Tagged: Bible

Read the Bible

This post was not addressed to me, so I only responded to it in passing, back then. However, just for practice, I’d like to write that which I should have said, had I had the time, back then.

Joe Cipriani says:

How can I undeerstand it, without someone to guide me? Acts 8:31
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I encouraged Catholics to look at the facts from the Bible, compare to what the Catholic Church teaches, and make an informed decision; to think for themselves.

Basically, you’re giving us your way of learning the Word of God, as opposed to the Bible way. Here’s what the Bible says we should do:

Hebrews 13:7 Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.

And again:

Romans 10:14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

Acts 8:30 And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? 31 And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me?

If that makes me rude; then you have an interesting definition.

I have several reasons why that makes you rude.

1st. Your claims are unbiblical. You claim to be a bible alone follower, yet your claims show no sign of that. You make up rules as you go along, rules which contraduct the Bible, as I have shown and then you attribute them to the Bible. That’s what it appears to be.

Next. You exalt yourself above the Bible you claim to follow. Of course, this is related to number one, above, because, logically, if you make up your own rules which you want us to follow and which contradict the Bible, then you have made yourself a higher authority than the Bible.

Then, you exalt yourself above the Church. The Bible tells us to listen to the Church, not to anonymous people on the internet. Not to strangers on the street. But even though you don’t know us, you want us to listen to you, above and beyond the Teaching of Scripture and over the authority of the Church.

And it logically follows that you also exalt yourself above us. You think that because you have decided to abandon the Teachings of Jesus Christ, we must now follow your example.

But I understand. As a defender of the Catholic faith it is your job to counter, deflect, or otherwise discredit those who oppose the teachings of the Church.

I believe it is my job to uphold the truth. Whereas, it is easy to show where you have erred. So, yes, I counter your errors with the truth. I counter your fallacies with the truth. I discredit the false logic you presented with the truth which Jesus has passed down through the Church in Tradition and Scripture.

No offense intended; none taken.

Same here.

Note I said the teachings of the Church – not the people.

It doesn’t really matter, as I have debunked the premise of your argument and thus disproven your conclusions. However, I can continue to show how you have made more than the errors I have brought to light, above.

As for the use of the Hebrew word ʾaḥēr being translated as ‘strange’ – the Catholic Duay-Rheims is the only Bible translation I am aware which translates it that way. Not even your own Catholic New Jerusalem Bible translates it that way. Exodus 20:3 (NJB) ‘You shall have no other gods to rival me. (Hebrew word appears 166 times in OT. Most common translation to English is “other” or “another”. Most modern Bibles never translate the word as strange and found only 1 Bible that translated it more than once as strange. Though given the number of translations there are, I may have missed one along the line.)

I don’t get your point. Whether it be “strange” or “other”, the idea which is communicated does not change. We only worship one God.

Having said that – where one commandment ends and anther begins or haggling over how one might translate a single word from Hebrew/Greek to English are not the most critical issues to this discussion.

The issue is and still stands – can man (a created being) change the terms of the covenant of God? The Catholic Church say yes. I say the Bible does not support the claim.

  1. Which man are you talking about? Jesus Christ is man and God. And He made a few changes to the Covenant. Let me show you:

Matt 5:38 Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: 39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

2. And also. Jesus Christ, God the 2nd Person of the Holy Trinity, gave man authority to bind and loose:

Matthew 16:19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

By this authority, the Church changed the day that we celebrate the Sabbath. Note, however, that the Spirit of the Commandment was not changed. Simply the letter.

As I noted to De Maria – there is no record of the any commandment being changed by the apostles in the NT.

The Catholic Church has not changed the Spirit of any Commandment. Only the letter. This is easy to explain. The Catholic Church continues to celebrate the Sabbath, but on Sunday. The Catholic Church continues to worship one God, the Holy Trinity. Because we have come to a New Dispensation with better promises than the Old.

In fact, the exact opposite is stated. Here is a small excerpt from my study notes on covenants in the Bible,. [Note: There are at least 20 covenants between God and man in the Bible. Similar number discussed between men and nations. Hebrew berît (284x) Greek diathēkē (33x)]

Anything can be called a Covenant. We recognize the 7 that God explicitly made with man.

  1. The Adamic Covenant.
  2. The Noahtic Covenant.
  3. The Abrahamic Covenant.
  4. The Mosaic Covenant.
  5. The Davidic Covenant
  6. The New Covenant in the Blood of Jesus.
  7. The future Covenant when the Father makes Jesus’ enemies His footstool.

QUESTION: What is the New Covenant?

