The Big Discovery [by David, former Presbyterian]

Journeyof ImperfectSaint.blogspot.com ^ | October 4, 2009 | David

[Salvation]

Sunday, October 4, 2009

The Big Discovery

        I made some good friends outside my church and found out that they were all Catholics.  Now, I did not know much about Catholicism at the time.  By the way, the Mass did seem somewhat mysterious to me externally.  In fact, what little I had heard from other church members was all negative.  There was a Mrs. J at my church, who had just retired from her missionary post in China.  She was such a kind and endearing soul to all.  One day she got back from visiting someone at a hospital and looked extremely sad and disturbed.  It turned out that when she got to the hospital room, she saw that a Catholic priest was already there with the patient.  Now the question was if the patient would ever get to heaven. 

 

        Nevertheless, my Catholic friends all looked quite normal and happy.  Then could the Catholic Church, the largest church in the the world, be in error?  It so happened that at that time I was also beginning to question my Protestant faith.  The fact that there were numerous different denominations around the world bothered me.  Also, as a Protestant, whether you're a minister or lay person, you are free to marry and divorce any number of times.  It's hard to see that Jesus would be happy with these two facts.  Since I am the kind of person who always likes to find the answer to any question that's important, I decided to look into Catholicism.

 

        I made up my mind not to talk to anyone about my investigation.  I was single then and had a lot of free time to myself.  The local public library housed an excellent collection of books on Catholicism, so I started borrowing books on the subject.  I read every weekend, even taking notes as I read.  The went on for over a year.  I read all those books that viciously attack the Catholic Church too, but somehow they did not affect me much because I sensed that these attacks could not have been prompted by the Holy Spirit.  The books that really helped me were the ones on early Church history.  I could see that the continuity was there and the beliefs and practices of the early Church had been preserved to this day in the Catholic Church.  The only conclusion I could come to was that the Catholic Church was indeed the church Jesus had come and established.  Like Christ himself, the Church, being his body, must be accepted (or rejected) totally, with no middle ground. 

 

        Here's some advice for those who seek the truth.  Your chances of success will greatly improve if, first, you start out with a completely open mind and secondly, go to the source(s) directly to get the facts.  Many who misunderstand the Catholic Church today have already made up their mind that the Church is wrong, thus never bothering to pick up a copy of the Catechism of the Catholic Church to find out what the Church really teaches.  This is being close-minded. 

[one Lord one faith one baptism]

“Play your childish game with someone else...I’ve already posted enough information to you for clearly understand my position on the Trinity...”

i have never met a TRUE CHRISTIAN who would pass up the chance to proclaim his or her faith in the One True Triune God. hmmmmm...............

[Iscool]

5. the same Church that picked the 27 book NT canon, also chose the 46 book OT canon. why look to the spiritually blind Jews who rejected Christ to determine the OT canon? the Septuigant, which was the Bible of the Apostles, contained all the books in the Catholic Bible.

Act 7:38 This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:

Rom 3:1 What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit is there of circumcision?
Rom 3:2 Much every way: chiefly, because that unto them were committed the oracles of God.

So you are saying don't believe and trust God or His inspired scriptures...Trust your religion instead...

Gen 3:1 Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?

Get thee behind me, Satan...

[one Lord one faith one baptism]

yes, thank goodness the FALSE PROPHETESS ELLEN G WHITE showed up in the 19th century to bring the Christian world out of 1,800 years of darkness.

[Jvette]

Forgive me if you are dyslexic and cannot see that the last words of that verse are and ALL HIS HOUSE.

You have made accusation against me throughout this thread, and this again for the second time.

I posted the verse and I posted the ENTIRE verse not excluding anything.

I am done having a dialogue with you as I am done with being attacked for something I haven’t done.

BACK IT UP OR TAKE IT BACK

[Jvette]

Yeah, that’s the ticket attack, denigrate, insult and deny.

Well, I have seen every single one of these in this thread and it is the pattern for any conversation with a certain prolific group of NCCOUOUDOB* and when I have suffered through all four, I am done.

Attack the Church as pagan, denigrate the Catholic believer, insult his intelligence or mental capabilities and deny what was written in the first centuries following the death of the Apostles.

Yep, I’ve now seen them all in this thread.

Congrats for a stupendous and unmarred record of predictability.

