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Faith without works is dead... Remember??
Correct. It's not faith in my works.
Again, MANY things are associated with the divine gift of reliance on the justifying works of Jesus who IS THE SAVIOR. Your mistake is to assume that all things associated ergo have the identical purpose. I own a Subaru Forester. It has an engine and a radio. There is no such thing as a 2018 Subaru Forester that does not have an engine and a radio, a radio and an engine - in this vehicle, they go together, they are associated. But it is illogical (and silly) to assume that the function of both is to propel the vehicle and relate pretty music. Reliance on Christ's saving work AND responding with our work are BOTH important (as all Christians agree) - indeed inseparable - indeed we are justified not simply for heaven but for OUR good works, indeed we are loved also so that we will love - friend, no Christian on the planet Earth disputes that, no Christian in human history has disputed that - the issue is whether OUR works justifies us (making Christ irrelevant). THAT is the issue that tore apart Western Christianity 500 years ago (and it remains split on that issue). Luther rejected the Pelagian, synergistic teachings of the Indulgence Sellers as they horribly violated the Council of Orange and Scripture - and he was excommunicated for it and the RC denomination split itself in order to preserve the teachings of those Indulgence Sellers.
I see you seem to like to do what some modern Catholics do..... evade and dodge the issue before us by running to the issue we all agree up (and always have). Both Lutherans and Catholics went to GREAT lengths to note that we AGREE on what comes AFTER we have faith - life - the Holy Spirit, what we are to do WITH those (what in theology is often called Sanctification in the narrow sense, the CHRISTIAN life), you saying "the Christian should....." is nice, but no one disagrees, no one ever has. The issue is the attaining of that faith, life, Holy Spirit (what in theology is often called Justification in the narrow sense).
Now, at times, you seem to want to say you agree with the Protestant position (which I find curious) - yet every time any Protestant presents the Protestant position, you debate it, rebuke it, etc. even while often saying exactly the same thing Protestants do but stressing you radically and fundamentally disagree with it while stressing that you agree with it. And then when our resident Catholic also rebukes the Protestant position (as he must to be Catholic) you appear to agree with him while indicating you agree with the Protestant positiion while you rebuke the Protestant position. I keep calling you back: Who is the Savior (in this sense of narrow Justification - the GIVING of mercy, spiritual life/birth, the Holy Spirit)? If you answer JESUS then welcome to Protestantism. Now OF COURSE, obviously, undeniably, unquestionably, that's the STARTING POINT of a lifelong process of growing, loving, serving.... of becoming more Christ-like, more holy, more righteous but then NO ONE ON THE PLANET EARTH has ever disputed that, that's never been the issue, as the Catholic Church itself so stressed. As Lutherans so stressed. As Calvin so stressed.
Without contending Faith has no life...
No Christian in all of human history has ever remotely contented such an absurd thing. The dispute is over the attaining of life not the living of it.