The gospel of peace

If you have read my earlier articles, you will be aware that I do not believe that Roman Catholicism is a true Christian religion, however I would like to make it clear that I deplore the fact that over half the religiously agravated crimes in Scotland in 2011/12 were directed against Roman Catholics. (The next largest group of victims at around 30% were Protestants.) There is no excuse for being violent or abusive towards someone who holds different beliefs. This is a free country and people should be able to follow their religion without fear. They should also not be forced to conform, which seems to be the advice being given to Catholics at the moment.

The intransigent problem of sectarianism in Scotland has deep roots and is more to do with tribalism than religion. Many of those identifying themselves as either Catholic or Protestant hardly ever see the inside of a church. Unfortunately some football teams have historic associations with one side or the other, which serves to crystallise the tribalism. Some of it is also a spill-over from Northern Ireland due to decades of immigration from that province. And some people will use any excuse for a fight. Whatever the cause, violence and abuse are never acceptable.

Scotland's Shame, as it has been called, is not so much the sectarianism - it's the violence, much of it alcohol-fuelled. It's men thinking that it's OK to fight in the streets with the opposing team's supporters and then go home and beat up the wife. That's the real problem. We see it in Belfast at the moment where violence has erupted over a political/symbolic issue. The rioters there have a point but violence is not the way to address it. What is particularly sad is that it's mainly young people who are taking to the streets and attacking police. We have failed to teach them a better way. We are also failing to give them jobs, hope and a future.

Ultimately the only lasting answer to this nation's troubles and those of Northern Ireland is Christ. He is the Prince of Peace. When He returns there will be peace on earth. Until then Christians need to share the gospel of peace, which is salvation in Christ, and the truth that violence accomplishes nothing. 

On adding to the faith

It seems to me that the reason why so many people have trouble accepting that Roman Catholicism is not a true Christian denomination is because Catholicism does not deny the fundamentals of the Christian faith so much as add to them. An example of this is the Alpha Course. Roman Catholics have their own version of this which is the same as the Protestant version but with the addition of two extra chapters dealing with Roman Catholic sacraments and other practices of the Roman church.

Why is adding to the Christian faith a problem? Surely as long as we all agree on the fundamentals that is enough? For an answer to this, first read the book of Galatians. Then listen to the video on this link here.

Where do you draw the line?

In this age of increasing deception and compromise, I am wondering where one should draw the line when it comes to fellowshipping with people who do not hold exactly the same views as me. I don't think I am alone in wondering this and so I want to explore the issue in this post, and am taking the unusual step of opening it for comments so that others can contribute to the discussion if they wish.

As I have already said, I am an Arminian Baptist. I have described Arminianism elsewhere on this blog and I believe in adult, or believer's, baptism, not the christening of infants. At the moment I attend a Presbyterian church which is Calvinist and practises infant baptism. So you would be right in deducing that I don't see these things as deal-breakers when it comes to christian fellowship. Maybe some people would. However, if my church were to start holding joint services of worship with Our Lady of Lourdes RC church round the corner I would be out of there like a shot. A line would have been crossed because I don't believe that we share the same gospel with the Roman Catholic church.

If a minister were to preach something contrary to the Word of God as expressed in Scripture, I would leave that church. It is dangerous to sit and listen to heresy - eventually you will start to believe it. If a church leader were to start advocating things which are extra-biblical, such as lectio divina, visions of angels, centering prayer, Toronto-blessing type manifestations, I would also leave. These things are not founded in the Bible and can lead one into deception. You'll notice I'm talking about what the minister or leader is doing. That is because they set the direction of the church. I would be concerned if a member of the congregation had unbiblical views but it would not be a leaving issue for me unless it infected the whole congregation.

