A few days ago I began flowing a reading plan which will allow me to read the entire Bible by the end of 2018. Basically,, I have been reading a Psalm, a chapter from the New Testament and a couple of chapters from the Old Testament.
Has anyone else made a similar commitment?
What do you think of this way of reading the Bible?
Baptism is necessary for salvation. Baptism is the beginning sacrament but it is only the beginning. In addition to Baptism faith, hope, charity that produces good works, and the leading of a good life are necessary for salvation.
**BUT WHAT DOES GOD'S WORD SAY**??
Titus 3:3,4: At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and **LOVE** of God our Savior appeared , He saved us, **NOT BECAUSE OF RIGHTEOUS THINGS WE HAD DONE**, but because of **HIS MERCY**!!
John 1:12,13: To all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, he gave the right to become children of God--children born not of natural descent, **NOR OF A HUMAN DECISION** or a husband's will but, **BORN OF GOD**!!
John 6:37,39,44,65: Jesus says, "**ALL** that the Father gives Me **WILL** come to Me, and whoever comes to Me I will **NEVER** drive away... And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall **LOSE NONE** of all that He has given Me, but raise them up at the Last Day.... No one can come to Me **UNLESS** the Father who sent Me **DRAWS HIM**, and I will raise him up at the Last Day!!... No one can come to Me **UNLESS** the Father has **ENABLED THEM**!!"
Romans 9:15,16: God says, "I will have mercy on who I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion!" It does **NOT**, therefore depend on human desire or effort, but on **GOD'S MERCY**!! (But God's human saints still preach "*WHO SO EVER WILL** to everyone!!}
Ephesians 2:8,9: For it is by **GRACE** you have been saved, through **FAITH**�and this **NOT FROM YOURSELVES**, it is the **GIFT OF GOD**�**NOT BY WORKS**. So that no one can boast. For we are **GOD'S WORKMANSHIP**, created in Christ Jesus to do **GOOD WORKS**, which God prepared in advance for us to do! {And so faith without good works is dead but God's chosen saints will have good works because they are**GOD'S WORKMANSHIP**!!}
Galatians 5:5,6: For through the Spirit we eagerly await **BY FAITH** the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is **FAITH** expressing itself through **LOVE**!!
Romans 3:23-25: For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of His blood--to be received **BY FAITH**!!
Hebrews 10:5,8-10: When Christ came into the world, He said... "Sacrifices burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them!"-- though they were offered in accordance with the law. Then He said, "Here I am. I have come to do your will." He sets aside the first to establish the second {Covenant}. And by that will, **WE** have been **MADE HOLY THROUGH THE SACRIFICE OF THE BODY OF JESUS CHRIST** **ONCE FOR ALL**!!
I Peter 1:18,19: For you know that it was not with perishable things like silver and gold that you were **REEDEEMED** from the empty way of life handed down to you by your ancestors, but with the **PRECIOUS BLOOD OF CHRIST**, a lamb without blemish or defect!!
Romans 3:23-25: All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and **ALL** are justified **FREELY** by His grace through the redemption that came through Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a **SACRIFICE OF ATONEMENT, through the shedding of His blood--to be received by **FAITH**!!{Which is also a **FREE GIFT OF GOD** as per Ephesians 2:8!}
Romans 6:23: The wages of sin is death, but the **GIFT OF GOD** is **ETERNAL LIFE** in Jesus Christ our Lord!!
Revelation 17:14: They make war against the**LAMB** but the **LAMB** will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings and with Him will be His **CALLED**, **CHOSEN** and **FAITHFUL** followers!!{Riding on heavenly white horses as per Revelation 19:7-20!}
**THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH DECLARES MARY AS REDEEMER**
"The foundation of all our confidence is found in the Blessed Virgin Mary. God has committed to her the treasury of all good things, in order that everyone may know that through her are obtained every hope, every grace, and all salvation. For this is His will: That we obtain everything through Mary." (Pope Pius IX)
"To such extent did Mary suffer and almost die with her suffering and dying Son; to such extent did she surrender her maternal rights over her Son for man's salvation... that we may rightly say she redeemed the human race together with Christ." (Benedict XV}
"In fact, by being assumed into heaven she has not laid aside the office of salvation but by the manifold intercession she continues to obtain for us the grace of eternal salvation." (John Paul II, Dives in Misericordia, 1980, quoting Lumen Gentium)
BUT WHAT DOES GOD'S WORD SAY**??
I Peter 1:18,19: For you know that it was not with perishable things like silver and gold that you were **REEDEEMED** from the empty way of life handed down to you by your ancestors, but with the **PRECIOUS BLOOD OF CHRIST**, a lamb without blemish or defect!!
