Posted on 10/05/2013 10:09:16 PM PDT by jodyel
Rescuing Precious Souls from the Bondage of Religion
We can be wrong about a lot of things in this life and still survive, but if we are wrong about the only way to obtain forgiveness from God, we will pay for that fatal mistake throughout all eternity. Our Creator provides only one way to redeem man from sin and He has revealed it in a divinely inspired message to mankind. However, it didn't take long for God's complete and perfect Gospel message to be corrupted by religious leaders. These men, who say they speak for God, have distorted and perverted this good news of God's mercy and grace. Their unstated goal has been to control people by keeping them in legalistic bondage to their authority. The Lord Jesus revealed the only way of escape from this bondage. He said: "If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:31-32).
Establish the Supreme Authority for Truth
Reaching those who are being held captive by religious indoctrination must always begin by establishing the Bible as the supreme authority for knowing God's Gospel. Christ and His Word must rule over man's religious traditions because God has exalted His Word above all things (Psalm 138:2). The word of God is infallible and has no equal (Isa. 55:10). The Bible is the most authoritative, influential and powerful book ever written. It is the standard for discerning truth from error(1 John 4:6). It is sufficient to function as the sole, infallible rule of faith (2 Tim. 3:14-16). The Bible does not refer us to any other rule of faith because everything we must know,understand and believe to be reconciled to God is found in Scripture (1 Cor. 15:1-4).
Whenever we are confronted by two or more opinions, we must always ask, "But what does the Scripture say?" (Gal. 4:30).
What About The Traditions of Men?
Roman Catholics reject the supreme authority of Scripture by elevating their tradition to the same level of authority. They defend their position by quoting St. Paul who wrote: "Stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by letter from us" (2 Thes. 2:15). But we must make a distinction between traditions which had already been taught by the apostles in the first century and the traditions established by men over the last 1900 years (2 Cor. 11:2 ; 2 Thes. 3:6).
Clearly there are certain apostolic traditions recorded in Scripture that Christians must embrace, but not all traditions are biblical. Paul encouraged us to make this distinction. He wrote: "See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ" (Col. 2:8). Paul is warning us that we can become ensnared by the traditions of men when they do not conform to Christ and His word. Tradition must always be subservient to Scripture because God's word is divinely inspired while tradition is not.
What About "Infallible" Men?
Roman Catholics also reject the supreme authority of Scripture by elevating its "infallible" bishops to be equal in authority. In practice, the bishops actually sit above Scripture by declaring no one else can give an authentic interpretation of the Word of God (Catechism of the Catholic Church, para. 85). Yet the Apostle Paul commended the Bereans (who were not bishops) for interpreting the Scriptures to verify the truthfulness of his teaching. "Now the Bereans ... received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true" (Acts 17:11). It is quite clear that the apostle, who penned over half the New Testament, encouraged his listeners to submit to the supreme authority of the Hebrew Scriptures. The veracity of every man's message must be tested with the same Scriptural authority.
Getting the Gospel Right
Once the supreme authority of Scripture has been communicated to Catholics who are enslaved to another authority, the Gospel of God can be heralded. It is wise to present God's Gospel in contrast to Rome's plan of salvation so Catholics can discern the difference. The distinction between the two gospels can best be described as the difference between divine accomplishment and human achievement. The true Gospel describes what God has done through Jesus Christ to save sinners, while the gospel of Rome describes what man must do for God. Paul defines the Gospel according to Scripture alone (1 Cor. 15:1-4). The glorious Gospel of grace is what one perfect man did 2000 years ago to reconcile sinful man to God. It has nothing to do with what any imperfect man has done since, or is doing now. This eliminates all the requirements Roman Catholics have added to the finished work of Jesus Christ. It also eliminates Catholic priests making daily sin offerings on their altars.
Catholics Are Totally Dependent Upon An Illegitimate Priesthood
One of the most controlling elements of the Roman Catholic religion is its indoctrination concerning the priesthood. Each Catholic is taught that their salvation is utterly dependent upon the ministry of their priests. According to the unbiblical teachings of Rome, it is the Catholic priest who baptizes infants for their justification and spiritual birth, the priest who hears confession and demands penance as the satisfaction for sin, the priest who dispenses Jesus in the Eucharist, the priest who imparts the Holy Spirit in the sacrament of Confirmation, the priest who gives Last Rites, and the priest who offers the sacrifice of the Mass for souls suffering in purgatory. What a fatal deception!
There is no longer a need for priests offering sacrifices for sin because by one offering Jesus Christ has perfected for all time those who are sanctified (Heb. 10:14). At the very moment our Lord Jesus gave up His Spirit on Calvary's cross, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom (Mat. 27:51). The veil that separated sinful man from the Holy of Holies was ripped open, and now, anyone washed by the blood of Christ can come boldly into the presence of God. When Jesus, our High Priest, offered Himself once for all sin for all time, he made the sacrificial priesthood obsolete. Every believer in Jesus Christ has been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all (Heb.10:10).