What else would cause me to leave a church? The use of The Message as the primary version of the Bible. Participation in the Purpose Driven Church program. Promotion of extra-biblical revelation and experiential christianity. A female leader. A leadership which is above criticism. Attempts to unduly control and influence my life in areas where the church has no authority eg telling me what job to take, what house to live in, who to marry. (Those are the signs of a cult, not a church.) Undue pressure to give financially to the church. I'm sure I could think of a few more things given time and I'll maybe expand on some of the above in later posts, again given time!

One particularly pressing issue for many in Scotland at the moment is the fact that, while their church is fine and their minister is sound, the denomination to which they belong is going off the rails. That is a difficult one. Do you (or should you) belong to the local church or do you belong to the denomination? Should you leave a good church just because the denomination is bad? I don't know the answer to that and, I suspect, many others don't either. It needs to be a matter for much prayer and, ultimately, the conscience of the individual. I personally am not loyal to any particular denomination and so look for the best church locally.

Ultimately the issue is not whether I agree with the minister/church/denomination. It's whether they agree with the Word of God as set forth in the Bible. When Paul and his companions arrived in Berea with the gospel, the Bereans "received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true." (Acts 17:11b NIV) We need to be like that and not like the Corinthians who "put up with a different gospel" to the one Paul preached "easily enough". (2 Corinthians 11:4b NIV)

Free Church abandoning the Westminster Confession?

As an Arminian Baptist, I do not subscribe to the Westminster Confession of Faith, which is the subordinate standard of most Presbyterian churches, including the Free Church of Scotland, because of its Calvinist standpoint and emphasis on infant baptism. I do, however, agree with its stance on Christ being the head of the church, not the Pope, and its repudiation of the Roman Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation. It is therefore worrying to see that some Free Church ministers are now abandoning the Westminster Confession (and, it seems, their ordination vows) in favour of ecumenical relations with the Roman Catholic Church. Rev James Maciver, last year's Free Church moderator, joined in an ecumenical watchnight service with the Church of Scotland and the Roman Catholic Church in Stornoway in December and was praised for it by Rev Professor Donald Macleod, recently retired Professor of Systematic Theology at the Free Church College in Edinburgh, in his Footnotes article for the West Highland Free Press of 30-12-11. In addition, Rev David Robertson went on air on Radio Scotland in 2010 and welcomed the Pope to Scotland as a 'fellow-christian' which is definitely not how the Pope is described in Chapter XXV of the Westminster Confession.

It seems to me that the Free Church needs to either discipline these men (who are very influential within the denomination) or else come clean and admit that they no longer regard the Westminster Confession of Faith as their confessional document. Then at least we would all know where we stand. Personally I think it is very sad that these ministers should have been so deceived as to forget what the Reformation was about and accept Roman Catholicism as a christian faith. Without the restraining influence of those who left to form the Free Church (Continuing) in 2000 it seems that the Free Church of Scotland is now beginning to go down the same path as the Church of Scotland, albeit 40 years behind. They'll be appointing women elders next.

Why what we believe matters

What we believe matters because it affects our actions.

• If we believe in a pre-tribulation rapture, we will not prepare ourselves for the tribulation.
• If we believe that Roman Catholicism is a Christian religion we will not evangelise Roman Catholics.
• If we believe that, as Christians, we cannot fall away, we will be complacent about deception and sin.
• If we believe in the power of positive thinking we will end up trying to pray a 2 deg rise in temperature from below freezing to above freezing. (I am not kidding - I have seen this being tried! It didn't work.)
• If we believe that the Bible is not absolute but has to be interpreted in the light of modern day thinking, we will accept homosexual marriage and female ministers.
• If we believe that we have to conquer the world as Christians before Christ returns then we will become militant and will try to impose Christianity on others rather than winning them to Christ.
• If we believe that we need to overcome the principalities and powers over a geographical area before we can evangelise, we will spend more time in so-called strategic spiritual warfare than we do in witnessing to the unsaved.

There are so many subtle deceptions coming into the church in these last days. The only way to avoid them is to know the Word. When tempted, Jesus answered Satan with 'it is written' - we should do the same. We need to be so familiar with the Bible - old and new testaments - that we can recognise a false teaching when we hear or see one. We need to check that what we believe is actually the truth because it is not only a matter of life and death - it is a matter of eternal salvation or eternal damnation.

