If Revelation 22:18-19 don’t say it, they come awfully close.
Once I became a Christian, I have steadfastly believed that the scriptures are the inspired word of Almighty God. I acknowledge that scripture gives great authority to the church in its binding and loosing. However, everything ultimately goes back to scriptural authority, even in the Catholic and Orthodox tradition. For you can catch even them arguing, “Well, Jesus said this.” or “Jesus said that.”
We have no choice but to acknowledge the dependence of any denominational Church and of individual Christians on scripture. This is true of any denomination. The inevitably appeal to scripture.
Does this mean we don’t need all the creeds and confessions, all the councils and conventions, to tell us what the Scriptures say? We can abandon these inventions of men which imitate the structure of the Catholic system? We can be baptized into the church Christ built, rather than into a man-made denomination? That’s great news!
bump
No
Which "we" among the 40K+ denominations is this particular author speaking for?
It is interesting to note that the same Pope (Pius IX) who developed the concept of papal infallibility also institutionalized the belief that Mary herself was born of an Immaculate Conception, of which there is no mention in the Bible. This was done in the 19th century.
As a Catholic, I think the closer we are to the Bible, the better. There are some Catholic disciplines, such as clerical celibacy which are NOT required in the Bible. To the contrary, priests were married men in the Bible and were encouraged to be married and good family men.
Can a Man or Woman raised without contact with any church or a bible be saved?
My answer is that of course they can - they need not even hear the Word from another human.
Agree/Disagree - discuss