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Forsaking Rome
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FORSAKING ROME: THE MOTHER OF ALL CHURCHES VS BIBLE BELIEVING EVANGELICAL CHRISTIANS

Throughout the centuries, there have been many writers trying to explain the differences between what the Roman Catholic "Universal" Church organization promotes versus what Bible believing Christians believe and teach. And I know there are numerous periodicals, papers, books and printouts which may far exceed what I outline here, but as a former Roman Catholic, I feel it is my duty to highlight 10 basic-life changing reasons, why people in the Roman Catholic faith should forsake Rome. If the sincere, godly born-again Roman Catholics, (and there are a few of them) would just consider the Holy Bible and the Holy Spirit as the absolute authority on the earth, then I think they could find "true faith in the Word of God (Jesus)(The Real Jesus)". For the life giving pastures of Scripture based obedience, which is "by faith" in the written word of God and the Living Son of God, can bring freedom and true spirituality to the soul, who is bound by religious works or form. Now it should be apparent to all who are observant, that we are living in the perilous last days that the Apostle Paul wrote about in 2nd Timothy 3:1-5. But there is also a little hint of what could be described as the Roman Catholic Church in verse 5 which reads: "Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away". This may sound a little harsh, but let’s examine the 10 basic yet profound disagreements that the Roman Catholic Church has against what the Holy Bible teaches. With this being said, let’s examine in order, the major differences between the Roman Catholic tradition and what Bible believing Evangelical Christians live by.

  1. The Authority of the Scriptures-The Holy Bible
  2. The idolatry of Statues, relics, images and the Crucifix
  3. The Priesthood of Roman Catholicism-and celibacy
  4. The Eucharist-and the adoration of the Eucharist or Host
  5. Prayers offered to Saints/others to intercede for them
  6. The idolatry of the blessed-ever virgin-immacculately conceived, bodily assumed Mary, the mother of God, Queen of Heaven.
  7. Infant Baptism, Confirmation and Church membership
  8. Salvation through works, and not by Faith alone
  9. The rosary, the rites and the garb of Priests and nuns
  10. Limbo, purgatory, suffering, and prayers for the dead

Point 1: The Authority of "The Scriptures"-The Holy Bible. The three main points I would like to draw your attention to are these, Are the writings of the Roman Catholic Bible the same as the King James Version of the Holy Bible? And is what’s written in the Holy Bible the final authority of how a person governs his life coupled with the indwelling Holy Spirit, or is the consensus of the Roman Catholic Hierarchy equal to or superceding to that of Divine Writ. Are there willful or malicious changes to a key Scripture text like in the Ten Commandments, or the addition of the Apocrypha?

To answer all these points in one quick glance is hard to do, but there is a major difference between the Catholic Bible and the king James version. First of all, the 2nd of the Ten Commandments found in Exodus 20:4-6 says this: "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments". In some Roman Catholic Bibles, they have all but deleted the 2nd Commandment, and divided the 10th Commandment into two parts. Secondly, there are the books of the Apocrypha added to the Old Testament, as if to say that these books are Divinely inspired, and can be considered God Breathed. These first and second points are important because God says we are to live by every word that proceeds out of His mouth, and that all Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for Doctrine etc. Matthew 4:4 and 2nd Timothy 3:16. And if one governs his or her life by what the Scriptures say, then it would be vital to have the "real" and God given texts and not the writings of men. And lastly, does the Bishop of Rome or the Pope, have the infallible ability to rightly divide the Word of God and to know and teach all it’s precepts without error? The Bible says that all men have sinned and come short of the Glory of God. How could a Pope be such a person who needs a Savior because of his sins, but be infallible on understanding the Scriptures based on election by a few Priestly Cardinals? Which brings me to my final point. Over the years, history has recorded Catholic Catechisms and lifestyles to include such errors as indulgences for sin, Purgatory, the praying to and the worshipping toward graven images and the exclusion of other Christians from Heaven who were not of their fold. And what about the ancient Greek or Egyptian philosophies that have been introduced into the Mother of all Churches, which are contrary to the basic premise of Man’s fall and sinful state? So by diluting or taking away or adding to the Scriptures, then anything and everything can be brought in, like statues, prayer beads and the belief that Man’s decisions are equal to that of the Holy Bible and the Holy Spirits unctions. The Bible gives two strong statements about the word of God itself, which should be meditated on and heeded, which are Revelation 22:18-19 and Psalm 138:2. Revelation 22:18-19 declares: "For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book". And Psalm 138:2 proclaims: "I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name". God’s word therefore, is not to be tampered with or altered. That includes the living Word of God-Jesus. Don’t teach or promote false things about Jesus, as we shall see later on in this study! Point 2: The idolatry of Statues, relics, images and the Crucifix. Both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament, God strictly forbids the fashioning of or bowing down to, and certainly praying towards a graven image.  