We serve the Big Church on the Internet - Pastor Patrick Bwayo

Pastpat Bwayo  Mbale Uganda on Facebook
Do not compel anybody to serve or fellowship with the INVISIBLE GOD through the New Covenant Bible that gives eternal life to souls because God has an ultimate decision of who should fellowship with Him through the New Covenant Bible and lock the understanding of disobedient souls to serve and serve earthly Jerusalem visible things which are mere copies and shadows of the real heavenly Jerusalem invisible things through the Old Covenant Bible that kills souls. Woe to those who disobey the invisible God and continue to worship the visible god of this world for they will never test the eternal life forever and ever. Heb 1: 1-2, 2 Corinth 3: 5-6..13-15, John 1: 17-18, 1 John 2:7=8, Isaiah 45: 7-8. 1 John 5: 7-8. Use KJV Bible.


I stopped being a local area church pastor in March 2003 and I was chosen by God to minister on internet since that time. I minister here on the internet so that I can fellowship with you. If I was not on the internet, I would not have fellowship with you so count it the grace of God that you have received the gospel through our fellowship.


If I have to run a church in my area, I would not build one on the carnal knowledge old covenant system, I would build one on the New Covenant Bible law that teaches the revelation of the heavenly Jerusalem Kingdom invisible things. The head of the Big Church worldwide is the invisible God. The raising of funds or donations to spread the gospel is through offerings raised through the believers in the ministry of New Covenant Bible taught by the Holy Spirit. I do not have a local church I head now in Mbale because I am attending to the Big church worldwide. When the time is come according to God's will, I will start up a local area church and stop serving on the internet but as of now you are the people I am given the grace of God to fellowship with. Therefore I plainly tell you that your financial support can or may be of help in the spreading of the gospel but that is only when the grace of God will speak to you through the following chapters: 2 Corinth 8, 9, 10. Heb 8: 5-13. Use KJV Bible.


I am using the words that your funds "my be of help" because God is not limited to raise funds for spreading of the gospel with your donation or without your donation or funds for His work. We do not depend on your funds or donations or support for spreading the gospel if you have not been given the knowledge of the grace of God to see the need to spread the gospel.


One of Pastor Patrick's present challenges is to support his son with costs associated with the offer of being able to study in America. If you can help with this or help towards it contact him: godofallnations@yahoo.com


Not Just a change in STUDY BOOK....A  TOTAL CHANGE IN OPERATION,moving from SEEN to UNSEEN......(editor.... what I call moving in the Melchizedek order according to our new High Calling as priests in the heavenly tabernacle according to Hebrews)   by Pastor Bwayo

The OLD COVENANT BIBLE FROM GENESIS TO REVELATION, THAT IS READ AND INTERPRETED IN CARNAL HUMAN LIMITED KNOWLEDGE(S) TO THIS DAY OF 2014, ONWARDS; IS FIGURATIVELY THE PRESENT DAY EARTHLY JERUSALEM CITY OF AGAR, THE EGYPTIAN AND HER CARNAL KNOWLEDGE CHILDREN IN BONDAGE BECAUSE THEY TEACH EARTHLY JERUSALEM KINGDOM JEWISH TRADITION VISIBLE THINGS WHICH ARE MERE COPIES AND SHADOWS OF THE REAL HEAVENLY JERUSALEM INVISIBLE THINGS INSTEAD OF TEACHING THE REAL HEAVENLY JERUSALEM INVISIBLE THINGS. Gal 4: 21-27, 2 Corinth 3: 5-6...13-15. Use KJV Bible.

BUT THE NEW COVENANT BIBLE IS THE VERY OLD COVENANT BIBLE ORDINANCES OF DARKNESS BUT WHEN IS READ AND INTERPRETED IN A NEW WAY IN THE KNOWLEDGE AND WISDOM OF GOD, SUBSTITUTES / SWAPS THE EARTHLY JERUSALEM JEWISH TRADITION VISIBLE THINGS OF THE MIDDLE EAST OF THE OLD COVENANT BIBLE ORDINANCES OF DARKNESS, WHICH ARE MERE COPIES AND SHADOWS OF THE HEAVENLY JERUSALEM KINGDOM / CITY INVISIBLE THINGS WITH REAL THE HEAVENLY JERUSALEM KINGDOM INVISIBLE THINGS IN PATTERN OF THE NEW COVENANT BIBLE ORDINANCES OF LIGHT IN THE SAME BIBLE.Col 2: 10-23, 1 John 2: 7-8, 1 John 5:7-8...12, John 1: 17-18, 2 Corinth 4: 1-6..18, 2 Corinth 5 and note verses 16-17, Heb 8, Heb 10: 1-9, Heb 9: 18-23. Use KJV Bible.

THE NEW COVENANT BIBLE FROM GENESIS TO REVELATION, WHO IS SARAH, WHEN IS TAUGHT IN THE KNOWLEDGE AND WISDOM OF GOD IS THE LIGHT IN THE WHOLE WORLD BEARS HOLY SPIRIT CHILDREN FOR ABRAHAM / GOD WHO ARE HEIRS OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD. 2 Corinth 3: 5-6, 1 John 2: 7-8, Isaiah 45: 7-8, Isaiah 29: 11-24. Use Kjv Bible

SARAH, THE NEW COVENANT BIBLE WITH HER CHILDREN BORN AS RESULT OF GOD INTERPRETING THE VERY OLD COVENANT BIBLE IN HIS OWN KNOWLEDGE AND WISDOM THAT ABOLISHES EARTHLY JERUSALEM KINGDOM/ CITY JEWISH VISIBLE THINGS OF THE MIDDLE EAST BY SWAPPING EARTHLY JERUSALEM VISIBLE THINGS WITH THE HEAVENLY JERUSALEM KINGDOM INVISIBLE THINGS IN ONLY CHOSEN AND WORTHY SOULS, BUILDS AND MULTIPLIES PEOPLES BORN OF HEAVENLY JERUSALEM INVISIBLE THINGS, IRRESPECTIVE OF DENOMINATIONS, RELIGIOUS SECTS, COLOR, SEX, CARNAL KNOWLEDGE TEACHINGS OF THE BIBLE WITH THE HEAVENLY JERUSALEM KINGDOM KNOWLEDGE ALL OVER THE WORLD.

THE BUILDING OF THE HEAVENLY JERUSALEM KINGDOM /CITY BEGINS WITH THE REVELATION OF NEW COVENANT BIBLE IN THE BIBLE THAT COVERTS THE CARNAL KNOWLEDGE PEOPLE FROM THE OLD COVENANT BIBLE THAT TEACHES THE EARTHLY JERUSALEM KINGDOM VISIBLE THINGS INTO THE NEW COVENANT BIBLE THAT TEACHES THE REVELATION OF THE HEAVENLY JERUSALEM KINGDOM INVISIBLE THINGS IN THE HEARTS OF CHOSEN SOULS TO ENTER THE HEAVENLY JERUSALEM KINGDOM / CITY WHILE STILL ON THE EARTH. THE HEAVENLY JERUSALEM CITY/ KINGDOM IS ALLEGORICALLY OR FIGURATIVELY SARAH AND HER CHILDREN IN LIBERTY FROM THE CARNAL KNOWLEDGE CHILDREN OF AGAR, THE PRESENT EARLY JERUSALEM KINGDOM / CITY THAT TEACH CARNAL KNOWLEDGE ENSLAVING DOCTRINES ALL OVER THE WORLD Gal 4: 21-28...31, Isaiah 54, REV 5, Rev 21: 1-8. USE KJV Bible.

THE HEAVENLY JERUSALEM KINGDOM / CITY IS MINISTERED / TAUGHT BY THE CHOSEN SOULS THAT ARE ENABLED TO INTERPRET THE VERY OLD COVENANT BIBLE IN A NEW WAY IN THE WISDOM OF GOD TO BECOME NEW COVENANT BIBLE WHICH IS SYMBOLICAL THE SPIRITUAL PLACE OF CANAAN WHERE THE TRUE AND ONE GOD IS REVEALED, WORSHIPED AND SERVED IN TRUTH. Deuto 4: 1-12, 1 Peter 2. Use KJV Bible.

Beautiful inspired narration of crossing over the river Jordan of evil carnal knowledge men who teach death of souls using the Old Covenant Bible that kills souls in carnal knowledge(s) of FLESH is found in 2 Corinth 3: 5-6....13-15, 2 Samuel 22. USE KJV Bible.

The carnal knowledge teachers of the Old Covenant Bible from Genesis to Revelation drown (KILL) whoever attempts to crossover from the old Covenant Bible, that teaches earthly Jerusalem Kingdom /city blindfolding visible things which are mere copies and shadows of the real heavenly Jerusalem kingdom invisible into the promised New Covenant Bible also from Genesis to Revelation that gives eternal life. 2 Corinth 3 : 5: 6.USE KJV Bible.
The New Covenant Bible is NARROW GATE and is the allegory / parable or the symbolic of the nation of Israel of Middle East crossing over from physical land of bondage and death of Egypt to the physical and visible land of CANAAN. The New Covenant Bible is a spiritual place of this day where the truth is revealed and whoever crosses into her (NEW COVENANT BIBLE) receives eternal life and receives the promised rest of God. It is in the New Covenant Bible where the worshipers stop worshiping the visible god of this world by the Old Covenant Bible to worship the true invisible God in the knowledge and wisdom of the Spirit of God and in the truth. 2 Corinth 3: 5-15. John 4: 15-24, John 1: 17-18, 2 Corinth 4: 1-6, 2 Corinth 5 note verses 16-17. Use KJV Bible.

He's Always Home - Ralph Harris

When you believe in Jesus, He brings all that He is to you—perfect love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control—not eventually, not occasionally, not fractionally (“Sorry, but I’m holding a little bit of myself back.”) but all the way, at all times, at every moment, in every situation. Right now. He is the Treasure you’ve been looking for, He is the Reward for which you long, He is the Performer you’d like to be. And He is in you. Jesus is the Favor you want, the Success you were made for, and the Glory now in you.

If just now you’re suffering or enduring hardship, avoid the temptation to work up more fleshly strength (you’re already exhausted), and beware the thoughts that assign you to the failed scrapheap of humanity. That’s a lie. You were made for Jesus, and for Him with you. His glory, the incredible evidence that He lives within you, is best seen through suffering, most obvious in calamity, and most triumphant in hardship. I know.

So I talk with Him—sometimes I talk at Him more than I talk with Him—and He doesn’t mind. He knows that He’s my best friend, and He’s not threatened by my struggles. Right? He’s got quite a history with struggles, so I tell Him about my troubles, I talk with Him about my longings—even the fleshly, ugly ones—and the crazy things that go on in me. He knows that I weary of feeling the inside struggle that goes on between the Spirit and flesh, confusing me as to what to do.

And because I’m chatting at Him, whether silently or audibly, it equals what the Bible calls “offering myself to God.” The offering to God is not to “God out there,” or to “God, who will meet me over there,” when I finally make it or when I finally arrive. No. My offering is to “God in here” now, to God who has arrived in me.

The old way of offering our self to God, the Former Covenant way, was to think of yourself as separate from God, who would lead you because He was ahead of you or “over there.” He had to induce you to come after Him. The pressure was on you to follow, and to keep offering to follow. The New Covenant way of offering our self to God is to believe what God knows is true: “Jesus, you and I are together now; you’re in me. I don’t have to look for you over there, or just up ahead, because now you’re in here all the time. You don’t take vacations, and you don’t run off or find a better place to live. You’re being yourself with me in here, all the time. You and I are at home together.” How good is that?

Romans 6:12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. (Those desires are not like you. They’re not your desires.) 13 Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to Him as instruments of righteousness. 14 For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace. (Italics mine.)

And where is that grace centered? Where is that at home? In you and in me.

So offer yourself to Jesus. And where is He? That’s where you make the offering—to the inside, to Jesus who has made you His home. Listen for Him and look for Him there.

He’s great company, and He’s always home.
(This is a transcript of the video, “He’s Always Home,” and is for those who might rather read than watch. To see the video, click http://youtu.be/4IhuxfXrZG4. You may also subscribe to these regular videos at that link.)

https://www.facebook.com/ralphharris?fref=nf

The meaning of the 10th Jerusalem Gate Miphkad

On the blog a number of us have covered what ISN'T now happening in churches.

There are several sides to church life which are all encapsulated in the meaning of the Gates of Jerusalem. This is not a leftbrain issue...this is a SELAH issue...something the Holy Spirit leads us to meditate on and as He walks us by the hand round the Gates of the City.

By dividing churches up by Gates none of us have genuine churches yet.. we have about one Gate each.