The illegitimacy and obsolescence of the Roman Catholic priesthood is also expressly noted by the sovereign and exclusive work of the triune God in saving sinners. It is God the Father who chooses, calls and draws the lost to His Son (John 6:44; Jas. 2:5). The Holy Spirit convicts them of their sin and the coming judgment (John 16:8-11). Jesus Christ is proclaimed through His Word as the only way of salvation (John 14:6). God gives life to those dead in sin and grants the sinner repentance and faith (Rom. 4:17; Eph. 2:8-9; 2 Tim. 2:25). Jesus exchanges His righteousness for the sins of the believer (2 Cor. 5:21). The Holy Spirit seals, indwells and empowers the justified believer (Eph. 1:13-14, Rom. 8). The Father adopts, secures and glorifies His children (John 1:12; Rom. 8:30). Clearly, God alone is deserving of all glory! (Rom. 11:36). He alone is worthy to be praised!
Peter expressed the bondage that enslaves religious leaders who exchange the truth of God for the fatal errors of men. He wrote: "Speaking out arrogant words of vanity they entice by fleshly desires, by sensuality, those who barely escape from the ones who live in error, promising them freedom while they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved (2 Pet. 2:18-20).
How Can We Rescue These Precious Souls?
Paul provides the answer! "The Lord's bond servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged,with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will" (2 Tim. 2:24-26). We must take note of the correct way to approach those who are being deceived by the clever, scheming, and subtle lies of the devil. We must lovingly confront them with gentleness, patience and humility and avoid being quarrelsome or argumentative. As we correct them, we must use the Scriptures and avoid giving our own opinions, experiences or philosophy. Saving faith comes from hearing the Word (Rom. 10:17).
Liberty from the bondage of sin and deception is found only in Christ. The Father sent Him to preach the Gospel to the poor, to proclaim release to the captives and to set free those who are downtrodden (Luke 4:18). Jesus also came to give sight to the blind because a veil of spiritual blindness covers every man's heart. However there is one condition that must be met: Paul declares: "whenever a man turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away" (2 Cor. 3:16). This means turning from fallible men and their traditions and turning to Christ and His infallible word!
God is so STINGY with His forgiveness, He won't forgive anybody who doesn't get it JUST RIGHT!
However, it didn't take long for God's complete and perfect Gospel message to be corrupted by religious leaders. These men, who say they speak for God, have distorted and perverted this good news of God's mercy and grace.
Jesus was so stupid, He didn't make provision to protect billions and billions of people from getting His message ALL WRONG and therefore going to HELL!
Reaching those who are being held captive by religious indoctrination must always begin by establishing the Bible as the supreme authority for knowing God's Gospel.
Which is why Jesus never once mentioned to any of his disciples that they should WRITE? Not once. He instructed them to teach and to baptize, but never mentioned writing anything. That's peculiar, if their WRITINGS are the ONLY way for people to know the gospel.
If it is true that ONLY Scripture is the source of truth about God, then necessarily that doctrine must be found in Scripture. (If it's not in Scripture, then it's a human tradition.)
It is not in Scripture. Therefore, it's an extra-biblical tradition. Which means that the doctrine of sola scriptura, not being in Scripture, is self-contradictory.
Each Catholic is taught that their [sic] salvation is utterly dependent upon the ministry of their priests.
False.
Sorry.
No sale.
Bible is a book by men. Some of the Bible contains some hard core propaganda. The Devil quotes the Bible.
Know the Bible but listen to your heart.
Maybe we can generally agree that the man has a valid point in this: We need to sup on God’s Word, mainly, as opposed to being blown and tossed by every wind of doctrine. His conclusions after having thus supped are, as anyone else’s, up for debate.
Mat 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
Mat 7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
(e-Sword:KJV)
Jesus was so stupid, He didn't make provision to protect billions and billions of people from getting His message ALL WRONG and therefore going to HELL!
Mat 23:15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.
If it is true that ONLY Scripture is the source of truth about God [...]
The OP did not say 'ONLY', nor does sola-scriptura. 'Supreme authority' is not 'only'. Try again.
I think you cavil a bit finely when you complain that Jesus “never told a disciple to write.” And so? Jesus also never told a disciple not to engage in buggery, either. What we see in our modern bible is a small but adequate sample of a biography which could easily fill an encyclopedia. In general, “Go and make disciples” would entail writing when that was the medium that made sense. And it turns out that some of those disciples are made through the writings, centuries after the writings. The writings fulfill their purpose.
