Posted on 03/20/2015 10:50:55 AM PDT by NYer
The wisdom of God can satisfy the greatest intellectual and the dumbest laborer. He speaks to the heart (which, per Pascal, "has its reasons which Reason knows nothing of).
Quotes you can cherry pick from anywhere. In the end Christ established ONE Church, the rest are all counterfeits.
Aha! You, my friend, are one of the reasons why I don't post certain threads. The purpose of this forum is not to read a title which can be titillating but lacks substance. That is provided by the content which details actual facts. Several times I have come across comments which were obviously based on a title whereas the content was quite different and the poster's comments made no sense. Why bother to post comments based on a title? It's pointless.
In answer to your question, however, those symbols result when your computer does not recognize or interpret certain fonts. Failing a comparable equivalent, it places those symbols on your screen.
In answer to your question, however, those symbols result when your computer does not recognize or interpret certain fonts.
But I read the title to see if I want to read the thread or not, if it don`t interest me there is not much point in me reading it. any way I appreciate the explanation.
Again, what you offered is OUR sacrifice to the Lord and the blood of animals is not to be eaten for it is the blood which gives life to the animal and ingesting it is akin to taking the life of that animal within you.
Jesus, the Lamb of God, is God’s sacrifice FOR us and His blood is life giving. When we partake of the cup, as He told us to do we are taking into us His life, as He planned for us to do.
There is no comparison between Jesus and a goat or a sheep or a lamb and the laws God laid down for their sacrifice have nothing to do with the the perfect sacrifice, Jesus.
Merely throwing out a verse here or there does not do justice to what the Word of God reveals to us. It is not that it limits us, but it limits God.
There is no getting around what Jesus said and did. That He even said that we should eat His flesh and drink His blood was a sin when taken in the context of the verses you cite.
But, say it He did. God did not contradict Himself nor did He go against His own law as revealed to us. What He has done is replaced our imperfect sacrifice with HIMSELF, the perfect and eternal sacrifice poured out for our eternal life.
There was a political “Protestantism” that was state-centered, so we’re not discussing the same thing here.
Corinthians 11:19: For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.
The truth doesn’t come out by suppressing differences. In fact it comes out by them flourishing so that thereby that which God approves He confirms.
The problem is that as far as the RCC is from much truth as revealed in the Bible many other Churches are further even yet. When we finally get it together over the full truth that is revealed in God’s Holy Word then He will be able to confirm us as He has never done before. That will be great.
Right now, though, the RCC is in great fault as it can cause it’s people to miss out in salvation. Salvation comes only through the person of Jesus Christ. It cannot come by being a member of a church and keeping it’s practices. This is not made clear to Catholics. Many are still on the tread mill of works and do not have the peace of their salvation. They are hoping to get to heaven someday based on being good Catholics and doing enough works. This is very, very sad. At least many Evangelical Churches know how to lead their flock into salvation through Christ, His finished work alone.
No, salvation comes by following the Word of God. And God set up a single Church to insure a uniform interpretation and One truth given to Peter and his successors. This truth is acknowledged not only by a vast constellation of brilliant Catholic theologians from Augustine to Aquinas to Newman to Benedict XVI but also by a long list of distinguished Lutheran theologians who have converted to Catholicism. We can’t have every Tom, Dick, and Harry cracking open the pages of the Bible from Al Shaprton to Joel Osteen to every corner street foursquare Church Christian pastor offering us his/her definite interpretation of God’s Word. There cannot be multiple truths.
Christ counseled obedience to authority and also maintained that all authority comes from God. Protestants have rebelled against God's Holy Church and rebellion does not come from God. It is true that salvation comes through Christ and yet Christ maintains that ALL will be judged according to their deeds. Many pay Him lip service and pay no heed to his teachings.
Just because someone claims to be the one (don't they all and have their ever so good seeming reasons for claiming so to their adherents) doesn't make them so. Just thinking or claiming that yours is the oldest and has the best authorities doesn't make it so either. With that reasoning the people who put Christ to death should have been followed and believed over Him. After all they were the ancient authority. They prove that often the established ancient authority is exactly the one that is desperately wickedly religious. They couldn't understand who Jesus was because they were blinded by their religion. So are many, if not most Catholics blinded by their “authoritive” ancient religion. They can't understand that religion cannot save anyone. Only the person of Jesus Christ can.
It is by grace and only by grace that anyone can be saved. To be saved means that you have been born again. It means that you have been translated from the kingdom of darkness into God's glorious kingdom of light. It means that you have taken a sip of living water and you will never thirst again. It means that your heart of stone has been changed into a heart of flesh. It means that your sins have been washed away by the blood that Jesus shed for you as their payment. It means that behold all things have become new. It means that you are a new creation in Christ Jesus. It means that you have eternal life. It means that Jesus will never leave nor forsake you.
All of this you possess. You are not earning it. It has been bought and paid for by the substitutionary death of Jesus Christ when he hung on the cross and died paying the penalty you owe for your sins.