It might interest you to know that statue’s of saints, of Mary the mother of Jesus, and of Jesus Himself hanging on a cross, constitutes a graven/fashioned image. That’s why God, who foreknew this, included the phrase "in heaven above" when warning not to fashion anything to stand before and pray to it. Let’s once again review Exodus 20:4-5, it reads: "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them….;". Now I’ve often heard it said by pagans and by Roman Catholics that they are not worshipping the actual clay image that’s before them, but to the spirit behind them, or that it’s just a mental reminder, a picture if you will, of who they are really praying to. But I would say, why do you need an image to remind you, when we walk by Faith and not by sight, especially when one calls to mind God’s edict about not bowing down or praying to images or idols. Then there’s the example in the book of Acts where men went wild and crazy when their image of the great goddess Diana was impugned, (the works of men’s hands, which can neither see, hear nor speak). There’s also the mention of the men loving the creation more than the creator and making images of them, as found in the 1st Chapter of Romans verses 20-23. "For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things". And again in Romans Chapter 11 verse 4 we see an example of God’s disdain for those who bow before godless images: "But what saith the answer of God unto him? I have reserved to myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal". And Baal was considered one of Satan’s chief devils at the time. And lastly, from the New Testament again, from which we live, there is the final deception of the end times where the powers of Satan will come to deceive the people in our day. In which there shall be a graven image coming in the future, where the devil in all his lying wonders and power shall deceive the world through an image. Revelation 13:15 proclaims: "And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed". This is why the extreme danger and willful disobedience of what the Roman Catholic Church does is so bad. They are so practiced at standing in front of, and reverencing before craved graven images, that a lot of them when confronted with an image that could suddenly speak, fall down and worship before it. But what saith God to such persons that would do this?  Revelation 14:9 says: "And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,". And verse 11 goes on to say: "And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name". So the best thing to do, is to heed the advice and the Commandment of the Scriptures when it says: "Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen" 1st John 5:21. Point 3: The Priesthood of Roman Catholicism-and celibacy. Now this is perhaps the second most important reason why born again people should forsake Rome. Beside changing the Word of God-The Holy Bible, the Roman Catholic organization believes that have the right to reinvent and pervert what was "once" the Priesthood of God, as found in the Old Testament. And just as in the Old Testament, where God exacted the official Priestly garb and uniform, the Roman Catholic Church-"without Divine order or writ" created official garb for their priests and nuns to wear. (As if this were to somehow say: "this is a Divine piece of cloth or this is the official "Christian" clothing ordained by God. But regarding the Priesthood of the believers, the Protestants cling to the understanding that every born again person either is or shall be a king or a Priest unto God by virtue of these texts from the book of Revelation Chapters 1:6 and 5:10. "And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen". And "And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth". Therefore we, who are born again of God’s Spirit, need not an earthly Priest to intercede for us, for Jesus alone is our Great High Priest. We do need however, teachers, Pastors, Evangelists, Prophets and Apostles; but an Old Testament type Priest to intercede for us, we do not need. I say this because in the Roman Catholic belief system, the "Priest" performs certain functions that cannot be obtained by the laity. The Roman Catholic Priest is the only one who can intercede for others in the Confessional booth, listening to and then absolving another persons sins by the authority vested in him by the Pope. The Catholic Priest is the only one who can baptize persons-therefore joining them to the church-therefore saving their souls from hell-by mere inclusion into the Roman Catholic Church. The priests from Rome are the only ones who say prayers for the dying, by which to give them the last rites or a chance of Salvation. The Roman Priest is the only one who can consecrate a Mass, by which the people hear the word of God from their Bible and to receive holy communion. And it’s this point of all points, that the break down and failure occurs. The entire existence of the Roman Catholic Priesthood and religion is based of those things, which I outlined above, and the whole reason the people come together is to celebrate the Mass or Eucharist or Host or body and blood of Jesus. I believe through what the