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> Shifting topics a little, note something about all the verses you cited. The verses that support salvation by faith alone all seem to be given in the writings of Paul: Romans, Ephesians, Titus, and so forth. Yet the other set of verses all appear in the gospels -- Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, all of which concern the times prior to Christ's crucifixion, when the rules of salvation were necessarily different. Throughout history, God deals with mankind in different ways, perhaps so that, at the end of all things, God can show how mankind, as a race, was given every possible chance: in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve could not blame their rejection of God on their sinful natures, because they were born with out them. Moses was given the Law and thus began a time when men could be right with God by following a hard-fast set of rules. In the age we are in now, all we have to do is believe. In the age to come, "the devil made me do it" won't be an excuse, nor the corruption of human governments: Satan will be bound in the depths of hell, while Christ reigns physically on Earth. The end of each period (I skipped a couple in early Genesis) is marked by a rebellion against God, a failure on the part of the whole human race, to submit to God's rules for that time, and there is a judgment and renewed blessing, where God tries something else to given men a chance.
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> My point in all this? It is important to understand that while ALL of the Bible is profitable for learning (and other things: see II Timothy 3:16), it is important to understand that not all of the Bible is specifically addressed to us. Whenever there is a doctrinal difference, you have to defer to the part of the Bible intended for the times in which we live.

I can honestly say that I don't understand this argument at all, so I apologize in advance for getting your position wrong as I try to respond to it.

You say that the words of Christ from the four gospels concern the time prior to the crucifixion, but is Jesus really laying down teachings that will only be applicable in the few months before his death? I understand that the gospels *take place* before the crucifixion, but they were written after it, for poeple living in a post-Resurrection world. I don't see how the writings of Paul, which, in the scheme of things, are hardly predated by the Gospels at all, could be a better source. Besides, (and I'm sorry for using the same passage over and over again, but it just drives home the point for me so well), God in Matthew 25* doesn't seem to be passing judgment on the segment of humanity that lived at a certain time or place; he gives a pretty clear standard for all humans that have ever lived or will ever live.

I am forced back to the conclusion that I am simply misunderstanding your position, because to me it seems you are stating a position incompatible with a literal interpretation of the Bible. Maybe you can clarify your original point a little?

Bal"*miss-cited Matthew 25 as 26 in the last post I think"anthalus