Once Saved - Always Saved - A Lie Exposed ! ! !

Jesus is our Shepherd, our leader, our protector.  He is not like a simple hireling, no, he laid down his life for us.  He went through the agony of death on the Cross and He redeemed us, curing the sins of our late great ancestors Adam and Eve. 

What does Jesus expect from us?  To hear some people talk he expects not much from us.  Some say that by simply saying the "sinners prayer" that we merit heaven.  These same people say that the Bible is the source of all knowledge we have about God and heaven.  Yet, they cannot tell me where it says in the Bible to pray the sinner's prayer.  The notion of once saved always saved does not make sense in the natural world nor does it in the Kingdom of God.  What if I am "saved" when I say the sinner's prayer on day one.  I live the next ten years of my life blamelessly, promoting the Kingdom, leading dozens of others in praying the sinner's prayer - saving them all - alleluia !  Then after ten years of faithful service and psalm singing I take up a new career and become a bank robber, killing indiscriminately if someone resists and I then embrace another religion such as Islam. Are you telling me that if I died with these sins on my soul I would go to heaven because "once saved, always saved" is the rule?  Sorry, that defies logic and worse than that it defies what is revealed to us in the Bible.  Recall the Gospel of Matthew Chapter 25 beginning at verse 31. "

"When the Son of man comes in his glory, escorted by all the angels, then he will take his seat on his throne of glory.  All nations will be assembled before him and he will separate people one from another as the shepherd separates the sheep from goats.  He will place the sheep on His right hand and the goats on the the left.  Then the King will say to those on his right hand. "Come, you whom my Father has blessed, take as your heritage the kingdom prepared for you since the foundation of the world. 

For when I was hungry you gave me food, thirsty you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you made me welcome.  Lacking clothes you clothed me, sick and you visited me, in prison you cam to see me.

The upright will say to him in reply Lord when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?  When did we see you as a stranger and make you welcome, lacking clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to see you?

And the king will answer "In truth I tell you in so far as you did this for one of the least of these brothers of mind, you did it to me. 

Then he will say to those on his left hand "Go away from me, with your curse upon you to the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 

For when I was hungry you gave me no food, thirsty you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you never made me welcome.  Lacking clothes you did not clothe me, sick and or, in prison you never came to see me.

Then it will be their turn to ask, "Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty a stranger or lacking clothes, sick or in prison and did not come to your help?"

Then he will answer "In truth I tell you in so far as you neglected to do this to one of the least of these you neglected to do it to me." 

And they will go away to eternal punishment and the upright to eternal life. "

So it is evident from this one story told by Jesus that simply saying the sinner's prayer is not enough to guarantee ones space in heaven.  What Jesus wants from us is more, much more.  He gave His all on the Cross, teaching us that God's love has no limits.  He lived his life not for Himself, but for our sake. He withheld nothing.  He calls us to imitate Him and to help our brothers and sisters.  

Do we have to do the heroic things? Heavens no!  In Mark Jesus tells us, "If anyone gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ, then in truth I tell you he will most certainly not lose his reward."  A cup of water is a small thing but it is a great mercy to a thirsty man.  Look for the things you can do for someone else in the course of your day to day life.  Every mercy you extend you extend to Jesus. 

Please think very carefully about the "once saved, always saved" lie that the "reformers" came up with.  It has sent many to places where they did not think that they would end up. By the way we live our whole life will determine our choice of our eternal home. In order to be placed among the sheep when Jesus returns we must put our faith into action.  Believing is certainly a good first step. Studying the Bible and learning about salvation is also commendable.  We must guard against knowing more about God than loving God.  We must have knowledge of God but we must demonstrate our love by choosing to do the right for His glory and to do so expecting no reward. 

Remember, I will answer any question about the Catholic Church, her beliefs or Christianity in general.  I will not respond to hate mail.  May God bless you and light your path today.  Amen

In Love With The Bride of Christ - A Catholic Speaks His Mind.

I was born a Roman Catholic, and therefore in the jargon of the day I am called a cradle Catholic.  I thank God for my membership in His Church and want to share some of the reasons why being a Catholic makes me happy.