Scriptures say, that every born again person, being a king or Priest unto God (according to the Scriptures in the New Testament) can spiritually and scripturally do all the things that the Roman Catholic Priests can do, and there is no difference. But the whole reason that the Catholic Priest’s office exists is to celebrate the Eucharist. Without this divine magical power to change the common unleavened bread and ordinary wine into the actual body and blood of Jesus, the Catholic Priesthood would have no legitimacy. So what do we do? Does the Roman Catholic Priesthood "which is the mother of all churches" have the magical power ordained in Scripture by God have the ability to change the physical elements of the Communion service into that which God alone imputes unto the recipient? For if as the Protestants do, take Communion just as the Apostles did at the Last Supper, then where is the ordination of magic? Where does the changing occur? And if God imputes the actual essence of the Body and Blood of Jesus while the Christian recipient takes the elements in Faith, then where is the need for a Priest to convert it? Jesus said as often as ye do this, do it in remembrance of me. So the pattern was set, Jesus gave to the Apostles-(who were not Roman Catholic Priests) the right and ability to take unleavened bread and a sip of ordinary wine-or the grape juice of the fruit of the vine, and said to take and eat of it-this is my body and blood, then as they did it, they did it in obedience to His Word and that He would impute its significant essence to them. And as a side note, the Scriptures in Titus and the other Epistles, where there is mention of Bishops, Deacons and the other five fold ministerial titles, which are given so by the Laying on of hands by the presbytery. Now these things were being done by local church bodies in every city where the Apostles ventured out, long before Roman Catholicism began, which started in 381 AD under Constantine. Point 4: The Eucharist-and the adoration of the Eucharist or Host. The main three points I wanted to highlight about the Catholic Eucharist were these. Jesus is in Heaven, sitting on the Right Hand of God the Father Almighty. Jesus does not descend back to earth at the beck and call of every Roman Catholic Priest when he lays his hands over the unleavened bread and wine. And secondly, that we are to worship God in Spirit and in Truth as also saith the Holy Scriptures, not a piece of unleavened bread or a chalice of wine that a mere man says are the body and blood of Christ. This work of Communion is a spiritual work that God does to every believer who takes the elements into his body-which is by faith. Faith, that God will impute this work of life giving essence to that believer, reaffirming what Jesus said when He said, if you do not eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His Blood, you have no life in you. Just as the born again believer asks God to wash away his sins by the blood of Jesus and just as that person believes that God washes away his sins by the blood of Jesus in a very spiritual way, so it is that God imputes the recipient of the Communion elements as if it were the actual body and blood of Christ when done in faith. Why else are we to examine ourselves before receiving it? Or that we receive it with humility and reverence and inward reflection. Why else have some "fallen on sleep" who partook of the elements without first considering the importance and spiritual dynamic which was at hand? It does not take the magical powers of a Roman Catholic Priest to change ordinary wine and unleavened bread into Christ’ actual essence, because this is a work of the Spirit of God, and not of Men. In principal, I’d like to ask you to remember what the Scriptures said about God’s altar or sanctuary, knowing that these things are done by God and not man. And in like manner, the receiving of the Communion elements and the imputation thereof, is also done by God and not man. So let’s look at two Scriptures that detail God’s attitude towards Man keeping his hand off the holy things of God. Exodus 20:25 declares: "And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it". And again in Hebrews 8:1-2 talking about God’s sanctuary: "Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man". So as it relates to all the intercessory things that the Catholic Priests are charged with doing that lay people cannot do, it virtually holds those people hostage from obtaining the things of God that are given so freely by Jesus who purchased them for us. It would also mean, that every man would be dependent upon another man, to receive the life giving essence of the Communion elements, baptism, salvation, forgiveness etc, when God wants every born again believer to come to Him in faith and obedience freely-the veil now being rent in twain, not depending upon another man or intercessor to bring them life again. But as strange as this may sound, I have heard of many cases where the lay people in the Catholic religion, will spend their time sitting with a piece of unleavened bread, changed into the body of Christ by a Priest, in a sort of vigil. They take turns in two hours shifts, leaving their homes sometimes at 4 a.m., going up to the church, and sitting with a round piece of unleavened bread, believing in their hearts that Jesus has descended from on High, and is present in that bread. This they say is to spend time with the very presence of Christ. This, my beloved brothers and sisters, is not Jesus. It is pure and simple ignorance and idolatry.