BIBLE SAYS: Hebrews 8:10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my LAWS into their minds, and WRITE them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

The Bible says much more. In order for one to enter into the New Covenant, one must eat of the Eucharist.

Matt 26: 27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; 28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

New Testament means New Covenant.

COMMENT: OT – law written on stone; Ezekiel – God will take our hearts of stone and make them flesh; NT – law written on our hearts

True.

QUESTION: Why was a New Covenant necessary?

The only thing necessary is God. God did not institute the New Covenant from necessity. He instituted it because of His love and mercy.

Titus 3:5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

BIBLE SAYS: Hebrews 8:7-8 For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second. 8 For he finds fault with THEM…

COMMENT: The fault was with the people, not the terms of the covenant.

Agreed. But God foretold to them that they would fail to keep the Covenant.

Deuteronomy 28:15-68
But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee: Cursed shalt thou be in the city, and cursed shalt thou be in the field…..

QUESTION: If the terms of the Old and New Covenant are the same (i.e.: Ten Commandments), how then is it a better covenant?

Because of the grace which God gives us in the Sacraments. Let me explain. Look at Heb 11. Do you see all those righteous saints listed, therein? Now read the last two lines:

Hebrews 11:39 And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: 40 God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.

But what happens with us? These good people struggled all their lives in obedience to God, but did not receive the promise and were not made perfect. They were not washed of their sins and could not enter heaven, not before Jesus died upon the Cross.

But we, are washed of our sins when we are baptized:

Acts 22:16 And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

And once we are baptized, we walk amongst the Saints who are in heaven. Yes, the very same people listed in Hebrews 11:

Hebrews 12:22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, 23 To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 24 And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

Do you remember the Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard? We receive God’s grace of salvation while we are yet living.

BIBLE SAYS: Hebrews 8:6 But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant HE mediates is better, since it is enacted on BETTER PROMISES.

COMMENT: I have found about 50 verses from the Bible speaking about the superiority of the New Covenant – with Christ always at the center. My study is not done. I suspect I will find many more.

Here’s a couple that you reject. They are in Scripture.

  1. There were no saints in heaven during OT times. We walk amongst the Saints, right now. Heb 12:22-24
  2. There was no washing of sins in the Old Testament. Our sins are washed away in Baptism. Acts 22:16
  3. We offer the Body of Christ. They offered bulls and goats. Heb 10:10

QUESTION: How did Paul describe the difference between the Old and New Covenants?

BIBLE SAYS: Galatians 4:22-23 For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave woman and one by a free woman. But the son of the slave was born according to the flesh, while the son of the free woman was born through PROMISE.

The Bible gives a better description:

This is St. Paul’s description of the Old Testament:

Hebrews 12:18 For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest 19 And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more 20 (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart 21 And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:

and this is his description of the New.

22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels 23 To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 24 And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

COMMENT: Read Galatians 4:21-31 for the full context. In short: God promised Abraham he would be a father of a great nation but he had a problem, no son. Abraham waited many years and when no son came, Abraham and Sarah decided to try to fulfill God’s Promise by human effort – hence Ismael. But God delivered on His Promise using His divine effort – hence Isaac. Old = human effort; New = divine effort.

For some reason, bible alone people neglect the time which you describe above as “Abraham waited many years”. As though he just sat around. But, about that time period, Scripture says:

Genesis 26:5 Because that Abraham obeyed my voice, and kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws.

Even St. Paul says:

Hebrews 11:8 By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.

So this brings us to an interesting question, how then does God accomplish writing the law on hearts and minds? Through Jesus – His life as example and His death a reminder of both God’s love for us AND the fullness of what evil will do.

John 3:16 “For GOD so loved the world, that he GAVE his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Above you mention that Jesus’ life is an example to us. But do you mean it? What have you learned from Christ’s example? Do you follow Christ’s example as Scripture instructs us to do?

1 Peter 2:21For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:

My prayer is all who read this will take to prayer, go to the Bible to find for themselves what the Bible truly teaches about the character of God.

My prayer is that you and all who read this will go to the Bible and encounter the Church which put the Bible together and wrote the New Testament. The Church which Jesus Christ established and who represents Jesus Christ in this world.

We worship a loving God who like the Father in the story of the prodigal son is waiting for us with open arms.

Amen. Notice that the Prodigal Son returned to the Father and asked forgiveness. But what does God do to those who do not repent of their sins?

Heb 10:26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,

And again:

Romans 2:5 But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; 6 Who will render to every man according to his deeds: 7 To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: 8 But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath,

He is not some ruthless dictator who the only way to receive His grace is to sacrifice Jesus.

He is not a ruthless dictator. He is a loving Father who resents it when the people whom He sacrificed His Son to save, wilfully neglect the suffering and death His Son endured for their salvation.

