This Catholic Journey
Amber, you have such a talent for explaining concepts of our faith! Way to go girl!
Aww... thank you, Eve! What a nice thing to say!
It is a nice thing she says but it is also a true thing - you do have a great way of explaining things in a way that is easily understood.
That's what I like about your blog!!
:)
For those who repent and call upon the name of Jesus in faith are assured of their salvation. By Christ's shed Blood on the Cross purifies us from all sin. 1 Jo 1:7 "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin." Christ's Blood purifies believers and not by any fire in a so-called place of purgatory. It's Christ's Blood. To say we need to be purified in purgatory is deminishing the work of the Cross.
We have hope in Christ.
1 John 2:1-2 says "But if anybody does sin, we have one who speakes to the Father in our defense--Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins."
He is the only one who intercedes for us to the Father and not through Mary's help. Hebrews 7:25 "He is able to save completely those who come to God through Him, because He always lives to intercede for them"
A repentent sinner who believes in the Gospel is assured of eternal life Eph. 1:13-14 "You also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the Gospel of your salvation. Having believed, YOU WERE MARKED IN HIM WITH A SEAL, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit GUARANTEEING OUR INHERITANCE.
You said,
"I am a born-again Christian"
but...
"..there were no real fruits from my faith whatsoever".
By your own admission this reveals that you were not a born-again Christian. I am not trying to be judgmental or anything but only pointing this out. If you truly were you would not have used it as an excuse to continue in sin. This is not much different from Catholics believing it's okay to go get drunk, fornicating, or whatever mortal sin on a Friday night and then confess it on Saturday. (Believe me there are Catholics who do this).
I really hope that you would study the Bible as hard as you did learning about the Catholic Church. The Gospel will set you free in Christ and it is for your salvation while the Catholic Church teachings make void the word of God with it's tradtions. It's a false gospel the Bible warns about and those who believe it will perish.
I thank God for delivering me from Catholicism and He brings to me eternal life in Jesus Christ. I know much more about Catholicism than I did when I was Catholic thanks to the many Catholic websites on the internet. I could never go back to Rome after knowing what it truly teaches error in light of the Sciptures.
Marie,
Oh, but you ARE being judgmental. You are, once again, trying to rewrite my story. You are trying to tell ME what was or was not in my heart.
I have explained to you several times that I have been studying the Bible... studying the Bible is EXACTLY what brought me INTO Catholicism. The Catholic Church does not make the word of God void, it makes it ALIVE.
I have asked you to show proof of this "other gospel" and this "other Jesus" you claim I follow... along with several other questions. You have not done so.
By what authority are you able to decide whether or not I am "born-again"?
How do you know that your interpretation of scripture is correct, when it differs from so many other denominations?
Amber, Truly I am not trying to re-write your life's story nor have I ever tried to do so before as you implied. I quoted from you on your own blog. I read your conversion story and you said this about yourself "I spent the next several years making very poor choices..." and "I just did whatever I wanted to do and lived my life any way that I wanted to live it in the moment, believing that no matter what I did, though it might have earthly consequences," The only one that is judging you is yourself. Doesn't the Bible tell us to judge a tree by it's fruit. By your own admission you said your faith produced no real fruits. In your blog you have painted a negative picture of non-Catholic Christian churches as teaching you that a person can be saved and "do whatever they wanted" and still not loose their salvation. I find that really hard to believe that all the churches you attended taught that and if you came to my Bible believing church you will not get that false teaching but be reminded of; 1 John 2:4 "He who says, 'I know Him,' and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him".
Rome's Gospel:
A religious system of indulgences, purgatory, and prayers for the dead.cc1032, 1471-79, 1498
Bible:
Jesus Christ, His Life, death and resrrection. 1 Cor 15:1-4
Rome's:
Salvation thru the RCC cc846
Bible: Salvation is only thru Christ Acts 4:12
Rome's:
Salvation is earned by doing good works CC 1815 1821 2010 2027
Bible:
Salvation is a gift of God's Grace Acts 4:12
Romes:
Salvation is by faith + the law, sacraments and good works cc1129 1131
Bible:
Salvation by faith alone Eph 2:8-9
Romes:
Salvation it is attained by man cc2010 2027
Bible:
Salvation attained by Christ Romans 5:9
Romes:
Salvation is a process from baptism thru purgtory cc161-62 1254-55
Bible:
Salvation comes at the moment in time a prentant sinner believes the Gospel Eph 1:13-14
Romes:
Salvation can never be known in this life cc1036, 2005
Bible:
Salvation is secured by God John 10:27-30
Romes:
Sins are expiated by suffering in purgatory cc1030-31
Bible:
Sins are expiated by Christ's BLOOD Romans 3:25
Romes:
Salvation glorifies Mary and all the saints cc1476-77
Bible:
Salvation gloriefies God alone Eph 1
Romes:
The work of salvation must continue with daily sacrifices cc611, 1405
Christ condemns those who adhere to a different gospel (like Rome's) see. John 12:48
Man's tradtions (like oral, "sacred" tradtions)
Mark 7 They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.' 8 You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men." 9 And he said to them: "You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!