Point 5: "Prayers offered to Saints and others to intercede for them". Where shall we begin with this one? There are again three main points to this topic, which are: prayers, saints and intercession. Prayers are to be made to God alone. Jesus sits on the right hand of God the Father Almighty, ever living to make intercession for us. The Holy Ghost also intercedes for us, as recorded in Romans 8:26. "Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered". So with the Holy Spirit of God praying for us, and with Jesus praying for us, why should we condescend to mere redeemed men in Heaven to pray for us, as if two thirds of the godhead isn’t enough. Praying to Mary or other saints in Heaven, as if to curry favor from them, is rather a slap in the face to God, who knows those things you are asking before you ask it (Matthew 6:8). "Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him". In regard to being called Saints. This is not a title of merit, to where a person lives a holy life, produces Divine miracles and is well thought of. For all Christian believers are "called to be saints". It is in nearby Greece not Rome, where the Apostle Paul makes this statement in 1st Corinthians 1:2. "Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:" This really does mean, truly and for sure, that if you are born again, and have Jesus Christ sanctified in your heart as a true believer, then you are "called" and "titled" as a Saint. And lastly, in regards to intercession, we are to pray for one another, and lift each other up in prayer to God. But it is never mentioned in Scripture, that we are to pray to a person that has died a physical death, to pray to God for us on our behalf. For in the Law of Moses, such communication is strictly forbidden and is an abomination. Deuteronomy 18:9-12 exclaims: "When thou art come into the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee". Necromancy is communication with the dead. But you would say, Jesus was human and He died. But then I would say He is the cornerstone of all Christian belief, that He rose from the dead and is alive again, being seen by many in Israel after His Crucifixion. Not only that, but Jesus is God, not a man of flesh that needed to be saved or redeemed. There are also 3 other quick Scripture references about the relationship between the living and the dead that need to be heeded, which are: Leviticus 19:28 "Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD". Leviticus 21:1 "And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto the priests the sons of Aaron, and say unto them, There shall none be defiled for the dead among his people:". Deuteronomy 14:1 "Ye are the children of the LORD your God: ye shall not cut yourselves, nor make any baldness between your eyes for the dead". Don’t intercede to dead people, even to redeemed dead people who are currently residing in Heaven. Pray to God the Father, in the name of Jesus, by the power of the Holy Spirit. Point 6: "The idolatry of the blessed-ever virgin-immacculately conceived-bodily assumed-Mary, the mother of God, Queen of Heaven". My friends, it may surprise you to learn that in some quarters of the world, the blessed-virgin Mary is revered to the point of Co-Redemptrix, the Queen of Heaven, perpetual virgin, mother of all graces. There have been many countries in this world which have allowed the Roman Catholic veneration of Mary, to the extent of prayers and worship. There are many reports from many countries where images and statues of Mary have been seen leaking fluid, or "crying". There have been some people in the last few years, even self described "visionaries" that claim she is speaking to them or through them. Again, the communication with the dead is an abomination to the Lord your God. In Europe, there is one country that has dubbed the blessed-virgin as the "Queen of Heaven" and almost all Catholics call her the Mother of God. But what does the Scriptures say about the Queen of Heaven?  In Jeremiah 7:8 God says: "The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto other gods, that they may provoke me to anger". But in Jeremiah 44:17-19 we see more clearly, that such practices that the Children of Israel were offensive to God. Remember, thou shalt have no other gods before the God of Heaven. Jeremiah 44:17-19 declares: "But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for then had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil. But since we left off to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, we have wanted all things, and have been consumed by the sword and by the famine. And when we burned incense to the queen of heaven, and poured out drink offerings unto her, did we make her cakes to worship her, and pour out drink offerings unto her, without our men"? So I think it’s pretty plain to see that the queen of heaven was in reality, just another one of many devils that was worshipped; no different than Baal or Ashtaroth. But, the chief problem with calling the mother of Jesus the Queen of Heaven, is that you equate her with a devil, either knowingly or unknowingly. There is no mention of her in the New Testament or Old, of doing any redemptive work, no mention of her being sired by the Father, in order to make her birth without sin. For the bloodline of all infants comes from the Father side, not the mother’s. There’s no mention of Mary’s bodily assumption into heaven, nor anywhere in Scripture that she is Co-redeemer or a person to pray to. I’ve even seen film footage of Mary erected on a cross, a cross where Jesus is on one side, and Mary on the other. I’ve seen statues four stories high of the image of Mary, and also footage in Rome and other places, where you have the Pope on one side, a Crucifix on another side and a large statue of Mary on the 3rd side. This would obviously give Mary a prominent place in the religious hierarchy of the Christian faith. But what does the Old and New Testament say about Mary? In Isaiah 