You will never become saved unless God sees a sincere heart. You cannot fool Him into salvation thinking I will live like hell but go to heaven because of Jesus. God must see a sincere heart that wants to be and do what is right, one that knows it doesn't want to sin any longer. When you come to God with the faith of a child, willing to let Him be your Father through Jesus Christ then at the instant He will save you. He will wash away your sins and the Holy Spirit of God will take up residence in you and you become His temple. Then out of a new heart and overwhelming gratitude for what He has done for you you can then begin to live a productive, holy life because you are His, not to become His.
Nonsense. The Word of God is not open to interpretation by anyone and everyone. The Great Commission given to Peter and his apostles was to “Go forth and teach,...” If one can depend entirely on grace, there is no need to teach.
This was to teach ONE truth and for this purpose ONE Church was established. Before the Bible, there existed the Church with infallible teaching authority of the oral tradition an it exercised its infallible authority to assemble correctly the written canonical texts. These books in the bible did not fall from the skies and robotically self assemble themselves.
If each person follows his/he own idea of what is God’s Word we have a recipe for bedlam from the likes of Joel Osteen to the Moonies and Rev. Jeremiah Wright and everything else in between. The is why Protestantism today has fallen into such disrepair it has become a caricature depending on which congregation one belongs to. This is exactly what the Apostles from Peter and Paul tried to prevent.
“Stick with something you know.”
Ah, but they don’t know what they don’t know. All the important bits are cut out of their version. Don’t like it? Too hard? Disagree? Just snip, snip, snip!
It’s like clutching a piece of swiss cheese.
It may taste the same, but it’s not feeding as much.
Where is that church? That icon looks very familiar.
It seems you have confused me with a Catholic. It’s the Catholics who added to scripture. The oracles of God were entrusted to the Jews not the Catholics. They didn’t include the books the Catholic Church added in an attempt to justify pagan beliefs and rituals.
When Jesus came He established a new order. Not one based on the law. Not one based on a place or building, and certainly not one based on a religious establishment of any kind. He based this new order on Spirit and truth. They that worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and truth if they are to be the ones that Christ seeks.
Much of what Jesus taught was opposite of the old order which was passing away. He didn’t have this old order pass away to replace it with one of a kind.
His Kingdom is within us when we are His. It is Spirit and it is truth. This is the very thing that Christ preached and tried to get people to realize. He is The Kingdom. Each individual must come to Him that they might have life. The work of God is to believe.
Once one believes they act accordingly out of belief. Not out of loyalty to the Church (not even the real church, which is His body made of believers in Him) but out of faithfulness to Him, because they love Him, believe Him and above all else, trust Him. That is what faith is, not adherence to a particular Church or denomination. It is having a living faith in Jesus Christ that directs and shapes your life. There isn’t a dichotomy between faith and works, but works do not create faith, but rather true faith brings forth works. Those works are a privilege to partake in, but they do not and cannot save, for only Christ Himself, personally can save. Come to Him with a sincere heart and ask Him for salvation. He will once and for all time save you. Then you can begin to serve Him as a child of God, not because you hope somehow serving Him will cause you to become accepted by Him.
1 John 3:1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
2Thessalonians 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:
1 John 5:13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
16 Then Simon Peter answered, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.[2] 17 And Jesus answered him, Blessed art thou, Simon son of Jona; it is not flesh and blood, it is my Father in heaven that has revealed this to thee. 18 And I tell thee this in my turn, that thou art Peter, and it is upon this rock that I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it; 19 and I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.-Matthew 16:16-19
Sounds like he established a church with Peter as His Keeper of the Keys.
Much of what Jesus taught was opposite of the old order which was passing away. He didn’t have this old order pass away to replace it with one of a kind.
He was His Father's Son and said that He did not come to abolish the law, but to fulfill it.
There isn’t a dichotomy between faith and works, but works do not create faith, but rather true faith brings forth works. Those works are a privilege to partake in, but they do not and cannot save, for only Christ Himself, personally can save. Come to Him with a sincere heart and ask Him for salvation.
Much of what you say is well said but I do have one caveat and that is that Christ tells us that we WILL be judged according to our deeds.
Way back in the OT Abraham wasn't under the law as we aren't. He paid his tithe to Melchizedek who was most obviously the preincarnate Christ. There wasn't a Temple nor a Church. There was God, Abraham and Melchizedek. It is after the order of Melchizedek that Christ is our High Priest. Not after the order of the Aaronic Priesthood.
Jesus let the woman at the well know that worship would not be centered at a given place or really in anything earthly, but rather would be in Spirit and Truth, which has no locality nor denomination but is purely in the Spirit and the truth. He didn't say wait and the center for worship will be in Rome and will be in an organization called the Catholic Church with a Pope as it's head.
Think about the message to the seven Churches in the book of Revelation. Each Church was treated as a separate Church and government. Each Church would be accountable to God as a Church. There isn't any reference at all to a central Church organization that all or any of the seven were accountable to. Each Church was accountable to Christ it's head. Each Church had it's own independence. There wasn't mention of any central Church nor any mention of Mary as being paramount to their worship. There wasn't a Catholic Church. This is very obvious to those with eyes to see.
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