• Eucharist - as a Catholic, every time I go to Mass I receive the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ - as He is in Heaven today!  You can get no closer to God this side of heaven.  Catholics take very seriously indeed Christ's instructions to eat His Body and drink His blood as found in the Gospel of John Chapter 6. 
• Bible - At every Mass besides being fed the Bread of Life we receive generous portions of the Word of God to further enrich our souls. 
• Preaching - At every Mass the priest explains to us what the readings we just heard mean and how to apply them to our lives.  I know Protestants say we can interpret the Gospel for ourselves but then why are there thirty-thousand denominations each with a slightly different interpretation of the same concepts?  I feel safer relying on the Holy Spirit working in accordance with the promise of Jesus to keep His Church, the Bride of Christ pure and safe until He returns.
• Reliability - The Catholic Church has never once changed her doctrine.  She teaches the same truths that were handed down to her by the Apostles.  It is the Sacred Tradition that assures me that her teachings are true. One example of how her teachings have not changes comes to mind.  Back in the 1950's all churches stood united against birth control and abortion.  These things were viewed as evil and against the Law of God.  One by one the denominations gave in to "modern thought."  One by one they began to allow birth control and later on abortion was seen to be okay.  The Catholic Church stands virtually alone today in speaking up for the rights of the unborn and continues to preach against the culture of death afflicting the world today.  
• Real First Century Christianity - Some denominations today are trying to get back to the original teachings of the Apostles and the Church Fathers.  Well, the Catholic Church is already there and as a matter of fact, she never left the teachings of the Apostles.  Remember that for the first fifteen centuries there was only one Church, the Catholic Church.
• Universality - The Roman Catholic Church is universal.  It is not a national church, it is open to all.  It has one leader, the Pope, successor of Peter whom Jesus appointed as the leader of His Church.  We can trace the origin of the Catholic Church to that day when Jesus gave the keys of the Kingdom to Peter.
• Sacraments - The seven sacraments of the Church are opportunities for her members to experience the gift of grace of God in different ways.  I have already mentioned the Eucharist, the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of the Triumphantly Raised Jesus but there are six more sacraments each providing grace for the soul.  
• Reconciliation - Yes, reconciliation is one of the seven sacraments but I have to mention it separately because it is such a powerful gift.  Some Protestants say that a priest has no authority for forgive sins. They do not take into account the words of Jesus when he said; "Those things you loose on earth are loosed in heaven, those things you bind on earth are bound in heaven."  This gave the power to forgive sins to the Apostles and to those that followed.  Some say that they go direct to Jesus and pray for forgiveness so they do not need to confess to another human.  Well, okay, but if we take the words of Jesus seriously we need to ask ourselves if a priest can forgive sins, how will the priest know if he is going to loose or bind unless we tell him our sins?  I go to confession regularly - because I sin regularly.  I confess my sins to God's minister and he in the name of Jesus and His Church grants me pardon and absolution for all of my sins.  I in effect get to start over again, grace floods my soul and I try to not commit the sins I confessed again. To experience forgiveness is to experience love in its most exquisite form.  To hear the words of absolution gives me assurance that the rend I created in the fabric of my relationship between God, man and His Church has once again been healed. 

These are but a few of the reasons that I have for the joy in my heart that I experience because I am a Catholic.  My Church is despised by those who think her ideas are outmoded.  She stands as a conscience to a world that has lost it's way.  She points in loving ways as to what should be and she, like her founder receives a crown of thorns for the trouble.  I will never, ever, leave the Catholic Church for She is the repository of all we know of God, His laws and His love. 

God bless you and your family and friends,  Come home to the Catholic Church.   Below please find some links that you may find helpful.   Remember, I answer questions about faith, I am happy to do so.  I do not respond to hate mail. 

http://www.catholicscomehome.org/

http://chnetwork.org/converts/

The Bread of Life - Required Reading - Required Eating

Required Reading

The past four weeks at church we have been treated to an explanation of what the Eucharist is and how it affects the life of a Christian.  The readings have been all about bread and feeding many and how important it is.  Actually, important is not the word, essential would be the appropriate here. 

The Catholic Church believes that the Bible is the Word of God and in there is found the wisdom needed to live a good Christian life.  But nowhere in the Bible will you find it stating that it is the sole source of Christian belief.  Keep in mind that like it or not my Protestant brothers and sisters have had to rely on the Catholic Church to provide them with their Bible.  It was the Church that kept the book whole and pure.  It was the Church that decided that the Book of Revelation was canonical and the Gospel of Thomas was not. Why am I making this point?  Simply said the Catholic Church is not Bible centered, no, it is Christ centered.  We use the Bible as intended by it's ultimate author, the Holy Spirit but we also depend on the Holy Spirit and Sacred Tradition.   That being said you still may be wondering why I have mounted the soap box. Read on young warrior.

