I aimed for making these short enough where you can post them into social media comments. Social media is a great missionary field, and you can make an impact by speaking truth into the life of an individual.
The jump links within this document are not working. Please scroll down to read the below topics.
The Apocrypha
The Jewish people never considered the Apocrypha to be Divinely inspired. They are the ones to whom God entrusted with his Word (Romans 3:2).
All of the Old Testament writers were called prophets (Luke 1:70, Luke 24:27, Romans 16:26). The writers of the apocrypha do not claim to be prophets, in fact they say that the prophets have ceased to appear (1 Maccabees 9:27 & 1 Maccabees 4:46).
One third of the Bible is prophetic. The apocrypha does not have any prophecies.
The Bible says we are saved by grace and the apocrypha says we are saved by works (Tobit 12:9 vs Romans 11:6).
Catholics believe they are imperfectly purified. The Bible says we are purified with blood. Hebrews 9:22, Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. We have redemption and forgiveness through his blood (Ephesians 1:7). A purification through purgatory does not allow us to enter into the presence of God, it’s Jesus’ blood alone. Hebrews 10:19, Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus. 1 John 1:7, …The blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from ALL sin.
Indulgences were only implemented for the church to make money. It would be like trying to bribe the God of the universe. Psalm 49:7, No man can possibly redeem his brother or pay his ransom to God.
Here is a link to an article I wrote called The Dangers of Working for Your Salvation. I hope you check it out. https://riseandshinelightoftheworld.blogspot.com/p/a-common-belief-i-see-ispeople-think.html I also have an article on there about why the apocrypha is scripture.
Is Asking Mary to Pray for us Idolatry?
When a human dies, they do not become Omnipresent like God. The saints, Mary or any person who has died, cannot hear your prayers. Only God is Omniscient and Omnipresent. When you attempt to speak to Mary you are giving her God-like qualities. You are only to pray to the Lord your God! You are playing with fire when you do this because God calls it spiritual prostitution. Leviticus 20:6, “I will also turn against those who commit spiritual prostitution by putting their trust in mediums or in those who consult the spirits of the dead. I will cut them off from the community.
God killed King Saul and his sons because he did not turn to God for guidance but sought guidance from the dead spirit of Samuel (1 Chronicles 10:13 & 1 Samuel 28). Isaiah 8:19, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living?
Mary herself stated she needed a savior in Luke 1:46-47. The golden calf has been replaced with a statue of Mary. Deuteronomy 4:16, Beware lest you act corruptly by making a carved image for yourselves, in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female. People have made statues in her image in direct disobedience to commandment #2. They will bow to and kneel in-front of her statue at weddings and on other occasions. Most will say they don’t worship Mary when asked but, they are doing exactly what the definition of worship says. Mary was definitely blessed but some churches have made her like God by saying she is sinless co-redeemer with Christ, which is contrary to the word of God. Romans 1:25, Because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator.
The Bible says the queen of heaven is an idol in Jeremiah 7:18. God said he divorced Israel because of her adultery with idols. Ezekiel 23:37, They committed adultery with their idols. Jeremiah 3:8, backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away and given her a bill of divorce. If we want Jesus to bear the penalty for our sins then we need to make sure idolatry is not in our life. Ezekiel 23:49, you shall bear the penalty for your sinful idolatry. See also Jonah 2:8.
Was Mary Always a Virgin?
Joseph was supposed to hold off consummating his relationship until after Mary gave birth, not forever. Matthew 1:25, But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.
Jesus had brothers and sisters, per the Bible. Mark 6:3, Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” Matthew 12:46, While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. See also John 2:12.
There are 33 Churches mentioned in the Bible. I don’t see anything that said those churches were not valid because they were not Catholic. In fact, the Roman Empire banned Christianity until the year 313. It wasn’t until the Roman Emperor Constantine, that Christianity was allowed. Constantine mixed paganism with Christianity to try and keep the peace. Many of the New Testament books were letters to different churches (Corinthians, Thessalonians, Ephesians, etc.).
Paul is writing letters to churches and he asked the churches to share his letters with each other in Colossians 4:16. Paul is also telling the members of the church in Thessalonica to pass his letters around in 1 Thessalonians 5:27. Scripture was clearly circulating around the early churches.
Acts 13:49, And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region.
The Roman Empire banned Christianity until the year 313. Churches in other parts of the world were more established prior to the emergence of Catholicism. A copy of the oldest, New Testament, was found dating back to the year 170, well before the Catholic church established its cannon. It consisted of 22 books and called the Muratorian Canon.
