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Can your Church Stand the Examination of the Bible?
By: Elijah
Here is what I am going to do: I am going to ask some simple questions, then give Bible answers to those questions; if your church is right, you will answer no to all the questionsif you are willing to receive the truth of the Bible, you will be able to accurately judge you church in just these few statements.
Or course, there are many issues, all of which I am familiar with; I grew up in it but fought my way out of it through several years of intense study; if you are what we call a Nominal Christian meaning less than serious and willing to accept what your robed ministers tell you, then this little study will not impress you, but if you are serious about God, and indeed want to know the truth, this will open your eyes somewhatbut not all; there are MANY things you need to know and only YOU can find it out through your own studiedand that takes us to another issue which is that most Christians and Jews do not know how to study; I show you if you want to find the answers on your own; just begin at the top of the list of web sites on the first page of this site, and begin. So, lets get to it:
Symbols and Figures
First Question:Do you call your church, Gods House?
Here is the answer:
24 The God that made the world and all things therein, he, being Lord of heaven and earth, dwells not in temples made with hands; 25 neither is he served by mens hands, as though he needed anything, seeing he himself gives to all life, and breath, and all things (Acts 17.24.25)
God does NOT dwell in places made by hands, as even Solomon confessed to God when he built Solomons Temple:
27 But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have built? (1 Kg.8.27)
Of course you will come back and say, Well, we have to have a place to meet; yes, we do need a place to meet, but if you build an edifice and adorn it with stained glass, oak pews or theater seats, then put a steeple and cross on top, what you have done is build yourself a temple, that is, a PAGAN TEMPLE! The steep is a pagan symbol from way back as is the cross! All you have to do is to research these things on the Internet; there are web sites devoted to Steeples, and the Cross.
Oh yes; you see this gracefully draped figure on that cross Catholics parade about, so easy to look upon, whereas Jesus was NOT put to death on a cross; want proof? Alright, go to this web site: Messiah, and you will see exactly how Jesus was crucified. But even some of you were that pagan symbol around your neck? You show God how ignorant you are!
But that is not all: you see Catholics in particular with statues and figures of people they and labeled saints; they bow down to them, speak to them, and worship them, whereas God says:
6 I am the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. 7 Thou shall have none other gods before me. 8 You shall not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth (Deu.5.6ff)
Your little figurines you set around your house and yard; you make shrines where you get on your knees and worshipyou are so foolish! You defy this command, but then to be absolutely truthful, the things in your life that you covet, also become your godsmoney, your car, your house, your clothesand on and on; these are things you worship also; and how about food and drink? How about ANYTHING you put between your love for God and yourself?
You see, people want to go into placesbuildings to worship; they have not faith in simply obeying God to worship Him; the want something they can feel and see and touch, as even the Romans took stone and wood and made their gods and named themZoos, Apollo, Mars, and so forth after the stars, and of course, this has been going on for millennia, as ancient aborigines fall down to their statues and worship stars; you Catholics are no better; all you have done is to polish and paint your gods.
What does your church Teach?
So, lets now take up some of the things your church teachesbut keep in mind I am not doing this simply to shame you or to treat you roughly if you really want to know the truth; I am sent to expose this miserable church world that has deceived 2.2 billion people. Not only so, many of these issues are very easily seen if you have a mind to study and believe what you read in your Bible. But that takes us to another fact, that the Bible is not an open book, but is locked and reserved for only those whose hearts are right with God
Second Question: Does your church teach that Grace is free or unmerited favor?
Here is the answer:
7 And by reason of the exceeding greatness of the revelations, that I should not be exalted overmuch, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, that I should not be exalted overmuch. 8 Concerning this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. 9 And he hath said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my power is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. (2 Cor.12.7ff)
Jesus uses Grace synonymously with power; Grace is the POWER OF GOD; it is not ambiguous at allbut then, if they say it is free, then why do you not have any power? The reason is, the grace of God comes by your OBEDIENCE to the truth; it is not a free gift as many suppose.
You will have to go to my Bible Definitions site to get a detailed study.
Question Three: Does your church tell you that you are saved, that you have salvation?
To answer this question, a quick word study will tell you: the word saved comes from the little Greek word sozothat is the verb; the word salvation (the noun) comes from the Greek word soteria of the same root. In the Hebrew, saved comes from the word yasha, which is the verb, and the word salvation (the noun) comes from the word yeshuah; to understand their meaning, all you do is consider how these Hebrew and Greek words are translatedand you will need the study tools I suggest on my Foundation of God site which I will open to you if you decide to study with me.
