Baptism Frees Depraved
The doctrine of depravity teaches man is depraved under the curse of original sin until baptism frees them so that they can do good and move forward toward sanctification. Catholics and many protestants taught man could do no good at all before baptism frees us from the curse.
Catholics insist we are then saved by works through our sanctification. Sanctification of the Spirit is actually belief in Christ's blood.
Catholics have it backwards, baptism is when the Spirit indwelt us, it did not change sin from the natural man. The Holy Spirit gives us a spiritual outlook, but does not change the natural man as if removing the concept of original sin.
2Th 2:14 Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2Th 2:13 But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:
Sanctification of the Spirit is following the Gospel commands. Including baptism. It never implies sinlessness. Sanctification involves obedience leading to sprinkling of Christ's blood. It is the obedience necessary to be justified through faith, not a moral code.
1Pe 1:2 Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.
Sanctification that trusts in morals over Christ's blood isn't real sanctification. It is satanic. It puts us into mental bondage. We seek to obey in our hearts and minds, but always find sin is still present with us. Therefore, using a moral test always leads to spiritual depression
There is a difference between justified by works in Abraham's example where his works justified faith, and sanctified by works in Catholic theology. They believe the sanctified can grow to be near sinless as you put on Christ and his teachings. This is the doctrine of sainthood as you reach the state of moral maturity.
Being made holy. The first sanctification takes place at baptism, by which the love of God is infused by the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). Newly baptized persons are holy because the Holy Trinity begins to dwell in their souls and they are pleasing to God. The second sanctification is a lifelong process in which a person alredy in the state of grace grows in the possession of grace and in likeness to God by faithfully corresponding with divine inspirations. The third sanctification takes place when a person enters heaven and becomes totally and irrevocably united with God in the beatific vision. (Etym. Latin sanctificare, to make holy.)
Growing to be like God is a good thing unless we make such growth a test of salvation. If we believe our holiness is through moral change vs forgiveness through Christ's sacrifice.
Paul would write, after baptism, that sin still dwelt in his life. He also still had the corruption present in this life.
Baptism did not remove fleshly corruption. The gift of the Holy Spirit simply gave us a spiritual outlook whereby we lived spiritually.
Rom 8:21 Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
Rom 8:22 For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
Rom 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
Our deliverance from corruption is still future, and baptism was not meant to deliver us from corruption. Catholics are just as corrupt flesh wise as the day they first sinned. They are still under the law of corruption and baptism hasn't changed that. The Holy Spirit aids our infirmities, but doesn't conquer all.
Catholics believe they are superior in righteousness than all others in society and often play a psychological game, trying to convince the world of their superiority, but all Christians are still sinful. Our only hope is justification through Christ's sacrifice. Read on in Romans to see Paul's point.
Rom 8:24 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
If we believe we are saved by moral sanctification then it isn't salvation through hope. We are saved by hope.
Rom 8:30 Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.
Rom 8:31 What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
Rom 8:32 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?
Rom 8:33 Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth.
Paul teaches on going justification by Christ without us growing to near sinlessness. We are saved without Hope of Catholic sanctification. All Christians grow at different levels, but all remain sinners. There is no moral test of the Christian, teaching we must be sanctified to a certain level. All are different so there is no set law. Only faith and hope in Christ.
Christ will judge us based upon applying our abilities through faith. Man is not qualified to judge as Christ will. We can judge earthly things, but final judgment of the life of all will remain with Christ.
We will be judged according to our works, but all will be judged differently based on our talents.
Paul was still a sinner years after his baptism. Even with apostolic gifts of the Holy Spirit he had not achieved sanctification in the Catholic sense. The Holy Spirit wasn't given to grow us to perfection in this life.
Rom 7:21 I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.
The Holy Spirit empowers us to think good, but our bodies don't always comply.
Our continued sinfulness is a law of God. Nothing can make us perfect in this life. We can only hope in Christ's blood, and the future glorification God has promised.