Ephesians 1:4-8: In love He predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will--to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has **FREELY GIVEN US** in the One He loves. In Him we have **REDEMPTION THROUGH HIS BLOOD**, the **FORGIVENESS OF SINS**, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding!!
Romans 3:23-25 All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and **ALL** are justified freely by His grace through the**REDEMPTION** that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of **ATONEMENT**, through the shedding of His blood--to be received by **FAITH**! {Which is a **FREE GIFT** as per Ephesians 2:8}
Now Ludlow and the Roman Catholic Church claim that the brothers of Jesus are really *COUSINS* since there is no word for cousin in Aramaic.
However, the New Testament was written in inspired Greek which has an inspired word for cousins which is "ANEPSIS". Colossians 4:10: Paul said, "My fellow prisoner Aristarchus sends you his greetings, as does Mark, the **COUSIN** {Greek-ANEPSIS} of Barnabas!!"
There is no need for all this wrangling to support an erroneous theological position concocted in the dark ages by dualistic philosophers that had taken control of the Roman Catholic Church. The Bible says what it means and means what it says: Jesus did indeed have brothers. His mother lost her virginity sometime after He was born. That's why the Bible very clearly states that Joseph �kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son...� (Matthew 1:25, NASB). That means Joseph didn't keep her a virgin forever, but until some time after she had given birth to Jesus. The fact that Mary indulged in sex with her husband after Jesus was born does not in any way diminish from who she was; but to claim that her having sex diminished her, as Roman Catholicism does, is an insult to Mary. And a married woman having sex with her husband is not a sin as per I Corinthians 7:3-5 below and a woman who does not have sex with her husband is SINNING !!
I Corinthians 7:3-5: The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife and LIKEWISE THE WIFE TO HER HUSBAND! The wife's body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband. In the same way, the husband's body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife. DO NOT DEPRIVE EACH OTHER except by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer!
Finally, the entire New Testament is in Greek which is the most precise language in the world and God chose this most precise inspired Greek for the New Testament.
Now, Greek does indeed have a word for "cousin," "ANEPSIS", which is used in Colossians 4:10 above to describe the relationship between Barnabas and Mark. Paul, who wrote Colossians, and evidently knew the word for "cousin", did not apply it to James, the Lord's "brother", in Galatians 1:19: Paul said "I saw none of the other apostles--only James, the Lord's **BROTHER**!" Matthew, Mark and Luke also wrote their inspired gospels in Greek, and they certainly had a inspired word for "cousin" at their disposal. They didn't use it in the verses below because it was inaccurate since these were obviously Jesus' real brothers.
JESUS SAYS, "WHOEVER DOES GOD'S WILL IS MY MOTHER"!!
Satanic popes have decreed that Mary was a sinless virgin who you can **PRAY TO** {HAIL MAR'S} and forgive sins and that Jesus had **NO** brothers and sisters.
**BUT WHAT DOES GOD'S WORD SAY**??
Matthew 1:24,25: When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no union with her **UNTIL** she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.
Mark 6:1,3: Jesus left and went to His hometown...and began to teach...They asked, "Isn't this the carpenter? Isn't this Mary's son and the brother{Greek-"ADELPHOS"}of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren't His sisters here with us?"
Matthew 13:54-56: Coming to His hometown, Jesus began teaching and people were amazed. "Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?" they asked. "Isn't this the carpenter's son? Isn't His mother's name Mary, and aren't His brothers {Greek-"ADELPHOS"} James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Aren't all His sisters with us?"
JESUS SAYS, "WHOEVER DOES GOD'S WILL IS MY MOTHER!"
Mark 3:31-34: Then Jesus' mother and BROTHERS {Greek-"ADELPHOS"} arrived. Standing outside...A crowd was sitting around Him, and they told Him, "Your mother and BROTHERS are outside looking for you." "Who are My mother and my brothers?" Jesus asked. Then He looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, "HERE IS MY MOTHER and my brothers! Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and MOTHER!"
JESUS SAYS, "MY MOTHER AND BROTHERS ARE THOSE WHO HEAR GOD'S WORD AND PUT IT INTO PRACTICE!"
Luke 8:20,21: Someone told Him {Jesus} "Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to see You." Jesus replied, "MY MOTHER and brothers are those who hear God's Word and put it into practice!!"
Also, Jesus is called the "SON of David" 17 times in the NT, and in Revelation 22:16: Jesus says, "I am the OFFSPRING of David!!