In the New Testament, the little word sozo is translated thus: heal, make whole, preserve, save, be whole, and saved (see page 89, 5th column in the Index of Youngs Analytical Concordance). Heal! That does not fit your understanding of being saved or of salvation
But then, it is the same word as used here:
27 When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment. 28 For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole. 29And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague. 30 And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes? 31 And his disciples said unto him, Thou see the multitude thronging thee, and say thou, Who touched me? 32 And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing. 33 But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth. 34 And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole (Mk.5.27ff)
Yes! The words be whole, and whole in verses 28 and 34 come from the same Greek word sozo. This should twist your head a little bit because you thought being saved had to do with you getting eternal life, or going off to heave, or receiving salvation all in one feld swoopno, then there is this little complication:
18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are begin saved it is the power of God. (1 Cor.1.18)
Yes: you are BEING SAVEDit is a continuing tense, so here again while most Bibles to not give you a marginal not, or translate it that way, it is true, which again points to the fact that you need to study these things for yourselves.
Nevertheless, to prove this there are simple things you can do; first, get an American Standard Version (1901) of the Bible; it has a marginal to the effect that is being saved, and you can also get Youngs Literal Translation of the Bible as it reads like this:
For the word of the cross to those indeed perishing is foolishness, and to usthose being savedit is the power of God. (1 Cor.1.18 YLT)
So, what is the essence of being saved? All it means, people of God, is that if you are obeying God, you will be DELIVERED from sin, car crashes, sickness including catastrophic illnesses and operations; and because you obey God, you will have the POWER, the grace to overcome sin. To be saved, is to be delivered; same thing. You do NOT have to be sick; you do NOT have to have all kinds of problems. Are you sick? Does your minister get sick? How many of your Christian brethren are sick? Fact is, I hardly know a traditional Christian who has not had serious sicknesses and operations, and who are not on medication most of the time.
You do not have to be sick, and the truth of the matter, if you are sick, then neither are you savedand no, you will not want to believe that, so prove it to yourself; go to my Bible Definitions site; I give you a short but detailed study of it there.
Question Four: Does your church teach you that you are born again even though you sin?
Answer, from your King James Bible:
9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remains in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. (1 Jn.3.9)
Folks, you do not have to sin, and remember:
23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Rom.6.23)
But you say, I cant help but sin; here:
11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. (Rom6.11f)
Paul says, sin shall not have dominion over you, and now that you know grace in the power of God and not whitewash, what does this tell you?! Of course, there you CAN overcome sin, and he went on to say this:
13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. (1 Cor.10.13)
Shall I go on? Is your church teaching you the truth.
Again I invite you to visit my Bible Definitions site and learn those definitions well!
Question Five: Are you washed in the Blood?
Here is your answer in three texts:
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (Jn.1.1-4; 14)
Then:
53Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. 54Whoso eats my flesh, and drinks my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. (Jn.6.53ff)
What does this tell you, except that Jesus Christ is the Word of God, and unless you eat and drink the Word of God you have NO LIFE in yourselves; you do not receive life by osmosis; you have to eat it and do it. As he said again:
15 If ye love me, keep my commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 17 Even the Spirit of truth (Jn.14.15ff)
Therefore, are you washed are you cleansed are you made clean by the Blood of Christ? Again I say, the Blood of Christ is not whitewash.
So, if your church tells you that you are washed in the blood, and you are yet in your sins, they are lying to you.
Question Six: It your Communion Table the truth?
Answer from the same text as we were reading from above:
48 I am that bread of life. 49 Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. 50 This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.
Then we go here:
23 For I received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which he was betrayed took bread; 24 and when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, This is my body, which is for you: this do in remembrance of me. 25 In like manner also the cup, after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood: this do, as often as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. 26 For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink the cup, ye proclaim the Lords death till he come. 27 Wherefore whosoever shall eat the bread or drink the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. 28 But let a man prove himself, and so let him eat of the bread, and drink of the cup. 29 For he that eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment unto himself, if he discern not the body. 30 For this cause many among you are weak and sickly, and not a few sleep. 31 But if we discerned ourselves, we should not be judged. (1 Cor.11.23ff)
This now should become clear to you, that when Jesus said, This is my body, and This is my blood he was not talking about matza and wine (or grape juice); he was talking about the Word of Godif you eat and drink the Word of God in a unworthy manner you will be judged, as Paul said,
30 For this cause many among you are weak and sickly, and not a few sleep (v.30)
You that are sickif you are reading your Bible and NOT doing what it says, you are eating and drinking the Word of God in an unworthy manner, and God is judging you.
If your church does not tell you this, they are lying to you.
Question Seven: How does your church define sin?
