SCRIPTURE MAY OFFEND US ALL

 

I recently saw a Facebook meme, now shown below. 

 There is an element of truth therein, to wit: Paul, writing to Peter and their fellow Christians wrote about them as “an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ” (1 Pet 2:5). Then added, “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that you should show forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” (1 Pet 2:9).

That was not written about scribes and Pharisees who were afterwards denigrated, but about Christians in general. That is validated with scripture, “All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not you (do) after their works: for they say, and do not” (Mat 23:3). Jesus was inferring that the religious leaders were hypocrites and for Christians to do as they say, but not as they do. What were they doing? Acting like royalty (Mat 23:4-7): 

For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers, but all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, and love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.

 Before proceeding, that meme pictured was posted on Facebook® by a faithful Christian who was born Catholic. His birth religion does not make him a heathen any more than it makes a person born a Protestant a Christian. Birth does not a Christian make; rebirth does that, so said Jesus, “Marvel not; you must be born again” (John 3:7).

We all are born in iniquity, according to David (Psalm 51:5). Martin Luther could not remove the iniquity from us any more than a Pope could. The point therein is that although those two people were priests, having faith in priests is not the Way to Paradise! Therefore, forget your birth religion because we all must be ‘born again’ unto the doctrine of Jesus who is “the Way, the Truth, and the Life” and no man comes unto the Father, but by Him (John 14:6).

No matter who your priest is, your eternal destiny is between you and Jesus to go unto the Father. Since Jesus is the mediator between man and the God, as it is written, “For there is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Tim 2:5).

No priest of any faith is required to be saved. Catholics do not need the College of Cardinals, the Pope, nor even the priests!

Likewise, Protestants do not need preachers any more than Catholics need priests! Essentially, you are on your own with God with Jesus who mediates your guilt to the Father if you go to Him to do so. Hence, Christianity requires no Pope for any true believer, regardless of their leader, for everyone in a sense is their own ‘pope.’

Popes took on a royal title, ‘Pontiff,’ from the Latin, Pontifex Maximus (Supreme Pontiff). The leader of the Roman Church assumed the title once held by the College of Pontiffs of the pagan Roman religion; the title once held by the Caesars.

Catholics made their leader a ‘royal priest.’ Protestants rejected that manmade priesthood and assumed themselves to be ‘royal priests’ of God. So, in a sense, every Christian who depends on Jesus to go to the Father for them, are ‘royal priests’ but certainly not ‘popes.’ Popes are indeed ‘royal priests’ but in only the eyes of the people. They are voted in by the College of Cardinals, not selected by the heavenly Father.

Those comments were directed at the Pharisees in particular. They were not priests at all, but powerful people who monitored every behavior and tested every statement. They were want-to-be priests, but not priests. Most of the priests were their opponents, the Sadducees. In effect the 10,000 or so Pharisees were a ‘College of Pretend Priests,’ because they thought of themselves as true priests to protect Mosaic Law. They were politicians more so than priests but they never let that hamper their self-estimation!

Jesus reduced them to mere snakes, “You serpents, you generation of vipers, how can you escape the damnation of hell?” (Mat 23:33). Jesus implied that although they knew the Law, they deceived the people by setting an improper example. They were not priests at all, but servants of the Wicked One. Jesus reminded them that they were just beasts generated from the Serpent in the beginning. How humbling would that be? It just made them more venomous! So much so that they would see that he was killed.

Jesus as well said, “You Antichrists!” to the Pharisees.

Remembering that no man comes unto the Father, but by Jesus (John 14:6), what about the Father? It is ‘Pater’ in both the Greek and Latin and that refers to a paternal relationship. In the Latin, ‘pope’ means ‘Papa,’ a friendly and pet name for ‘Father.’

Our paternal God is our dear ‘Papa.’ He is, or should be, our love and our Master. We should be dedicated to Him as our Lord or Master. To Him, we all are delegated as servants in His Divine Court. He is the Papa and we the children who are to serve Him and Him alone. To set the example, the LORD GOD took on flesh to serve us and made righteous men the royal priests in the Court of God.

The Vatican is not the Court of God; His ‘Court’ is in heaven above the ‘Sea of Glass’ (Rev 4:6) that can only be entered by death of the flesh and to sin.

The Vatican is the palace of the Pope in Rome, but never forget that the House of God is no longer on Earth but in the realm of heaven. The royal priesthood is therefore reserved for the afterlife and a Utopian City here on Earth — The Vatican City State — is nothing more than a façade, and to be fair, so is that Religious City State, The World Council of Churches.

In heaven, there is no such thing as city states or religious leaders. God is the ‘Pope’ there and he appears on His Throne as Jesus.

We are to “call no man your father upon the Earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven” (Mat 23:9). Whether ‘Father’ is Papa, Pope, or any other title, it means that no man should have the title of God, and ‘Pope’ does just that. You can play games all you like, but since the 10^th Century the bishop of Rome has become the ‘royal priest’ by his own bull.

And it continues: “Neither be you called ‘masters” for one is your Master, even Christ” (Mat 23:10).

‘Master’ is an archaic title for ‘teacher.’ Nobody is to be our Teacher, but Christ. The papal bulls that are issued are the teachings of the Pope. They add to the textus receptus and even in Latin that is not the received text.

Whereas the Jews had Mosaic Law, the Catholics in the 15^th century added a ‘register of bulls’ (dictates) despite the words of the scripture; “I testify unto every man that hears the words of the prophecy of this book, if any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book” (John 22:18).

The Popes have added many words to scripture, and to be honest, the modern generation of preachers have as well. (I am referring to the prosperity gospel as a ‘temple’ for money changers.)

People neither need the Vatican nor the airwaves of those who pretend to be preachers. The true Church requires no buildings and no leaders; we are all to be servants to our Master, our Grand Papa!

The Catholic Church became moneychangers with penances wherein sins are redeemed.

The Protestant Church in this age have become a den of thieves in the same manner.  All our churches will be the Apostate Church in the end! The true Church is the body of believers to be collected from the world over without God respecting their persons (Acts 10:34).

But we are not to forget the Jews. No longer are they the only ‘chosen and peculiar’ people that would be priests.

Paul wrote, “Be not called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all you are brethren” (Mat 23:8); so, what did the Jews do? Call their leaders ‘Rabbi.’ In other words, they deny Jesus as Rabbi and make themselves the Christ. Is that not what the Catholics did with ‘Father’? Whereas one makes himself the Father, the other makes himself the Messiah!

This is not an attack on either Jews or Catholics. I include Protestant leaders who have become gods as well. One person told me, “If Dr. David Jermiah says it, I believe it.”

Jeremiah has not made himself a ‘god’ but some of his millions of followers have made him a god if his word takes precedence to the Word of God.

For instance, Dr. Jermiah said, “God loves us without expecting anything in return.” Is that right? Check yourselves… God expects our love in return. I am sure he meant something else, but it came out that God does not expect your love. Even when he misstated, some of those I know took his world as the ultimate truth.

That is certainly not an attack on the man, but those who accept his teachings as the final authority. We have all become ‘Roman Catholics’ in a sense, by making him, and those like him, the authorities. He is the one of the several Protestant ‘Popes” and his words go!

We need neither our religious leaders nor the Pope. We are, or shall be, the chosen and peculiar royal priests who serve our Master, Jesus. The purpose of a royal priest is not to dictate sacredness, but to serve a Sacred God. Royal priests in heaven will never rule nor make a name for themselves, but worship and serve God in Name only… Jesus.