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One of the most effective ways to communicate the Gospel of Jesus Christ
is to ask questions. This method is highly effective
because it is biblical! It also shows people that
you care for them. Usually people don't care how much you know until
they
know how much you care. The Lord Jesus had some
hard questions for good Jews. He asked questions, not only to make His
Gospel
known, but also to expose the errors of religious
leaders.
Jesus challenged Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews,
about his knowledge of the Kingdom of God: "Are you the teacher of
Israel
and do not understand these things?" (John 3:10).
He asked the stubborn-hearted Pharisees who were blinded by religious
tradition:
"If I speak the truth, why do you not believe me?"
(John 8:46). Then He exposed how corrupt their religion had become with
this hard question: "Why do you break the command
of God for the sake of your tradition?" (Mat. 15:3). Possibly the most
important
question the Son of God ever asked was addressed to
Peter: "Who do you say that I am?" (Mat. 16:15). The response to this
question carries eternal consequences because Jesus
warned: "if you do not believe that I am [the one I claim to be], you
will indeed die in your sins" (John 8:24). These
questions must be answered correctly, not only by those lost in
religion,
but by everyone else. Following are some hard
questions to ask good Catholics.
Where do you go to find the truth about life's most
critical issues?
There is only one source that will never mislead
you, never deceive you or try to control you. It is Christ and His Word
(John
14:6; 17:17). Jesus said: "If you abide in My word
... you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John
8:31-32). Free from what? Free from the bondage of
religious deception. Knowledge of the truth is necessary to escape from
the snare of the devil who holds people captive to
do his will (2 Tim. 2:25-26). Satan uses deceitful workers who disguise
themselves as apostles of Christ to blind people
from the truth (2 Cor. 11:13-15). Knowing this, Rome defiantly declares
its
Bishops to be successors of the "apostles of
Christ." According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC),
"whoever listens
to them is listening to Christ" (CCC, para. 862).
We must tell Catholics their bishops fail the test for apostles given in
Acts 1:21-26. There have been only two successors
of the apostles - Matthias was chosen by the apostles and Paul was
chosen
by Christ (Acts 9:1-19).
God warns us: "Do not trust in princes, in mortal
man, in whom there is no salvation" (Psalm 146:3). Why the warning?
Because
"savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing
the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking
perverse
things, to draw away the disciples after them"
(Acts 20:29-30). In light of these warnings, the most critical question
is
this: Will you trust Christ and His Word or man and
his religious traditions.
Did you know there is only one way to be saved?
God's Gospel is by grace through faith in one
person (Eph. 2:8-9). The gift of eternal life is given freely to those
who trust
the eternal God. incarnate - Jesus Christ - His
virgin birth, His perfect life, His atoning death and His glorious
resurrection
(1 Cor. 15:1-4). The Lord Jesus is sufficient to
save sinners completely and forever. Diametrically opposed to God's
Gospel
is The Catholic gospel which offers salvation
through its sacraments. The Catholic priest replaces the sovereign work
of God
by administering baptism which "not only purifies
from all sins, but also makes the neophyte a new creature, an adopted
son
of God who has become a partaker of the divine
nature, a member of Christ and co-heir with Him and a temple of the Holy
Spirit"
(CCC,1257,1265). Most baptisms are administered to
new born babes who have no capacity to put their faith in anything.
Did you know those who distort the Gospel are
condemned?
This includes apostles, priests, popes, pastors or
angels (apparitions of Mary) from heaven. The apostle Paul warned:
"there
are some who ... want to distort the gospel of
Christ. But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to
you a
gospel contrary to that which we have preached to
you, let him be accursed (Gal. 1:7-8). Catholics need to be warned that
their clergy is under divine condemnation for
adding works and sacraments to God's Gospel (CCC, 1129).
Did you know that Jesus put an end to the ordained
priesthood?
God's Word reveals that the veil of the temple that
separated the Holy of Holies from sinful man was tom open by God (Mat.
27:51). Man can now come directly to God through
faith in the shed blood of the Savior (Rom. 3:2326). Priests are no
longer
needed to offer sacrifices for sin (Heb. 10:18).
The only legitimate priesthood which remains on earth is the royal
priesthood
of all believers. They offer sacrifices of praise
and thanksgiving for being called out of darkness into the marvelous
light
of the Son (1 Pet. 2:9).
Do you really believe Catholic priests have the
power to call the Lord Jesus down from heaven every day?