If sola scriptura be true and the Bible is the only source for what is required to be a Christian, then I would like a clear explanation from a Protestant, backed up by quotes from scripture, on why they do not believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Most Blessed Sacrament?  What did Martin Luther, the "prime reformer" think about the Holy Eucharist?  Here is what he thought (emphasis added): 

     "If any person could persuade me that there is nothing 

       in the sacrament but bread and wine, he would do me

       a great favor.  I have trued to extricate myself from the

       belief in the Real Presence, for I know that thereby I 

       would greatly annoy the Pope; but the text of the Gospel

       is too plain."   

The Sixth Chapter of the Gospel of John is the place to go if you want to learn about the Eucharist and it's absolute place in the life of a Christian.  Jesus plainly says that if we do not eat His flesh and drink His blood we cannot enter heaven. 

" Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. 54 Whoever eats* my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. 55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink." 

The Sixth Chapter of the Gospel of John is an inexhaustible source of the positive proof of the Real Presence of Jesus, the Son of God, triumphant as He is in heaven today.  How sad that because of the so called reformation that so many thousands of people have gone their whole life without the many graces that this wonderful Gift supplies.  Sad too is that they have not experienced the joy be being one with Christ as He Himself enter physically into you and you become one.  You cannot get closer to Jesus this side of heaven! If the angels were capable of jealousy then they would be jealous because the Eucharist is not for them.  Jesus chose this wonderful gift so that we would not be orphans and it is in this way that He will remain with us until the day of His return.  For the sake of your soul I urge everyone, Catholics too, to read, meditate on, believe and act on the sixth chapter of the Gospel of John. 

God bless you young warrior, pray for the Light of Christ and that light will shine brightly and show you the path you should walk on. 

Jan 1 - Death

Okay, why on January 1st, a brand new year, when many slates are wiped clean, why would I want to talk about death.  My friend and former pastor was called home to God this past week and later on today this January 1st I am going to join with members of his former flock to bury him.  I am not going to say much about him here because he was a man who served God and God's people his whole life and I know that today Father David is in heaven with his God. So while I mourn for him, I also am happy for him. He had been stricken with a disease akin to Lou Gehrig's disease and had been confined to a wheel chair for many years.  So his death, for him, was a release.



We are all afraid of death.  Death is the great unknown, a step into blackness for some, a ascent into light for others and for some an end with nothing to follow. 



Do you remember when you were a child and you went to the amusement park and rode the Merry-Go-Round.  First there was the wait in line after your parents bought your ticket. Then there was the excitement of mounting your horse and the thrill of the music and lights as you proudly rode your steed around and around.  Then it was over.  The music stopped, the ride glided to a stop and you got off of your horse and rejoined the crowds.  The ride on the carousel is kind of line our journey through life in microcosm.  The purchase of the tickets, well, that's Mom and Dad arranging for you to come into the world.  The wait in line is the time you waited to be born. The ride of course is life and when the ride ends would be death.  But think back, when you were young and the ride ended you were saddened a bit because your turn was over.  I propose that this is one of the things we hate about death.  Death is the point in time where your turn on the ride of life ends.  



I do not think that we can bear the thought that life on this world will go on without us being present on it.  I believe that is where the fear of death begins.  In hospitals, hospices, homes, and battlefields the world over people are going through the process of death.  Some go through it for a long period of time, some die in the blink of an eye.  But in the moment when life ends and death takes over I believe in that fraction of a second, all humans have the regret that their turn is over.  The regret is short lived.  I believe as well that when our life ends around us will be those that we have loved and have gone before us. I believe that God Himself will help us make the transition and ease our way into eternity.  That second of regret will dissolve as we are born into a new world. What happens then, once we arrive, we will discuss in our next posting.



Until then, Happy New Year to all of you.

What is happening in this world of ours? Madness seems to spreading from coast to coast and from continent to continent.  The blood lust of ISIS cannot be satiated as they move like a plague of locusts from one land to another.  Our president is too timid to anything of any value except to send in the air force and it is widely believed that fifth columnists are infiltrating many countries even as we sit here ready to spread their interpretation of Islam to the determent of the world. 

 

Has God abandoned his children on earth to the whims of the followers of the prophet?  I think not.  God will be moving His mighty arm and he will crush the enemies of The People of God in His time.  He knows the hour, minute, and second that He will move.  Until then we Christians must remain faithful to the Gospel, we must pray, we must sacrifice.  We must TRUST IN JESUS.  Remember Jesus has already won the victory.  All praise, honor, and glory to the Name which is above every other name.  Jesus Christ is Lord! 

