[Aquinasfan]

Why pray to what were once mere humans when the Living God exists?

Because it's in the Bible?

Revelation 5:8

And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

[little jeremiah]

Thank you.

[trebb]

And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

I doesn't say anywhere in the Bible to pray to the saints. It alludes that those who have been faithful to God are, in fact saints, which under the new Covenant makes all who have accepted the Gift of the Cross saints.

Your example needs to be interpreted pretty loosely to make it prayers to saints - it says: . . . prayers of the saints . . ., which seems to be more clearly interpreted as prayers which came from the saints, which I believe to be the believers that are still on the earth during those times and who are busily sending their prayers to God.

Of course, I am non-denominational and unencumbered by rituals and other idiosyncrasies that help delineate the various religions....God's Word in the Bible is fine by me and I won't try to earn that which I could never earn by practicing Old Testament rites and rituals. It was prophesied that God would institute a New Covenant, forgive us our wickedness, and recognize our sins no more. All we need to do for that and to spend eternity with Him, is to accept that gift by admitting our sinful natures, being truly distressed/ashamed of or sinfulness, and accept the death of the Messiah as payment in full for all our sins, past-present-future. We remain sinful by nature, but with Christ residing in us, our old ways become less and less tolerable, so we tend to act sinfully less often.

Why not accept the gift and shout the Gospel to the mountaintops instead of getting tangled in all these useless rituals? Only God can remove sin - no man that walks the earth today has been empowered by Him to remove sin.

God Bless

[MeanWestTexan]

It is my understanding that that "Lamb" is Christ, and no "mere human."

But Revelations is confusing, I freely admit.

[Smittie]

Why pray to what were once mere humans when the Living God exists? Because it's in the Bible?

Revelation 5:8 And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

The Bible also tells us that Jesus said that no one comes to the Father exect through him.

[Preachin']

"Revelation 5:8
And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints."


Somehow "prayers of the saints" and "prayers to the saints" just took on the same meaning.