Matthew 6:6,9-11: Jesus says, �When you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your **Father**, who is unseen. Then your **Father**, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you ...This then is how you should pray: �Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be your name, your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven!" Luke 11:4 adds that only the Father can "Forgive us our sins.....� Is there even one instance where a believer prayed to someone other than the **Father** in the OT or the NT?? Answer; ZERO! What church had its evil leader decree that it is OK to pray to and worship Mary, a human being, who was a sinless VIRGIN?
You will note that Mary is not even mentioned once in God's Word after Acts 1 and was never mentioned as a **REDEEMER**!. To say that Mary was a sinless virgin without other children contradicts God's Sacred Word many times. And to say that we should pray to anyone but the Father in Jesus name is absolute Satanic blasphemy.
NOW THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH AND THE CHURCH OF CHRIST BELIEVE THAT YOU ARE SAVED BY GOOD WORKS AND THAT GOD'S CHOSEN SAINTS CAN LOOSE THEIR SALVATION??
**BUT WHAT DOES GOD'S WORD SAY**??
JESUS SAYS, "I **CHOSE** YOU SO THAT YOU MIGHT BEAR **FRUIT**, **FRUIT THAT WILL LAST**!"
"John 15:1-5,16: Jesus says, "I am the true vine, and My Father is the gardener, He cuts off every branch in Me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear **FRUIT** He prunes so that it will be even more **FRUITFUL**. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in Me as I also remain in you. No branch can bear **FRUIT** by itself; it must remain in the vine, Neither can you bear **FRUIT** unless you remain in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. If you remain in Me and I in you, you will bear **MUCH FRUIT**; apart from Me you can do nothing... You did not choose Me but **I CHOSE YOU** and appointed you so that you might go and bear **FRUIT**--**FRUIT** that will last!!!"
Ephesians 2:8,9: For it is by **GRACE** you have been saved, through **FAITH**�and this **NOT FROM YOURSELVES**, it is the **GIFT OF GOD**�not by works. So that no one can boast. For we are **GOD'S WORKMANSHIP**, created in Christ Jesus to do **GOOD WORKS**, which God prepared in advance for us to do! {And so all of God's chosen saints will do **GOOD WORKS** for they are God's **WORKMANSHIP**!}
Colossians 1:9,10: We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of His will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may please Him in every good work, **BEARING FRUIT** in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God!
Matthew 13:20-23: Jesus says, "The seed falling on the rocky ground refers to someone who hears the Word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the Word they quickly fall away. The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the Word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the Word, making it unfruitful. But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the **WORD AND UNDERSTANDS IT**. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown."
Luke 8:15: Jesus says, "But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the **WORD**, retain it, and by perseverance produce a crop."
Philippians 1:9-11: And this is my prayer: that your love my abound **MORE AND MORE** in knowledge and depth and insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the **FRUIT** of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ--to the glory and praise of God!!
Galatians 5:22,23: The **FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT** is love, joy, peace, forgiveness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control!
2 Peter 1:3-11: His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. Through these He has given us very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption of the world caused by evil desires. For this reason, make every effort to add to your faith {A Free Gift} goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, **LOVE**. For if you possess these qualities in **INCREASING MEASURE**, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is nearsightecd and blind, forgetting that they have been forgiven of their past sins... Therefore, my brothers make **EVERY EFFORT** to confirm your calling and **ELECTION**. For if you do these things, you will never fail, and you will receive a **RICH WELCOME**into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
I Corinthians 9:24-27: Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes in to strict training. They do it to get a **CROWN** that will not last; but we do it to get a **CROWN THAT WILL LAST FOREVER**! Therefore, I do not run like a man running aimlessly. I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize!
I Thessalonians 4:1: We instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this **MORE AND MORE**!!
Ephesians 3:7,11-16: To each one of us grace has been given as Christ appotioned it... So Christ Himself gives some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists and some to be pastors and teachers; to equip His people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of Him who is the **HEAD**, that is, Christ. From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work!!!
Corinthians 3:7-9: So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who makes things grow. The man who plants and the man who watered have one purpose, and each will be **REWARDED** according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers, you are God's field, God's building!
Ephesians 6:8: Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will **REWARD** everyone for what ever good he does!
Revelation 22:12 Jesus says, �Behold I am coming soon! My **REWARD** is with Me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done!�
John 6:37,39,65: Jesus says, "All those the Father gives to Me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me I will **NEVER** drive away....And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall **LOSE NONE** of all those He has given Me, but raise them up on the Last Day... No one can come to Me **UNLESS** the Father has **ENABLED THEM**!"
