Topic Two: DANGERS OF ROMAN CATHOLICISM
Message 1: The Plain Truth about the Roman Catholic Church
By: Samuel Kwasi Forkuo (Admin, Warning: Church, Get Prepared - WCGP)
Ask any Catholic of the
origin of the Church and he will refer you to to Matthew 16:18. In that verse,
Jesus said ''And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock
I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.'' Jesus,
when making that Matthew 16:18 declaration, WAS NOT REFERRING TO THE ROMAN
CATHOLIC CHURCH; MUCH LESS MAKING PETER THE FIRST POPE. The Roman Catholic
Church claims to have started in Matthew 16:18 when Christ
supposedly appointed Peter as the first Pope. They say "Outside the Church there is no salvation" (Extra ecclesiam nulla salus) Catholic Dictionary/Encyclopedia. However, the honest and objective
student of Scriptures and history soon discovers that the foundation of the
Roman church is none other than the pagan mystery religion of ancient
Babylon.
THE CHURCH JESUS CHRIST WAS
TALKING ABOUT WAS NOT EVEN BAPTIST, DEEPER LIFE, APOSTOLIC, PRESBYTERIAN,
SALVATION ARMY, OR PENTECOST --- MUCH LESS ROMAN CATHOLIC, JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES,
LATTER-DAY SAINTS OR SDA.
THE CHURCH THAT HE WOULD
BUILD WAS A PEOPLE (NOT A PLACE OF WORSHIP) WHO, THROUGH GENUINE REPENTANCE,
WOULD HAVE THEIR SINS WASHED IN CHRIST'S BLOOD AND HAVE THEIR NAMES WRITTEN IN
THE LAMB'S BOOK OF LIFE. THAT IS, CHRIST WAS TALKING OF THOSE THAT HE WOULD
FORGIVE, ACCEPT, REDEEM/SAVE AND CALL THEM HIS OWN. IN FACT, SUCH A PEOPLE IS
OFTEN REFERRED TO AS ''THE BRIDE OF CHRIST.'' The Church, by Christ's
definition, is not a religious denomination with the largest number or first to
be known (for the Catholics to think that they are); is not a place of worship
(for the Latter-Day Saints to think that they are, because they think they have
ultra-modern worship centers); and is not about tract-sharing (for the
Jehovah's Witnesses to claim they are, for they think they share more tracts).
The Church, by Christ's definition, is a Group of people, devoid of their local
churches, who have been saved by Christ with His Blood, living for Christ,
spotless and have their names written in the Lamb's Book of Life.
From the above description,
it is clear that if a person is not truly saved, he can be a member of the
Roman Catholic Church or any other local Church and still will not be part of Christ's Church/Bride and go to hell. In fact,
if any local Church claims that no one can be saved except the person becomes a
member of their church, such a church is a cult. It is not surprising that, not
only Roman Catholics, but Latter-Day Saints, Jehovah's Witnesses and so many
religious groups, think the same, i.e. anyone outside their religious
denomination is lost. Thus, if you are not a member of their churches, you are
lost. Well, they can tickle themselves with such falsehood; they will regret
later, UNLESS THEY REPENT. Enough said about such cults, let's zero in on the
Roman Catholic Church.
While enduring the early
persecutions of the Roman government (65-300 A.D.), most of professing
Christianity went through a gradual departure from New Testament doctrine
concerning church government, worship and practice. Local
churches ceased to be autonomous by giving way to the
control of "bishops" ruling over hierarchies. The simple
form of worship from the heart was replaced with the rituals
and splendor of paganism. Ministers became "priests," and pagans
became "Christians" by simply being sprinkled with water (Instead of genuine repentance and baptism by immersion, which the Bible teaches). This tolerance of an
unregenerate membership only made things worse. SPRINKLED PAGANISM is about the
best definition for Roman Catholicism. This is what I call 'Christianizing paganism and Paganising Christianity' by the Romans.
The Roman Emperor
Constantine established himself as the head of the church around 313 A.D.,
which made this new "Christianity" the official religion of the Roman
Empire. The first actual Pope in Rome was probably Leo I (440-461
A.D.), although some claim that Gregory I was the first (590-604 A.D.). This
ungodly system eventually ushered in the darkest period of history known to
man, properly known as the "Dark Ages" (500-1500 A.D.). Through
popes, bishops, and priests, Satan ruled Europe, and Biblical Christianity
became illegal. Bear this in mind,
throughout generations, even when sin reaches its highest peak, there are FEW
PEOPLE who stands for God. They are often referred to as THE
REMNANT. They don' conform to, and will not compromise with, the pattern of the world. Therefore, throughout all these, there remained individual groups
of true Christians, such as the Waldensens and the Anabaptists who would not
conform to the Roman system.
So to sum up Message One, as we delve into the Dangers of Roman Catholicism, let's bear in mind that......
(i) Catholics LIE when they say the Church that Christ said He would build in Matthew 16:18 was their church (the Roman Catholic Church) and that Peter was their first Pope. It's a pure LIE. In any case, Peter married because he and Christ visited his mother-in-Law who was then suffering from fever (Matthew 8:14), and nowhere in the Bible are we told Peter divorced his wife.
(ii) Catholics LIE when they say all of us who are outside (i.e. not a member of) the Roman Catholic, are lost. IT IS A PURE LIE. Anyone who is genuinely saved, having his name written in the Lamb's Book of Life and living daily for Christ till he dies or Christ comes, is part of Christ's Church/Bride. You need not be a member of the Roman Catholic Church before you can be saved. If Paul, Cornelius, the Ethiopian Eunuch and a host of people were saved when they were not even a member of any local Church, why should we believe Catholics that we need to be members of their Church in order to be saved? Think about it! Pray about it! Don' be deceived!
May God shed His Light on this Word and let His Spirit minister to you.
All the Glory to God