One ought to look at the context of the verses. The gospel went over like a lead balloon among the Jews. That could possibly be “the few” being referred to. The gospel later got a much heartier reception among the gentiles, who didn’t have a long religious tradition to be proud of and be a stumbling block. At any rate it is the Shepherd who can (and will, if believed upon) get you through the narrow gate. And no matter what other things you also mistakenly believe, if you’ve come to the Shepherd and the Shepherd has you, you’ll get through the gate — maybe it will be a painful journey as he yanks you out of the waters, but you’ll get through it. That has nothing to do with a sign over a worship building. (Sometimes I have to chide Protestants that they aren’t being Protestant enough, that they dip into Catholic beliefs that the doctrine saves you... nope it’s the Person of Christ. Protestant doesn’t mean being a better flavor of Catholic.)
Of course the gospels do not contain every word Jesus ever spoke. And, of course, Jesus did not repeat EVERY teaching of the Jewish faith when those would never be questioned by his audience, such as the Old Testament’s moral teachings.
My point was that it seems improbable that, if God willed that ONLY writings were to be the source of our belief, that those writings themselves would make no mention of that fact.
The Scriptures themselves (the NT) do not contain any statement of the doctrine of sola scriptura.
http://banneroftruth.org/us/resources/articles/2011/a-divine-swagger/
What is it that so disturbs unbelievers about some Christians? Why are the nations in an uproar and why are people devising vain things? (Psa. 2:1-2). It happened with Jesus. Repeatedly the Pharisees were enraged at his words and actions (Mark 2:16, 3:6, 12:13; John 8:59, 10:31). It happened with Stephen as he made his defence before the Sanhedrin. They stoned him to death (Acts 7:54-60). It happened repeatedly to Paul. Everywhere he went, especially on his first missionary journey, he was beaten and jailed (Acts 13, 14). Jesus told us to expect it (John 15:19). So did Paul (2 Tim. 3:12).
Thanks for posting anyway.
http://banneroftruth.org/us/resources/articles/2011/a-divine-swagger/
What is it that so disturbs unbelievers about some Christians? Why are the nations in an uproar and why are people devising vain things? (Psa. 2:1-2). It happened with Jesus. Repeatedly the Pharisees were enraged at his words and actions (Mark 2:16, 3:6, 12:13; John 8:59, 10:31). It happened with Stephen as he made his defence before the Sanhedrin. They stoned him to death (Acts 7:54-60). It happened repeatedly to Paul. Everywhere he went, especially on his first missionary journey, he was beaten and jailed (Acts 13, 14). Jesus told us to expect it (John 15:19). So did Paul (2 Tim. 3:12).
http://banneroftruth.org/us/resources/articles/2011/a-divine-swagger/
What is it that so disturbs unbelievers about some Christians? Why are the nations in an uproar and why are people devising vain things? (Psa. 2:1-2). It happened with Jesus. Repeatedly the Pharisees were enraged at his words and actions (Mark 2:16, 3:6, 12:13; John 8:59, 10:31). It happened with Stephen as he made his defence before the Sanhedrin. They stoned him to death (Acts 7:54-60). It happened repeatedly to Paul. Everywhere he went, especially on his first missionary journey, he was beaten and jailed (Acts 13, 14). Jesus told us to expect it (John 15:19). So did Paul (2 Tim. 3:12).
The Protestant claim (which I have found empirically true) is that the biblical writings are enough to be a spiritual salvational witness link from the 1st century church that wrote them, to modern disciples. Of course there is work of the Holy Spirit being performed here too. Protestants hold that you don’t need to have a physical organizational link to that early church to be brought into the universal church. In fact the way John the Baptist warned the Jews that God could raise sons of Abraham out of the stones, so that basically the physical sons of Abraham shouldn’t get haughty about their lineage, seems to warn against trusting in physical organizational links.
However it remains true that Christ’s audacious promise that the church would not become extinct, kept saving faith alive in the Catholic/Orthodox complex when it was the only game in town.
I am a kind of a weird Protestant, a Crazy Evangelical, who acknowledges genuine saving faith in Christ in all the three branches of modern Christendom. Because it is the Person who saves. I regard the places that Christian worship communities fall down as tragic and sad, but they do not snuff out Christ’s promise.
“Know the Bible but listen to your heart.”
Listen to the bible and engrave it in your heart.
James 1:26 If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain.
James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.
I've wondered for some time how it's possible, as some people seem to think, to use "religion" as sort of a Bad Word while taking these scriptures seriously.
To me, it's like reading "Rescuing Precious Souls from the Bondage of Hope" or "Rescuing Precious Souls from the Bondage of Humility." Of course, not everything labeled with a Good Word is a good thing. As the example of "hope" well illustrates, an abusive twist on a good thing may be sadly easy and even popular. In such a case, though, why throw out the good thing in response?
“Protestant doesn’t mean being a better flavor of Catholic”
Agreed, HTR!
A crazy Evangelical???
Do tell! lol
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