7:14 we see only Mary’s task and privilege, It reads: "Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel". In the New Testament, what does the Angel say to Mary and what is her response? Luke 1:28-31 declares: "And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS". Now my friends, why am I taking such a long time on this particular point? It’s because the idolatrous worship of Mary the mother of Jesus has reached the level of saturation on a global scale. It seems that people will always want to worship anything but the real thing. But what was Mary’s response to the salutation of Elizabeth, (John the Baptist’s mother)? Mary said in Luke 1 verse 47 that she rejoiced in God her Saviour. Let’s read it in Luke 1:41-47. "And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost: And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord. And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour". So then to conclude, Mary was a virgin, she was highly favored, she was the mother of Jesus, and she needed redemption like everybody else. Firstly, because she herself said: "her soul doth magnify the Lord her Saviour", and secondly, she was born from two human parents, both containing the fallen sin nature of Adam. She "is" most likely in Heaven, she is a redeemed person, washed in the blood of the Lamb like the rest of us. But she is no Co-redemptrix, or prayer intercessor or inter-mediator , she is not the mother of God, but was the mother of Jesus who is God. She does not speak from Heaven, answer prayer or issue special graces. But I have found through my life’s observations, especially of late, that people are going to do and believe what they want to. If someone is so infatuated by the idea of the feminine god and the worship of female flesh or personage, then people are going to do it no matter what the Scriptures may or may not say. Point 7: Infant Baptism, Confirmation and Church membership. This particular point is a most sensitive one with me, because of the gross violation of Scripture committed by Roman Catholic Priests. In its later effects and consequences, it gives the young Catholic person a sense of "already" being saved. It gives a false hope and belief to those who are born into a Catholic family, without having the knowledge of the Scriptures. In the New Testament, water Baptism was always done unto those who were doing so in admission to sin, the baptism of John, a baptism of repentance. And then later on, Water Baptism was a public confession of an inward work of the Spirit, in obedience to Jesus’ call to fulfill all Righteousness. Can an infant, having no knowledge of sin, understand and accept the purpose of baptism? For in so many cases when you talk to a young Catholic teenager or adult, they will say they’ve already been baptized, (knowing only infant baptism). This would negate the need to come to the Father in repentance and to confess Jesus as Saviour, and to be born again of His Spirit. For by and large, the Catholic Church doesn’t even teach on the new birth as the Protestants do. The Catholics think they are already in the ship and onboard, by virtue of infant water baptism and church membership. I will confess however, that Roman Catholics in America, because of the Protestant influence, do teach a little on being born again, but still endorse infant baptism. Remember what the conversation was and the requirement of water baptism was in the Book of Acts? Where Philip and the eunuch were reviewing the Scriptures and talking about Salvation in Jesus?  Acts 8:34-38 reads: "And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him". And as far as John the Baptist’s baptism was concerned, there is no record in the New Testament of infants being baptized, but it was those listening to the message of repentance, and then acting upon what they heard, going forth to be baptized. Matthew 3:5-6 and verse 11 proclaims: "Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins". And "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:". Now the end result for most Catholics who received the sprinkling of infant baptism (when it should be immersion), is that they can never accurately fulfill Jesus’ Commandment.

For in Mark 16:16 we read: "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned". Believing that you have sinned and need a Saviour, is what’s required to properly repent. And submitting to water baptism after you know the meaning, purpose and significance of it, is what’s required for it to be imputed unto you. Now as it relates to Church membership in the Catholic tradition, it is pretty much like membership in all other places. Most churches, which are steeped in religious form, believe that their church or movement is only true church, and that their church is the way, the truth and the life. But confirmation of the Catholic teenager is a little different matter. Without the redemptive teaching of Jesus, and teaching that you must be born again of His Spirit in order to be saved, many Catholics fall into the trap of being accepted and confirmed as a member, thereby giving you the feeling that you’re "in" God.  