It's amazing how parallel that video clip, your experience, and my experience are. Ritualistic, yes, boring, yes, everything, spot on. Even more amazing, maybe shocking is a better word, start the multiplication process nationally, and internationally of those whose salvation rests in a church institution, and you see the depth of deception that is being taught multi-generationally. I see the picture of it in Zech 11:15-18 about the worthless shephard, no one being trained up and disciple in truth. Literally, millions whose fatih rests on an institution, not on the shed blood of Jesus on the Cross of Calvary, are postioned upon the precipice of eternity... but where? Unless a man is born again(born from above) Jesus said, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God, end of story
I was (past tense) a Biblical ignoramace, I had no idea where or what that our Holy book said, or what the main themes where, clueless. All this after 30+years in a so-called Christian church? Had it not been for the truth of Romans 8:28, I would not be free right now, I would still be a slave to my sin/addiction. I loved God, but grew up with nothing but false, dead religion, never knowing His earnestness of wanting to have a deep abiding relationship with me. Some people are delivered progressively, some instantaneously, but delivered nontheless. It was a process for me, largely because of my limited knowledge of the God promises and intents for us as believers In confronting this addiction in my life, I needed to see God for who He was, truly, and not the way he had been fabricated, because there was no saving and delivering power in what the catholic church had been presenting to me in the throws of my problems and even before tha. But God is faithful, and I started seeking, I started knocking, and LO! HE ANSWERED! I started to get the Word in me, the Holy Spirit helped with the tutoring, and placed some Saints of God in my path to disciple me as well. I found out who Jesus was in the Power of His Resurrection, Bless God. It's been 13 years since it all started when I sought to put the devil under my feet. I have lost my appetite for so many of the things that weren't sinful per se, they just tied up my time and attention. I didn't have anyone tell me not to watch tv(and no I didn't need to have the Pastor tell me not to watch the Playboy channel), I just pursued Him, vigorously, with intent, aggressively, you do that with someone you love, I wanted all of what He had for me. I got water baptized as an adult, and then baptized in the Spirit, that just blew me away. For those here on this site who grew up in a Protestant church, you might not realize how much "stuff" you need to jetison when you come out of catholicism. It is significant, thelogically & relationally(With Him & your family) and I knew nothing about worshiping the Lord. Sister Marcia, I still sometimes have issues with my arms being " velcroed to my sides" during worship, pray for me, I need more deliverance! Like you I have seen some things in church leadership that was not good, had to move on or take on a huge battle. God keeps revealing more of Himself, He loves His people so, if they would walk in that, have faith in Him, oh my, the Blessing that would come, yes, mountains into the sea! Have a blessed Sabbath.
James
P.S. Have you been to the Holy Land experience in Orlando?
Greetings James, In the name of our precious Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Thank you brother, for your powerful testimony of the saving grace of Jesus Christ and the infilling of the Holy Spirit. As long as you worship in Spirit and Truth, you do not even have to lift your arms, (perhaps lifting your arms that is just another man made decipline, you know, like kneeling to pray) smile. I pray that you only find true freedom in obedience Jesus Christ (The Word).
I too was radically transformed by the POWER of the Holy Spirit since 1991. My experience however, was so unexpected and so complete, that I dropped everything that I was doing (sinful) and began to preach to everyone telling them to repent. I was tested beyond belief and miracles began to occur in me and in those around me so much so that the people I used to hang out with got scared of me. I immediately began to question all that I had been taught by the Catholic Church and to my SHOCK, nothing I was taught to do was in the scriptures so I called the Parish Priest and questioned him about it. I will post my questions to this Priest and the outcome. I have thanked my heavenly Father many, many times for saving me and since then, my quest is to tell everyone I meet that they must be filled with the Holy Spirit to enter into the kingdom of Heaven and that it is not about any man made religion. I cried for years over the fact that many have already died thinking they were going to heaven because of what some religous denomination told them not even having experienced the blessings, freedom and peace of having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and the Power of His Holy Spirit. I scream in my spirit with grief when I think about it.
I am so happy for you James. Welcome to the family of born-again believers. Yes I have been to the Holy Land but not recently. I must give it another visit in the winter when the weather is cooler.
