Mark 7:9, “And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.”
There is not a more damnable deception on the face of the earth than the Prisonhouse of Roman and Orthodox Catholicism. The only real difference between the two cults is that the Orthodox Catholic religion is headquartered in Moscow, Russia; the Roman Catholic religion is headquartered in Vatican City, Rome. Both false religions false teach Sacramental Salvation. Both false religions teach that you must join their cult, and keep their Seven Sacraments to get to Heaven.
In fact, if you search online for the Catholic Ten Commandments, you will quickly discover that Catholics have completely removed the Second Commandment from the Bible, which forbids bowing down to idols and graven images. To compensate for the missing Second Commandment, Catholics have deceitfully split the Tenth Commandment against coveting thy neighbour's possessions into two commandments. Here, SEE FOR YOURSELF.
Dear reader, I am worried for you. I am worried for most professed “Christians” today. I am worried for them simply because most people who profess to be a “Christian” have never been born again. Satan's greatest weapon is to con people into living the Christian life without ever being born again.
For example: Heavy metal rocker Ozzy Osbourne and his wife Sharon claim to be Christians. You read right! The self-professed “Prince of Darkness” actually professes to be a Christian! Ozzy famously declared himself a “lunatic” during an MTV interview in 1986 and continues to embrace his rebellious reputation even now at age 72. I'd like to share a dangerous quote with you from writer Camilla Klein:
Ozzy Osbourne was born Christian, but Christianity did not play a significant role in his upbringing. His parents were more concerned with providing for their children financially rather than instilling religious values in them. SOURCE
Dear reader, no one has ever been “born Christian.” Kindly said, Camilla is wrong. What saith the inspired Scripture? John 1:12-13, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” No one is born Christian! You are only a genuine Christian if you have received Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, by BELIEVING on His name in faith. Jesus died on a cross to pay for your sins and mind. He was buried. Three days later Jesus resurrected from the dead. These three facts comprise THE GOSPEL (1st Corinthians 15:1-6), by which all who BELIEVE IT are instantly, irrevocably and permanently born again (Romans 1:16). We are all born into this world with a sinful nature, spiritually dead (Romans 5:12; 1st Corinthians 2:14-16).
Ozzy Osborne and his family are members of the apostate Church of England (the Anglican faith of which Brooke Westcott and Fenton Hort were all members in the 19th century). The Church of England is extremely ecumenical and vague, teaching that you get saved by becoming a follower of Christ. Unfortunately, that is not what the Bible requires to be saved. What the Church of England is teaching is a perversion of the Gospel. Judas became a disciple (follower) of Jesus. In fact, Judas Iscariot was one of Christ's very apostles. Yet, in John 6:70 Jesus said that Judas had a devil in him. Judas sadly died in his sins without Christ and is still today burning in the torments of Hell beneath.
Dear reader, you cannot be born again by merely becoming a follower (a disciple) of Christ. In John 3:7 Jesus emphatically warned that unless a man is BORN AGAIN, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God. How do you become born again? I am glad that you asked. You begin by admitting to God that you're a guilty sinner. You must know what you are being saved from. You and I are dirty sinners (Romans 3:19-23). The penalty for sin is death (Romans 6:23). This includes the Second Death, which is to be tormented forever in Hell, fire and brimstone, day and night without rest or hope of escape (Revelation 14:11, 20:11-15; 21:8).
There are no exits in Hell, but Heaven has only one door and that is Jesus. John 10:9, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” Jesus is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6). The Bible says that Jesus is the only begotten (biological) Son of God, who is the Christ (John 3:16; 20:31). Jesus died
Satan is a beautiful liar! The Devil and demon's favorite activity is to make unsaved religious people feel comfortable in their unconverted state, awaiting the moment when they die in their sins and then spend the rest of eternity burning in the Lake of Fire. It happens to hundreds of thousands of people every single day, when they die.
At nearly every funeral we are told by the speaker something like this: “They're in a better place now.” But are they really in a better place? ...
Luke 16:19-23, “There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.”
As we see from the preceding true passage of Scripture, Lazarus went to a better place, but the unsaved rich man went to a terrifying place in Hell. Jesus never called Luke 16:19-31 a parable, as He always did when telling parables. Jesus didn't explain after ward what this passage meant, again, because it is NOT a parable (so there was no need to explain it). When telling parables, Jesus never used Proper Nouns, but in this factual account the Lord mentions Abraham and Lazarus. Luke 16:19-31 is NOT a parable! It would be poor Bible study and wrong to claim otherwise, when nothing in the Word of God indicates otherwise. In the Bible God said what He meant, and He meant what He said.
We are discussing the multitudes of people today who falsely claim to be “Christian,” but they have never been born again by FAITH ALONE in the GOOD NEWS of Jesus Christ crucified on a cross, buried and physically risen the third day. This is THE GOSPEL (1st Corinthians 15:1-6).
Another example is Hollywood actor Dwayne Johnson, who claims to be “Christian,” but is a devout Roman Catholic. I will say it loud and clear until the die that I graduate to go to Heaven, Roman Catholicism is a deadly prisonhouse of religion—set on fire of Hell. The Catholic church does not teach a free grace Gospel by faith alone in Christ alone. Instead, Catholics are taught that they must keep their Seven Sacraments to get to Heaven (which is WORKS, not faith). Mark 7:9, “And he [Jesus] said unto them [the Pharisees], Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.” Like Catholics, the hellbound religious Pharisees were trying to earn their way to Heaven by keeping the Old Testament law (i.e., by doing WORKS). What saith the Scripture? Romans 3:20, “Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.”
