Posted on 02/28/2008 6:25:40 AM PST by Manfred the Wonder Dawg
ROMAN CATHOLICISM: A DIFFERENT GOSPEL
In their lust for unity the Emergent Church and post-evangelical “Protestants” are right now embracing the Roman Catholic Church as another Christian denomination. But the issue is simple: If, as taught the Church of Rome, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without “the new birth in baptism” then we are now in hopeless contradiction with the Gospel contained in Holy Scripture.
But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. (Galatians 1:8)
Speaking The Truth In Love
Let me make this as clear as I possibly can for the Roman Catholics who may read this work in Christ from Apprising Ministries. I personally am former member of the Church of Rome and care very deeply about those, such as the majority of my own family line, who are trapped in this apostate man-made system of religion known as Roman Catholicism. I also fully realize that what I say may sound “unloving” and possibly even “harsh.” However, there is just nothing that I can do about that. By not telling the Truth we aren’t doing anyone a service.
(Excerpt) Read more at apprising.org ...
I went to a baptism in a local Baptist Fundamental church that had a baptismal pool. The women wore white robes. Unfortunately, one of them wore ONLY a white robe. When she got wet, well, there were NO secrets. Then, because she was heavy set, the pastor had to push her back up the ladder. It was hilarious.
They’re apt to be the older generation, in my experience.
Every church has its idols. You’re right. People who put anything else before God has made an idol of it, but because we are human, it happens in EVERY church, even RC’s. You have to continually fight against it.
Every single one of us has something we ‘worship’ other than God. It can be our kids, our money, our degrees, our jobs and positions therein, our homes, our cars, our antiques, possessions, boats, etc., etc. It’s okay to own these things. It’s even okay to be, gasp, RICH. But it’s NOT okay to put them before our relationship to God through His blessed son, Jesus. And yet, at one time or another, we all do. We all have our ‘backyard altars’ to contend with. It’s an ongoing battle.
Amen. Why not say it's a blessing instead?
During this discussion you've seen some posters claim it is the Grace of God that is being imparted and that is what I'm arguing against. As I've said before I believe that Adult is already saved prior to the baptism.
When you do that you are preaching The Gospel.
I sure pray that’s not true of every single one of us!
I know folks who put God first in all things. And I earnestly endeavor to. Mostly succeed most of the time in most areas, By HIS Grace.
Certainly hasn’t always been the case. And I sure have plenty room to grow.
LUB
As you know, I wish I were better at it scripturally.
I bet they don’t put God first every moment of their lives, unless they are really mature Christians, but most of us have something besides God that gets in the way. It’s my desire to put Him first but darn, my kids get in the way sometimes (LOL).
Amen!
You know it. You believe it. You preach it.
Our immortal souls depend upon it and nothing else.
GOD IS CERTAINLY OUR ALL IN ALL.
Or He’s not.
I choose that role for Him in my life with all I can choose with.
No. I don’t really want to get off into that old puppet discussion again. LOL.
LOL.
That’s ONE way to take the starchy-ness out of the ceremony.
I understand . . .
At some point . . . probably all points . . . Grace and His Blood must cover.
On the other hand . . . when we persistently willfully choose and refuse to repent and make earnest efforts to change . . . that’s a different contingency, imho.
Your funny numbers did not stand up to scrutiny.
Your "accurate" numbers?
We are save by Grace Alone through Faith Alone in Jesus Christ Alone. If this puts me in conflict with my reformed brethren than so be it.
I think you may be failing to see the forest for the trees. I am not the one claiming Grace is imparted to a Christian by any means other than Faith. It is those that practice infant Baptism that have claimed Grace is bestowed by it.
“ALL religions have heresy of one kind of another.”
So the Church given us by Our Lord has heresy in it?
I wish I was better at it to.
Nothing bothers me more than when I have an opportunity to preach The Gospel and for whatever reason I don't.
For any who wonder what the heck we're talking about. It's Christ crucified. We are forgiven, the price is paid. The Son of God was crucified for our sins he died and on the third day he rose from the dead. We believe and we are saved.
I know it sounds to simple, and I've been told that by Freepers on this and other threads but it is THE GOSPEL.
Quite right. No matter what you tell the people, they still insist on doing what they want.
There's grace which is saving grace alone, period. Then there are blessings which fall primarily on the elect. But the sun still shines and the rain still falls on the lost as well as the found.
Probably to further condemn them since unbelievers partake of God's blessings and yet they still refuse to say "thank you."
But did you catch what I was trying to say before by giving the WCF? Grace is not imparted at baptism, but the assurance of saving grace is made known during baptism and celebrated during baptism because that grace has already been given by God when He predestined His family to include those to whom the promise was made and their children.
See the difference? The RCC believes saving grace begins at baptism and is distributed during baptism, thus the child does not have this saving grace before the ritual is performed. And as we've been told, the child and later the adult loses this saving grace every time he commits a sin. For which he then must return to the confessional booth and admit his new sins and then again be forgiven for those new sins, and on and on and on...
So apparently this saving grace of the RCC baptism lasts only until the infant gets to be "of age" and commits some mortal sin.
All very confusing. Again, it only shows that the most coherent understanding of God's word is found in the reformed perspective. It is ALL of God, to whom belongs ALL the glory.
Now no parent knows for sure that his child is among the elect. That knowledge belongs to the secret counsel of God. That's why baptism doesn't confer salvation. It merely acknowledges that the promise is to the believer and his children, as the Bible tells us so many times, most clearly by Christ Himself. We can be sure of our own salvation because we know whom we have believed. And we have faith our children are included in God's election because it is God who gives us our children for safe-keeping.
Beyond that, it's God's to know.
One more thing. Baptists like to point to the fact that an infant who is baptized can still fall away. And that is true. Exactly like an adult who is baptized. He, too, can later fall away. There's no difference. Here's as good an understanding as I've ever read...
From the footnotes...
"9. Westminster (and the 1689 Baptist) Confession says beautifully (11.2), "Faith, thus receiving and resting on Christ and His righteousness, is the alone instrument of justification;(1) yet is it not alone in the person justified, but is ever accompanied with all other saving graces, and is no dead faith, but worketh by love."
I think we went over the “worship Mary thing”.
Perhaps you can direct your attention to why you do not believe in the Eucharist.
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