**AND SO SALVATION IS 100 PERCENT FREE AND REWARDS ARE 100 PERCENT EARNED**!!
Revelation 17L14: They will make war against the **LANB** but the **LAMB** will triumph over them because He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and with Him will be His **CALLED** **CHOSEN** and **FAITHFUL** followers! {Riding on Heavenly white horses as per Revelation 19:7-20!}
**SALVATION IS 100 % FREE BUT ETERNAL REWARDS ARE 100% EARNED**!!
Ephesians 2:8,9: For it is by **GRACE** you have been saved, through **FAITH**�and this **NOT FROM YOURSELVES**, it is the **GIFT OF GOD**�not by works. So that no one can boast. For we are **GOD'S WORKMANSHIP**, created in Christ Jesus to do **GOOD WORKS**, which God prepared in advance for us to do! {And so all of God's chosen saints will do **GOOD WORKS** and earn many eternal rewards for faithful and loving service for they are God's **WORKMANSHIP**!}
Hebrews 11:1,6: Now faith {**A FREE GIFT OF GOD**} is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see....And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He *REWARDS** those who earnestly seek Him!!
Ephesians 6:8: Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will **REWARD** everyone for what ever good he does!
Revelation 22:12 Jesus says, �Behold I am coming soon! My **REWARD** is with Me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done!�
Matthew 16:27: Jesus says, �The Son of Man is going to come in His Father's glory with His angels and THEN He will **REWARD** each person according to what he has done!�
Hebrews 6:10-12: God is not unjust; He will not forget your work and the love you have shown Him as you have helped His people and continue to help them. We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, so that what you have hoped for may be fully realized. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience **INHERIT WHAT HAS BEEN PROMISED**!!
Daniel 12:3: Those who are impart wisdom {NIV} will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever!!
I Corinthians 3:7-9: So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who makes things grow. The man who plants and the man who watered have one purpose, and each will be **REWARDED** according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers, you are God's field, God's building!
Colossians 3:17: And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the **NAME OF THE LORD JESUS**, giving thanks to God the Father through Him!
2 Corinthians 5:9,10: We make it our goal to please Him... for we must all appear before the Judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive **WHAT IS DUE HIM** for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
2 John 1:8: Watch out that you do not lose what you have worked for, but that you be **REWARDED FULLY**!
Colossians 3:23-25: Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a **REWARD**. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism.
Matthew 6:3,4,6: Jesus says, "When you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing so that your giving my be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will **REWARD** you!!... When you pray, go into your room, close the door, and pray to your Father who is unseen Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will **REWARD** you!!"
Luke 6:35: Jesus says, "Love your enemies, do good to them and lend to them without expecting anything back {Matt 5:45 adds "Pray for those who persecute you!!"} Then your **REWARD WILL BE GREAT**, and you will be sons of the Most High, because He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked!"
Matthew 19:29 Jesus says, "Everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother for My sake will receive **A HUNDRED** times as much and will inherit eternal life!"
Revelation 2:17: Jesus says, "To him who overcomes.. I will give him a white stone with a **NEW NAME** written on it, known only to him who receives it!!"
Revelation 3:21: Jesus says, "To him who overcomes, I will give the right to **SIT WITH ME** on My throne, just as I overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne!!"
**HOW TO WIN TREASURES IN HEAVEN**
I Timothy 6:18,19: Command them to do good deeds, and to be gracious and willing to share. In this way they will **LAY UP TREASURE** for themselves.. in the coming age!
Luke 12:33,34: Jesus says, "Sell your possessions and give to the poor, provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a **TREASURE IN HEAVEN** that will not be exhausted... For where your **TREASURE* is there **YOUR HEART** will be also!!"
Matthew 6:19-21: Jesus says, "Do not store up for yourselves treasure on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. but store up for yourselves **TREASURE IN HEAVEN**, where moth and and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your **TREASURE is, there **YOUR HEART** will be also!!"
**HOW TO WIN HEAVENLY ETERNAL CROWNS**
I Corinthians 9:24-27: Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes in to strict training. They do it to get a **CROWN** that will not last; but we do it to get a **CROWN THAT WILL LAST FOREVER**! Therefore, I do not run like a man running aimlessly. I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize!
I Peter 5:2-4: Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, watch over them--not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve, not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears,you will receive the **CROWN OF GLORY** that will **NEVER FADE AWAY**!!
And so God's Word confirms that these heavenly crowns **WILL LAST FOREVER** and **WILL NEVER FADE AWAY**!!
Revelation 3:11: Jesus says, �I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your **CROWN**!�
The **CROWN OF LIFE** for those who persevere under trials and persecution:
James 1:12: Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the **CROWN OF LIFE** that God has promised to those who love Him!