Denominational churches are renowned for their handling of Old Gate material(Gate No. 3 The Old Gate speaks of all the Old solid truths of who God is and who we are in Him). And truthfully if leaders focus on these things for years they DO actually become to some extent people of DEPTH after decades of doing it.

The Water Gate and the Fountain Gate are more or less the Province of the young churches from generation to generation. That is...if at any point other churches exclude Gates from their roster GOD WHO IS SOVEREIGN WILL PRESERVE AT ALL TIMES A COMPLETE RECORD IN THE EARTH...even if fragmented.

In the last few decades this was the province of the charismatic movement, but we are all now long in tooth, and the Cloud shifted in Toronto to the next generation and in the Naughties to ministries such as John Crowder. IHOP say they want God, but I think the leadership don't actually want the thirdlevel which is what the Holy Spirit is currently restoring.

The FISH GATE or the initial catching of more disciples for a new generation is more or less always ousted to evangelists like Heidi Baker, or Elaine Waterfield.  YWAM to this day remains a parachurch movement as do many evangelistic ministries, because most CHURCHES like the idea of the FISH GATE , but they don't want the reality of the Fish Gate...and scrubbing fish!!!!

The evangelicals have largely cornered the Dung Gate and the Valley Gate, but quite frankly without the Fountain and Water Gates taking you through all these at once they have become crematoriums, whereas the charismatic movement simply doesn;t get the "replacement" of the indwelling spirit at the cross for daily purposes.

Rip across to the 10th Gate ....the Gate of Inspection

This is the gate of inspection, numbering and gathering
http://www.christianshepherd.org/meditations/doctrinal_meditations/twelve_gates_of_nehemiah.pdf

This is my current Spirit declaration and ideal for a piano tuner.

I am saying that the Lord of heaven is currently restoring the tenth Gate in Jerusalem. It is a concept very familiar to a tuner but to nearly nobody else on earth.

How do you mean Chris...are you making out you are special? Nope. Until this Gate is up and running all the church is running to and fro disjointed, unsure of its identity, and some among the more mature Union people do not even imagine the Holy Spirit powerful enough to raise up local churches at all. They think He is all about individuals and individual salvation. How on earth they can even think that way when they read a Church book like Ephesians....well God knows the answer to that.

You see there is a very pragmatic feature in piano tuning that the church worldwide haven't "got " yet. And the proof that they haven't got it stares us in the face in Rome. The Pope is the 10 th Gate. The Pyramid judge of the whole church in the earth.

But the Pope isn't the 10th Gate for this reason.

ALL 12 NOTES IN A PIANO SCALE DETERMINE WHEN A PIANO IS IN TUNE.

ALL 12 TRIBES DETERMINE THE TUNING OF EACH OTHER IN TERMS OF SPIRITUAL HARMONY

WE SET UP A STRONG AND COMPLETE FORCEFIELD IN THE SPIRIT WHICH ENCOMPASSES THE COMPLETE PERSON OF JESUS CHRIST( and not just fragments.)

The 10th Gate MIPHKAD is inspection, numbering and gathering

It is represented by the gathered people in Nehemiah 8 hearing the Torah.

All the Gates and walls were built. The people inspected them and gathered. Errrr...together.

Every generation has a "together" gathering.

A Spirit trumpet call goes out.

ALL tribes meet and gather. Now up until now this has been partial, a bit like the returning exiles from Babylon.

These are Spirit orchestrated events of great power.

From the early Billy Graham crusades

The Festival of Light and festival fro Jesus which came through God's vessel Jean Darnall

The 70s Bible Weeks in the UK

The Kansas City Shepherd's Conference

The Kansas City prophets in the ealry 90s

The Toronto Blessing and other US moves like Brownsville

Lakeland, Florida which is certainly only Part One.

These events have another significance.

GATE 2 and 9 are repeated. Gate 9 is a mature and welcoming version of Gate 2.

In Jewish Feast terms, Gate 9 is the Feast of Ingathering. The opening of the East Gate, and in the tabernacle men come from the East and move towards the setting sun and completion in the west.

So the COMING TOGETHER of the Body of Christ lifts up the name of Christ and has a feature of WELCOME.

"Come and See" "Come and Taste".

Until local churches learn to have all the Gates they will remain this part scale of fragments of notes on a piano.

The Apostolic gift is given to build proper thirdlevel churches containing all 12 Gates of experiencing Christ corporately.

(Thirdlevel is my jargon for the threefold revelation of "the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob, or summarised in 1 John 2 by Children, young men, father revelation)

Thirdlevel churches are not churches of father/grandad types only! Thirdlevel churches are places like true families which have the mature amongst them with all people in between growing up to be like them.

Now do you understand the devastating Illuminati pattern of deliberately setting out to layer society so that nobody learns or interacts with the other?

In the prophets the city square is described as a place where old and young walk together and where lovers meet. the devil syphons of the young into hothouse clubs and discos where they become pregnant and then have abortions. The old are sidelined and the midrange are just so shattered trying to support their families and houses and the bottomless costs of benefits, they have little left to interact with.

The 10th gate is what darkness FEAR. In all their work of fragmentation it is more than anything what shows up their deeds of Darkness.....the Gathering of the Saints in Light...sharing ALL the Gates of Jerusalem.

Eph.3 8 To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, 9 and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things; 10 so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places.

the 10th Gate sets up the Spirit infrastructure of all 12 Gates , of ALL 3 levels of spiritual growth, of ALL TRIBES represented by the Gates....in order that the manifold wisdom of God and not just a part piecemeal bit of God be shown forth.

Why the 10th Gate? because if the complete Body is in a locality look what happens

Eph 4 12 for the equipping of the [d]saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the [e]knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature [f]which belongs to the fullness of Christ. 14 [g]As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness [h]in deceitful scheming; 15 but [i]speaking the truth in love, [j]we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together [k]by what every joint supplies, according to the [l]proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.

• Doesn't mention popes
• nor pyramid pastors/vicars /priests
• In short the above passage ONLY LOOKS LIKE THE SORT OF BODY THE 1970s JESUS PEOPLE WERE BIRTHED INTO AMONGST THEMSELVES BEFORE THEY GOT SEDUCED BY EXISTING CHURCHES.

we all shared with each other what God had showed us today... a bit like here on facebook.

But even here on Facebook there is no sense of a 10thGate in the Spirit yet. people waltz off and do what they think they have to do...but in reality they only have but one or 2 gates between them.

Learn more about how we are just halfbreed tribes
Another post on the 10th Gate

Recap on The Fish Gate (gate 2) and the Eastern Gate (gate 9)
from a Facebook post
Evangelists all!!!! I am being alerted to the Jerusalem Gates of Nehemiah.
The gates are the sequence in which God builds both our lives, and the church.
i have not yet met anyone who really gets it all...and I am not there either...but as an evangelist you should know that there's a Gate no 2, and a Gate no. 9
And I think it's something to do with the same sequence in Jesus ministry. Remember there were two episodes of mega hauls of fish with Jesus and the disciples.
The first time...the nets tore and broke, and there was some damage in the haul.
The next occasion everyone helped and pulled in the nets together. As it was in the natural so it was in the Spirit.
The first time was at the time of the multitude first hearing Jesus...but in John 6 huge numbers got turned off, and there was only Jesus who was really mature at that point.
In Acts 2 however, just after the second fish haul on the banks of Galilee after the resurrection, the disciples all STOOD WITH PETER as 3000 people got blasted into the Kingdom, but all 12 helped minister to them daily in their homes.
In the Gates of Jerusalem Gate no 2 (the fish gate) immediately follows the Sheep Gate. The Sheep Gate is the entrance to the Kingdom in two ways. 1. The message of the Lamb who died in our stead, but 2. The discipleship message where we learn together what it means to be sheep of His pasture. Very much the Word of the 70s, the Jesus move followed by Yonghi Cho cell grouos, and Juan Carlos Ortiz on discipleship.
BUT GATE 9. is MORE ORGANISED. Gate 9 is the Eastern Gate. It's something to do with believers who have passed through the experiences of the other 1-8 Gates who are now able ministers of the Spirit to a new influx. This should hearten you because as an evangelist looking out at the Kingdom as it now is you can get discouraged thinking that you are forever and a day stuck with Gate 2....that means nets forever ripping, inadequate ministry followup, frictions between workers...basically a discouraging mess.
But no....God is currently preparing the Church with a massive Gate no 9. people coming flooding in from the East....from sinful ways...but Gate no. 9 is built for it!!!!!!
Also notice this, unlike the previous influx these are OUTSIDERS....brand new ones with no knowledge of God nor spiritual things.

What are gatherings for? - Letter to Sylvia Pierce

You must have thought over these things for some while....namely...what are gatherings for? Jesus said...when two or three gather in My Name there am I in your midst. Ahhh...well DeeDee will say...God is everywhere anyway.
So why did Jesus say that then?
Has this been all superceded?
 My thought yesterday was "Has the marriage bed been superceded?" What with everyone being One Thing in God? And God being everywhere?

 That kind of highlights the absurdity of being absolutist. For all of life represents all of God. At anyone time there are granddads and grandmas in a family. Are all granddads at the same time?...NOPE. at any time there are young and old in the same family. Each has his or her glory NOW. The cutest of all being the most helpless of all...BABIES!!!

So everything is an arc or cycle of glory. It has a beginning, a middle and an ending.
The ending in God is always a glorious conclusion and summing up.

Sowing and reaping...both natural and supernatural follows these cycles.
Nothing is static. Everything is dynamic and purposeful and bringing something forth.

So gatherings whether just single meetings or a series of conference meetings will have an arc, a progression, a flow.

The marriagebed requires sensitivity on both sides and you experience something right through together.

The Lord's Prayer is a cycle. It begins in praise and exaltation and ends with the same and you could think they were similar...but in the middle are internal adjustments as led by the Spirit....who do we need to forgive and pray for, what flat out needs have I right now that instead of manipulating my way through in the natural way of things, can now be presented to the King for His methods or supply? What drives and pulls are trying to yank me back into independent self living??? I do some more yielding, conscious that the Spirit is working a deliverance in yet another thing for me. So when after this I stand and release praise again...it's with that awesome OOOOMPH of breakthrough and knowledge of who I am in Him.
For yours is the POWER and THE GLORY....FOR EVER AND EVER AMEN.

The Body goes through this cycle, this arc as the Spirit leads everyone together.
Christ makes Himself tangibly Present.

In 1986 I saw a Holy Spirit picture of some South American natives in the jungle staring openmouthed at a United States airplane. Perhaps it was a rare thing in that part...I dunno. But God asked me....what is the difference between the natives and the groundstaff of, I dunno, LAX airport?
The answer came....about 80 years of flight knowhow.

Now this was the mid 80s. i didn't know Norman described things as "continuous revival". At that time, pre Cindy Jacobs and Peter Wagner and Ed Silvoso...praying over nations and cities was not a concept. Instead we would think quite longingly of the welsh revival or the Hebrides revival or the Indonesian revival....and it would be a bit like the people sitting round the pool at Bethesda, waiting for a stirring of the waters. Just random, seemingly. Never quite knowing any thing more.

But God has GIVEN THE MORE.
He has shown there is a third stage of growth in 1 John 3
He has also started to make clear that there really is a Tabernacle blueprint in the heavenlies.
That there is a secondheaven which is totally overrun, but that can be brought back into order as we increasingly take our place individually and corporately in the throne room of God.

Jesus experienced both realities. He really was a carpenter. He really did get transfigured some time later on a Mount.
He saw ahead of time who were the 12 to be His disciples.
He saw ahead of time the approximate shape of what was to happen to Him in Jerusalem.. We are to rise up in Him and see things ahead of time to....to see what the Father is doing.

Christ in His Body is actually a lot of the solution to what we as individuals cannot grab hold of yet. There are answers in His Body that are only to be found there.
Only the Body builds itself in love. And in the gathered sense.
Quite literally the American Body is quite backward on healing because the Indian Body hasn't imparted or taught them yet. (Illustration only)
The UK Church has a tremendous youth problem because a section of Body from somewhere hasn't imparted their supernatural ability with youth.
People do far too much talking and NOT GATHERINGTOGETHER in the thirdlevel sense of
WORD AND SPIRIT impartation in the midst of the Gathered Body of all nations.
There are red corpuscles that should be flashing around the Body as happens in our natural bodies, that are just sitting idle. We should all have the same CERTIFICATE of building from nation to nation that comes down from the Throne itself....a PASS CERTIFICATE in JESUS NAME and ONLY JESUS NAME for building the next stage in whatever place. We shouldn't have to worry like Paul did lest he build upon another man's foundation...FOR ALL ARE NOW BUILDING IN THE ORDER OF MELCHIZEDEK according to the heavenly pattern of a brand new spiritual priesthood.