MERCY

Mercy and Justice has a name and that name is Jesus.  Jesus is first of all merciful.  He  calls all of us to come to Him and accept His mercy.  He loves each one of us so much that He became one of us and accepted even death, death on the Cross. 

At some time in the future Jesus will return to put all things under His feet so that every person who ever lived will acknowledge Him as Lord.  He will come and bring justice with Him.  What we have done, the sins we have committed were all committed against God. If we do not accept the mercy of Jesus when it is being offered today, on that latter day we will have to accept His justice. 

The fountain of the Lord's mercy is unstoppable and unquenchable. You only have to ask for it and He will give it to you no matter how sinful, no matter how far away you have wandered from Him. 

Seek the Lord while He may be found...the Bible tells us.  There are those among us that say we are in the end times, that the return of Jesus is imminent. I say perhaps, but I know that my time grows closer and closer every day.  I seek the Mercy of Jesus for all of the many sins I have committed, knowingly and with little regard for Him or His Father.   I have been a bad adopted son, an ambassador that has committed treason against His kingdom but I have also, through the Church, confessed my treachery and I have received mercy from the Merciful one.  My desire today is to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin. 

My friend, the time is now for you to seek mercy.  Offer your heart and soul to the One who loves you. Accept the mercy from the King of Mercy.  He is there today, this moment, waiting for your return.  It matters not what sins you have committed or how long you have been away.  Jesus is in love with you and calls your name softly and hopes with his Sacred Heart that you accept His love and His mercy.  

If you are a Catholic, examine your conscience, acknowledge your guilt privately to Jesus and tell Him how sorry you are and that you will with His help try to avoid sinning again.  Made a good act of contrition (see below) and the next time the opportunity presents itself take advantage of the Sacrament of Reconciliation to receive the forgiveness your soul desires. 

Act of Contrition

Oh my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended thee, 

and I detest all of my sins because of thy just punishments. 

But most of all because they offend thee my God 

who art worthy of all my love. 

I firmly resolve with the help of thy grace 

to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin.  

We slip again on the Slippery Slope - What is Wrong with "Gay Marriage?"

First let me begin by saying that I am not homophobic.  I do not judge those who identify themselves as being gay.  My God in the wonderful book He wrote called  "The Bible" tells me that whoever is without sin should cast the first stone.  Alas, I do not have the right to throw that stone. In the same book He tells me also to point out egregious violations of His law to my brothers and sisters. So I have to point out to those that practice homosexual acts appear to be acting contrary to the Law of God.  I heartily recommend that such practitioners reflect on their actions and decide for themselves if what they are doing conflicts with what is taught in the Bible.

As far as "gay marriage" goes, I am very sorry to say that there is no such thing as gay marriage.  there never has been nor will there every be.  True, as a matter of law there might be a statute that says it exists but that is on the books of law written by man and this law goes against the laws that God has set up for man to follow.

Some will say; "That's fine for you, but me, I am not a Christian, as a matter of fact I am an atheist and I do not believe in the fairy-tails in your Bible so why should I care about what you say?"  The fact of the matter is simple.  The fact that you do not believe the truth does not make it any less true.  If you stated you did not believe in the rule of gravity and stepped off the roof of a twenty story building since you reject gravity, does that mean you will float?  Certainly not!  The self operating rule will claim its power over you and you will have a few seconds before the sudden stop causes the life forces in your body to depart and you finally find out if there is a God or not.  So truth is unchangeable law and that type of law is written by the Creator.  He wrote the rules of science to keep the universe working at His pleasure.  He created a world for you and me.  He provided you with a mother and father so as to participate in His creation.

It is this procreation that makes gay marriage a farce.  Marriage was instituted by God because he knew that it was not good for man to live alone.  He created a woman for man and instilled in them the instinct to propagate the human race.  He told us to be fruitful and multiply.  The marriage act is the way man and woman participate in bringing life into the world.  Sexual activity between two people of the same sex cannot bring life into the world.  Some might say that every act of intercourse between man and woman does not result in conception and they would be right.  It is God's timing that counts.

So, gay marriage exists on paper but not in the reality of the spirit.  No matter how loving a relationship between two people of the same sex is, not matter how many legal papers are in their possession stating that the two have become one, that union is according to man and is not recognized by God.  This is a hard truth but it is truth none the less.