The most the Catholic church can say is, that they acknowledged and gave their stamp of approval on what was already considered to be the inspired Word of God. To say the world should be grateful to the Catholic church for giving us the Bible, is wrong.
God is the one who watches over his Word (Jeremiah 1:12).
- The Apocrypha
- Is Purgatory Biblical?
- Is Asking Mary to Pray for Us Idolatry?
- Was Mary Always a Virgin?
- Did Jesus Make Peter the Head of the Church?
- Did The Catholic Church Give Us the Bible?
The Apocrypha
The Jewish people never considered the Apocrypha to be Divinely inspired. They are the ones to whom God entrusted with his Word (Romans 3:2).
All of the Old Testament writers were called prophets (Luke 1:70, Luke 24:27, Romans 16:26). The writers of the apocrypha do not claim to be prophets, in fact they say that the prophets have ceased to appear (1 Maccabees 9:27 & 1 Maccabees 4:46).
One third of the Bible is prophetic. The apocrypha does not have any prophecies.
The Bible says we are saved by grace and the apocrypha says we are saved by works (Tobit 12:9 vs Romans 11:6).
You can’t bribe the judge of
the universe for salvation with alms (2 Maccabees 12:43-45 vs 1 Peter 1:18-19).
The apocrypha promotes black magic, and the
Bible condemns it (Tobit 6:6-8 vs Deuteronomy 18:9–12).
If you have no sin, you don’t need a
savior. The apocrypha said Mary was
sinless, the Bible said she needed a savior (Wisdom 8:19-20 vs Luke 1:47).
Please
stick with the original 66 books of the Bible (Proverbs 30:6) and you won’t be led
astray into false doctrines (2 Peter
2:1).
Is Purgatory Biblical?
Purgatory is a false doctrine with no Biblical support. The Bible describes in detail both heaven and hell, but is surprisingly silent about purgatory.
Is Purgatory Biblical?
Purgatory is a false doctrine with no Biblical support. The Bible describes in detail both heaven and hell, but is surprisingly silent about purgatory.
The danger with this
doctrine is when you believe that you have to pay for some of your sins, then
you are not trusting in the finished work of Jesus. Jesus said to the man on
the cross, today you will be with me in paradise. Jesus didn’t say, after you
pay off the sins I couldn’t pay for on this cross, then I will meet you in
paradise. If you are working for you salvation by sacraments, purgatory or the
law, then you will earn your wages based on YOUR works and NOT
the work of Jesus.
Only perfection in thought, word and deed, gains
you access to heaven. I, being a sinner, do not want the wages I earned, or I
will end up in hell. Romans 6:23, For the wages of sin is death, but the FREE GIFT
of God is eternal life… Romans 4:2-5, For if Abraham was justified by
works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does
the Scripture say? “Abraham BELIEVED God, and it was COUNTED TO HIM
AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.” Now to the one who works, his wages are NOT
counted as a GIFT but as his due. And to the one who DOES NOT WORK
BUT BELIEVES IN HIM who justifies the ungodly, his FAITH IS COUNTED AS
RIGHTEOUSNESS. See also Galatians
5:1-6.
Catholics believe they are imperfectly purified. The Bible says we are purified with blood. Hebrews 9:22, Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. We have redemption and forgiveness through his blood (Ephesians 1:7). A purification through purgatory does not allow us to enter into the presence of God, it’s Jesus’ blood alone. Hebrews 10:19, Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus. 1 John 1:7, …The blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from ALL sin.
Indulgences were only implemented for the church to make money. It would be like trying to bribe the God of the universe. Psalm 49:7, No man can possibly redeem his brother or pay his ransom to God.
Here is a link to an article I wrote called The Dangers of Working for Your Salvation. I hope you check it out. https://riseandshinelightoftheworld.blogspot.com/p/a-common-belief-i-see-ispeople-think.html I also have an article on there about why the apocrypha is scripture.
Is Asking Mary to Pray for us Idolatry?
When a human dies, they do not become Omnipresent like God. The saints, Mary or any person who has died, cannot hear your prayers. Only God is Omniscient and Omnipresent. When you attempt to speak to Mary you are giving her God-like qualities. You are only to pray to the Lord your God! You are playing with fire when you do this because God calls it spiritual prostitution. Leviticus 20:6, “I will also turn against those who commit spiritual prostitution by putting their trust in mediums or in those who consult the spirits of the dead. I will cut them off from the community.