The Gulag of Pitesti , Romania

Video shared by Julie Wilcox in her facebook group Let's Talk God and Stuff

Sons of Hell by Rich Novek

Matthew 23:15; Sons of Hell?

"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a SON OF HELL as yourselves. Matthew 23:15

So is the "hell" that Jesus is referring to the place where the overwhelming majority of humanity will eventually end up at some distant time or is He referring to something that has nothing to do with the status quo perception of hell?

So when we think of hell, what is the one glaring characteristic, and the thing that humanity fears more than anything else?

Who shall separate us from the Love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? No, IN all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else IN all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is IN Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:35-38

So we know NOTHING can separate us from His Love because we cannot live or love apart from the One who is Love. And if it's His perfect union Love for others that dwells IN us, then what is it that dwells IN the heart of a...Son of Hell?

Only one thing...the lie of separation!

The Pharisees were okay with Jesus earthly ministry and even gave Him the coveted titles of master, teacher, etc., but that was only until...

I and my Father are One. John 10:30

Up until Jesus showed up on the scene the Pharisees thought they had the God market cornered. And according to their "self preserving" law, for them to see themselves as being One with God would be nothing short of blasphemy. After 400 years of Pharisee rule, their perception of God was as some impersonal, distant, and punitive taskmaster, not the loving Father Jesus showed us He was, and the One reason He showed up on planet Earth when He did.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have Life and have it abundantly. John 10:10

So a REAL "Son of Hell" is someone who follows the prevailing belief and becomes an advocate of all things separation. They are the ones who continue to hold to their own "self serving" and powerless form of a separated God. They know everything there is to know about the "letter that kills" but know NOTHING about a "one-on-one open and laid bare" intimate relationship with the Spirit who gives Life. They have never KNOWN the One who said that He would never abandon His own Sons, The REAL Sons (and daughters) He ransomed with His own Life from the father of all lies, separation, and division.

And the sad truth is, so many of these same Pharisees and teachers of the "Christian" law are still promoting this same separated "Sons of Hell" message today. And they're doing it week after week IN "brick and mortar" churches across the planet.

And it's this same false message of a separated, distant, and punishing "God up there" they dare call the message of REAL Grace!

Off -(the) Fence - ive

http://www.gifbin.com/988496


My life offends people. Some of it is genuine offense...ie my own selfishness. Some of it is the Spirit moving in a hebrews 4 type slicng action through me. Some of it isn't me doing anything. I mean, having been utterly confused by Methodism for my 1st 12 years and assuming for a year 'there must be no God then!'.....when in our valley loads of kids my age joined me in becoming real Christians....I was still so confused as I read the Bible. 

So at 14 I kind of gave up and said to the Holy Spirit...
"Look I have absolutely no idea how to get to the things in the Bible, and I notice English Christians don't know either....so lead me." And lead me He has.

I'm not quite where I want to be...but I offend people. Because I have let the Holy Spirit form my life. And yeah...like most characters in the Bible my life looks a mess...but I have learned some of the tricks of letting Jesus live My life. He knows better than I do what He is after. I am not on my own. There may not be many in Havant or Waterlooville....but since 2008 I have discovered there are plenty doing this. I have met them online. For 25 years I couldn't really share anything, but to my delight nearly half a million pages have now (July 2014)been read on my blog.

A lot now know what I am talking about and write in exactly the same way. This was my experience in the 70s when church people discovered the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Now this is understood in every town up and down Britain and USA and in Africa and Latin America. So having been part of spearheading that 40 years ago, I have full Spirit confidence that people will soon understand the next stage in their thousands upon thousands. I have the same inner hunch about this that I had 40 years ago about the previous move.
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Betty Lorine Schwabedissen AMEN, BROTHER CHRIS!

The Power of Choice by Phillip Morris (and Chris Welch)

Will you take the red or the blue pill? Iconic question recognized by the Matrix generation

THE POWER OF CHOICE

What is it that keeps us in this unending to and fro, this endless swing from one extreme to the other? What is it that keeps us living in a state of parenthesis always expecting what is the next event to take place that will show once more the adversity or negativity of life? Have you ever thought why is it that we can’t have a world of perfection and continual joy and peace?

After a lifetime of questioning ALL, this Life has smiled and unveiled Itself in Truth and Reality. It all seemed to have started at the beginning with the eating of the “apple”, the account that has given much to say through the centuries. But in reality it all has a simple lesson behind it. You either live and exist as the expression and essence of God that you are or you continually partake of a fruit that is produced from a tree of duality and recurrent judgment. This tree will take you into thought processes, evaluations, thinking, analysis, opinions and conclusions, all a product of a sense ruled mind that seems to know it all according to what is seen, heard, touched, smelled or tasted. Here we remain in that state of a continual whirlwind that will only produce struggle, strain, suffering, pain, instability, ups and downs and the like. It is never ending, a vicious circle similar to a cat trying to catch its tail. Meanwhile there is something Greater, something that goes beyond and transcends this dual life, this dilemma of controversy and adversity.

When there was given a choice between two, life and death; the choice was between Life as the One and only substance that is All in All and the other alternative was death; death being the result of eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the dual judgment that comes and goes according to our senses. The “Life” was the One, the one that transcended this dimension of polarity and being thrown to and fro by the forces of its nature in the context of an unstable teeter totter. The choice of Life is the simple choice of the heart of a child that proceeds in all, out of his Being and spontaneity, allowing its nature and source to express Itself. The unlimited creative world of a child is what brings the fullness of joy and continual peace and tranquility that ultimately is “Who we are”.




The choice to see inwardly - Chris continues
"Some said it thundered".
Others heard the voice of God announcing "This is my Beloved Son."

The 12 apostles were all told specifically to their faces in many and various ways by Jesus:
I will suffer and die at Jerusalem
I will destroy this Temple and raise it up again in 3 days, speaking of His Body.
I will go to My Father and I will send to you a Comforter, (My Spirit) who will take what is mine and reveal it unto you.
No sign will be given this generation save for the sign of Jonah.....(namely the prophet who spent 3 days in the belly of a whale)
Only one was at the tomb ready.
Mary Magdalen and Mary the Mother of Jesus "who kept all these things in her heart.".

They all heard what Jesus said. Physically. With their flappy ears. But it didn't have meaning.

For Mary the disciple who was by now fully awake spiritually, fully engaged with the words of Jesus and turned up at the Tomb after she had counted 3 days.

We choose to SEE.
Revelation 3. 18 latter part    I counsel you to buy from me......SALVE FOR YOUR EYES

why do we need salve?

Our eyes are filled with snake venom. In Genesis 3 it says "then were the eyes of Adam and Eve opened....and they realised they were naked."  God asks " who told you you were naked?"

Let's abolish the carnal understanding of this phrase. This version reads that God was stupid in keeping Adam and Eve in the Dark about nakedness. As if He was secretly running some kind of nudist camp without telling Adam and Eve anything to the contrary.

What was actually happening was a whole new world of shame now opened up. Like a gouge or gash in our spiritual environment and in poured the snakebite of shame into a world that had been completely devoid of it.  Secondly, and relatedly, "Living as separate beings from God"....as selfpowered souls in our own right is what is meant by seeing EVIL.

If we see only God going on, we have His Single Eye

To believe there is an "independent existence" is to be powered by the same self for self inverted spirit of Satan himself. Satan isn't free himself. He is totally bound up in his self for self spirit with the wrath of God upon it. Outside of Christ we aren't free beings either as Satan lied to us....we are in fact caught up in Satan's spirit, Satan's walk, Satan's ways, Satan's fruit. Everything he sold us is bogus.

But we have to now choose in a very costly way to see all this.
Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom. He has promised to lead us into all Truth. This is as Hebrews 4 says to pierce like adouble edged sword between soul and spirit.
Every vestige of the hookup with the world, the flesh and the devil, which is one seamless linkup....has to be uncovered in us for us to ever walk out free from the MATRIX.

Jesus said in the Upper Room...."Now is the Son of Man glorified. The devil has nothing (literally no landing places) in Me.
1 John 3:8 the one who practices sin is of the devil; for the devil [c]has sinned from the beginning. The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.

We learned the life of faith from Abraham. This is like the evangelical discovery that "by grace you are saved, it is not according to works".  We enter into a Blood-bought Covenant with Jesus our Saviour and God our Father.

We learned to dig wells like Isaac. We learned to find the heavenly provisions of God by standing on faith.
We rediscovered the world of the supernatural Presence of God as mediated to us through the experience of being baptised in the Spirit. What has been the charismatic realm.

But to properly change our inner seeing and as Norman Grubb repeated  all life is consciousness....for this inner seeing to change FULL TIME....we had to believe ON the concepts of Romans 6. We had to believe on the phrase also "As He is so are we in the world."

WE CHOOSE TO SEE GOD IN EVERYTHING.

Early steps were in the realms of praise. To praise the Lord even when everything "looked dire".
To praise the Lord is to choose to acknowledge God in a bit of the Universe that appears like it is broken down...that He isn't sustaining that bit of it. Well we decide in our hearts that no matter how it looks He IS LORD. HE IS IN CHARGE.

A Man raised up by God 14 days after death AND cremation by Emmanuel Rendas

Chris Welch adds : And greater things than these shall you do......said Jesus

5 May 2014 at 20:11

Dear Friends, as I promised, I will start sharing tremendous testimonies of what God is doing in us and through us. First I felt the " right timing" to Share this one where God blew away our mind.. ( Its a Long Text, BUT VERY WORTH READING IT ALL, TRUST ME )


For a while now  My wife Betsy and I have been led by the Spirit of God to step into a very dangerous field,namely  Occult, satanism , Witchcraft ( Well, I really advise only step into this field if you know it is God  calling and leading you and not your emotions because isn't easy sometimes.Understatement -Editor.)



We have plenty of testimonies, but little by little I will be sharing with everyone to the Gory of our Lord, Jesus Christ.. This testimony involves an ex-witch that was raised up from  death after 14 days being dead after me and Betsy prayed for Him ( BY GODS LEADING AND DIRECTION)





Since the beginning of the year when God turned our life in a totally different direction We have been sharing the Gospel with many people from occult, Satanic High Priests, very powerful strong witches.. As we know everything isn't rosy here, because there's always a High Satanic opposition, but OUR GOD Fights for us and protects us from ALL evil and He gave us the AUTHORITY to ACT and SPEAK in the name of JESUS CHRIST.





These  Witches after knowing (to keep this short) what We were Doing and seeing How God was showing His power through us, began to threaten me with death. This man as a specialism in his satanic job, was doing Astral Projection ( that means, the spirit comes out of the body and flies wherever the mind commands, in the spiritual world there's no Geographical distance, so, they can be in seconds in any part of the world with their spirit) . So, this man was coming out of his body and was sucking up people's souls and imprisoning them in a glass case ( A soul can't stay longer than maybe 10 min from their bodies, other wise a person die) He killed so many many people.



After this guy learned about how his friends were coming to our house and all of them were seeing our house in flames ( God's fire) ( one time a group of 14 Witches were burned by the flames in my house him included) and How their witchcraft was not working on us and seeing our boldness against them he challenged me that he would kill me. To be honest, at the time I was very scared , but , I looked unto God and his love..



To resume, I told him i wasn't afraid of him because my Lord was protecting me, and he said, he would kill me as He did with many Christians. ( remember this, We are protected by God, and when we know who we are in Jesus we have the boldness like a Lion to face darkness, but sometimes we go through some experiences that will makes us stronger and will teach us many things) .



At the very same night , while I was sleeping I felt my body all dormant, and a demonic oppression in my head and someone trying to suck me up,taking my soul ( notice that a witch cant approach our house physically due the flames of God's holy fire protecting us but he can 'try" with his mind to do what he wants from a  distance, and I'm glad I went through this because I learned to use the authority we have in Jesus in these situations) then for seconds I couldn't move.



I fought in my mind to wake up and cried out the name of Jesus, and suddenly I woke up and I Shout " IN THE NAME OF JESUS , YOU DONT TOUCH ME GET OUT FROM HERE" He just flew away, but in my spirit i began to feel the adrenaline of Spiritual Warfare and i sent Him a message straight away and i said to him



" Look, you will regret  trying to kill me, so far I have been attacked but now you will see real power" His friend ( that since then accepted Jesus ( He is my friend on FB) was by his side checking his body was receiving the messages.)