According to Roman Catholic priest John O'Brien in
his book Faith of Millions, "The priest ... reaches up into the heavens,
brings Christ down from His throne, and places Him
upon our altar to be offered up again as the Victim for the sins of
man...
Christ, the eternal and omnipotent God, bows his
head in humble obedience to the priest's command." Over 200,000 times
each
day, priests throughout the world believe they
re-present Jesus on their altars as an offering for sins of the living
and
the dead (CCC, 1371-1374). Again Catholics ignore
God's Word which declares that Jesus "having been offered once to bear
the
sins of many, shall appear a second time for
salvation not to bear sin" (Hebrews 9:28). The Bible also tells us how
and when
Jesus will appear. He will return the same way he
left, immediately after the tribulation with power and great glory (Mat.
24:27-30; Acts 1:11). By the authority of God's
Word we must conclude that the Eucharist is a false Christ.
Why do Catholic priests continue to offer Jesus as a
sacrificial victim when He said "It is finished" (John 19:30)?
God's Word says: Jesus appeared once and offered
Himself once to bear sins. His offering is not to be done again (Heb.
9:25-28).
When Jesus "offered one sacrifice for sins for all
time, [He] sat down at the right hand of God" (Heb. 10:12). Disregarding
the infallible Word of God, Catholicism teaches:
"the sacrifice of Christ and the sacrifice of the Eucharist are one
single
sacrifice. The victim is one and the same. In this
divine sacrifice, the same Christ who offered himself once ... is
contained
and offered in an unbloody manner" (1367).
Did you know Jesus has already obtained redemption
for believers?
Catholicism denies this by teaching: "The work of
our redemption is carried on" every time the Eucharist is celebrated
(CCC,
1405) God's Word declares: "He [Jesus] entered the
holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption" (Heb.
9:12).
"In Him we have redemption through His blood, the
forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace"
(Eph.
1:7).
Why do you call Jesus the Savior when you have to
save yourself?
Catholicism teaches the sinner must "make
satisfaction for" or "expiate" his sins. This satisfaction is also
called "penance."
(1459; "In this way they attained their own
salvation and cooperated in saving their brothers" (1477). God's Word
proclaims
"There is salvation in no one else; for there is no
other name under heaven given among men, b; which we must be saved"
(Acts
4:12).
Why do you believe a place called Purgatory can
purify your sins?
God's Word says "when He [Jesus] had made
purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on
high (Hebrews
1:3). "He gave Himself for us to... purify for
Himself a people for His own possession" (Titus 2:14). "The blood of
Jesus...
cleanses us from all sin" (1 John 1:7). These
verses destroy the myth of Purgatory. Yet the Vatican continues to
deceive Catholics
by teaching they "must undergo purification [in
Purgatory] to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven"
(CCC,
1030).
Why do you pray to Mary?
Nowhere in the Bible do we see believers praying to
anyone except God. Jesus taught us how to pray in the Sermon on the
Mount.
He instructed us to pray to the Father and not to
use meaningless repetition (Mat. 6:713). Yet Catholics are taught to
pray
the rosary which is made up of over 50 repetitious
prayers to Mary.
Why aren't these Catholic traditions found in the
1st century Church?
* Priests offering sacrifices for sins
* Indulgences remitting sin's punishment
* Church leaders forbidden to marry
* Infallible men
Did you Know that whenever you believe a doctrine,
you must also for sake that which opposes it?
Scripture reveals that Jesus saves...
* by faith in Him, not baptism + His grace, not
our merit
* by His finished work, not our works + by His
righteousness, not ours
* by His one offering for sin, not the Mass +
by His blood, not purgatory + by His obedience, not ours
* by His Gospel, not our perversion of it
Which Jesus will you trust?
The Jesus of the Bible promises eternal life, the
complete forgiveness of sins, a permanent right standing with God and
the
power to live a victorious life. The Catholic Jesus
is a Jesus that was never preached by the Apostles (2 Cor. 11:4). This
counterfeit Christ provides only conditional life,
partial forgiveness of sins, an ongoing need for priests and mediators,
uncertainty, fear and doubt. Those who reject the
true Jesus, who is clearly and conclusively revealed in His Word, will
be
judged accordingly. The Lord Jesus Christ said,
"The word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day" (John 12:48). |
If I were to insult you, you'd
feel the sting immediately. If I were to embarrass you, you'd be the
first to know. But if
I were to deceive you...you might never know it!