Revelation 2:10 Jesus says, �Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer... Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the **CROWN OF LIFE!�
Hebrews 10:32-36: Remember those earlier days after you had received the Light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering. Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. So do not throw away your confidence; it will be **RICHLY REWARDED**. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, **YOU RECEIVE WHAT HE HAS PROMISED**!!!
Because her basic doctrinal premises remain in place, Rome can yet again rise up against her spiritual enemies at some future date when she again wields exclusive ecclesiastical control of a region. In fact, the "Holy Office" of the Inquisition still exists within the Vatican (known today as the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith), awaiting the day in which it can stamp out "heresy". As recently as 1938, a popular Catholic weekly declared:
Heresy is an awful crime against God, and those who start a heresy are more guilty than they who are traitors to the civil government. If the state has a right to punish treason with death, the principle is the same that concedes to the spiritual authority the power of life and death over the arch-traitor.
"From the birth of popery to the present time, it is estimated by careful and credible historians, that more than fifty millions of the human family, have been slaughtered for the crime of heresy by popish persecutors,--an average of more than 40,000 religious murders for every year of the existence of popery to the present day. Of course the average number of victims yearly, was vastly greater, during those gloomy ages when popery was in her glory and reigned despot of the world; and it has been much less since the power of the popes has diminished to tyrannize over the nations, and to compel the princes of the earth, by the terrors of excommunication, interdiction, and deposition, to butcher their heretical subjects." (John Dowling, The History of Romanism, pp. 541-542)
The Inquisition proved how Catholicism will react when it has possession of absolute power.
There is a statue of Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Jesuit order. In it you can see Loyola holding the Jesuit Constitution while trampling underfoot a Christian holding a Bible. And this statue resides at the Vatican TODAY! This isn't just a statue that tells us about history. It is a statue in HONOR of what the Roman Catholic Church did to all those faithful Bible believing Christians. And that evil spirit still resides in the Catholic Church.
One of the main enforcers of the Satanic Roman Catholic Inquisitions was the Jesuits. They have the same Satanic oath today. Pope Francis was a leading Jesuit for 40 years and has administered and taken this same Satanic Jesuit oath!!!
Interesting excerpt from the present Text of the Jesuit Oath:
"I do further promise and declare that I will, when opportunity presents, make and wage relentless war, secretly and openly, against all heretics and Protestants, as I am directed to do, to extirpate them from the face of the whole earth; and that I will spare neither age, sex nor condition, and that will hang, burn, waste, boil, flay, strangle, and bury alive these infamous heretics; rip up the stomachs and wombs of their women, and crush their infants' heads against the walls in order to annihilate their execrable race. That when the same cannot be done openly I will secretly use the poisonous cup, the strangulation cord, the steel of the poniard, or the leaden bullet, regardless of the honor, rank, dignity or authority of the persons, whatever may be their condition in life, either public or private, as I at any time may be directed so to do by any agents of the Pope or Superior of the Brotherhood of the Holy Father of the Society of Jesus."
**BUT WHAT DOES GOD'S WORD SAY**??
Luke 6:27-29: Jesus commands, "LOVE YOUR ENEMIES, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you. do not demand it back!"
Romans 12:18-21: If it is possible, as far as it DEPENDS ON YOU, LIVE AT PEACE WITH EVERYONE! Do not take revenge my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written, "It is mine to revenge, I will repay," says the Lord. On the contrary "If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head" Do not be overcome by evil but OVERCOME EVIL WITH GOOD!!
2 Corinthians 10:3,4: "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are *NOT* the weapons of the world."
The only weapons that NT saints may use who follow the New Covenant commands of Jesus is the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. A NT saint would not even think of joining the army of any nation and becoming a professional killer or defending himself with a gun. Unfortunately very few Groups such as the Amish and Mennonites still obey these sacred commands of Jesus.
I John 2:3-5: "We know that we have come to know Him if we obey His {Jesus'} commands. The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what He {Jesus} commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys His Word, God's love is truly made complete in him."
When you join the military and become a professional killer you must make a **VOW** that you will obey all the commands of your commanding officer. And so if He commands you to drop an Atomic Bomb that will kill about 100,000 civilians including about 25,000 innocent children you must obey this command!!!
What is the OT command concerning *VOWS* and *OATHS*?? Numbers 30:2: Moses said, "This is what the Lord commands: When a man makes a *VOW* to the Lord or takes an *OATH* to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not break his word but must do everything he said!"
What are the NT commands concerning making *VOWS* and **OATHS*??
James 5:12: "ABOVE ALL, my brothers, do not swear--not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your "Yes" be yes, and your "No," no, or you will be condemned.!!"