Then God lead me in taking the Holy Communion 7 times and for me to Anoint my heart and my chest with a BIG CROSS, ( Meanwhile Betsy shared with me that while she was speaking in tongues in the bedroom and suddenly her Spirit for minutes went to God and she saw what I was doing alone in the living room, she described everything that was happening !!!!!!! WOW) and i spoke in tongues for a long time. This was proving pretty intensive.. After a while I went to bed and suddenly after I think 25 minutes, I felt my soul being sucking up again.

NOW i was ANGRY, and I used the authority in Jesus Name and I said for him to be consumed by the fire of God.



Suddenly me and Betsy heard a very Loud scream, oh gosh, very creepy.. We knew this man died... Right away , the kindness in my heart came forth and cried out for mercy on this man.. After a while this witch that tried to kill us said " Preacher. Preacher, please I'm sorry. I wont try to kill you again, when I was going to your house i saw the anointing oil in your heart and  a cross in flames in your chest and the fire consumed me and I went to hell for 3 minutes, then i cried out to God and He took me from there... Please, I don't want to go to Hell again, it's a horrible place, very painful, forgive me preacher"



Well, in one side I was rejoicing because of God's power but indeed very merciful and kind to this man , and I said " Look man, you are already forgiven even before you tried something against me. I'm here to help you and Lead you to Christ, what you did doesnt matter, just give your heart to Jesus"



We had a Long talk, he was very scared by being in Hell for just 3 minutes, but deep inside of me I knew that was just a temporary behavior modification, not heart transformation. ( Heart transformation happens by having an experience with Jesus not with darkness) you will understand as we go further on that what I'm saying here is very real.



So, this guy, after a while came back again but then wanted to harm me again, however this time it wasnt with me but  my son Diogo. And we keep often communicating with this guy's friend because he was beginning to open His heart to  Jesus.. After another attempt to try to harm me, this guy was very scared and said to me:



"Preacher, oh gosh , While I tried to go after your son I saw your Face in flames ( that's the reason for my Facebook profile picture, - it was sent by him), and when I saw your face in flames I began to get burned, i got  so scared" This all happened while I was resting and sleeping, but the Lord protected us in our rest.



Well, when I heard this, I had a mixture of feelings,firstly I was mad, because he wanted to kill my son, then awe to see this guy was such a masochist and then again, again, very merciful and full of love towards him and I told him I was willing to help him to be set free from demons..



Well, I knew that he didnt listen to me!!!!!! The very same week, this man was so pissed off and the reason was this, he told me " In all my entire years of witchcfraft I never had anyone that was stronger than me, and I'm seeing a bigger power than mine" I replied " Well, is the power of Jesus Christ and His precious blood"



But even knowing all of this, this man then called one of his best friends. A very powerful witch, this man,who was very evil, through Astral Projection killed many Christians, putting gas on their Lungs, suffocating them and than putting fire and people died burned alive, this is very real and very scary , BUT GOD IS TURNING THE PAGE and darkness is backing off.



Sundenly one day during the very same week I saw my son Diogo not breathing well. I knew wasnt normal, I got very mad, the adrelanine of the spirit was consuming me very strong. I began to speak in such powerful way in tongues... I wrote for that witch and his new friend he have called that I knew were them trying to kill my son, and sundenly I began to type the spirtual tongues I was speaking ( very weird, but very real and powerful) The witch got very scared by seeing me writting in weird tongues.. but he kept saying to stop and threatening me!!!!!!.



I was very mad and I said they will regret very bad by trying to touch in my son.. ( REMEMBER WHEN about 1 month ago I posted about Diogo being at the hospital due difficulty of breathing? Well, the reason was a satanic attack to kill my son)

But for the first time I wasnt afraid.. Me and Betsy trusted God and we knew nothing bad would happen to Him..



When Diogo was at the Hospital they took a Lung X-Ray and the Doctor said " Well, in 30 years of the profession I never saw anything like what I saw in your son, on the X-ray isnt possible to see the Lungs, only a black cloud covering his lungs" Even after hearing that we kept in peace and we just behold Gods love and we spoke in authority against witchcraft and all symptoms of sickness.



This was a Thursday. Betsy had to stay with Diogo sleeping at the Hospital and I came back home to take care of Tiago and Melanie..The very next day we knew in the Spirit and with the help of a precious sister that these two witches were speaking with each other to come that Friday night to  my house to kill my family and me..



Ok, even in the midst of some feelings of fear, we knew this was a matter of  life or death and we remembered what we had learned through Pastor Joseph Prince's teachings, about God's love for us, what Jesus did for us and Who we are in Christ... and we weren't afraid at all, but very confident and secure in God's word because of Pastor Prince teachings being established in our heart.



In that very same afternoon, Betsy was attacked by that witch While she was sleeping she began to burp, and was smelling strong gas, that was suffocating her, the Holy Spirit used Diogo to wake up Betsy and right away in the midst of the affliction she anointed her throat and rebuked the affliction in the name of Jesus.. It was a moment of real torture but the witch wasnt successful.. Well, perhaps many of you are asking, " Why should these witches be allowed to touch God's beloveds? I asked the same question to God and I felt this in my Spirit " Because it was to man God gave  the authority and made us Kings and Priests and he wants us to act and speak in this way in adversity " Without all of this situation we never would use the authority as we did. This made us very strong.



Ok, meanwhile before the night the 2 witches wanted to speak with me. I said ok, than both threatened me so bad, even Satan spoke throug them in Spanish. well, because I'm Portuguese and its a very similiar language, but i wasnt fearful at all, I was very confident in Gods power and protection and in Whom I was in Him... I told them to not come here because I knew this time they would die. Well, many of the times when you are speaking to a witch it's like speaking to hard wall !!!! They don't listen... With them or you show Gods power or they wont give up!!!!!



So, I followed God's direction with the Holy Communion and Anointing Oil, ( listen, the power isn't in what we do but in Jesus Blood alone and His finished work) So what the Lord was leading us to do was just a symbolic representation to act in authority to release the power within us and not to make God move through our doing and confession.



We knew that we could be resting and sleeping and God will protect us, but, we felt a different direction from the Lord.. Betsy in the Hospital with Diogo, me at home and our dear friend in USA sticking together in prayer and waiting for them..



Meanwhile, the night was coming. At 01h15 a.m the threeWitches used Astral projection with the intention to kill us, so we began to pray and speak in authority and these 3 Witches were burned up by the fire of the Spirit. Well, before some of you start to think, let me tell you this.."God isnt a Killer God. He is a benevolent and lovely God but these witches were warned  not to come. It's like saying, "please, dont walk in   front of the bus you can harm yourself" and God put his protection on us and if the enemy goes against it they will hurt themselves.



All  3 died instantly. It was a very hard emotional moment,because we never like to see any people dying but we couldnt do any thing. Ok, right away  one particular friend that was watching their bodies began to send messages very scared " Oh my goodness preacher, they have not been breathing for a long time . I'm calling the 911 to help me out here"



Well, to be honest I was very scared. These were  new feelings for me. I had never been through anything like this.. But I had to be very violent with my emotions. Meanwhile the paramedics took their bodies with the report " All dead". ( All that I am sharing here are proved by Documents, everything is written down to prove this testimony is real )



This situation began to pass by word of mouth among the Witches.. Many, many got mad and many began to fear us, yet others began to attack us. But what they did not know was that we were becoming ever stronger, not because God was putting His power little by little in us, but because through all this situation and through  exercising the authority we have we began to realize the power that was already within us. It's all about the Cross.. all was done by Jesus. We walk, fight, speak, and act from the Victory of the Cross not to try to gain Victory.. We have already overcome through Jesus Christ..



We began to face more opposition that ever, but we were getting more established in the finished work of Christ and fear had no place in our heart.. Witches all over USA began to come against us in many ways ( Something that I will be sharing later)...



Now, remember this witch, that I was speaking about at the start? For me it was very hard to see him die, I liked this guy so much, I even asked the Lord if he would breathe His Life to being him back to life, because me and Betsy really believe that through the name of Jesus all things are possible.. But I did not feel at the moment the "Green card" of God to do it.. But every day I had this feeling of compassion towards this man.



Meanwhile among the witches that were concentrating on us and threatening us, one of them was the Step grandson of one of the witches that died, the one I've been talking about since the beginning..



This Kid, was very mad at me. " We need to understand Witches language" He was accusing me of killing his grandfather. I just said , I didnt kill anyone, God didnt kill anyone, they killed themselves by coming against Gods protection over us..



They sent demons, they tried everything, and we were untouchable, and God began to tell me to move into a deeper authority and you can see  the result of the fire of God in their backs ( a pic sent by them that i can share in your Facebook INBOX for those who want to see). It was a message for them to not mess with God's beloveds..



Betsy, my wife is very sensitive to the Spirit of God.The Holy Spirit always show her many things through visions and dreams .She had a Vision of this man, this witch, that I've been speaking of since the beginning, in Hell, she saw him in flames, no skin, only skeleton but flames coming out of his mouth and eyes.. Very scary. He was asking us for Help.. " He said, help me please Betsy, I know you are sensitive and you are hearing me , please help me, please tell  my grandson to accept Jesus because i don't want him to come to this place". Even though Betsy knows what she saw , all her visions must be confirmed with this man. He must tell it and confirm what we are saying"



Betsy was very down. A terrible scene of hell and eternal suffering.. She shared it with me, and that feeling of compassion towards this man came forth. Every time I looked at his pic I cried with compassion...



And I contacted his step grandson one morning, and I shared with him the Gospel and in the midst of the talk I told him to make His grandfather proud and accept Jesus... He was crying, crying, and he said, oh yes, I will make him proud of me, i want Jesus in my life....



And after he accepted Jesus and feeling the power of God in Him he asked a question that broke my heart, and in that moment I felt the pain he was feeling. He said this " Preacher , could you please bring my grandfather back to life, I miss Him so much, he was like a father and mother to me"

Oh my goodness,  the feelings of his pain and also all that I had already been feeling them towards this man now broke my heart.



Meanwhile I picked up Betsy at work and I shared what happened that morning with this kid and we both began to cry, and we began to speak with each other about praying to raise up this man from death...



This feeling was increasing in us and we both knew it was the Holy Spirit.. Well, as human beings the first thing we thought was " This man was cremated, he was in ashes, and well, he died 14 days ago too and we had never heard something like that before". These were our first thoughts, but the Holy Spirit brought to our mind the story of the Valey of the dry bones, where God said to Ezekiel ch. 37

4 Then he told me to speak to the bones and say: “O dry bones, listen to the words of God, 5 for the Lord God says, ‘See! I am going to make you live and breathe again! 6 I will replace the flesh and muscles on you and cover you with skin. I will put breath into you, and you shall live and know I am the Lord.’”

7 So I spoke these words from God, just as he told me to; and suddenly there was a rattling noise from all across the valley, and the bones of each body came together and attached to each other as they used to be. 8 Then, as I watched, the muscles and flesh formed over the bones, and skin covered them, but the bodies had no breath. 9 Then he told me to call to the wind and say: “The Lord God says: Come from the four winds, O Spirit, and breathe upon these slain bodies, that they may live again.” 10 So I spoke to the winds as he commanded me, and the bodies began breathing; they lived and stood up—a very great army.



Well, This was very inpirational to us, but this man was in ashes!!!!!! But we decided to believe and let  the cry of the Spirit come forth  within us. Well, we shut ourselves in our bedroom and we began to cry our for His life, we spoke in such authority you'd have felt we could raise  a cemetery from the dead. We began to speak in different tongues we never spoke before. What incerdible power was coming forth!!!!!! While we were praying Betsy saw His ashes coming from all the corners of the sea gathering together and forming a new body, bones rattling and forming a brand new body with flesh,veins, skin. Than after a while God gave another vision to Betsy:



Two Angels of God went down to pick up this man from hell, when He saw the angels, he lifted up his hands pleadingly towards them, and in the moment they touch in him he changed, and they took him to heaven.. " Again, "Even though Betsy knows what she saw, all her visions must be confirmed with this man himself. He must tell us and confirm what we say"

We were praising the Lord as we knew this was very real; we were celebrating and thanking God for His power, a man was being raised up from death after 14 days..



We kept in prayer, and Betsy saw him in Heaven with Jesus, He was showing Him what He went through on his behalf, this man was crying hard. Then Jesus said to him that His grandson accepted him as Lord and Savior and in that moment he fell at Jesus feet and cried a lot.. Jesus hugged him, then they kept speaking for a long time. We dont know what it is, and He will complete this testimony in sharing the things Jesus spoke to him..



After a few hours we felt after a couple of hours in heaven God brought him back to his own earthly body ... When we felt he was made alive right away I contacted his grandson and I said I had something to share with Him.