As painful as being insulted or embarrassed can
be, at least you're aware of what's taking place. But deception can be
deadly
because you don't realize you are being
betrayed, misled, seduced or ensnared. It's much more than a clever
slight of hand.
Deceived people are not even aware they are
being misled unless they are confronted with the truth. Tragically, many
go to
their graves deceived about their relationship
with God.
The Importance of Your Source for Truth
What is your source for truth? Is it
trustworthy? Will it protect you from the schemes and lies of the master
deceiver, Satan?
The biblical prophet Jeremiah gave wise counsel
for choosing who to trust. He said if you put your trust in man you will
be
cursed like a withered bush in a barren desert.
However, if your ultimate trust is in God, Jeremiah said you will
flourish
like a tree planted by the water (Jeremiah
17:5-8).
Still many people today disregard Jeremiah's
advice and in their search for truth put their trust in man--religious
leaders--instead
of God.
Who Will You Trust?
Catholics, for example, believe that the pope
and the Roman Catholic Church teach exactly what Jesus and the Bible
teach.
But how do we know if the popes' teachings or
the dogmas of the Roman Catholic Church are true?
The only way we can be 100% sure is to do what
the church of Berea did in New Testament times. They examined the
Scriptures
to see if what the Apostle Paul taught them was
true (Acts 17:11).
We must use the same scriptural standard for the
teachings of all religious leaders. Disregarding the objective truth of
God's
Word in favor of the subjective teachings of men
can be a tragic mistake.
The Danger of Deception
Would it surprise you to learn that many
religious teachings go against the Bible? Shouldn't that concern you,
since your
eternal destiny may depend on such teachings?
Here is how Catholic doctrine misleads people
about God's plan of salvation:
* All graces needed to attain eternal life
can be merited (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2027).
* Catholics are reborn as sons of God and
freed from sin through water baptism (1213).
* Purgatory is a cleansing fire that
achieves the holiness necessary for heaven (1030-31).
* Jesus is offered daily as a sacrificial
victim on Catholic altars (1367).
* Venial sins are not deserving of hell
(1863).
* By performing acts of penance, Catholics
can expiate their own sins (1459,1477).
The Bible says man is saved by believing God's
truth (Ephesians 1:13-14). God can never deceive anyone (Titus 1:1-2).
But
man remains condemned if he continues in
deception.
False religious systems hold people in bondage
to deception by perverting God's truth and grace. Any religion that
teaches
its followers that salvation is obtained through
human effort and merit is nullifying the grace of God. Yet grace is the
only
means by which God saves sinners! The Bible says
"if by grace, it is no longer because of works; otherwise grace would
no
longer be grace" (Romans 11:6).
Misplaced Faith
Some people blindly put their faith in religious
leaders, assuming that their leaders would never seduce anyone with a
false
plan of salvation. Yet the Apostle Paul warned
that "from your own group, men will come forward perverting the truth to
draw
the disciples away after them" (Acts 20:30).
Other people simply choose not to respond or
conform their lives to truth. Instead they turn away to listen to
teachers who
say what they want to hear (2 Timothy 4:2-4).
Then there are people who have a zeal for God,
but not in line with the truth. Many people have been indoctrinated with
false
teaching and have difficulty believing the
truth. They fail because they refuse to let go of unbiblical beliefs.
It was disobedience to God, a lack of faith in
His purpose, plan, and word that separated Adam and Eve from Him.
Instead they
chose to put their faith in the deceiver, which
brought spiritual and physical death to us all.
God uses the very instrument that separated us
from Him--faith--to restore us back to Him. By repenting of our dead
works
and turning to God in faith, we receive
spiritual and eternal life: "For by grace you have been saved through
faith, and this
is not from you; it is the gift of God; it is
not from works, so no one may boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).
God's Truth Determines Destiny
The Bible makes it clear that:
* We are either children of the devil (John
8:43-45) or children of God (John 1:12),
* We live as slaves to sin or as slaves to
righteousness (Romans 6:16-18), and
* We will spend eternity under the wrath of
God or in His loving presence.
"Whoever believes in Him [Jesus Christ] will not
be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned,
because
he has not believed in the name of the only Son
of God" (John 3:18).
God has revealed that trusting in anything other
than Christ and His Word is evidence of deception. Those who choose to
follow
the traditions, opinions, and philosophies of
men will be condemned. Jesus said "Whoever rejects Me and does not
accept My
words has something to judge him: the word that I
spoke, it will condemn him on the last day" (John 12:48).