Much like the Jewish Bar-mitzvah or Bat-mitzvah, the Catholics pick a certain age around 11-13 years of age, and they give them a little teaching on Catholic doctrine and faith, then have a ceremony and pray for them and lay hands on them, to certify them into the church. But is what they have learned heretofore, really that which is required to be "Born of God’s Spirit" And thereby passing from death unto life? Do they not know that their infant baptism has zero significance? It’s my personal belief that the reason infant baptism was ever instituted in the first place was because they couldn’t explain where the souls of infants and children go when they die. So they had to save them from the Judgement of original sin by baptizing them in water, in order to rescue them from God’s wrath, which was and is ludicrous. Do they know that they must know more than certain doctrinal edicts of a religious organization, but have a real encounter with the Living God? Do they know they must individually come to God in confession of their sins and cry out to Him for forgiveness by the blood of Jesus and have in the redemptive work that He alone performed for him or her? Do they know that church attendance is a commandment of God in the Scriptures, but you don’t commit a mortal sin and are in jeopardy of losing your salvation if you don’t confess to a priest that you missed a Sunday mass? No my friends, infant baptism doesn’t work, and is a gross injustice to the would-be Christian. And confirmation at the age of accountability of a young teenager, who probably doesn’t know much about the Scripture or what he’s being confirmed into, gives a false hope of confidence of salvation, especially when a person falls victim to and succumbs to the temptations of young adulthood. And Roman Catholic Church membership at the very least, has convinced millions of people over the years, that they are ok with God, when for the majority of the centuries, the new birth was rarely taught or promoted. Point 8: Salvation through works, and not by Faith alone. You know, it would be very unwise not to give the due importance to yet another point of great deception. While the American Roman Catholic Church; being so heavily influenced by the Protestants, are not quite so bad, it’s the rest of Roman Catholicism that is in such danger about the concept of good and bad works versus salvation through faith in the Son of God alone. Now I believe I’ve been inspired from the Holy Spirit to speak on this matter from a Scriptural context. For I believe the Holy Spirit showed me that the Holy Bible in the majority of its writings, is a book of morality, a set of do’s and don’ts, good over evil, righteousness over the unrighteous. And yet with all that, the difference between Salvation and entrance into Heaven, is quite different than that of moral living and righteous behavior. On this one point, there are literally dozens and dozens of Scriptures that could be used but for the sake of brevity, I’ll try to condense it to just a few. Now for the typical Catholic lay person, Church membership and infant baptism are the essential requirements for acceptance by God for a soul to go to Heaven; (that is, once their time in purgatory is satisfied). And yet there are certain texts in the Bible, which would cause a person to believe at first glance that good works will indeed grant them eternal life. Most of these same people use their own judgement to determine if the scale or balance of their deeds is sufficient. Thus, if you couple Church membership and the idea that God is a Great God of mercy, most people believe that they will be ok when comes time to yield to the clutches of death. But let’s look at a few texts that would give a novice untaught, un-churched person the idea of good works are sufficient for Eternal life. First, let’s go to the Old Testament. Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 proclaims: "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil". And Micah 6:8 declares: "He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God"? And in the New Testament we have this from the Book of Acts chapter 10 verse 35 which says: "But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him". And a number of times in the Book of Revelation we have statements like this one from the book of Revelation 20:12-13 which reads: "And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works". Now it would be easy for the untaught unlearned person to glance at a few texts from the Bible and walk away with the idea that a person’s good works will be lined up in comparison to their bad. And that they will receive their reward based on what they have done. But what is the work of God mentioned by God in the Scripture? This is the work of God as recorded in John 6:29 which reads: "Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent". And it’s this believing on Jesus and the work that He did, and receiving of His Spirit-Divine Nature, which imputes the Righteousness of God unto you. If you recall in the Old Testament, there were thousands upon hundreds of thousand of sacrifices over the years by the people unto God, to cover their sin. These were a type and shadow of Christ forthcoming work, which all sin would be washed and cleansed. But without the soul of a man or woman taking this unto him or her self, it would not be imputed. Therefore let’s see what God says in the Scriptures about this point, whether good works are sufficient for Eternal life. First from the Old Testament, Isaiah 64:6 says "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away". And now, as we go to the New Testament, John 3:16-21 is very telling on what God thinks about Jesus Christ being the propitiation for your sins. It reads: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God". There is also this from 1st John 5:12 which says: "He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life". And there’s this from John 3:3 which declares: "Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God". So by this abundance of Scriptural evidence that God desires us to not only do good works, but that He requires that our sins be blotted out by the sacrifice of His Son in faith, in order to receive remission from our sins. Then it is also plainly evident, that good works alone or good works period, cannot grant us access or entrance into Heaven upon the death of our bodies. So what does this have to do with Roman Catholicism? It has everything in the world to do with it, chiefly because the New Birth experience is not adequately taught to the average Catholic churchgoer, but infant baptism and confirmation are taught and believed on. The Sacrifice of Jesus’ life, body and consequential offering of His innocent blood to atone for our sins is not promoted or explained sufficiently, or else there would be no need for another intercessor. So while the Holy Bible definitely promotes, persuades and requires all God seekers to perform good works and to live moral lives, it unequivocally requires and demands that every soul of Man receive the blood atonement of Jesus Christ. And this can only be received by Faith in the Son of God, and through the Born-again experience. Believe me when I tell you, not all Protestant Churches teach this, and only a few Roman Catholic Churches teach this, and most of them are in America.  