" I told him Jesus had raised up his grandfather from  death and for him to go straight away to the last place he saw his ashes. He began to cry and he believed us and got his car keys and drove to that place in tears. It was a long drive from Marieta, GA to Tennessee, i think about 7 hours driving.



We were rejoicing so much and we felt the  moment he saw his grandfather!!!!!!!!!!!! What a moment!!!!! Many tears,happiness!!!! This man is alive, sharing what Jesus did for him, he was one of the worse witches you can imagine... He is sharing with people about Hell and heaven and Jesus and how God used me and Betsy to raised Him up from death...



This is a powerful testimony to the Glory of God..All this testimony will be proved by documents register of his death, proceeds of being cremated.etc... And indeed we have many witness, many people that can prove this is a real testimony of Gods power...



To end this testimony I wanna say that I'm thrilled by seeing such Love towards this man... He was in witchcraft I think (must be confirmed) for more than 20 years, killed many people, many Christians and Jesus opened up His arms to Him and raised him up from death and gave him a new opportunity.. WOW!!!!!! What an amazing Jesus we have... I'm speechless... WOW!!!



This will make a big revolution in many parts of America and not just America...And this is just one testimony of many we have to share...



To Jesus be the Glory and Honor.. He did it all at the cross, His efforts, His obedience, His blood, His resurrection. We just need to believe and walk in Victory.

Corey Russell : The Glory Within

Corey Russell - The Glory Within
Book Source
It’s in the midst of days like these that God raises up voices that call the Church back to her first love of intimacy with God and focus on the interior life so that once again, our lives would emanate the life of Christ. Corey Russell is one of these voices. Corey has been on the senior leadership team at IHOP (International House of Prayer) for the last 11 years. His messages on the knowledge of God and intimacy with God carry authority and clarity.Mike Bickle IHOP


“…May your whole spirit, soul and body be preserved blameless…” (1 Thess. 5:23). God designed humanity as an intricate, three-part reality: body, soul, and spirit. In the same way, God formed the tabernacle with an outer court, an inner court, and the holy of holies. God has designed us with an outer court (our body), an inner court (our personality or soul—the mind, will, and emotions), and a holy of holies (our spirit person). It is in our spirits that God comes to take up residence at the new birth. The very life of God is infused into us, and we receive this new nature deep within our spirits.


We are spirits who have souls and live in bodies. Who we really are is not what can be seen externally, but who we are deep within.


At some point, each of us has to take an honest look at our lives and ask: Where is the breakdown? If I have been given the fullness of the life of God, why don’t I experience it? If I have everything in Christ, why do I walk in so little love and joy and peace? Where is the breakdown? Hopefully by now the revelation of all that we have been given in Christ is creating a deeper hunger in our spirits and a prayer is growing inside of us: How can I access the life of God in me? How can I begin to see the Holy Spirit break out of my spirit and transform every area of my life—body, soul, and spirit? This question is what John 15 is all about. In John 15, Jesus states that He is the Vine and we are the branches. Think about the analogy Jesus used. The vine contains the life source—it contain...


Many of us think that when it comes to our transformation, God will do everything and we don’t have a part to play. The truth, though, is that God has a part and we have a part. We cannot do God’s part, and God will not do our part. This is a major stumbling block on the road to maturity and transformation. We are all guilty of passivity—so many of us sit around wishing that our lives were different while refusing to go on the treasure hunt to discover what we’ve been given and how to access it.


Hans Urs von Balthasar, the great Swiss theologian, describes meditation and prayer in this way: [F]irstly, prayer is a conversation between God and the soul, and secondly, a particular language is spoken: God’s language. Prayer is dialogue, not man’s monologue before God…. All of a sudden we just know: prayer is a conversation in which God’s word has the initiative and we, for the moment, can be nothing more than listeners. The essential thing is for us to hear God’s word and discover from it how to respond to him.

Keith Green was murdered by the CIA

Put a musical genius together with the influence of musicians coming over to the States like the early Beatles, or even the American Buddy Holly and you get him writing such a song as he sings here on this Youtube TV programme. He is 11 here, but we know him later as Keith Green.




Why is Keith Green so important musically?
Possibly more important than the group Second Chapter of Acts?

Here's why.

The revelation of the hippies now converted and become Jesus People was shaped ofcourse by the Bible, and especially the Living Bible translation, but by such men as Late Great Planet Earth writer Hal Lyndsay, by evangelist Arthur Blessitt, and many others who had a two layer theology of repentance and faith in Christ, baptism in water followed by the baptism in the Spirit, followed by an earnest belief in the imminent return of Christ....and pretty well that was it....

But there was more going on with Keith Green. Please understand I am not saying the Lord won't come back....but my blog's message is that there is a third layer to our believing if it is to fall in line with scripture.

Abraham Isaac and Jacob is a 3 layer God package of Revelation.
Passover Pentecost and Feast of Tabernacles is a three layer Feast package. The whole understanding of harvest and the harvest cycle every year is based on 3 stages of manufacturing BREAD that the world can EAT.
It's THIS SIDE OF GLORY
It's the full manifestation of the KINGDOM through a mature church...HERE AND NOW.
Jesus said the KINGDOM IS AT HAND.
The American Church and worse still the English and Roman Church say...no it's not at hand now at all...it's after we die stupid!!!

Although Keith Green was not the finished product, in my opinion he had that prophetic heart, that breadth of heart that is rooted in the whole of scripture....that is nearer than 2nd Chapter of Acts to what I call being a thirdlevel musician.

Interesting that in Chronicles to be a musician in the Courts of the Lord you had to be

over 30
skilled in music and an instrument....2 huge things right there
but skilled in the Word also.

Well RT Kendall was skilled in the Word...but he wasn't Spirit filled until his last decade or so
and he certainly didn't believe in there being any thirdlevel maturation, as has been clearly articulated in Yes I am by Norman Grubb.
2nd Chapter of Acts as a group don't really go beyond....errrrr...what is on the tin....the 2nd chapter of Acts.

Keith Green like Mary Magdalen had been gloriously delivered from addiction and enemy forces on his life.
You had the impression he had FIRSTLOVE for the Lord. This is a quality that up until now you only really
pick up from a saint here and there....like Mother Basilea Schlink for one. Many will tell you keith stands head and shoulders above other musicians of the Jesus People

Keith Green 1982 actually singing an  Annie Herring  2nd Chapter of Acts song







Here is what Spirituall Smart  blogger writes

More Keith Green info to Consider

My Comment on the article by Pam Schuffert:

"I believe the article about Keith green has a lot of truth to it. But they didnt kill him because of his music like they say. it was because Keith did an incredible work exposing the Vatican called "Catholic Chronicles". I did a nice web page on Keith Green and already have this article linked in it. you can see my page here: http://www.spirituallysmart.com/green.html

I believe they did kill him though. This writing of Green on the Roman Catholic church was incredibly damaging to Rome. Especially in this ecumenical push by Rome to "forgive and forget" the past and now join together as one,etc." -Thomas


Report # 2 6/29/01 / by Pam Schuffert Reporting from Tulsa, Ok USA
"CIA Assassin Admits:" We Killed Keith Green!" (Christian Music Artist).

Many have heard the songs of Christian Gospel singer-composer KEITH GREEN in the late 1970's-early 1980. And those who loved his songs and Christian witness also know that his private plane mysteriously went down, killing him and all aboard. So popular were his lyrics and music that they have continued to be sung and re-recorded by various groups to this day. But most do NOT know the truth about HOW his plane went down, and WHY. I know the truth. And the truth should be a sober wake-up call to all Christians throughout America. It CAN happen here!

In the mid 1990's I was invited Dunklin Memorial Camp in Okeechobee, FL by Christian counselor Chuck Lakin of Archways Institute to lecture on my research regarding SATANISM IN AMERICA TODAY. Several other lecturers were also invited, including a former CIA assassin who was also a formerly powerful high priestess over a large region of America. (She is now a Christian.)

Following our series of lectures, we left the facility and I was invited to this former CIA assassin's home. When we arrived, she began to unexplainably cry. I asked her what was wrong. She looked at me with tears and replied, "Do you think God could ever forgive me?"

Puzzled, I asked, "For WHAT???"

She said, "WE KILLED KEITH GREEN!" I was stunned. I asked her to explain what she meant...

"We Satanists held a tribunal in America and determined that KEITH GREEN MUST DIE. Why? Because he was winning more young people to Jesus Christ than our satanic heavy metal rock was winning to Satanism. We decreed that therefore he must die..." she revealed.

Continuing, she said, "I even know the special technique our people used to rig his plane by night to ensure it would go down and that no evidence would be found to indicate foul play." CIA assassins are trained in fact to employ such techniques all the time. And many assassins for the CIA are actual Satanists. The CIA knows that they will not have a problem killing!

The entire revelation stunned me momentarily. She then continued to ask, "Can God Really forgive me for my part in his death?"

I looked at her and said, "You KNOW that Jesus Christ died on the
cross to forgive ALL sins... of course He can forgive you!" I then embraced her as she continued to cry.

It is said that "the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church,"
in many countries where Christians are persecuted and martyred. And Keith Green is no different. God took what Satan meant for evil and turned it into good instead. Whereas many Christian singers of the 1970's are now long forgotten, Keith Green and his Christian witness and songs continue to this very day! When I went to Israel to a Christian hostel, I met a young man working there who admitted he had gotten away from the Lord, BUT LISTENING TO A CD OF KEITH GREEN'S SONGS HELPED TO BRING HIM BACK TO THE LORD!

These Satanists can kill the messenger, but they cannot kill THE MESSAGE!
And the message that Keith Green gave to the world is JESUS CHRIST IS LORD! And God is using his songs to this very day to glorify His holy name and to bring people to Jesus Christ.

Yes, God has His martyrs, even in America. So don't think it can't
happen to even you. Are YOU prepared to give your life for the witness of Jesus Christ...even as Cassie of Columbine High School in Colorado did? Or Keith Green? Think about it...

Pam Schuffert, from SATANISM IN AMERICA TODAY


If Keith Green died for something then his blood is too precious not to display what he died for.
This originates from   the spiritually smart site.


I want to put the "Conclusion" of this work first being that it is usually edited out. This will show how really dangerous Keith Green was to Rome.


"Conclusion"
It is obvious by even this brief glimpse into the doctrines of mortal and venial sins, confession, penance, and purgatory, that the Roman Catholic Church has constructed one of the most unbiblical doctrinal systems that has ever been considered "Christian". The fear, anguish, and religious bondage that such a system of "reward and punishment" creates, has tormented millions of lives for centuries, and continues to prey on those who are ignorant of the biblical way of salvation.

To merely call such a system "a cult", would be to throw it into the vast category of religions and quasi-religions that are currently making the rounds of our college campuses and city streets, snatching up many an unsuspecting youth. No, the Roman Church is not a cult. It's an empire!

With its own ruler, its own laws, and its own subjects! The empire has no borders, it encompasses the globe with its eye on every person who does not vow allegiance. It calls the members of other faiths "separated brethren" (The term used by Vatican II to describe the members of Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and Protestant churches.) and has as its goal the eventual bringing together of everyone under its flag.

I know that many will not be convinced or moved by this article (or any of the others) to make such a conclusion. They are impressed by what they've heard about recent stirrings among the Catholics in the "charismatic renewal". Many evangelicals (especially Charismatics) have been thrilled by the reports of Catholics speaking in tongues, dancing in the Spirit, having nights of joy and praise, even attending "charismatic masses".

Mouths that used to speak out boldly against the Church of Rome have been quieted by the times. It no longer is in vogue to speak of the pope as "the antichrist" (Although the following people unhesitatingly did: Martin Luther, John Bunyan, John Huss, John Wycliffe, John Calvin, William Tyndale, John Knox, Thomas Bacon, John Wesley, Samuel Cooper, John Cotton, and Jonathan Edwards.) or the Catholic Church as the "whore of Babylon". Now Protestants unwittingly believe that "our differences are not so great". Ah, that is just what She needs us to think!

I've never completely understood why God led me to write these articles. But it becomes more clear with each day of study, and each page of research. Never has something so black and wicked, gotten away with appearing so holy and mysteriously beautiful . . . for so long!

Part 1. The Holy Eucharist - Eating the Flesh of Deity.One might wonder why, in a scriptural look at the doctrines of the Catholic Church, I would choose this subject - The Roman Interpretation of the Lord's Supper (more commonly known as "Communion") for the first of the "Catholic Chronicles." Most Protestants (1) would expect me to deal with what they might consider the more obvious departures from biblical foundation - such as the worship of and prayers to the Virgin Mary, the infallibility of the pope, purgatory and prayers for the dead, or the history of the torture and burning of accused "heretics" and such like that.