Matthew 5:33-37: Jesus says, "You have heard that it was said to your people long ago {Numbers 30:2 above}, 'Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.' BUT I tell you, Do not swear at all....Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No, 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one!!" {Just like the Satanic **OATH** taken by the Jesuits!}
"Was the emperor Constantine, baptized at the end of his life, a true Christian? Or did he embrace Christianity purely to increase his political power? Of course we don't know for sure. We can't judge souls---only God can do that. But I lean to saying that yes he was a good and sincere convert. Why? Because the world hates him with a purple passion, and generally anything the world loves is evil and anything the world hates is good."
Satan devised a plan by which he would lay the foundation for and establish his own counterfeit church. Under Satan's direction paganism would get a new face. Satan would introduce to the world his own version of a �Christian Church.� As was indicated earlier, the Caesars were worshipped as gods. As the Roman Empire was near disintegration, the pagan Caesars did not want to lose their power in controlling the world, so they decided on a plan by which to keep their power and influence in the world. The Roman Caesars simply exchanged their Roman togas for religious costumes. Thus they could control the world's governments and their economies through religion.
After Constantine defeated Maxentius in 312 AD in a battle for the throne of Rome, Satan continued in his clever plan to build his own version of a �Christian Church". Satan had now temporarily stopped his persecution of the Christian Church from without, but he would now proceed to attack the Church from within.
Under Satan's direction, Constantine set up the �Council of Nicaea� and presided as �Summus Pontifex�, the official title of a Pope. Constantine's job was to mix paganism with a perverted form of Christianity to make his new religious organization look respectable. This mixture of paganism with some of the teaching of Christ was Satan's version of a �Christian Church.� This powerful religious institution would be later used by Satan to send millions of souls to hell and to cause the deaths of many Bible believing Christians.
Many changes took place in this Babylonian pagan church. Under Constantine, the pagans were permitted to bring their statues and idols of Semiramis, �The Queen of Heaven�, and Nimrod, �Baal�, �The Sun God', into the Church. The names were changed to the Virgin Mary, �Queen of Heaven� and little Jesus, �The Sun God.� For example: Is this Catholic image Mary and baby Jesus or is it Semiramis, �The Queen of Heaven� and son Nimrod/Tammuz? Note the pagan trident symbol from the head of what is supposedly baby Jesus and that the hand is displayed with two fingers and a thumb prominent, being another way of symbolizing the trident and is a Satanic hand sign symbolic of occult powers. This is also used by high Church officials and priests in blessings invoking the sign of the cross by motioning their right hand with two fingers and thumb casually extended.
The Roman Catholic Church grew in power as the people in Rome were again under the priests and each succeeding Pope. Roman Catholicism is based on ancient Babylonian Baal worship and on the man made traditions of the Church fathers. Catholicism is not based on the teachings of God's Word or on the Scriptural plan of salvation. So we find Satan had a long term plan for his church.
His worse crime was religious intolerance. He banned all religion except his own and imposed it on the entire known world. He achieved this by mercilessly persecuting all 'pagans', who were burned, fed to the lions, and oppressed across the face of Europe for centuries afterwards.
No single person before or after- until the 20th Century - was responsible for more death and suffering than Constantine.
Most sources are Christian and tend to forget his crimes. They have even turned him into some kind of hero.
And the Jesuits follow the example set by Constantine!!
One of the main enforcers of the Satanic Roman Catholic Inquisitions was the Jesuits. They have the same Satanic oath today. Pope Francis was a leading Jesuit for 40 years and has administered and taken this same Satanic Jesuit oath!!!
Interesting excerpt from the present Text of the Jesuit Oath:
"I do further promise and declare that I will, when opportunity presents, make and wage relentless war, secretly and openly, against all heretics and Protestants, as I am directed to do, to extirpate them from the face of the whole earth; and that I will spare neither age, sex nor condition, and that will hang, burn, waste, boil, flay, strangle, and bury alive these infamous heretics; rip up the stomachs and wombs of their women, and crush their infants' heads against the walls in order to annihilate their execrable race. That when the same cannot be done openly I will secretly use the poisonous cup, the strangulation cord, the steel of the poniard, or the leaden bullet, regardless of the honor, rank, dignity or authority of the persons, whatever may be their condition in life, either public or private, as I at any time may be directed so to do by any agents of the Pope or Superior of the Brotherhood of the Holy Father of the Society of Jesus."
**BUT WHAT DOES GOD'S WORD SAY**??
Luke 6:27-29: Jesus commands, "LOVE YOUR ENEMIES, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you. do not demand it back!"
Romans 12:18-21: If it is possible, as far as it DEPENDS ON YOU, LIVE AT PEACE WITH EVERYONE! Do not take revenge my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written, "It is mine to revenge, I will repay," says the Lord. On the contrary "If your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him something to drink. Do not be overcome by evil but **OVERCOME EVIL WITH GOOD**!!