God killed King Saul and his sons because he did not turn to God for guidance but sought guidance from the dead spirit of Samuel (1 Chronicles 10:13 & 1 Samuel 28). Isaiah 8:19, should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living?
Mary herself stated she needed a savior in Luke 1:46-47. The golden calf has been replaced with a statue of Mary. Deuteronomy 4:16, Beware lest you act corruptly by making a carved image for yourselves, in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female. People have made statues in her image in direct disobedience to commandment #2. They will bow to and kneel in-front of her statue at weddings and on other occasions. Most will say they don’t worship Mary when asked but, they are doing exactly what the definition of worship says. Mary was definitely blessed but some churches have made her like God by saying she is sinless co-redeemer with Christ, which is contrary to the word of God. Romans 1:25, Because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator.
The Bible says the queen of heaven is an idol in Jeremiah 7:18. God said he divorced Israel because of her adultery with idols. Ezekiel 23:37, They committed adultery with their idols. Jeremiah 3:8, backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away and given her a bill of divorce. If we want Jesus to bear the penalty for our sins then we need to make sure idolatry is not in our life. Ezekiel 23:49, you shall bear the penalty for your sinful idolatry. See also Jonah 2:8.
Was Mary Always a Virgin?
Joseph was supposed to hold off consummating his relationship until after Mary gave birth, not forever. Matthew 1:25, But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.
Jesus had brothers and sisters, per the Bible. Mark 6:3, Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” Matthew 12:46, While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. See also John 2:12.
Did Jesus Make Peter the Head of the Church?
There is nothing that
says Jesus told Peter he had authority over the other apostles.
Revelation 21:14 is
calling Peter one of 12 foundations. Ephesians
2:19-20 says that Jesus is the
cornerstone and the foundations are the apostles and prophets.
Ephesians 5:23 says
that Jesus is the head of the church, not Peter, not a Pope.
Jesus used
Peter mightily to spread the gospel, like he did with the other apostles. Jesus did not tell Peter to choose successors who will have infallible
teachings, to lead a church. In 1 Peter
2:4-5, Peter is calling all believers living stones in a spiritual
house.
Towards the end of Romans 15,
Peter said the church in Rome was already established and he hasn’t been there
and he hopes to pass by one day. This does not look like he established
the Roman Catholic church.
There are 33 Churches mentioned in the Bible. I don’t see anything that said those churches were not valid because they were not Catholic. In fact, the Roman Empire banned Christianity until the year 313. It wasn’t until the Roman Emperor Constantine, that Christianity was allowed. Constantine mixed paganism with Christianity to try and keep the peace. Many of the New Testament books were letters to different churches (Corinthians, Thessalonians, Ephesians, etc.).
The church that was
highly praised by Jesus is the church in Philadelphia (Revelation 3:7-13), not the church in Rome.
Paul
planted at least 20 different churches all over. Are these churches
invalid in the eyes of God because they were not Catholic churches?
Did The Catholic Church Give Us the Bible?
The majority of the Bible is the Old Testament and that was given by God to the Jewish people. The Old Testament was well established and acknowledged prior to Jesus and the formation of the Catholic church. The New Testament, like the OT, was written by Jewish people. Romans 3:2, …First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God. See also Psalm 147:19.
Peter considers Paul’s writings to be as inspired as scripture is, in 2 Peter 3:15-16.
Paul acknowledges that the Gospel of Luke is scripture. In 1 Timothy 5:18, Paul said “scripture says” and then proceeds to quote Deuteronomy 25:4 and Luke 10:7.
Paul is writing letters to churches and he asked the churches to share his letters with each other in Colossians 4:16. Paul is also telling the members of the church in Thessalonica to pass his letters around in 1 Thessalonians 5:27. Scripture was clearly circulating around the early churches.
Acts 13:49, And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region.
The Roman Empire banned Christianity until the year 313. Churches in other parts of the world were more established prior to the emergence of Catholicism. A copy of the oldest, New Testament, was found dating back to the year 170, well before the Catholic church established its cannon. It consisted of 22 books and called the Muratorian Canon.
The most the Catholic church can say is, that they acknowledged and gave their stamp of approval on what was already considered to be the inspired Word of God. To say the world should be grateful to the Catholic church for giving us the Bible, is wrong.
God is the one who watches over his Word (Jeremiah 1:12).