But for this first article I believe that we should get right to the root, before we begin exploring the branches of Roman doctrine and practice. And any Catholic who has even a small knowledge of his church knows that the central focus of each gathering (known as the "Mass") is the Holy Eucharist.



The Eucharist

The word "Eucharist" is a Greek word that means "thanksgiving." In the gospel accounts of the Last Supper, Jesus is described as "giving thanks" before breaking the bread (Luke 22:19), and so this word became a proper name for the Lord's Supper in the early Catholic Church. Today, it is more commonly associated with the elements in communion, especially the host or "wafer," although the ceremony itself is still called "The Holy Eucharist."

Now, you might be wondering why I'm taking so much time and effort to explain something as harmless as the ceremony known around the world as communion. If you've probably taken part in a communion service. So why make all this fuss about bread and wine? Why? Because that's where the similarity between evangelical communion services and the Roman Catholic Mass ends - at the bread and the wine!



Transubstantiation

That 18-letter word above is a complete theological statement . . . and the name of a doctrine, out of which springs the most astounding set of beliefs and practices that has ever been taught in the name of religion. Very, very few people know what the Catholic Church actually believes and teaches concerning this subject, and I am convinced that even fewer Catholics realize themselves what they are taking part in. From earliest childhood, "This is the body of Christ" is all they've ever heard when the priest gingerly placed the wafer on their tongue. And as they grew up, it was such a natural and normal part of religious life, that their minds never even questioned the fact that Jesus Christ, Himself, was actually in their mouth!

It might be hard for you to believe, but that's exactly, literally, what "transubstantiation" means. The Roman Catholic Church teaches their flocks that the bread and the wine used in the Mass actually, physically, turn into the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ after the priest blesses them during the liturgy (ceremony). Although this in itself might shock you, it is really only the beginning. For the implications and practical conclusions of this doctrine are absolutely mind-boggling.



Exclusive Authority

For example, the Roman Catholic Church teaches that since their priests are the only ones who have the authority from God (2) to pronounce the blessing which changes the elements of communion into the actual body and blood of Jesus, that they are the only church where Jesus "physically resides" even now! Let me quote a letter written to one of the girls in our ministry from a devoted Catholic:

"To explain the Catholic Church would take volumes, but basically the Catholic Church was founded by Jesus Christ when He was here on earth. It is the ONLY church founded by Jesus. The greatest asset of our church is that we have Jesus present in the Holy Eucharist - He is really here, body, soul and divinity. He is God and in His omnipotence can do anything He wishes, and He decided to remain with us until the end of the world in the form of the host in Holy Communion."

If you think this is just the isolated opinion of someone on the fringe of the church, or that the Catholic Church as a whole does not really believe or teach this, I beg you to read on. For not only is this the official teaching of Rome, but according to irreversible church decree (called dogma), anyone who does not hold to this belief, in the most explicit detail, is accursed and damned forever!



The Council of Trent

When Europe was electrified by the eloquent preaching of the sixteenth century reformation, the Roman Catholic hierarchy gathered together her theologians who worked for three decades on the preparation of a statement of faith concerning the doctrine of transubstantiation. This document remains, to this day, the standard of Catholic doctrine.

As the Second Vatican Council commenced in 1963, Pope John XXIII declared, "I do accept entirely all that has been decided and declared at the Council of Trent." What did the Council of Trent decide and declare? Some of the first sections are as follows:

CANON I - "If anyone shall deny that the body and blood, together with the soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ, and therefore entire Christ, are truly, really, and substantially contained in the sacrament of the most Holy Eucharist; and shall say that He is only in it as a sign, or in a figure - let him be accursed!"

CANON II - "If anyone shall say that the substance of the bread and wine remains in the sacrament of the most Holy Eucharist, together with the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ - let him be accursed!"

CANON VI - "If anyone shall say that Christ, the only begotten Son of God, is not to be adored in the holy sacrament of the Eucharist, even with the open worship of Latria, and therefore not to be venerated with any peculiar festal celebrity, not to be solemnly carried about in processions according to the praiseworthy and universal rites and customs of the Holy Church, and that He is not to be publicly set before the people to be adored, and that His adorers are idolators, - let him be accursed!"



The Worship Of The Host

"Thou shall not make unto thee any graven image (4)...Thou shall not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them" The Second Commandment (Ex.20:4-5)

"God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." (John 4:23)

In Canon VI, a rite of worship called "Latria" was spoken of. This is not just an "ancient custom," it is thoroughly practiced today in many Masses. After the bread has been supposedly "changed" into the Christ by the priest, it is placed in a holder called a monstrance. And before this monstrance the Catholic must bow and worship (this act is called genuflecting) the little wafer as God! Sometimes they have processions where they solemnly march, as the congregation bows and offers praise and worship - to this piece of bread!

The Roman teaching that Jesus Christ is physically present in each morsel of bread creates many other doctrinal and practical problems. For instance, when the service is over, what happens to all those leftover wafers that have been "changed into Christ?" Do they change back into bread again when the priest goes home? I'm afraid not. For according to Canon IV of the Council of Trent, they stay flesh! And don't think that 400 year-old decree is just some dusty old manuscript in a museum case somewhere - it still is completely adhered to and passionately practiced. As an example, here is a passage from an official Catholic home instruction book, copyrighted 1978:

"Jesus Christ does not cease to exist under the appearances of bread and wine after the Mass is over. Furthermore, some hosts are usually kept in all Catholic churches. In these hosts, Jesus is physically and truly present, as long as the appearances of bread remain. Catholics therefore have the praiseworthy practice of `making visits' to our Lord present in their churches to offer Him their thanks, their adoration, to ask for help and forgiveness: in a word, to make Him the center around which they live their daily lives."

That is an incredible interpretation of how to make Jesus the center of your daily life!

When Did This Teaching Begin?The teaching of transubstantiation does not date back to the Last Supper as most Catholics suppose. It was a controversial topic for many centuries before officially becoming an article of faith (which means that it is essential to salvation according to Rome). The idea of a physical presence was vaguely held by some, such as Ambrose, but it was not until 831 A.D. that Paschasius Radbertus, a Benedictine Monk, published a treatise openly advocating the doctrine. Even then, for almost another four centuries, theological war was waged over this teaching by bishops and people alike, until at the Fourth Lateran Council in 1215 A.D., it was officially defined and canonized as a dogma (a teaching or doctrine that can never be reversed or repealed. It is equal in authority to the Bible.) by Pope Innocent III.

Church historians tell us that when this doctrine first began to be taught, the priests took great care that no crumb should fall - lest the body of Jesus be hurt, or even eaten by a mouse or a dog! There were quite serious discussions as to what should be done if a person were to vomit after receiving the sacrament. At the Council of Constance, it was argued that if a communicant spilled some of the blood on his beard, both beard and the man should be destroyed by burning!

How Rome Views the BibleBefore we proceed to look at what the Bible has to say on this subject, it is important to understand the official Catholic view of the Scriptures. According to unquestionable decree, they hold that "Church tradition has equal authority with the Bible." This is not just a theological view, but it was made an article of faith by the same Council of Trent in 1546! And again, this view is completely held by the Church today:

"The teachings of the Church will always be in keeping with the teachings of the Scripture...and it is through the teaching of the Church that we understand more fully truths of sacred Scripture. To the Catholic Church belongs the final word in the understanding and meaning of the Holy Spirit in the words of the Bible."

And explaining the premise used in interpreting the Bible:" "...usually, the meaning of the Scriptures is sought out by those who are specially trained for this purpose. And in their conclusions, they know that no explanation of the Scriptures which contradicts the truths constantly taught by the infallible Church can be true." (10)

Anyone can see how such a mode of interpretation can be dangerously used to manipulate Scripture to mean absolutely anything at all! Who has not observed this of the various cults? The Moonies, Mormons, and Jehovah's Witnesses all back up their false teachings with "new revelations" and "inspired interpretations" of the Scriptures - each claiming that the Holy Spirit revealed these new truths to their founders. One opens themselves to all kinds of deception when they judge the Bible by what their church or pastor teaches, instead of judging what their church or pastor teaches by the Bible!

Catholic Proof-Texts ExplainedWith this in mind, we will briefly discuss the two main passages of Scripture that the Roman Church uses while trying to show that Jesus Himself taught transubstantiation.

John 6:54-55: "He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life; and I will raise him up on the last day. For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink."

Catholics are taught here, that Jesus is explaining how He is literally offering them His flesh and blood, so that they may have eternal life by physically eating Him. With just a little study of the whole passage (verses 27-71), it is clear that Jesus was not talking about physical, but spiritual food and drink.

Food is eaten to satisfy hunger. And in verse 35 Jesus says, "He who cometh to Me shall never hunger." Now, Jesus is not promising eternal relief from physical hunger pains. He is, of course, speaking of the spiritual hunger in man for righteousness and salvation, And He promises to those who will "come to Him" that He will satisfy their hunger for these things forever - therefore, to come to Him is to "eat"! (See also Matt. 5:6, 11:28; Jn. 4:31-34.)

We drink also to satisfy thirst, and again in verse 35 Jesus tells us, "He that believeth on Me shall never thirst." Therefore, to believe on Him is to "drink"! (See also John 4:13-14.) No one can say that Jesus was here establishing the eating and drinking of His literal flesh and blood to give eternal life, for in verse 63 He says, "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." Thus Jesus makes clear what we should be eating and drinking to have eternal life! Matt. 26:26 and 28: "This is My body...this is My blood." (See also Matt. 4:4.)

Catholics base their whole religious system on their interpretation of these tow verses. They adamantly teach that right here, Jesus is pronouncing the first priestly blessing that mysteriously changes the bread and wine into His body and blood. The absolute folly of such a conclusion is proved by this one observation: He was literally still there before, during, and after they had partaken of the bread and the cup! He was not changed into some liquid and bread - His flesh was still on His bones, and His blood still in His veins. He had not vanished away to reappear in the form of a piece of bread or a cup of wine!

Let's look closer at His words. No one can deny that here we have figurative language. Jesus did not say TOUTO GIGNETAI ("this has become" or "is turned into"), but TOUTO ESTI ("this is," i.e., "signifies," "represents" or "stands for"). (11) It is obvious that Jesus' meaning was not literal but symbolic! And He wasn't the first in the Bible to claim figuratively that a glass of liquid was really "blood."

One time, David's friends heard him express a strong desire for water from the well of Bethlehem. In spite of extreme danger, these men broke through the enemy lines of the Philistines and brought the water to him. When David found out that these men had risked their lives in this way, he refused to drink the water, exclaiming, "Is not this the blood of the men who went in jeopardy of their lives?" (2 Sam. 23:17)

Throughout the gospels we find similar metaphorical language: Jesus referring to Himself as "the Door," "the Vine," "the Light," "the Root," "the Rock," "the Bright and Morning Star," as well as "the Bread." The passage is written with such common language that it is plain to any observant reader that the Lord's Supper was intended primarily as a memorial and in no sense a literal sacrifice. "Do this in remembrance of Me." (Luke 22:19)



True Pagan Origins

Where did this teaching and practice really come from? Like many of the beliefs and rites of Romanism, transubstantiation was first practiced by pagan religions. The noted historian Durant said that belief in transubstantiation as practiced by the priests of the Roman Catholic system is "one of the oldest ceremonies of primitive religion." (12) The syncretism and mysticism of the Middle East were great factors in influencing the West, particularly Italy. (13) In Egypt, priests would consecrate mest cakes which were supposed to become the flesh of Osiris. (14) The idea of transubstantiation was also characteristic of the religion of Mithra whose sacraments of cakes and haoma drink closely parallel Catholic Eucharist rites. (15)

The idea of eating the flesh of deity was most popular among the people of Mexico and Central America long before they ever heard of Christ; and when Spanish missionaries first landed in those countries, "their surprise was heightened, when they witnessed a religious rite which reminded them of communion...an image made of flour...and after consecration by priests, was distributed among the people who ate it...declaring it was the flesh of deity..." (16)

So Why Do They Teach It? Before concluding our first chronicle, the question needs to be asked, "Why does the Roman Catholic Church need to have such a doctrine - why do they think that Jesus wants them to physically eat Him?" That is what truly puzzled me as I read astounded through the catechism and doctrinal instruction books. But the answer to that question is a sad one. As I said before, the implications and practical conclusions of the teaching of transubstantiation are substantially worse than the doctrine itself - and like a great web spun by an industrious spider, Rome's teachings spiral out from this central hub like the spokes of a wheel.