2 Corinthians 10:3,4: "For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are *NOT* the weapons of the world."
The only weapons that NT saints may use who follow the New Covenant commands of Jesus is the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. A NT saint would not even think of joining the army of any nation and becoming a professional killer or defending himself with a gun. Unfortunately very few Groups such as the Amish and Mennonites still obey these sacred commands of Jesus.
I John 2:3-5: "We know that we have come to know Him if we obey His {Jesus'} commands. The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what He {Jesus} commands is a **LIAR**, and the truth is not in him. But if anyone obeys His Word, God's love is truly made complete in him."
When you join the military and become a professional killer you must make a **VOW** that you will obey all the commands of your commanding officer. And so if He commands you to drop an Atomic Bomb that will kill about 100,000 civilians including about 25,000 innocent children you must obey this command!!!
The Popes promised eternal life to all their professional killers in countless Inquisitions and Crusades.
**WERE THE SAVED DISCIPLES AND THOSE SAVED IN ACTS 2;38 BAPTIZED WITH WATER OR WERE THEY BAPTIZED AS JESUS HAD PROMISED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT**??
Luke 3P16L John said, "I baptize you with water . But One who is more powerful than I will come. He will **BAPTIZE YOU WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT** and fire!"
Acts 1:4,5: Just days before the baptism of the Holy Spirit Jesus said to His disciples, "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the **GIFT** My Father promised, which you have heard Me speak about {In John 14:26 & 16:7-11}. For John baptized with water but you will be **BAPTIZED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT**!!"
Acts 2:38,39: Peter said, "Repent and be baptized {With the Holy Spirit!}, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins. And you will receive the **GIFT** of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off-- for **ALL WHOM THE LORD OUR GOD WILL CALL**!!"
Titus 3:3,4: At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and **LOVE** of God our Savior appeared , He saved us, **NOT BECAUSE OF RIGHTEOUS THINGS WE HAD DONE**, but because of **HIS MERCY**!!
John 1:12,13: To all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, he gave the right to become children of God--children born not of natural descent, **NOR OF A HUMAN DECISION** or a husband's will but, **BORN OF GOD**!!
John 6:37,39,44,65: Jesus says, "**ALL** that the Father gives Me **WILL** come to Me, and whoever comes to Me I will **NEVER** drive away... And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall **LOSE NONE** of all that He has given Me, but raise them up at the Last Day.... No one can come to Me **UNLESS** the Father who sent Me **DRAWS HIM**, and I will raise him up at the Last Day!!... No one can come to Me **UNLESS** the Father has **ENABLED THEM**!!"
Romans 9:15,16: God says, "I will have mercy on who I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion!" It does **NOT**, therefore depend on human desire or effort, but on **GOD'S MERCY**!! (But God's human saints still preach "*WHO SO EVER WILL** to everyone!!}
Ephesians 2:8,9: For it is by **GRACE** you have been saved, through **FAITH**�and this **NOT FROM YOURSELVES**, it is the **GIFT OF GOD**�**NOT BY WORKS**. So that no one can boast. For we are **GOD'S WORKMANSHIP**, created in Christ Jesus to do **GOOD WORKS**, which God prepared in advance for us to do! {And so faith without good works is dead but God's chosen saints will have good works because they are**GOD'S WORKMANSHIP**!!}
Galatians 5:5,6: For through the Spirit we eagerly await **BY FAITH** the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is **FAITH** expressing itself through **LOVE**!!
Romans 3:23-25: For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified **FREELY** by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of His blood--to be received **BY FAITH**!! {Which is also a **FREE GIFT OF GOD** as per Ephesians 2:8 above!}
Hebrews 10:5,8-10: When Christ came into the world, He said... "Sacrifices burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them!"-- though they were offered in accordance with the law. Then He said, "Here I am. I have come to do your will." He sets aside the first to establish the second {Covenant}. And by that will, **WE** have been **MADE HOLY THROUGH THE SACRIFICE OF THE BODY OF JESUS CHRIST** **ONCE FOR ALL**!!
I Peter 1:18,19: For you know that it was not with perishable things like silver and gold that you were **REEDEEMED** from the empty way of life handed down to you by your ancestors, but with the **PRECIOUS BLOOD OF CHRIST**, a lamb without blemish or defect!!
Romans 6:23: The wages of sin is death, but the **GIFT OF GOD** is **ETERNAL LIFE** in Jesus Christ our Lord!!