First, I have to admit, I WAS a Catholic. Yet, after I became born-again, I had to ditch EVERYTHING I had learned from the Catholic Church because NOTHING I had learned from that religion was in the (King James Version) of my bible that I had read. So, in SHOCK, I contacted the priest of my local (parish) to have a dialogue with him and the result was he told me that Catholics do not follow the bible. Which I found to be true because they have their own doctrine which consists of the Cathecism book made up by the Catholic Church. I then asked him where the Catholic faith came from and he got really bugged and would not answer me. So, I began my questions and here goes:-
1) What bible does the priest read and have their faith in. He said the New Jerusalem Bible. I had already spoken to an ex-nun who had given me a copy to compare with my King James Version and found that they were similiar except for a few books in the Old Testament, like Macabees and Judith. The reason I asked this question is because I wanted to know why we were not given bibles when I went to the Catholic Church while growing up in the Islands. We were only given Cathecism books which told us what to pray every week and they were the same repetitive prayers. Jesus stated in Matthew 10/32 whoever shall confess me before men him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven, but who shall deny me before men, him will I deny before my Father which is in heaven. I have to consider this. If I have faith in any other human Jesus will not confess me before His Father and He alone is my intercessor.
2) The next question I asked is where in the bible Jesus commanded anyone to call another man on earth Father. He could not answer me, because indeed Jesus said call NO MAN on earth your Father but He who is in heaven according to the book of Matthew chapter 6/9-13. as an example of the Lord's prayer (Our Father who is in heaven HOLY is YOUR NAME). This is making suplication and honoring G-d alone.
3) The next question I asked is where did Jesus command anyone to be called a Priest and not marry a woman. He could not answer me because Jesus is and was the last Priest according to the book of Hebrews. In the book of Mark chapter 10, Jesus made a very profound statement while discussing marriage (for this cause G-d made them male and female to cleave to each other.)..
4) The next question is where in the scriptures Jesus commanded that women become NUNS and not marry a man. He could not answer me because the word NUN is not even in the scriptures. As a matter of fact, we are told by Jesus Christ that for this cause G-d made them male and female.. Mark chapter 10 relates to why G-d created man and woman.
5) Next question, where in the scriptures it tells us to make beads and say the Hail Mary or Holy Mary as a prayer mantra? No answer for that one.
6) Next question is where in the scriptures it tells us to go and confess our sins to a man and he will forgive us of our sins? No answer because we are to confess our sins to Jesus Christ alone and He alone has the authority to forgive us.
7) Next question is where in the scriptures Jesus commanded to pray to dead saints and to ask them to interceede for us on earth. He could not answer me, because the WORD says that Jesus Christ is the ONLY intercessor and NO ONE comes to the Father EXCEPT through Him John 14/6.. You try to get in any other way you will not be able to. Jesus made a statement to one of the disciples to let the dead bury the dead Matthew 8/21. God is the God living not the God of the dead. In Fact the Word tells me I must be born-again to get into the kingdom of heaven John chapter 3 explains this very clearly so right then it tells me that I do not know who where born-again before they died, so even if I had decided to become insubordinate towards the commands of Jesus Christ and ask someone else who had died to intercede for me, I would be fooling myself. There is only ONE God and ONE MEDIATOR between God and men, the man Jesus Christ, who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time, 1 Timothy 2/5-6.
8) Next question, did Jesus command anyone to ask Mary (his earthly mother) to intercede in prayer for them? No, because it would have gone against His Word and promise that He is the ONLY intercessor and mediator in heaven between God and man. It also would have gone against His command to (seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness). and follow Him. You see my friends Jesus WILL NOT share His deity with anyone else. No one else shed their blood for you but Jesus Christ whose blood was pure. Don't you want to get your prayers answered? Why mess with your life when it is so simple to just go to Jesus in faith. By the way, He also said, without faith it is impossible to please Him. WOW! That's a biggie! (smile).
Jesus made a very profound statement (How can you call me Lord and do not do what I command)? How can you tell me you appreciate what Jesus Christ has done for humanity and disregard Him in your prayers and obedience to His commands? Well, because He said His sheep hear His voice and follow Him and no man is able to pluck them out of His hands.
Oh, and the (saints under the alter) Revelations 5/8. This is a vision John is having and not what Jesus Christ taught His disciples to do. Angels are comissioned by G-d to do ONLY His bidding. How dare we try to over-ride the deity of Jesus Christ by calling on dead people to pray for us.
