"Pope Francis described as "dangerous" the temptation to believe that one can have "a personal, direct, immediate relationship with Jesus Christ without communion with and the mediation of the church."
While it is true that when we receive Christ that we become a part of the body of Christ, the church, our salvation is not obtained or maintained by other church members, but by our continued faith in Christ. Our faith is not and should not be in the church itself, but in our God who redeemed us. Our salvation and our relationship is one on one with the Lord first. We gather with other believers for the purpose of having fellowship and to glorify God by hearing and speaking his word and by song. The acid test of faith is, what do we do when we are alone. Do we exercise faith when troubles arise? Are we studying God's word when we are alone? Are we continuing in prayer multiple times a day. Are we relying on God when we are being tested? While we should gather together as believers, we are Christian's because we believe in Christ as individuals.
"[He] who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments; and I will not erase [his] name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels. [He] who has an ear, let [him] hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’"
"‘Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if [anyone] hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to [him] and will dine with [him], and [he] with Me"
Judging from the Scripture above and many others, it would appear that salvation is a personal one on one relationship. It seems that we are free agents in Christ, but we gather together for strength and fellowship in Christ.
The RCC's position is and has always been that they are the mother church and that all Christian sects should come underneath her authority. In fact, the desire of the RCC is get back the power that she had prior to 1798, so that all Christian sects adhere to her dogmas and her religious beliefs and look to the pope as standing in for Christ on earth.
With this type of thinking, they were directly responsible for all three inquisitions. If anyone didn't adhere to RCC's teachings recognizing them as the true church and the pope as the authority of that church, they were deemed as heretics and were imprisoned, tortured, their property was confiscated and they were burned at the stake. This was Roman Catholicism for many centuries and they want that authority back!
The pope's of the RCC controlled kings and that because they recognized them as church authority and were afraid of excommunication and this is how the pope's controlled them and their armies. This is the kind of power that the RCC is looking to regain and will regain it when that ruler, that antichrist is revealed. He will restore their authority and that because I believe that one of the future pope's will play the part of the false prophet. Think about it, looking at the devoutness of the over 1.2 billion Catholics, what do you think will happen when one of those pope's were to begin to perform those miracles, signs and wonders for all the world to see? Those who were devout would become even more devout and those other so-called Christian sects such as Mormonism, the Witnesses, scientology and the like would all be drawn into that last day religious system and that because the miracles, signs and wonders would server as proof to them. But we already know from scripture that he who will perform those things will be a false prophet and those signs he performs will be satanic, counterfeit signs.
In regards to the RCC, according to Scripture, she is anything but the church, for she is pagan through and through! Getting back to what the pope said "Being Christian means belonging to the church" this has to do with all Christian sects coming under the authority of the RCC. In other words you're not a Christian unless you belong to them and recognize the pope's authority. Things will really change on this earth when that man of lawlessness is revealed, then the true intentions of the RCC will be realized and that because the head of the RCC will be the false prophet to that antichrist who will be proclaiming to be God or anything that is called God or worshiped.
While it is true that when we receive Christ that we become a part of the body of Christ, the church, our salvation is not obtained or maintained by other church members, but by our continued faith in Christ. Our faith is not and should not be in the church itself, but in our God who redeemed us. Our salvation and our relationship is one on one with the Lord first. We gather with other believers for the purpose of having fellowship and to glorify God by hearing and speaking his word and by song. The acid test of faith is, what do we do when we are alone. Do we exercise faith when troubles arise? Are we studying God's word when we are alone? Are we continuing in prayer multiple times a day. Are we relying on God when we are being tested? While we should gather together as believers, we are Christian's because we believe in Christ as individuals.
"[He] who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments; and I will not erase [his] name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels. [He] who has an ear, let [him] hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’"
"‘Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if [anyone] hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to [him] and will dine with [him], and [he] with Me"
Judging from the Scripture above and many others, it would appear that salvation is a personal one on one relationship. It seems that we are free agents in Christ, but we gather together for strength and fellowship in Christ.
The RCC's position is and has always been that they are the mother church and that all Christian sects should come underneath her authority. In fact, the desire of the RCC is get back the power that she had prior to 1798, so that all Christian sects adhere to her dogmas and her religious beliefs and look to the pope as standing in for Christ on earth.
With this type of thinking, they were directly responsible for all three inquisitions. If anyone didn't adhere to RCC's teachings recognizing them as the true church and the pope as the authority of that church, they were deemed as heretics and were imprisoned, tortured, their property was confiscated and they were burned at the stake. This was Roman Catholicism for many centuries and they want that authority back!
The pope's of the RCC controlled kings and that because they recognized them as church authority and were afraid of excommunication and this is how the pope's controlled them and their armies. This is the kind of power that the RCC is looking to regain and will regain it when that ruler, that antichrist is revealed. He will restore their authority and that because I believe that one of the future pope's will play the part of the false prophet. Think about it, looking at the devoutness of the over 1.2 billion Catholics, what do you think will happen when one of those pope's were to begin to perform those miracles, signs and wonders for all the world to see? Those who were devout would become even more devout and those other so-called Christian sects such as Mormonism, the Witnesses, scientology and the like would all be drawn into that last day religious system and that because the miracles, signs and wonders would server as proof to them. But we already know from scripture that he who will perform those things will be a false prophet and those signs he performs will be satanic, counterfeit signs.
In regards to the RCC, according to Scripture, she is anything but the church, for she is pagan through and through! Getting back to what the pope said "Being Christian means belonging to the church" this has to do with all Christian sects coming under the authority of the RCC. In other words you're not a Christian unless you belong to them and recognize the pope's authority. Things will really change on this earth when that man of lawlessness is revealed, then the true intentions of the RCC will be realized and that because the head of the RCC will be the false prophet to that antichrist who will be proclaiming to be God or anything that is called God or worshiped.