Does your minister tell you that sin is missing the mark then cannot give you a Bible answer as to what sin is? Here is the answer from your King James Bible:
4 Whosoever commits sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. (1 Jn.3.4)
Sin is the transgression of the Law, that is, the Ten Commandments But you will continue, Well, we dont have to keep the Ten Commandments because we are not saved by works. Okay, lets see what Jesus said:
16 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? 17 And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. 18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shallt not bear false witness, 19 Honour thy father and thy mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. (Mt.19.16ff)
Does this not present a problem for you?! Jesus said that if we want to enter into life, keep the commandments, then he named some of the Ten Commandments.
What are you going to do with that? Well, you will say, my minister tell me that Jesus was speaking just to the Jews here, okay, let us quote another text:
3 If any man teaches a different doctrine, and consents not to sound words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; 4 he is puffed up, knowing nothing, but doting about questionings and disputes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmising, 5 wranglings of men corrupted in mind and bereft of the truth (1 Tim.6.3ff)
Kinda makes you sick to your stomach, doesnt it, to know you have been taught a pack of lies.
Oh, but I could go on with this all daythis is why God has sent me, as the prophet says,
2 But who can abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiners fire, and like fullers soap (Mal.3.2)
Question Eight: What are the works of the law?
Does your church teach that the works Paul speaks of in Ephesians 2.9 have to do with doing good things, and keeping the Ten Commandments, since your Bible says that we are not saved by works but by Grace? The truth is, that the works Paul speaks of in Eph.2.9 has to do with the works of the Law of Moses, and had nothing to do with the Ten Commandments, as Paul explains in Phil.3.2-11, but let me further confuse you because you think you understand your Bible; here, I want to compare two texts from Romans; see what you can do with them:
12 For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without the law: and as many as have sinned under the law shall be judged by the law; 13 for not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified (Rom.2.12ff)
Then this:
20 because by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified in his sight (Rom.3.20)
Presents a little problem doesnt itbut you see, if you realize he is speaking of the Ten Commandments in the first place, and the Law of Moses in the second, it all makes perfect sense. See, the works of the law are of the Law of Moses, in offering up gifts and sacrifices, and in observing days and feasts and years.
Question Nine: Does your church tell you that if you have that little speck of faith as the Mustard Seed, that nothing will be impossible to you? Do they tell you that you have faith.
Well, lets quote Jesus:
19 Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast it out? 20 And he saith unto them, Because of your little faith: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you. (Mt.17.19ff)
So here you are in your charismatic meetings; your minister is up there on the platform waving a Bible in your face and reading this to you, he shouts, Just release your faith! Just release your faith! so you are standing there with your hands in the air grunting and straining to release your faitha faith you do not possess. How can you release a faith you do not have? So, lets read something else Jesus said:
31 Another parable set he before them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: 32 which indeed is less than all seeds; but when it is grown, it is greater than the herbs, and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the heaven come and lodge in the branches thereof. (Mt.13.31ff)
Of course! You have to cause your faith to GROW! See, its easy if you know how, but then, HOW do your get your faith to growwell, you see, there is another bunch, the name if and claim it crowd, and others will tell you that you have to practice reaching out to claim something, but still you are unable to get a thing, and nothing these guys tell you workswhy?
Okay, here again from your King James Bible:
16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? 17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. (Rom.10.16,17)
Do you see? Paul uses obey and believe synonymously; believing is obeying, obeying is believing. This is a good word study especially in the Old Testament; the word hear comes from the word shama and is translated 81 times to obey; faith comes by hearingthat is, faith comes by obeying the Word of God.
Question Ten: What is the will of God?
You hear your ministers say, Well, it might be the will of God that you go to Bible school..., or you might hear one of your peers say, Well, I think the will of God for me is to go to Med school, and so on, but here is the will of God:
1 Finally then, brethren, we beseech and exhort you in the Lord Jesus, that, as ye received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, even as ye do walk,that ye abound more and more. 2 For ye know what charge we gave you through the Lord Jesus. 3 For this is the will of God, your sanctification, that ye abstain from fornication; 4 that each one of you know how to possess himself of his own vessel in sanctification and honor, 5 not in the passion of lust, even as the Gentiles who know not God (1 Thes.3.1ff)
It is Gods will that you cleanse and purify yourselves through your obedience to the truth, nothing more, that you learn how to possess yourself in an honorable manner according to the truth. End of Story.
With all this said, you have to know what you must do if you are going to be savedyou are going to get out of your church and begin to study (note 2 Cor.6.14ff). As long as you are in a church ANY church, you are being fed lies and falsehood.
My Bible Definitions site goes over most of these things in more detail, but I have provided these things simply to show you that you need to STUDY and not to place yourself in the hands of men. You can find these truths on your own, and many more.
But I will say this once more: if you do not study apart from your churches, there is no way your are going to be saved, but you will be destoyed with them. I invite you to come study with me; I do not beg for your money, or sell you anything; this is all free to you; all you have to do is DO IT.
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