By contrast, how wonderful are the words, "to
those who did accept Him He gave power to become children of God to
those who
believe in His name" (John 1:12).
Are you basing your life and eternal destiny on
the eternal truths of God's Word or on the Catholic traditions added to
God's
truth? How will you respond to God's truth?
Compare these essential teachings of the Bible to the teachings of the
Roman Catholic
Church:
God Teaches The pope Teaches
Salvation is only through Christ (Acts 4:12).
Salvation is through the Roman Catholic Church and its sacraments (846,
1129).
You are saved by faith and not by works
(Ephesians 2:8-9). You are saved by faith plus works
(1815,1821,2010,2027).
All who rely on observing the
law--commandments--for salvation are under a curse (Galatians 3:10).
Obedience to the commandments
is necessary for salvation (2068).
Salvation occurs at the moment you repent and
believe the gospel (Acts 20:21, Ephesians 1:13). Salvation is a process
from
baptism through purgatory (161, 162, 1254,
1255).
Only Jesus purifies sin (Hebrews 1:3, Colossians
1:22). Purgatory purifies sin (1030,1031).
You can know that you have eternal life (John
10:27-30, 1 John 5:13). You sin if you presume to be saved without
merit (2090-2092).
The sacrifice of Jesus is finished (John 19:30).
The sacrifice of Jesus continues in daily Mass (611, 1405).
As you can see, these teachings directly oppose
each other. One is truth that will set you free. One is deception that
will
hold you in bondage.
Which teachings will you choose? Choose
carefully. In this life you can be wrong about a lot of things and still
survive.
But when this life is over, if you were wrong
about God's only provision for your sins, you will perish in the lake of
fire
for all eternity. |
Is the Jesus of the Roman Catholic
Church the biblical Jesus? Knowing and believing the real Jesus is
critical because Jesus
said, "If you do not believe that I am the one I
claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins" (John 8:24). A different
Jesus
is preached by many deceivers (2 Corinthians
11:3-4) who deny His finished work of redemption.
The Mormons preach Jesus is the brother of
Lucifer and was a man who became God. The Jehovah Witnesses preach Jesus
was not
God but claim he was Michael the arch angel.
Roman Catholicism preaches a Jesus that was unable to purge all sin or
pay the
complete penalty for sin.
The Biblical Jesus assures Christians they have
been saved from condemnation. "Now that we have been justified by His
blood,
it is all the more certain that we shall be
saved by Him from God's wrath" (Roman 5:9). The one time, perfect and
all sufficient
sacrifice of Jesus completely satisfied the
wrath of God (1 John 2:2). Roman Catholicism denies this fundamental
teaching
and deceives its people into believing that the
sacrifice of the Mass satisfied God's wrath not only for the sins of the
living
but also for the sins of the dead (Canon 3,
Council of Trent). Catholics are cursed with anathema by their church if
they
claim they are saved from God's wrath, (Canon
30, Council of Trent). Catholics know Jesus only as a "gate opener" to
heaven.
For Catholics to go through the gates of heaven
they must save themselves through the Mass and sacraments.
The Jesus of the Bible expiates sin. "Through
His blood, God made Him the means of the expiation for all who believe"
(Roman
3:25). Yet the Catholic Church teaches Catholics
must expiate their own sins. "This may be done through the sorrows,
miseries
and trials of this life and, above all, through
death. Otherwise the expiation must be made in the next life through
fire
and torments of purifying punishments" (Vatican
Council II).
The Jesus of the Bible is the only mediator
between God and man (I Timothy 2:15), yet the Roman Catholic Church
offers Mary
as the mediator. Pope Pius IX proclaimed that
"God has committed to Mary the treasury of all good things, in order
that everyone
may know that through her are obtained every
hope, every grace, and all salvation. For this is His will: that we
obtain everything
through Mary."
The Jesus of the Bible claimed He was the only
way to the heavenly Father (John 14:6). Vatican II denies this by
stating,
"the plan of salvation also includes those who
acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst who are the
Moslems."
So why does the Roman Catholic Church hide the
real Jesus from its followers? Because the real Jesus sets people free!
In
contrast, the Roman Catholic Church maintains
control of its people through legalistic rituals, sacraments and threats
of
anathema's. The biblical Jesus saves believers
from the bondage of sin, deception and religion. |
Catholicism: The Whore of Babylon