I am done with this thread.

[Iscool]

ALL HIS HOUSE believed on Jesus Christ...Everyone under the roof and on the patio believed on Jesus Christ...Therefore, there were no unable-to-believe babies there...

[Jvette]

I’m done with you and with this thread.

I have no interest in any conversation with you on any subject until you admit your unfounded accusations and apologize for them.

[metmom]

SUNDAY WORSHIP and lengthy diatribe = legalism.

Romans 14:1-12 As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. 2 One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. 3 Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. 4 Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

5 One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7 For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. 8 For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's. 9 For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.

10 Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; 11 for it is written,

“As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.”

12 So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.

[metmom]

Attack the Church as pagan, denigrate the Catholic believer, insult his intelligence or mental capabilities and deny what was written in the first centuries following the death of the Apostles.

Just like Catholics do to non-Catholics.

It's easier to dish it out than take it, eh?

[editor-surveyor]

You and this Ellen White seem to have a symbiotic relationship. Unfortunately You have me at a disadvantage WRT to Ellen, since I have no knowledge of her spiritual heart, lacking the close relationship you and she apparently had.

I’ll pass on your game.

Can we go to the written word?

[Jvette]

*****It’s easier to dish it out than take it, eh?*****

I have been nothing but respectful and responsive to those who have posted to me in this thread.

Link to any post where I have been otherwise. You will not be able.

Just another baseless accusation and attack.

[editor-surveyor]

>> “care to name any Christians in the first 400 years who kept the 7th day sabbath?” <<

.
Let’s stick with the ones listed in God’s word:

John, Peter, Paul, Timothy, Luke, the congregations of Corinth, Thessalonica, Ephesus, Galatia, Phillipi, and Colosse.

Every instance in the epistles written to these churches was a celebration of one of YHWH’s appointed feasts, or had you noticed that fact?

The only gatherings mentioned that were not on a feast or sabbath, were to collect money, which was forbidden on a sabbath.

Try actually reading these epistles for meaning, to capture the story being told. The Holy Spirit carefully assured that the only writings that would survive were about the feasts and sabbaths, isn’t that interesting?

[editor-surveyor]

There is not even one single mention of “sunday” worship mentioned in the word.

There are two firat day gatherings mentioned, one being the “coming together” on the first day of the seven sabbaths, right after the resurrection, which was an ancient tradition empowered in Leviticus, and the other was a taking of a collection for the poor congregation in Jerusalem, which had to be done on a regular work day because it was forbidden to handle money on a sabbath.

“Sunday” is truly Baal’s day.

[metmom]

Hebrews 10:24-25 24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

There is no Scriptural injunction to go to church, or go once a week, or any of the things that we've added to Christianity to turn it into churchianity.

It's holding to a form of godliness but denying the power of it.

Christians are to transformed by the renewing of their minds and that comes through Bible study and prayer and intimate, personal communion with God.

If the way someone thinks isn't changed, the way he acts isn't going to change either.

Psalm 119:11 I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.

[one Lord one faith one baptism]

ok, let’s stick to the written Word.

please show me in the NT where any Gentiles, who had no history of keeping the Sabbath, were ever told to keep the 7th day Sabbath.

[one Lord one faith one baptism]

i see you are busy posting, have you forgotten your promise to back up the different rites of the Catholic Church differences in salvation doctrine?

or will you admit you were wrong?

[one Lord one faith one baptism]

Christians don’t celebrate the feasts anymore and never have for one simple reason:

they were types and shadows pointing to Christ. CHRIST HAS COME, THE NEED FOR TYPES AND SHADOWS WAS DONE AWAY WITH.

for example, the feast of first fruits was fulfilled when Jesus rose from the dead on the feast of first fruits.
Jesus is the reality, the feast pointed to him.

We celebrate His death for our salavation in the manner He Himself established, the Eucharist.

[Cronos]

1l1f1b — I’ve posted above instances where the poser has pretended to be Catholic. At other times there are pretences of being some type of Christian or the other. But then there are long periods of silence during Ramzan or otherwise....

[count-your-change]

Fake Catholics and closet Muslims? Right. Now why didn’t I think of that.

[Iscool]

But then there are long periods of silence during Ramzan or otherwise....

I always stay quiet during Ramzan ( is this guy for real? )...