Revelation 17:14: They make war against the**LAMB** but the **LAMB** will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings and with Him will be His **CALLED**, **CHOSEN** and **FAITHFUL** followers!!{Riding on heavenly white horses as per Revelation 19:7-20!}
NOW THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH AND THE CHURCH OF CHRIST BELIEVE THAT YOU ARE SAVED BY GOOD WORKS AND THAT GOD'S CHOSEN SAINTS CAN LOOSE THEIR SALVATION??
**BUT WHAT DOES GOD'S WORD SAY**??
JESUS SAYS, "I **CHOSE** YOU SO THAT YOU MIGHT BEAR **FRUIT**, **FRUIT THAT WILL LAST**!"
"John 15:16: You did not choose Me but **I CHOSE YOU** and appointed you so that you might go and bear **FRUIT**--**FRUIT** that will last!!!"
Ephesians 2:8,9: For it is by **GRACE** you have been saved, through **FAITH**�and this **NOT FROM YOURSELVES**, it is the **GIFT OF GOD**�not by works. So that no one can boast. For we are **GOD'S WORKMANSHIP**, created in Christ Jesus to do **GOOD WORKS**, which God prepared in advance for us to do! {And so all of God's chosen saints will do **GOOD WORKS** for they are God's **WORKMANSHIP**!}
Matthew 13:20-23: Jesus says, "The seed falling on the rocky ground refers to someone who hears the Word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the Word they quickly fall away. The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the Word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the Word, making it unfruitful. {These seeds were not sown and chosen by God!} But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the **WORD AND UNDERSTANDS IT**. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown."
Galatians 5:22,23: The **FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT** is love, joy, peace, forgiveness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control!
2 Peter 1:3-11: His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. Through these He has given us very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption of the world caused by evil desires. For this reason, make every effort to add to your faith {A Free Gift of **GOD**} goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, **LOVE**. For if you possess these qualities in **INCREASING MEASURE**, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is nearsightecd and blind, forgetting that they have been forgiven of their past sins... Therefore, my brothers make **EVERY EFFORT** to confirm your calling and **ELECTION**. For if you do these things, you will never fail, and you will receive a **RICH WELCOME** into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
Corinthians 3:7-9: So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who makes things grow. The man who plants and the man who watered have one purpose, and each will be **REWARDED** according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers, you are God's field, God's building!
Ephesians 6:8: Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will **REWARD** everyone for what ever good he does!
Revelation 22:12 Jesus says, �Behold I am coming soon! My **REWARD** is with Me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done!�
John 6:37,39,65: Jesus says, "All those the Father gives to Me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me I will **NEVER** drive away....And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I shall **LOSE NONE** of all those He has given Me, but raise them up on the Last Day... No one can come to Me **UNLESS** the Father has **ENABLED THEM**!"
Romans 6:23: The wages of sin is death, but the **GIFT OF GOD** is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior!!
Romans 12:3: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the **FAITH** God has distributed to each of you!!
Romans 4:5-8: To the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness! David says {In Psalm 32:1} the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the one to whom God's credits righteousness **APART FROM WORKS**: "Blessed are those whose transgressions are covered. Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord will **NEVER** count against them!"
Ephesians 1:4-8: **IN LOVE HE PREDESTINED US** for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will--to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has **FREELY** given us in the One He loves. In Him we have **REDEMPTION THROUGH HIS BLOOD**, the **FORGIVENESS OF SINS**, in accordance with the riches of **GOD'S GRACE** that He lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding!!
Romans 11:5,6: At the present time their is a remnant **CHOSEN BY GRACE**. And if by grace, then **IT CANNOT BE BASED ON WORKS**; if it were grace would no longer by grace!
Romans 9:11-18: Before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad--in order that God's purpose **BY ELECTION** might stand; **NOT BY WORKS** but by Him who calls.... Is God unjust? Not at all. For He says to Moses "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion." It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God's mercy... Therefore God has mercy on whom He wants to have mercy, and He hardens whom He wants to harden!
Romans 8:28-30: We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been **CALLED** according to His purpose. For those God foreknew He also **PREDESTINED** to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. And those He **PREDESTINED**, He also **CALLED**; those He **CALLED**, He also **JUSTIFIED**; those He **JUSTIFIED** He also **GLORIFIED**!!
Romans 8:33-37: Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies... Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?... For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels or demons, neither the present or the future nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord1
**AND SO SALVATION IS 100 PERCENT FREE AND REWARDS ARE 100 PERCENT EARNED**!!
Revelation 17:14: They will make war against the **LANB** but the **LAMB** will triumph over them because He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and with Him will be His **CALLED** **CHOSEN** and **FAITHFUL** followers! {Riding on Heavenly white horses as per Revelation 19:7-20!}
