New pope urges Church to return to its Gospel root

[Deleted]

In his first public Mass, Pope Francis urged the Catholic Church on Thursday to stick to its Gospel roots and shun modern temptations, warning that it would become just another charitable group if it forgot its true mission.

Addressing cardinals in the frescoed Sistine Chapel the day after his election there, Jorge Bergoglio said the Church should be more focused on the Gospels of Jesus Christ.

"We can walk all we want, we can build many things, but if we don't proclaim Jesus Christ, something is wrong. We would become a compassionate NGO and not a Church which is the bride of Christ," he said, speaking in Italian without notes.

"When we don't proclaim Jesus Christ, we proclaim the worldliness of the devil, the worldliness of the demon."

"We must always walk in the presence of the Lord, in the light of the Lord, always trying to live in an irreprehensible way," he said in a heartfelt homily of a parish priest, loaded with biblical references and simple imagery.

"When we walk without the cross, when we build without the cross and when we proclaim Christ without the cross, we are not disciples of the Lord. We are worldly. We may be bishops, priests, cardinals, popes, all of this, but we are not disciples of the Lord," he said.

mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSBRE92D05P20130314?irpc=932

[Deleted]

Exactly what was accomplished by the cross? according to Catholic doctrine? That is a difficult question to actually understand, let only try to unravel, but we do know what the Bible doctrinal teaching is, it is really quite simple, simple enough, in fact, for a mere child to understand, grasp and apply.

So, if Jesus Christ is crucified for our sins . . . and it was only He upon that old rugged cross . . . then Mary has nothing to do with our salvation, other than being the human vessel by which God became flesh.

“And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory” (I Timothy 3:16)

In other words, when Jesus said, “It is finished” . . . He meant that all the work that needed to be done to procur an eternal salvation for each believer was accomplished finally and for all time.

Yet, Catholicism seeks to add human effort and good works to the equation, and limits our access to God and his forgiveness to the dictates of a mere priest who stands in the way of the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

I believe that the Word of God tells us that we have a mediator, and it is not a man trained in the rudiments of his religious hierarchy.

“I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time” (I Timothy 2:1-6).

Would to God a man might see and understand this truth and proclaim, “Once I was blind, but now I see!” (John 9:25).

One might ask, then, why do we feel compelled to proclaim this truth to an unbelieving, and often unrepentent, world?

The answer is really quite simple, if one is willing to accept the biblical response . . .

“Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (II Corinthians 5:20-21).

Notice that ambassador is in the plural case, meaning that all that are washed by the blood of Christ - if they are willing - are representatives of our Lord Jesus Christ.

To further add clarity to the context of the verses I posted . . .

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation” (II Corinthians 5:17-19).

Not only is salvation a free gift from God to be received; but the Christian ministry also, is a gift from God to be used for God.

[Keith]

Excellent, brother Virgil, simply excellent!

[Murph]

Thanks Virgil...

[S F Lord]

This is going to get real interesting in the Evangelical circles as the weeks and months go by.

To read the new Popes words in the Reuters article you'd think he was a born again preacher, well almost

I've always wondered that if a devout catholic who believes the way we know a born again believer should and does, but still goes to confession, prayers to Mary and the other saints, holds the Pope as infallible etc. does that negate their salvation?

Of the 1.2 billion catholics that we have heard so much of these past few days we'd be fools to say that some are not heaven bound but still call themselves catholic.

Either the Lord is working in a mysterious way with Francis, his using words that might sit well with born again believers or satan has started another great deception for the catholic church.

[Murph]

My mind always goes to the 7 Parables of the Kingdom. Fish in the net in the sea...church in the world. Some good fish and some bad but all in the net together...

Angels sent to sort them out. Picture of the church today. We can say the same of all the other denominations...not every Baptist sitting in a church is saved...nor every Methodist...nor Prebysterian, and so on...

Meanwhile, we all swim in that net in the sea together.
Angels will sort us all out in the end. Some they will keep and some they will throw away...

Matthew 13:47-52

[Murph]

That parable came to life for me one day sitting on the beach watching the big fishing boats dragging huge nets in the water behind them. The nets weren't just scooping up good fish...alot of bad fish were also in the net. When they got to the harbor they sorted the good from the bad...keeping the good fish and throwing out the bad...

What a way to learn a Bible lesson...Amen!

[Keith]

Mar 15, 2013 9:00:22 GMT -6 S F Lord said:

Either the Lord is working in a mysterious way with Francis, his using words that might sit well with born again believers or satan has started another great deception for the catholic church.

Great point, Bob! I'm hoping for the former but leaning toward the latter being true.

[Deleted]

At the beginning we said that Mary has nothing to do with our salvation, other than being the human vessel by which God became flesh?"

This is Mary's own declaration when she said "God my Saviour."

"And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord" (Luke 1:46), And "my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour" (Luke 1:47).

And who needs a saviour but sinners.

With this verse alone, the centuries of teaching that Mary was sinless from her birth and throughout her life is shown to be in error.

We must pity those that place their eternal destiny in the hands of sinners, and not the spotless Lamb of glory, the Lord Jesus Christ who repeated the Old Testament promise, “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool” (Isaiah 1:18) when he proclaimed to the crowd, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).

The pope is correct in saying that the gospel must be proclaimed, but the troubling truth of this verse in Galatians causes me to ponder which gospel he is speaking of . . .

“I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed” (Galatians 1:6-9).

[Keith]

Amen!