the sermon Greg featured this week by Brother Len Ravenhill

https://www.sermonindex.net/modules/mydownloads/visit.php?lid=17134

"Where is the Fire?"

much better balm, it makes one squirm with a sense of MY OWN UNPROFITABILITY!

which includes pinning up the previous sermon.

[by Alive-to-God on 2010/11/14 13:55:35

If you were a priest in a Catholic only community, and you came to know the Lord, would you just abandon your flock to whomever would come after you if you resigned, or would you stay, and do whatever was in your power to preach the truth while it was still in your power?]


The thing is the priest won't be able to do that because the church will not allow it. If you want to know how it is like to try to do that, you can look up Richard Bennett, a former Catholic priest who came to know God during that time and that he tried to do just that but eventually had to leave the church. His testimony is below.

http://bereanbeacon.org/

_________________
geraldine

I think someone suggested I said Catholics can not get saved, and that certainly is not what I said at all. However, should a Catholic get saved one of the evidences of salvation is that person will grow in the Lord and become more knowledgable in the Word... and eventually they will have to come out of the Catholic Church.

Also, anyone who holds to and believes in Catholic doctrine, especially as it pertains to salvation... is not saved. There is only one plan of salvation and it is not the Catholic one.

A Catholic priest who gets saved and starts preaching the truth of the Word of God will be driven out. Staying will not be an option.

And I've seen folks say, even on this site, that some will stay in a church that is not preaching the truth in order to execute a change within that church. This is a fallacy and it is disobedience to the Word of God. We are called to be separate and holy and to "come out". We are not called to be unequally yoked.

Personally, and this is open for debate, I do not even think that Bible believers should join hands with Catholics (or any other religion) in something like the pro-life movement. In doing so we send the wrong message, and that message is evil.

I say that with absolutely NO hatred in my heart toward anyone... I just believe that our FIRST allegiance is to the Lord, and to obedience to His Word.

Here is a statement and a question.

Statement:
I believe when a Catholic (I was raised Catholic) gets saved and filled with God's Word and the Holy Spirit, that the Holy Spirit will lead that person out of the false church of Catholicism. The pagan rituals and bloodless crucifixion of Jesus Christ, weekely is grievous to the Holy Spirit. When I started reading the Word, it delivered me (the truth) from all my former beliefs.

Question:
Concerning other false churches within Protestantism full of man-made doctrines and traditions.

Why aren't people being led by the Holy Spirit out of other false churches and kindgoms of man? Is it the Holy Spirit's fault?

Here's a list of possible answers:

1) disobedience

2) rebellion

3) ignorance

4) apathy

5) laziness

6) not really saved in the first place

7) etc... etc... etc...

It's not really about "Protestism" anyway. It's about whether a church is preaching the truth gospel. A church can call itself whatever it wants to. God is not concerned with that. God is concerned with "Is the Truth of My Word being preached and obeyed?"

If it is a false church then the answer is "no"... and those who refuse to leave it and separate and have nothing to do with it have to answer to God for it.

Once a church goes off the rails it rarely ever gets back on track. I've never once in my life ever seen a train wreck where the train eventually righted itself and got back to the business of being a train.

Leave... get off the train before you become one of the victims!

Also, I think you can add the "fear of man".

Their friends and family may go to the same church and it has become more of a social club and if they left, they would lose their friends or family or at the least be ridiculed and misunderstood. Many traditions have been handed down to us from our ancestors and we just continue to believe what has been handed down.

Truth preached is not the only important thing, by the way.

Sadly, it has become the measuring stick, today for a congregation that is alive in God. Nothing could be further from the truth.

What people should look for is the life of the Spirit of God in the members of the church. Is divine fruit being produced. If not, then those hearing the preaching of the truth are only "hearers of the Word", and ultimately rebellious to the Spirit of God.

Are the members of the Body being obedient to the truth is the question. Are they allowing the Spirit of God to conform them to the image of Christ? Are they a yielded and surrendered people overflowing with the fruit of the Spirit.

Not is the truth being preached.

People shop around for "who is preaching the truth". But that is a deception, also. We have just exchanged one idol for another. Who is the best preacher of truth, the best teacher, etc, etc. Thinking that their church will also have the most obedient and surrendered saints, overflowing with the life of God.

Jesus said, do what the Pharisees say, but don't do what they do. He ratified what they were saying, but He did not ratify their living, their life.

If your criteria for gathering with people is the "preaching of the truth" and not genuine fruit that can only be produced by the Spirit of God, then you will just be in a Pharisaical congregation.

And you are right, it is not about Protestantism anyway, but since most on SI are probably from that camp, it applies to us to also know that Protestatism has it's false churches, too. Many of them,

The Babylonian religious system is not just Catholic, but all false churches. Anything built and led by the flesh, which is enmity with God.

True Biblical Christians believe that we are saved by our faith in Christ’s work on the cross.


"By grace you have been saved though faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works lest any one should boast" Eph 2:8-10



The Catholic Church says that is not possible. Faith alone cannot save you. Below are two of the 33 of the Justification Canons from the Council of Trent’s sixth session.

CANON IX.-If any one saith, that by faith alone the impious is justified; in such wise as to mean, that nothing else is required to co-operate in order to the obtaining the grace of Justification, and that it is not in any way necessary, that he be prepared and disposed by the movement of his own will; let him be anathema.


CANON XIV.-If any one saith, that man is truly absolved from his sins and justified, because that he assuredly believed himself absolved and justified; or, that no one is truly justified but he who believes himself justified; and that, by this faith alone, absolution and justification are effected; let him be anathema.


In other words, if you think you can be saved by faith in Christ alone; you are dammed to hell.

Totally contrary to the Scriptures.


I continue to pray for and share the truth of the Scriptures with Catholics I know.

I would hope that anyone who is truly saved and who is searching the scriptures daily to see if what they are being taught is true and would leave any organization (JW, Mormon, Catholic, Emergent Church or any other church that are teaching false doctrine).

Remember:
Matthew 7:21-23 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.


God be with you,
Brian

What I meant was of course following the proclamation of the Truth there must be the fruit of obedience. Otherwise you are correct... there is nothing.

But without the proclamation of the Truth there can BE no fruits of obedience.

Kinda like which came first? The chicken of the Ford?