“Well... you definitely don’t want to read this.”
Sort of misses the point.
I am amazed that a man can right an article about his “conversion” and yet never mention Jesus. That tells me he simply traded one “religious” culture for another.
People who truly encounter Jesus often want to speak of nothing else but him.
This man seem overjoyed to sift through Catholic minutia.
Perhaps he had already encountered Jesus. Perhaps it was his very relationship with Jesus which led him to search for truth.
If this was a conversion from paganism or atheism to Christianity, then I would agree with you. In that case, a man would go from unbelief to belief. From darkness to light. From ignorance of Jesus to faith in Jesus.
However, this man was already a believer. He likely already accepted the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the reality of heaven, hell and the Holy Trinity. He was looking for the fullness of truth.
The fact is... Catholic & Protestant... we share Jesus, and the catechism has some wonderful things in it about Jesus.
If you believe in the Church Jesus founded... that is far from minutia.
I would still invite you to read the Catechism as it relates to Jesus. You might be very surprised by what you see.
Jesus has more than one name. I guess you missed the part where he referred to Protestantism as being in imperfect union with the Body of Christ.
Because it is a given. We do not have to mention it every two insecure seconds. We know we have it.
We confess it more in the proper fashion then any church. I Left the RC church then became more anti- than most. I remembered honor my Mother and Father as a commandment.
So I would take my Mother to Church and hear this from these verses all in the Creed declared every Sunday. Which I never heard formally in indy Churches. Not to say they do not believe it. But formally it is in my Church.
Romans Chapter 10: 9 because if thou shalt confess with thy mouth Jesus as Lord, and shalt believe in thy heart that God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved:..Read More[Read More]
10 for with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation...
Romans 14: 13 seeing that through the proving of you by this ministration they glorify God for the obedience of your confession unto the gospel of Christ, and for the liberality of your contribution unto them and unto all;..
1 Timothy Chapter: 12 Fight the good fight of the faith, lay hold on the life eternal, whereunto thou wast called, and didst confess the good confession in the sight of many witnesses...
Hebrews Chapter 3: 1 Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, even Jesus;..
Hebrews Chapter 4: 14 Having then a great high priest, who hath passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession...
Hebrews Chapter 10: 23 let us hold fast the confession of our hope that it waver not; for he is faithful that promised:..
Hebrews Chapter 11: 13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth...
Hebrews Chapter 13: 15 Through him then let us offer up a sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of lips which make confession to his name...
James Chapter 5 16 Confess therefore your sins one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The supplication of a righteous man availeth much in its working...
1 John Chapter 1: 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.. 23 Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: he that confesseth the Son hath the Father also...
1 John Chapter 4: 2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:..
3 and every spirit that confesseth not Jesus is not of God: and this is the spirit of the antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it cometh; and now it is in the world already...
15 Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God abideth in him, and he in...
2 John Chapter 1: 7 For many deceivers are gone forth into the world, even they that confess not that Jesus Christ cometh in the flesh. This is the deceiver and the antichrist...
Revelation Chapter 3: 5 He that overcometh shall thus be arrayed in white garments; and I will in no wise blot his name out of the book of life, and I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels...
SO BY THESE VERSES THIS CREED IS DECLARED BY CONFESSING!
I believe in one God the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only-begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father; through Him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation He came down from heaven.
(at the following words, up to and including “and became man”, all bow)
and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate( Became Flesh/human) of the Virgin Mary, and became man.
For our sake He was crucified under Pontius Pilate, He suffered death and was buried, and rose again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead. His kingdom will have no end.
If you do not like this confession go back to the enemy of our souls. Because this is Holy Spirit guided and approved. If you do not believe throw out your bible or use it for toilet paper. And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets;
And in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church.
: I confess one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Now if you do not like it go back to the enemy of our souls where you would belong. Because if this is not true the bible is not worth anything. We might as well throw it out.
1 John 4:
1 John 4 On Denying the Incarnation 1 Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, 3 but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.
4 You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5 They are from the world and therefore speak from the viewpoint of the world, and the world listens to them. 6 We are from God, and whoever knows God listens to us; but whoever is not from God does not listen to us. This is how we recognize the Spirit[a] of truth and the spirit of falsehood.
God’s Love and Ours
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
13 This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. 16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.
God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. 17 This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
19 We love because he first loved us. 20 Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. 21 And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.
As a former Catholic who converted to Biblical Christianity and was baptized in a Southern Baptist church, I am amazed that a Protestant could let go of his eternal security in favor of a religion that calls such assurance a “sin of presumption”. I’ve even asked a few and not one has been able to answer that question yet.