Heavenly Father, please show us the way. Open blind eyes and deaf ears that they be behold your Glory, Grace and Mercy. Reveal yourself to your people Lord and break the curse of religion, which has cause Spiritual death to many, I ask this in the name of my precious Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen..
I always felt something wrong when I visited a catholic church, I was never a catholic (my wife was) but the rules and regulations and the binding chains never appealed to me. The church always felt dead, so did the protestant Church of England. I wanted a living church and praise god thats what I was led to Hallelujah. Praise God for opening your eyes and showing you the way! Amen
I'm sorry that this was your perspective. I totally agree with you that without Christ in your heart, the faith can become nothing more than empty rituals. What I find interesting is how this person (the person who created this video) asks what makes a Saint? And why couldn't they become one? If you look at the lives of the Saints, you will see that they have Christ in their hearts and at the center of their lives. And it was Christ working in them that makes them Saints. People have this miscued notion that to be a Saint is to be perfect. No Saint is perfect. No Pope is perfect. No Priest is perfect. No Nun is perfect. No human-being is perfect. I laugh when people say, "Catholics sin-it-up on the weekdays and just confess it on Saturdays like it aint no thing." I could just as easily say that "Protestants sin-it-up, but it doesn't matter to them becuase they are Saved," but this would be an unfair statement. In all actuallity, the Catholic folks who are "sinning-it-up" on the weekdays probably are not going to Recconciliation. But, the Catholic Christians who do humble themselves before the Lord, in the Sacrament of Pennance, usually have a deep love and relationship with Him. I like to think of Confession as an alter-call for people who are already Christians. It is a rededication of ourselves to the Lord. There is healing that takes place in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I have a couple of analogies. Let's say you did something really hurtful to your spouse. Would you think to yourself we're married so I already know that he/she is going to forgive me, so there really is no need for me to say that I'm sorry? And why cooporate with the grace that God gives me in this Sacramental Marriage? I mean, again, we're already married. This is why we keep going back to Confession—not because it didnt' take or because we're just doing what we're supposed to do as Catholics, but because we have an ongoing relationship with Christ—and we see how much He loves us. So why all these Sacraments? And What is a Sacrament anyway? A sacrament is an outward sign of inward grace. “Celebrated worthily in faith, the sacraments confer the grace that they signify. It is Christ himself who is at work in us: it is he who baptizes, he who acts in his sacraments in order to communicate the grace that each sacrament signifies.” (CCC 1127) Christ chose to institute Baptism of water and of Spirit; He instituted the Last Supper to show us in a phisical and tangible way, the self-giving of Himself on Calvary; and He gave the Apostles the authority to continue these institutions—to Forgive sins, to Baptize, to have Liturgy, and Ordain—to do these things here on Earth, after he completed His Salvific work and went to be with the Father. The Sacrament of Marriage points to Christ's covenantal relationship with His church. Do we say to our spouce, "Sorry, but we already consummated our marriage on our Wedding night." Of course not. Christ gives Himself freely to us in the Eucharist; He forgives us of our sins and brings forth healing in the Sacrament of Penance—My point is that Christ does not say to us, "Sorry, but I died for you on that day on Calvary, so you guys are Saved and good luck to you." Christ is alive and well! He did not abandon us. He gives to us the power of the Holy Spirit and the power of His Cross to live out our Christian lives in a fruitful way. And God gave us the free-will to cooporate with His grace—or we can choose not to cooporate with God's grace. We are not robots, and nor are we slaves. We are God's children, created in the image and likeness of God. So, rather than bash the Catholic faith, why not pray for those who are Catholic who are just going through the motions, who don't know Christ, who are hardened of heart, and who percieve faith to be nothing more than empty rituals. This is my prayer.
Cade_One, I must have overlooked your comment to this blog.
Why is it when facts are presented to the public about a particular religous denomination some people think you are trying t bash them? That was never my intent and G-d knows my heart. I have been praying that people of all religous denominations everywhere turn to Jesus Christ and him alone for their needs to be met. However, without the power of his Holy Spirit, they will not know the truth and will continue to exhalt mankind and dead people, statues or mortar and wood, etc.,
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