What does the Bible say about faith being assurance of pardon and everlasting life?  It says:  “If God be for us, who can be against us?  He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?  Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect?  It is God that justifieth.  Who is he that condemneth?  It is Christ that died, yea, rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.  Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.  For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord” (Rom. 8, 31-39); “I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day” (2 Tim. 1, 12).

Here we rest our case.  If Luther was wrong in teaching the justification of the sinner by faith, without the deeds of the Law, then Paul was wrong, Jesus Christ was wrong, the apostles and prophets were wrong, the whole Bible is wrong.  Catholics must square themselves to these texts before they dare to open their mouths against Luther.  If Luther was a heretic, the Lord Jesus made him one, and He is making a heretic of every reader of the texts aforecited.  Rome will have to answer to Him.

But what about the answer of the Lord to the rich young man?  What about the commandment to be perfect?  Does not the doctrine of justification by faith alone, without the deeds of the Law, abolish the holy and good Law of God?  Not at all.  When Paul expounds to the Galatians the doctrine of justification by faith as compared with justification by works, he arrays the Law against the Gospel, and raises this question:  “Is the Law, then, against the promises of God?” His answer reveals the whole difficulty that attends every effort to obtain righteousness by fulfilling the Law, he says:  “God forbid:  for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily, righteousness should have been by the Law.” (Gal. 3, 21.) Christ expressed the same truth when He said to the lawyer:  “Do this, and thou shalt live.” (Luke 10, 28.) The reason why the Law makes no person righteous is not because it is not a sufficient rule or norm of good works by which men could earn eternal life, but because it does not furnish man any ability to achieve that righteousness which it demands.  No law does that.  The law only creates duties, and insists on their fulfilment under threat of punishment.  It is not the function of the law to make doers of the law.  Originally the Law was issued to men who were able to fulfil it, because they were created after the