apart from infallible Holy Scripture. That your church claims the basis for the infallibity of a pope, are ex cathedra utterances, is humanly impossible, unless all your believers resort to gnostic mysticism and superstition. . . and that is not saving faith, at all.
When Timothy spoke these words, he was inspired by God to validate the canon that was to come. Such was the purpose of God, if not in linear time, but eternity. The whole of the Holy Scriptures reflect the eternal mind and purposes of God, regardless of the timetable of revelation given to men.
I Timothy 3:15 instructs Christian behavior during worship, but surely you do not give divine authority according to being bodily found within a tangible product of mens' hands?
No, the church of God is a spiritual, organic body of believers, made without hands by God. Mark 14:58, Colossians 2:11 A body built upon Jesus Christ (Matthew 16:18); of which He is head. Ephesians 1:22, 5:29-32; Colossians 1:18
Thank you for your kind words, and in full disclosure, I must tell you that I am a female poster . . and for that reason, I will be very hesitant to venture much further in conversation with you, for fear I will be accused of unbiblicly attempting to correct a man in spiritual matters.
I offer the above post only as voicing my Reformed Protestant understanding of the differences between our two beliefs, and giving contextual basis for my holding to the Five Solas.
Nang, I appreciate your logical approach to discussion. And I am honestly enjoying it. Thank you, kind ma'am.
"Holy works of obedience are not useless. They validate a Christian's profession of faith in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. However, even sanctified works of obedience are never to be added as criteria to the basis for the Christian's justification. We are forgiven our sins, by the grace of God only. Never because of our actions, decisions, lifestyle, etc." I agree completely. There is no point in here we are in disagreement over. I think the reason you might consider a conflict is due to preconceived ideas on what I believe (I could be completely wrong on this assumption, if so, forgive me). I do not think any work is useless. Rather, I argue the opposite. It could be a simple misunderstanding. We all receive forgiveness by the grace of God. All actions are of value.
When you say "This to me violates the logical law of contradiction. Being human, popes can only be fallible at all times," I would have to argue it. There is not really a flaw of logic on my part. When you imply that all humans are fallible at all times, that would mean that every quote and action is debatable. Which itself goes against logic. If you say "Trump is president," I cannot retort "Well Nang is fallible." You have spoken truth, no? So to burden every human with constant fallibility is a removal of ability and truth. I assure you, I know what you intended (I think), but the method of proof was slightly flawed.
If I may add on to the previous point, could a man (in this case, the Pope), by the grace and blessings of our Lord, not produce infallible doctrine?
On to your next point....
"....you must admit that it is impossible for any fallible person to form doctrine apart from infallible Holy Scripture." My rebuttal here is two part, so bear with me. 1.) As stated above, is it not possible, by the Grace of God, to produce an infallible work? 2.)How do you, Nang, know that Holy Scripture is infallible? (If you desire to answer this, I will extrapolate on this point further)
Next....
"When Timothy (I think you meant, Paul) spoke these words, he was inspired by God to validate the canon that was to come." This seems logical on the surface. However, can you prove this? More accurately, can you prove this
infallibly from the Scriptures? I do not mean utilizing Scriptures, I mean, a passage that demonstrates concisely that that is what happened when Paul wrote these words.
When you speak of the Body of Christ, or the church, the verses you utilized, were not helpful to your points. For instance, Mark 14:58 is about Christ raising Himself, Body and Spirit, from the dead. So naturally, His Body would not be "made with hands." Colosssians 2:11 is speaking of baptism, not the church. Matthew 16:18 leads to a whole different discussion all together, so I won't touch on that one.
The church of God is a physical building. Just as divinity can be found within a tangible product of mans hands (a church building). For this we can just examine all the examples of tents and temples in the Old Testament. God was physically present in them, not just "in spirit." For example, at the dedication of Solomon's Temple, God appeared in the alter room.
Finally, never fear of being accused of anything such as "unbiblically correcting a man." As you said, men are fallible. Not just males, but females also. So I can be wrong. Trust me, it happens. You can correct me all day long. My wife is one of the most biblically educated people I know. I never even get annoyed when she corrects me. She is the reason I am as rooted in my faith, as I am. (that and my passion for knowledge and God) I may say some point or argument of yours is not logical, or biased, but that comes with discussing doctrines and theories. And I agree with your point addressed to another user, where you say that Catholics and Protestants disagree on two Solas, being Sola Fide and Sola Scriptura. You are completely accurate there. Just for the record.