Heb 10:

28 He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: 29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

His grace if freely given to those who turn to Him.

and obey.

Hebrews 5:9 And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;

John 14:9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; …(Next to John 3:16 one of my top 5 verses of the Bible.)

That’s wonderful. Those are great verses. Don’t make the mistake of leaving out the verses which warn you not to toy with God. He is not here so that you can make up your own religion. God is love. But He is also to be feared.

2 Corinthians 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. 11 Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences.

Obey the Church. Jesus Christ did not establish the Church so that you could thumb your nose at it.
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Jesus Christ established the Catholic Church

First off, I want to thank all who participated in the “Does the Bible say that missing the Mass is a mortal sin?” thread.

One of the things which was brought up by one of the Protestants in that thread is this idea that St. Constantine started the Catholic Church. But, is that true? Why do Protestants make this claim?

The short answer, “I don’t know.” The claim is patently false and can be proven directly from the New Testament. And, although the Bible was not put together until after St. Constantine’s death, yet the New Testament was already written although not compiled.

And while the name, “Catholic Church” is not written in those pages, yet, the Catholic Church is therein described. And if the Catholic Church is described in the New Testament, then it must be the Church established by Jesus Christ. AND, lest we forget, what we don’t find is any of the Protestant denominations there mentioned. Nor any of their doctrines. Without further ado, let’s see what Scripture says.

First, Jesus Christ appointed a Pastor as head of the entire Church:
John 21:17
He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of John, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

I see only a few Churches with such a Pastor. Further, Jesus Christ said that the Pastor over His Church would be infallible:

Matthew 16:17And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.18And 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. 19And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

The list of Churches accept this teaching gets smaller. Certainly, all Protestant denominations can now be eliminated.

Jesus Christ not only said that the Pastor was infallible but Scripture describes the Church as infallible:
Ephesians 3:10
To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,

The list remains the same, but now I can certainly eliminate all Protestant denominations.

Back to Matt 16:18, Scripture says that Jesus Christ established one Church. History shows that all the Churches sprang from the Church which is frequently described as the Mother Church. The Catholic Church.

So, even using just a few verses we can eliminate the Protestants. None of their denominations even come close to being in Scripture. But we can continue to find Catholic indicators throughout the Bible:

The Church which is infallible (1 Tim 3:15; Eph 3:10).
The Church which is united (Eph 4:5).
The doctrines of the Catholic Church which are distinctive from other churches:
Purgatory (1 Cor 3:15).
Eucharist (1 Cor 11:23-27).
Communion of Saints (Rom 12:12-20).
The Mass and the necessity to attend (Heb 10:25-31).
The Sacrament of Confession (Heb 13:17).
The Sacrament of Holy Orders (1 Tim 4:14).
The Sacrament of Baptism (Titus 3:5).
Justification and salvation by faith and works (Rom 2:1-13).

And we find that the Protestant doctrinal pillars all contradict Scripture. For instance:

Sola Scriptura contradicts 2 Thess 2:152 Thessalonians 2:15
King James Version (KJV)
15 Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.

Sola Fide contradicts James 2:24
James 2:24
King James Version (KJV)
24 Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only.

OSAS contradicts Heb 6:4-6
Hebrews 6:4-6
King James Version (KJV)
4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,5 And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,6 If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

Salvation by grace alone contradicts:
Philippians 2:12
Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

and also:

Romans 6:16
Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?

Every Protestant doctrine which contradicts the Catholic Church also contradicts the Word of God in the Bible.

So, the fact that Jesus Christ established the Catholic Church is recorded in the New Testament. And Protestants nor their doctrines are anywhere to be found in those venerable pages.

Did the Catholic Church give us the Bible?

In everyday speech, “Sacred Scripture” is used interchangeably with, “the Bible”. And in most contexts, there is no problem with that. But not in this one. Because the Catholic Church certainly gave us the Bible, but the Catholic Church did not give us all of Sacred Scripture.
Read More…

Does the Catholic Church have authority over the Bible?

People who believe in Sola Scriptura will frequently make the statement that the Bible alone is the highest authority over men. And they make the claim that the Catholic Church holds itself as the authority over the Bible. Thus, making itself the highest authority.
Read More…

Does the Bible say that missing the Mass is a mortal sin?

The Catholic Church teaches that missing the Mass is a mortal sin.

Protestants object vehemently to this teaching. They claim that the Catholic Church oversteps its bounds when she requires her members to attend the Mass on pains of mortal sin. Many nominal Catholics, having been convinced of the Protestant argument, have fallen away because of it. But, what does the Bible say?

See the rest, here.