In Catholic Chronicle II we will look intently at the next direct result of transubstantiation in official Catholic systematic theology: "The Sacrifice of the Mass."



Footnotes:
1] - Today, Protestants are considered to be members of any church or church-group outside the Roman Catholic or Eastern Orthodox churches.
2] - Passed down through "Apostolic Succession" from Peter the apostle-the supposed "first pope."
3] - The "wafer."
4] - NASB reads, "You shall not make for yourself an idol."
5] - This act is called "genuflecting."
6] - "The Spirit of Jesus" Catholic Home Study Instruction Course. Book #3, p.92.
7] - A "Dogma" is a teaching or doctrine that can never be reversed or repealed. It is equal in authority to the Bible.
8] - The Other Side of Rome, p.21.
9] - By the end of the eleventh century, lest someone should spill God's blood, some in the church began to hold back the cup from the people, and finally in 1415, the Council of Constance officially denied the cup to laymen. Although today, by decree of the Vatican, churches may now offer the cup optionally to communicants.
10] - "The Spirit of Jesus," pp.94-95.
11] - If I held up a picture of my son and said, "This is my son," I am certainly not saying that the actual picture is literally my son.
12] - The Story of Civilization, p.741.
13] - Roman Society From Nero to Marcus Aurelius, by Dill.
14] - An ancient Egyptian god of the lower world and judge of the dead - Encyclopedia of Religions, Vol.2, p.76.
15] - Ibid.
16] - Prescott's Mexico, Vol. 3.


The Sacrafice of the Mass - What Does it Mean?

In Chronicle I, we thoroughly examined the doctrine of transubstantiation - its history, practice, and real meaning. But we have waited for this second article to answer the question: WHY? Why must there be present in the Mass the literal body and blood of Jesus? What purpose does it serve?

The answer is found in the startling words: "The sacrifice of the Mass is the same sacrifice of the cross, for there is the same priest, the same victim, and the same offering." (1)

And in the words of Pope Pius IV....

"I profess likewise that in the Mass there is offered to God a true, proper, and propitiatory (2) sacrifice for the living and the dead." (From the fifth article of the creed of Pope Pius IV.)

That is the incredible truth! The Roman Catholic Church believes and teaches that in every Mass, in every church, throughout the world (estimated at up to 200,000 Masses a day) that Jesus Christ is being offered up again, physically, as a sacrifice for sin (benefiting not only those alive, but the dead (3) as well!) Every Roman Mass is a re-creation of Jesus' death for the sins of the world. NOT A SYMBOLIC RE-CREATION - but a literal, actual offering of the flesh and blood of the Lord to make daily atonement for all the sins that have been daily committed since Jesus was crucified almost 2,000 years ago. (4)

That's why the bread and wine must become physically Jesus' body and blood, so that they can be once again offered for sin: "The Holy Eucharist is the perpetual continuation of this act of sacrifice and surrender of our Lord. When the Lord's Supper is celebrated, Christ again presents Himself in His act of total surrender to the Father in death." (5)

"He offers Himself continually to the Father, in the same eternal act of offering that began on the cross and will NEVER CEASE." (6)

"The Mass is identical to Calvary - it is a sacrifice for sin - it must be perpetuated to take away sin." (7)

The catechism of the Council of Trent required all pastors to explain that not only did the elements of the Mass contain flesh, bones and nerves as a part of Christ, "But also a WHOLE CHRIST." (8) Thus it is referred to as "the sacrifice of the Mass" and as "a RENEWAL of the sacrifice of the cross." (9)

The Council Of Trent On "The Sacrifice Of The Mass"As we shared in Chronicle I, the Council of Trent was called to clarify and standardize Catholic doctrine in response to the challenges of the Reformation. The canons on this subject (passed in Session XXII. Cap II.) are as follows:

1. "If anyone shall say, that in the Mass there is not offered to God a true and proper sacrifice, or that what is offered is nothing else than Christ given to be eaten, let him be anathema." (10)

2. "If anyone shall say that in these words, 'This do in remembrance of Me,' Christ did not make the apostles priests, or did not ordain that they themselves and other priests should offer His body and blood, let him be anathema."

3. "If anyone shall say that the sacrifice of the Mass is only of praise and thanksgiving, or a bare commemoration of the sacrifice performed on the cross, but not propitiatory; or that it is of benefit only to the person who takes it, and ought not to be offered for the living and the dead fro sins, punishments, satisfactions, and other necessities, let him be accursed."

4. "If anyone shall say that a blasphemy is ascribed to the most holy sacrifice of Christ performed on the cross by the sacrifice of the Mass - let him be accursed."

But Is This The Belief Of Rome Today?If any be in doubt as to the modern Roman position, we shall quote the recent (1963-1965) Second Vatican Council:

"At the Last Supper...our Saviour instituted the Eucharistic sacrifice of His body and blood. He did this in order to perpetuate the sacrifice of the cross..." p. 154, THE DOCUMENTS OF VATICAN II, Walter M. Abbott, S.J.

The catechism books teach that the reason the Mass is the same sacrifice as that of Calvary is because the victim in each case was Jesus Christ. (11) In fact, they refer to the bread of the Eucharist as the "host," which is the Latin word HOSTIA which literally means "VICTIM." (12)



But Why "The Sacrifice" Of The Mass?

We will now quote the church's own contemporary literature to fully answer this question (taken from the book, THIS IS THE CATHOLIC CHURCH, published by the Catholic Information Service, Knights of Columbus, Imprimatur: (13) Most Reverend John F. Whealon, Archbishop of Hartford:

"Sacrifice is the very essence of religion. And it is only through sacrifice that union with the Creator can be perfectly acquired. It was through sacrifice that Christ Himself was able to achieve this for man. IT IS ONLY THROUGH THE PERPETUATION OF THAT SACRIFICE THAT THIS UNION MAY BE MAINTAINED.

"What makes the Mass the most exalted of all sacrifices is the nature of the victim, Christ Himself. For the Mass is the continuation of Christ's sacrifice which He offered through His life and Christ was not only the priest of this sacrifice (of the Cross), He was also the victim, the very object itself of this sacrifice.

The Mass is thus the same as the sacrifice of the cross. No matter how many times it is offered, nor in how many places at one time, it is the same sacrifice of Christ. Christ is forever offering Himself in the Mass." (14)



But Jesus Said "It Is Finished!"

Every true believer loves the sound of these words: "It is finished!" (John 19:30). For it is the wonderful exclamation that the Lord's suffering was finally over - He had fulfilled His mission! Jesus had lived a Life of Sorrow, bearing the burden of a world gone mad. He had been rejected by everyone, even His closest friends. He had lived a perfect life before men and God, and His reward on earth was to be laughed at, spat upon, beaten beyond recognition, and finally nailed to a cross. But He had submitted willingly, because it was the will of His Father to offer Him as the satisfaction of the penalty for all the sin in the world - past, present and future!

But here, in the words of a Roman Catholic priest, is the "true meaning" of the words "it is finished!" "These words do not declare that His sacrifice was finished, but that He had finished His former, normal, earthly life and was now fixed in the state of a victim...He then began His everlasting career as the perpetual sacrifice of the new law." (15) Hence, according to Rome, Jesus must be forever "perpetually"dying for sin.

Have you ever wondered why in every Catholic Church they still have Jesus up on the cross? Every crucifix with Jesus portrayed as nailed to it, tells the whole Catholic story - Jesus is still dying for the sins of the world! But that's a lie! We need only look to the Scriptures to see the truth.



Back To The Book

The epistle to the Hebrews speaks of the "once for all" sacrifice of Christ on the cross, not a daily sacrifice on altars. The Bible repeatedly affirms in the clearest and most positive terms that Christ's sacrifice on Calvary was complete in that one offering. And that it was never to be repeated is set forth explicitly in Hebrews, chapters 7, 9 and 10:

"Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: For this He did once, when He offered up Himself" (7:27). "...by His own blood He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us" (9:12). "Nor yet that He should offer Himself often..but now once in the end of the world hath He appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself..so Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time without sin unto salvation" (9:25-28). "...we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; but this man, after He had offered one sacrifice for the sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God...for by one offering He hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified" (10:10-14).

Notice that throughout these verses occurs the statement "once for all" which shows how perfect, complete and final Jesus' sacrifice was! His work on the cross constituted one historic event which need never be repeated and which in fact cannot be repeated. As Paul say, "Christ, being raised from the dead dieth no more" (Romans 6:9). Any pretense of a continuous offering for sin is worse than vain, it is blasphemy and true fulfillment of the Scripture, "Seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put Him to an open shame." (Heb. 6:6).

Jesus - The Only PriestJesus not only became the perfect sacrifice for sin, but after being accepted by God as having totally fulfilled the requirements of the old covenant, He became "the mediator of a better covenant" (Heb.8:6). That means that Jesus is the high priest of every true believer! "There is one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ" (ITim.2:5).

The Bible teaches that the priesthood of Jesus Christ is unique: "Thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek" (17) "...because He abides forever (He) holds His priesthood permanently" This means that it cannot be transferred to another! (Heb.7:17,24).

But Roman Catholicism teaches that the apostles were ordained by Jesus Himself (at the Last Supper) to perpetuate the coming sacrifice He would make on the cross. And that this ordination has been handed down through the centuries to the current generation of priests. Therefore, Rome teaches that her priests actually operate and discharge the priesthood of Jesus Christ, and that they are called "other Christs" (alter Christus). (16)

This explains the great adulation and honor heaped upon the Roman priest. The French Catholic Saint J.M.B. Vianney said that "Where there is no priest there is no sacrifice, and where there is no sacrifice there is no religion...without the priest the death and passion of our Lord would be of no avail to us... see the power of the priest! By one word from his lips, he changes a piece of bread into a God! A greater feat than the creation of a world." He also said, "If I were to meet a priest and an angel, I would salute the priest before saluting the angel. The angel is a friend of God, but the priest holds the place of God...nest to God Himself, the priest is everything!" What humiliation for Jesus Christ, the One who has been given a name "above all other names!"



But Isn't Rome Changing?

Today, many are expressing hope that Rome is turning toward scriptural Christianity. They point to the many reforms of Vatican II (17) and also to the ever-widening charismatic renewal. True, these things appear to be a positive sign of change, and many are thrilled by them, but most fail to realize that these changes are only superficial. For Rome could never reject the sacrifice of the Mass - just streamline it enough to keep the truth of its meaning hidden. Pope John XXIII made it clear that His Church is bound "to all the teachings of the Church in its entirety and preciseness, as it still shines forth in the act of the Council of Trent and First Vatican Council..." (18)

It is clear that the whole of Roman teaching and belief is founded on this premise of the continual sacrifice of Christ for sin: Again, Catholic writings declare:

"It should be easy to see why the Mass holds such an important place in the Church's life. The Mass is the very essence of the Church. Within it the Church's life, and the Church's very existence is centered. If there were no Mass, there could be no Catholic Church. The Mass is our act of worship, an act which we know to be really worthy of God, because it is the sacrifice of God's own Son.

"What the sacrifices of the old law were unable to accomplish - the Mass performs: Perfect atonement is made for sin.

"The souls of men yet unborn, together with those now living and those who have come into existence since Christ's sacrifice, all have need of the salvation which Christ has won for us. It is through the Mass as well as through the other sacraments that the effects of Christ's salvation are applied to the souls of men." (19)

It is made thoroughly clear that Rome will forever put its faith in the Mass for the eternal forgiveness of sins. To remove this belief from her system of theology, would be like knocking our the pillars of a great edifice - the whole building would come tumbling down!

Paul's Extreme WarningAs I sat stunned, reading all the "Let them be accursed" threats of the Council of Trent, I could not help but think how their curses would only fall back on their own heads - for the words of our brother Paul call out across the centuries:

"But even though we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to that which we have preached to you, let him be accursed!" (Gal. 1:8).

Not only does Paul warn that an authentic angel from heaven should not be heeded while preaching "different doctrine," but he gives the ultimate warning -"...even though we!" Paul strictly warned the Galatians, not even to listen to him - the chief apostle and master of true doctrine - if he should reverse himself on any of the fundamental teachings of the gospel. How much more then, should we reject the appalling traditions and practices of a system that is not only unbiblical, but is actually steeped in mysticism, bordering dangerously on the occult!



Conclusion

As far as I can see from the Bible, a person is only in danger of being grouped with "false brethren" by tampering with three very basic issues of biblical truth. (20)

1) Who Jesus is - Son of God, God the Son, Creator of the universe.

2) What He came to do - to die once for all, for the sins of mankind, then raise from the dead as the eternal high priest of all true believers.