Point 9: The rosary, the rites and the garb of Priests and nuns. In dealing with the pray beads of the Rosary, three things jump right out at you. First, praying the Hail Mary full of grace prayer ten times followed by an Our Father, is still a prayer unto the dead. It’s prayers to Mary, and not God. It also has a Crucifix on it, which is another form of graven image, and it’s origins are from Middle Eastern Occult practices of "Prayer Beads" thinking they will be heard for their much speaking. But what does Jesus have to say about this form of praying? Matthew 6:7 says: "But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking". And then there is the motive of Priests and Nuns on TV in public chanting the Rosary, or in church with a Rosary chain hanging off them, as if to wear a badge of spirituality. But I remind you again, that praying to Mary is vain, and an abomination. What did Jesus say about this manor of praying, praying to be seen? Matthew 6:5-6 proclaims: "And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. "But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly". So to finish off the Rosary, it can only be concluded that it is an occultic practice of repetitive vain prayers said to a female redeemed person that is in Heaven. It is not the will of God that people on Earth Pray to Mary, for no answer from God the Father or Jesus can come from a prayer that is directed to Mary, the mother of Jesus, saying "pray for us sinners" "now, and at the hour our death" "Amen". If you want to be heard from on High, and want to be heard for your much speaking……Pray to God the Father alone in secret, in the name of Jesus, by the power of the Holy Spirit. As it relates to the particular rites that are exercised by Roman Catholic Priests, the ones that I have the most problem with, are Confession, Communion, and last Rites. If, as we have already established, the priesthood of the believer is for all born again people, then all born again or redeemed souls can enter into a time of legitimate confession of his sins, or partaking of the Lord’s Table and of asking God for salvation. And now, let’s talk about the Garb. From the very halls of Rome itself, the appearance is given, and the understanding is implied, that the Pope himself and all Roman Catholic Priests in all their official garb and office are the only true representative of Christ on Earth. Especially as it pertains to being an intercessor for the common man or explaining Scripture. Which means, the common man cannot ask God the Father through His Son the Lord Jesus Christ, to blot out his sin and be forgiven, that person must receive absolution from a Roman Catholic Priest. A common man cannot take unleavened bread and grape juice or wine and say prayers unto God, believing in his heart that God is imputing this spiritual dynamic to him. But no, only a Roman Catholic Priest must first convert the elements by the powers granted to him by the Pope and Church Hierarchy, then and only then, can the common man partake of Communion. And what about Salvation, whether on the death bed, or an unconscious person, or just a person wanting to be saved, the Roman Catholic Priest is called upon to administer special prayers "Rites", but the born again common man is not allowed to do this. Now I know where they get the Scriptural backing to do this, it comes from 1st John 5:16. Which reads: "If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it". But this Scriptures is directed to all born again people, not the invented office of the Roman Catholic Priest. And lastly, the ornate headquarters of the Vatican itself gives the Scripturally challenged person the idea that hey, this must be from God, look how great it is. Remember Solomon’s Temple, and how great it was? He might think in his heart the building of the Vatican must have been authorized by God, because of its grandeur? But little do they know it came from the backs of the poor, selling pardons and indulgences, in order to give the Roman Catholic religious organization the appearance of legitimacy. And what of the wardrobe worn by both Priests and nuns, is this not a direct copy of what God gave unto the Priests of Israel during their time in service? But with Catholic religious garb, there comes with it, an air of official representation and an ordained acknowledgment from above. But in the New Testament, our lives are hid with Christ in God, and we are not to let our right hand know what our left hand is doing. We are to be born again. The wind blows where it may, and you hear the sound thereof, but you don’t know which way it comes from or where it is going; so it is with those born again of God’s Spirit. These are they who want to be holy, lowly and meek. If God wanted us to have the reconstituted religious garb of the Jewish priesthood, He would have said so in the New Testament. And the celibate women called Nuns, will not be out done or left out, they too need physical affirmation and credit for their holiness.  