I am sad that Dwayne Johnson is a fake Christian. I am not saying that he's not a good man. I think Dwayne is a great guy and a good person. Unfortunately, even good people are still guilty sinners in God's sight, until we accept Christ's sacrifice on the cross as payment for our sins, believing that He resurrected from the dead (1st Thessalonians 4:14). No one who follows the doctrine of the Catholic church is saved, because their plan of salvation doesn't match up to the Holy Bible's plan of salvation. I beg you, if you are Catholic, to come out of that accursed cesspool of iniquity and place your faith only in Christ. Galatians 1:6-9 warns that anyone (even an angel) who preaches another gospel is cursed by God. Since there is only one plan of salvation, there cannot be two ways to Heaven.
One of my hobbies is researching the religious beliefs of famous people. I am curious. I do believe that Karen Carpenter (1950-1983) was a born again believer and went to Heaven. She dies at only age 32, from a heart attack due to starving herself. She thought she was fat and would vomit up her food to fight weight gain. She was a beautiful woman, but she destroyed her own self by thinking something that simply wasn't true. So sad.
Likewise, billions of people are thinking wrong about how to get to Heaven. Proverbs 14:12, “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” The Catholic religion may SEEM right to you dear reader, but it only SEEMS right; it is very wrong biblically. From the cradle-to-the-casket, Catholicism has a religious package for you, but it is all a Satanic lie. The Catholic religion is an apple filled with worms!
When someone professes to be a “Christian,” I am always very leery of their claim. This is because Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh-day Adventists, Church of Christ, Lutherans, Catholics, United Methodists, New Reformed Calvinists, Lordship Salvation Baptists and dozens of other Satanic false religions all preach a counterfeit plan of salvation.
Only a born-again, washed in the precious blood of the Lamb, admitted guilty sinner who has placed his or her childlike faith in the GOOD NEWS of Jesus Christ is saved. That GOOD NEWS is simply that Jesus is the Christ who died on a cross to pay for your sins, was buried and bodily raised up from the dead three days later. If that GOOD NEWS is your only hope for Heaven, then you are saved. A sinner's faith plus the Gospel equals eternal life. Anyone who insists that you first must give up the old sinful ways to be saved is preaching another gospel.
I love and fully agree with Pastor Harry A. Ironside (1876-1951), who said:
“The Gospel is not a call to repentance, or to amendment of our ways, to make restitution for past sins, or to promise to do better in the future. These things are proper in their place, but they do not constitute the Gospel; for the Gospel is not good advice to be obeyed, it is good news to be believed. Do not make the mistake then of thinking that the Gospel is a call to duty or a call to reformation, a call to better your condition, to behave yourself in a more perfect way than you have been doing in the past …Repentance is simply a matter of acknowledging THE TRUTH of your sinnership. 2nd Timothy 2:25, “In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.” Repentance is entirely a matter of the heart, where a person acknowledges THE TRUTH that one is a guilty sinner in the sight of a holy God; thus, believing the Gospel you are saved by faith alone.
Nor is the Gospel a demand that you give up the world, that you give up your sins, that you break off bad habits, and try to cultivate good ones. You may do all these things, and yet never believe the Gospel and consequently never be saved at all.”
SOURCE: Harry A. Ironside, from the Gospel tract titled: 'What Is The Gospel?'
Whatever changes that God wants to see take place in a new believer's life is a separate matter of discipleship, not sonship. It is a matter of service, not salvation. Have you been born again dear friend? You cannot go to Heaven unless you've been born again. If you have questions about salvation, you are welcome to contact me (kingjamesbible77@gmail DOT com). I highly recommend that you take the time to read Michael P. Bowen's excellent helpful book titled, 'I NEVER KNEW YOU' (free .pdf format). Hardcopies are available on Amazon.
Please don't buy into the Devil's lie that you can get to Heaven by merely claiming to belong to the Christian religion. There is no such thing as the Christian religion. There is only the new birth. Anything else is religion, which cannot save anyone. Salvation is NOT found in any religion, but in a person—the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 16:30-31). Faith is the only righteous thing that I can do.
Billions of Catholics have already died in their sins, plundering into the everlasting fires of Hell. The encouraging news is that it's still not too late for you. I was saved at age 13 in 1980. Once I became born again, my eternal destination was forever settled. I haven't always done the right thing as a Christian. I've made plenty of bad choices along life's way. But these sins, failures and mistakes were all done IN GRACE. Remember, a believer always falls IN GRACE, but never FROM GRACE.
We read in Galatians 5:4 that only those who attempt to gain access to Heaven by keeping the law (doing WORKS) have fallen FROM GRACE. Galatians 5:4, “Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.” The saint falls IN GRACE. Romans 6:1, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?” I love that Bible verse. The more that a child of God chooses to sin, the more God's grace will abound, so that we could never lose God's free gift of eternal life. Albeit, this does not grant us permission to sin. Romans 3:31, “Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.”
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