3) How a person directly benefits from Christ's death for sin - he is accounted as righteous through a total faith and rest in the finished work of Christ, and becomes the possessor of God's free gift - eternal life (salvation).

The Roman Catholic Church has been considered a true Christian faith, mainly because it is generally known that their theology is quite orthodox on point #1. But as we have pointed out in these two chronicles, they are perilously shaky on the atonement - Christ's substitutionary death for sinners - #2. But if there is any doubt left at all, as to whether or not the Roman Church is authentically and biblically Christian, there is a complete and thorough study of the Roman view on how one obtains salvation in our third installment of The Catholic Chronicles - "Salvation According To Rome."



Footnotes:
1] The Roman Catholic Sacrifice of the Mass, by Bartholomew F. Brewer, Ph.D.
2] Propitiatory - conciliatory, to soothe the anger of, to win or regain the goodwill of, to appease, placate or make friendly, to reconcile - Webster's New World Dictionary and Harper's Bible Dictionary.
3] "It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment"(Heb.9:27).
4] The Catholic Home Instruction Book #3, p.90.
5] the Spirit of Jesus pp.89-90, Imprimatur: John Joseph CardinalCarberry, Archbishop of St.Louis.
6] Sons of God in Christ Book 4, p.117.
7] For Them Also, pp.289-299.
8] Encyclopedia of Religions, Vol.2, p.77.
9] "A Catholic Word List" p.45.
10] Anathema - The strongest denunciaiton of a person that can be made in the ancient Greek (the original language of the New Testament). Literal meaning: "devoted to death." A thing or person accursed or damned - Webster's New World Dictionary and Harper's Bible Dictionary.
11] "The New Baltimore Catechism" #3, Question 931.
12] Webster's New World Dictionary.
13] Imprimatur - Sanction or approval. Specifically, permission to print or publish a book or article containing nothing contrary to the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church - Webster's New World Dictionary.
14] pp.20-24
15] The Sacrifice of Christ by Richard W.Grace.
16] In Latin.
17] i.e., Such as Masses performed in the common language rather than exclusively in Latin, the relaxation of taboos such as eating meat on Friday, etc.
18] The Documents of Vatican II, Abbot,S.J.
20] This Is The Catholic Church pp.24-25.
21] These are greatly condensed for this example.
Part 3. Salvation According to Rome."...the free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord!"- Rom. 6:23

How blessed it is to know Jesus! His love, His mercy, His righteousness, His forgiveness! He has promised to "cast all our sins into the depths of the sea" (Mic. 7:19) and to separate us from our sins "as far as the east is from the west!" (Ps. 103:12).This is the good news! (That's the literal meaning of the word "gospel" - good news!) That is what the true church of our God has the privilege of proclaiming..."liberty to the captives!!" (Lk. 4:18).

The reason I begin this article on the Roman Catholic view of salvation with such rejoicing in my Saviour, is because I have just finished reading a mountain of official (Roman) church literature on the subject, and I can honestly say, I have never had such joy in my heart of hearts about the finished work of Christ. As I scoured each page and read of penance, confession, venial and mortal sins, indulgences, purgatory, etc., I then had the infinite pleasure of searching the Scriptures to see what they had to say on these fundamental Catholic doctrines.

Oh what relief my soul found in the Scriptures! What holy joy! What clarity of light I saw, as the simple brilliance of God's mercy shown into my mind. If there is anything more beautiful than God's love and patience with man, it has never been revealed to mortals!

All this to say that I am bogged down with the information I have accumulated, and I will probably have to cover it all in this, Chronicle III, briefly touching on each subject, while always coming back to the main question: "According to Rome, how can a man or woman be saved from the consequences of his sinful nature and actions, and how can they gain assurance that they are in a right standing before God?"



The Catholic Teaching On Sin

Before we can understand what Catholics are taught about salvation, we must first see what they are taught they need to be saved from. In Matt. 1, the angel of the Lord speaks to Joseph in a dream about his bethrothed, Mary, saying "she will bear a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins" (vs. 21).

Today, many evangelicals toss around the term "saved" without much thought. "When did you get saved?" someone might ask. It's almost like a title, or a badge that a person wears to prove that he's become part of the club - the "saved" club. Others are under the impression that when a person talks of being "saved", they are talking about being saved from many different things - sickness, death, the devil, hell, etc. But when the angel of the Lord used that precious word to prophesy that Jesus would fulfill all the predictions of the prophets, he made very clear what Jesus was coming to save His people from...their sins!

In official Roman Catholic theology, this too is the main thing that people are taught they need to be saved from - their sins. But the only thing that Catholic and evangelical teachings have in common on the subject of sin...is the spelling! For when a Catholic talks about his "sins", you must find out first if he is talking about "mortal" sins, or "venial" sins. And then you must ask him "how do you get rid of them?" The answer given will likely confound a non-Catholic. For words like "faith", "repentance", even "Jesus" will usually be missing in the answer. Instead, a whole new list of other words will have to be learned, defined, and understood before the evangelical can fully grasp how a Catholic is taught his sins (and the penalty due them) can be canceled out.



Mortal and Venial Sins

The first of these unfamiliar words are the names of the two groups Rome has separated all sins into. Now if you're a Catholic, you might be wondering why I'm making such a big deal - for the dividing of sins into two distinct categories (each with their own set of consequences and remedies) has been part of Catholic doctrine for a long, long time.

According to Rome's definition, mortal sin is described as "any great offense against the law of God" and is so named because "it is deadly, killing the soul and subjecting it to eternal punishment." Venial (1) sins, on the other hand, are "small and pardonable offenses against God, and our neighbor." Unlike mortal sins, benial sins are not thought to damn a soul to hell, but with the committing of each venial sin, a person increase his need for a longer stay in the purifying fires of a place called "purgatory." (Look that word up in your Bible dictionary - you'll find it right next to "venial"!)

Now, there is no agreement among the priests as to which sins are mortal and which are venial, but they all proceed on the assumption that such a distinction does exist. The method of classification is purely arbitrary. What is venial according to one may be mortal according to another.

According to Rome, the pope is infallible in matters of faith and doctrine. He should then be able to settle this important matter by accurately cataloging those sins which are mortal as distinguished from those which are venial. However, there are some definites in the "mortal" category: blatantly breaking one of the ten commandments, practically all sexual offenses (whether in word, thought or deed) and a long list of transgressions which have changed throughout the centuries.

For instance, until Vatican II it was a mortal sin to attend a Protestant church, to own or read a Protestant Bible, or to eat meat on Friday! Oh, and it's still a mortal sin to "miss Mass on Sunday morning (2) without a good excuse" (which means that considerably more than half of the claimed Roman Catholic membership throughout the world is constantly in mortal sin!) Venial sins include things like thinking bad thoughts, having wrong motives, losing your temper, etc. - things that do not necessarily "lead into actual sin" but still, nevertheless, are sins that need to be eradicated in some way.



What Does the Bible Say?

The Bible makes no distinction between mortal and venial sins. There is in fact, no such thing as a venial sin. ALL SIN IS MORTAL! It is true that some sin are worse than others, but it is also true that all sins if not forgiven bring death to the soul. The Bible simply says: "The wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6:23). And Ezekial says: "The soul that sinneth, it shall die" (18:4).

James says that "whosoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all" (2:10). He meant, not that the person who commits one sin is guilty of all other kinds of sin, but that even one sin unatoned for, shuts a person completely out of heaven and subjects him to punishment, just as surely as one misstep by the mountain climber plunges him to destruction in the canyon below.

We know how quick human nature is to grasp at any excuse for sin. Rome seems to be saying "these sins are really bad! But those? Well...you can get away with a few of them and not really suffer too much." Speaking of "getting away" with something, let's get right down to how Rome teaches you can "get rid of" your sins.

ConfessionThe Catholic system starts to get real complicated when we begin to look at the ways one can erase both their mortal and venial sins. "Two kinds of punishment are due to mortal sin: eternal (in hell forever), and temporal (in purgatory). Eternal punishment is canceled by either baptism (3) or confession to a priest." (4)

The Baltimore Catechism defines confession as follows: "Confession is the telling of our sins to an authorized priest for the purpose of attaining forgiveness." The important words here are "authorized priest." And to be genuine, a confession must be heard, judged, and followed by obedience to the authorized priest as he assigns a penance, such as good works, prayers, fastings, abstinence form certain pleasures, et. A penance may be defined as "a punishment undergone in token of repentance for sin, as assigned by the priest" - usually a very light penalty.

The New York Catechism says, "I must tell my sins to the priest so that he will give me absolution. (5) A person who knowingly keeps back a mortal sin in confession commits a dreadful sacrilege, and he must repeat his confession."



The Priest's Role

Canon law 888 says: "The priest has to remember that in hearing confession he is a judge." And the book, Instructions for Non-Catholics (6) says: "A priest does not have to ask God to forgive your sins. The priest himself has the power to do so in Christ's name. Your sins are forgiven by the priest the same as if you knelt before Jesus Christ and told them to Christ Himself." (7)

The priest forgives the guilt of mortal sins which save the penitent form going to hell, but he cannot remit the penalty due for those sins, and so the penitent must atone for them by performance of good works which he prescribes. The penitent may be, and usually is, interrogated by the priest so that he or she may make a full and proper confession. Stress is placed on the fact that any sin not confessed is not forgiven, any mortal sin not confessed in detail is not forgiven, and that the omission of even one sin (mortal) may invalidate the whole confession. Every loyal Roman Catholic is required under pain of mortal sin to go to confession at least once a year, although monthly confession is said to be more satisfactory. But even after a penitent has received pardon, a large, but unknown amount of punishment remains to be suffered in purgatory." (8) The doctrine of purgatory rests on the assumption that, while God forgives sin, His justice nevertheless demands that the sinner must suffer the full punishment due to him for his sin before he will be allowed to enter heaven.

Technically, venial sins need not be confessed since they are comparatively light and can be canceled by good works, prayers, extreme unction. (9) etc., but the terms are quite elastic and permit considerable leeway on the part of the priest. It is generally advised that it is safer to confess supposed venial sins also since the priest alone is able to judge accurately which are mortal and which are mortal and which are venial. The Baltimore Catechism says: "When we have committed no mortal sins since our last confession, we should confess our venial sins or some sin told in a previous confession for which we are again sorry, in order that the priest may give us absolution. (10) What chance has a poor sinner against such a system as that?

As an example, a minister friend of mine who was brought up in the Catholic Church, tells the story of how his older brother went to confession every single week and confessed the same sin to the same priest and was given the same penance in order to receive absolution. This went on week after week, year after year. One day, while on a trip from home, he decided that he would not break his pattern of going to weekly confession, so he went to another Catholic Church in the city he was visiting. He went into the confession box and confessed the same sin to a different priest. He began with "forgive me Father for I have sinned," and then began confessing the sin once again, but this time he was shocked when the priest said: "But my son, that's not a sin!" My friend's brother got up, and hurried out the door, and from that day on he has never stepped foot in any church again.



Historical Development

We search in vain in the Bible for any word supporting the doctrine of "auricular confession." (11) It is equally impossible to find any authorization or general practice of it during the first 1000 years of the Christian era. Not a word is found in the writings of the early church fathers about confessing sins to a priest or to anyone except God alone. Auricular confession is not mentioned once in the writings of Augustine, Origen, Nestorius, Tertullian, Jerome, Chrysostem, or Athanasius - all of these and many others apparently lived and died without ever thinking of going to confession. No one other than God was thought to be worthy to hear confessions or to grant forgiveness.

Confession was first introduced into the church on a voluntary basis in the fifth century by the authority of Leo the Great. But it was not until the Fourth Lateran Council in 1215 under Pope Innocent III that private auricular confession was make compulsory and all Roman Catholic people were required to confess and to seek absolution from a priest at least once a year. If they did not obey this command, they were pronounced guilty of mortal sin and damned for eternity to hell. (12)

Can A Priest Forgive Sins?The Scriptures teach that "only God can forgive sins" (Mark 2:7). "The Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins" (Matt. 9:6). Dr. Zachello tells of his experience as a priest in the confessional before leaving the Roman Church, in these words: "Where my doubts were really troubling me was inside the confessional box. People coming to me, kneeling down in front of me, confessing their sins to me. And I, with the sign of the cross, was promising that I had the power to forgive their sins. I, a sinner, a man, was taking God's place. It was God's laws they were breaking, not mine. To God, therefore, they must make confession; and to God alone they must pray for forgiveness." (13)

In fact, the only word in the Bible about confessing sins to anyone other than God, is found in James: "Confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed" (5:16).