Point 10: Limbo, purgatory, suffering, and prayers for the dead. In regard to prayers said for the dead, I hope I’ve sufficiently covered this topic in the aforementioned pages. But if you still need a little extra advice, then I will tell you that no amount of money given to lighting candles, and no amount of prayers offered for the dearly departed will make any difference. It is a vain pursuit. When the soul of a man or woman dies in physical death of his or her body, the judgement of their eternal resting-place has been irrevocably set. There is no such thing as God changing His mind, going back on His decision of how Salvation works. Salvation is granted to those who pass from death unto life, by their repentance of sins, and accepting Jesus’ propitiation, His blood atonement which washes our sins away and makes us guiltless before God which is by Faith. Salvation is not contingent upon the works of our flesh. That’s why once a person dies, he dies, and there is no amount of lighting candles, prayers to God for the dead, or serving some time in purgatory as penance, will spring a soul from hell. He or she is either immediately in Heaven or in hell upon the death of their body. Which leads us to Limbo and Purgatory. According to Roman Catholic mythology, Limbo is for very young children, but especially infants, whose body dies before they can be baptized or confirmed. The creators of these out of date and unused-doctrines, really did not know the Scriptures. For if they knew the Scriptures, they would know that God does not send babies or children to hell, but only adults who have passed the age of accountability. And as it pertains to infants and children, I’ll offer these to you: 1st John 1:9 "Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son". And Romans 4:15 "Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression". Infants and children do not transgress God’s Law, for they don’t know it. But then you might say, what about original sin? This is the reason that babies are baptized, to cover original sin. But then I would say, they have not known sin, and are guiltless. Yes, they have the sin nature of Adam dwelling in their flesh, but so did Mary the mother of Jesus. Did she sin? Does Jesus’ blood cover her? Infants and babies and children have not known sin, but are taught it later. God does not impute this unto them, much like He did not impute the sin of the children on the children in the Old Testament, but their father carried it. What about adults who have not heard about God’s law, are they then innocent of sin because they know not the law of God and thereby have not transgressed? No, for Romans 1 says that even the creation itself testifies of God, so that they are without excuse. Now as it relates to Purgatory, again, the author of that blasphemous doctrine didn’t know the Scriptures. For if a soul who has died has to spend one minute in hell or purgatory to pay for his sins, then what Jesus did on the cross was not complete and full. But Jesus said when He was dying: "It is finished" or "It is accomplished". What was accomplished? This is what Jesus did, when He, had by himself, accomplished for us Salvation, so that our own payment in purgatory is completely unnecessary and false. This is what Jesus did: Revelation 1:18 "I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death". Jesus now has the keys to death and hell. 1st John 3:8…………."For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil". Jesus defeated the one who had the power of death and destroyed it. Romans 3:21-24 "But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:". What He accomplished for us, was the ability to come freely to Him in faith, confessing our sins, being born again. Which by the way, was ordained by God the Father when He said in Romans 3:25 "Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;" So babies don’t go to a room filled with void nothingness, nor do the souls of souls of men who have transgressed go to purgatory to spend a little payback time. Nor do they go to a place of temporary suffering, waiting out their time in the act of contrition. But it’s either yeah, yeah, or nay, nay. It’s either heaven or hell for the souls of (all adult) men or women. Where there is no exclusivity, for whether you are a part of the Mother of all churches, or just a lowly Protestant. For His sacrifice was intended for the whole world as inferred by 1st John 2:2 "And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world". "Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins" 1st John 4:10. And last of all, there is "suffering" that is big in Roman Catholicism. Let me just say that the suffering that any Christian goes through, if it’s done in righteousness, does not account towards salvation, but rather towards rewards. So many times, Catholic people will equate the suffering they go through as a form of merit. The merit of Christ Jesus is the only merit that God the Father will accept. When a man or woman suffers for the cause of Christ or is tried, they are not for "brownie points" towards salvation. Suffering is only acceptable with God as it relates to glory not redemption as mentioned here in 1st Peter 2:20 declares: "For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God". It’s acceptable to God, but speaks nothing of merit towards salvation, only reward. My friends, brothers, former and current Roman Catholics, I have written a rather lengthy but simple Article outlining the Ten Points above. It’s not my intent to bring sorrow to anyone’s heart, just joyous deliverance through the Truth. If Roman Catholicism would crumble to dust tomorrow and its customers would just give Biblical (Protestant) Christianity a try, I think they’d really like it. I say this having been born and raised Roman Catholic, but now I know the truth and I’m free.  My friends and brothers take heart, take care. Follow the Lord Jesus. Believe the word of God: The King James Version of the Holy Bible. Follow the leading and unction of the Holy Spirit. Cast your care upon Him for He cares for you. If you are or ever have been held captive in the Roman Catholic religion, then there is still Time for you, there is deliverance. Just come to God in prayer, earnestly with a true heart, and be ready to die unto your religious bondage and come to new life in the real Jesus Christ..

  

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