Amber's quote:
"How do you know that your interpretation of scripture is correct, when it differs from so many other denominations?"
The Gospel message is not hard to understand and God never intended it to be hard and complex. Repent, place your faith only in Jesus for your salvation.
The New Testament were letters written by the Apostles to the churches. They didn't need a magistrum to "interprete" for them. What is hard and complex to understand is the Catholic Church teachings and writings. Who interpretes their interpretations?
"In your blog you have painted a negative picture of non-Catholic Christian churches as teaching you that a person can be saved and "do whatever they wanted" and still not loose their salvation."
First off, I didn't say they "taught" me this. This is just how I understood their doctrine of faith alone, which is NOT Biblical. Show me one passage that states we are saved (or justified) by "faith alone"! You cannot do it...
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.
I believe this passage! We are saved through faith! We do not save ourselves through works! We are saved by grace from God, as a free gift. However, this passage does NOT say we are saved by faith ALONE! No matter how you read it, it does not say that!
James 2:24
You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. (NASB)
How can you ignore this very straightforward verse? If anything, we are saved by God's GRACE ALONE.
From my former church's statement of faith:
By receiving salvation, true believers have the present possession of the gift of eternal life, perfect righteousness, sonship in the family of God, deliverance and security from all condemnation, every spiritual resource needed for life and godliness, and the divine guarantee that they shall never perish.
See? They are telling me that no matter what, once I became a believer, I could not lose my salvation no matter what. Well, are you going to tell me that I did NOT become a believer?
There was little fruit from my faith because I chose sin over God, as we all do when we sin... but I never stopped believing and I never stopped defending my faith if necessary! I always believed in the Son of God, who came to deliver me of my sins... I always believed the gospel!
You are right to say that, as a Christian, I should not have chosen to live my life that way, but you cannot say that I could not have been a believer, because then, I could make the same assumption of you every time you fall short.
See, this is the EXACT reason the Bible isn't usually self-interpreting. Otherwise anyone can come along, quote little snippets out of context and make it appear any way they wish. How convenient... it means whatever God tells you it means in the moment, right? (Ya know Jim Jones thought that, right??)
About 3 years ago I dropped into a black hole – four months of absolute terror. I wanted to end my life, but somehow [Holy Spirit], I reached out to a friend who took me to hospital. I had three visits [hospital] in four months – I actually thought I was in hell. I imagine I was going through some sort of metamorphosis [mental, physical & spiritual]. I had been seeing a therapist [1994] on a regular basis, up until this point in time. I actually thought I would be locked away – but the hospital staff was very supportive [I had no control over my process]. I was released from hospital 16th September 1994, but my fear, pain & shame had only subsided a little. I remember this particular morning waking up [home] & my process would start up again [fear, pain, & shame]. No one could help me, not even my therapist [I was terrified]. I asked Jesus Christ to have mercy on me & forgive me my sins. Slowly, all my fear has dissipated & I believe Jesus delivered me from my “psychological prison.” I am a practicing Catholic & the Holy Spirit is my friend & strength; every day since then has been a joy & blessing. I deserve to go to hell for the life I have led, but Jesus through His sacrifice on the cross, delivered me from my inequities. John 3: 8, John 15: 26, are verses I can relate to, organically. He’s a real person who is with me all the time. I have so much joy & peace in my life, today, after a childhood spent in orphanages [England & Australia]. God LOVES me so much. Fear, pain, & shame, are no longer my constant companions. I just wanted to share my experience with you [Luke 8: 16 – 17].
Peace Be With You
Micky
this post and the comments are a good example of the Catholic church's teaching of the FULLNESS of scripture. when you take verses out of context and form an entire denomination or doctrine on them, then you automatically must ignore other verses or twist them to fit your doctrine. the Catholic church takes the bible as a whole. the bible does not self-interpret. just like the constitution of the united states. what a great document, but we have those in authority in the government to interpret. imagine what anarchy the country would be in if we all were simply supposed to interpret the constitution the way we thought was right. that is what is happening in protestant christianity. we rely on the magisterium because christ founded and left behind A CHURCH. the church is to be the pillar and fire of truth, the church is to prevail against the gates of hell. even historically speaking, the earliest churches were CATHOLIC. read the early church fathers. they are much more liturgical, eucharistic, and CATHOLIC than protestant.
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