'Take heed that ye be not deceived' Luke 21:8 KJV

Why I don't believe Roman Catholicism is a Christian religion

A friend was shocked when she read my earlier post On the road to Rome?. Coming from a CofS background, she had accepted the ecumenical teaching now prevalent in that denomination. Since there may be many others like her, I feel I ought to give some explanation for why I do not consider Roman Catholicism to be a true Christian faith. For a start, Roman Catholicism is not about faith - it is a religion of works, such as penances, praying the rosary and regular attendance at Mass. This is in direct contradiction to the Bible, which states that 'by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God' (Ephesians 2:8 KJV). The Bible also clearly states that Christ is the head of the church, not the Pope, as it says in Colossians 1:18 'And he (Christ) is the head of the body, the church'.

Roman Catholicism places priests between God and man whereas the Bible tells us that 'there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ' (1 Timothy 2:5). Scripture also tells us that 'there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved' (Acts 4:12 NIV) however there are those in the RC church who would elevate Mary to the position of co-redeemer with Christ. Pope Benedict XVI is, at the moment, refusing to agree to this request, although some would say that this might change.

The Council of Trent, which is still in force, anathematised (cursed) any who believed that salvation was through faith alone, in Christ alone. Instead justification was declared to be offered upon the basis of faith and good works. It also upheld the use of icons in worship, which is in direct contradiction to the second commandment, upheld the doctrine of purgatory (which has no scriptural justification whatsoever) and the practice of praying to the saints, which contradicts Jesus' teaching on how to pray, namely to the Father.

If you are still not convinced, have a look at this article from a former Roman Catholic, now Baptist pastor. Many people in these days have forgotten what the reformation was about, however there are some who would still remind us and Ken Silva of Apprising Ministries is one of them. James White of Alpha and Omega Ministries is another. I thank God for them.

PS. The purpose of this article is to demonstrate that Roman Catholicism is not, in my opinion, a Christian faith. It is not for me to say whether individual Roman Catholics are Christian or not - only God ultimately knows what is in someone's heart.

On the road to Rome?

As a sign of how far the ecumenical spirit has penetrated the protestant, evangelical church in Scotland I need look no further than the Christmas Eve Watchnight Service in Stornoway, which included representatives from the Roman Catholic church, the Church of Scotland and the Free Church and which was broadcast on BBC Alba. Unsurprisingly, this ecumenical event has stirred up some controversy in the Western Isles and further afield. I personally am not surprised after I heard the Rev David Robertson, minister of St Peter's Free Church, Dundee, saying on Radio Scotland that he welcomed the Pope as a fellow Christian when the Pope visited Scotland last year. With influential voices such as that in the Free Church it is not difficult to understand how, in the space of one generation, the Free Church should abandon its fundamental beliefs to the extent of having a joint service with the Roman Catholic Church.

The Free Church (Continuing) may seem like a voice crying in the wilderness as they remonstrate with their erstwhile colleagues, all the more so given their seemingly hopelessly outdated beliefs in the Pope as the Anti-Christ, however events now fast-unfolding in Europe and on the world stage now begin to give some credence to this belief. The Bible makes clear that, in the last days, there will be a global financial system which true believers cannot be part of because it is inextricably linked with a one-world order or government, led by the Anti-Christ. There will also be a false prophet who will encourage all people to worship the Anti-Christ, ie a global false religion. With that in mind, consider the following:

Rome regards all protestants as apostates who need to be brought back into the fold, forcibly if necessary, however the current strategy is assimilation back into the Roman Catholic Church by stealth. Hence the rise in mysticism, icons, labyrinths and monasticism in certain parts of the church, in particular what is called the 'emerging' church. Add to this the ecumenical movement which seeks to portray those who hold to the teachings of Rome as fellow Christians. Then consider the steps being taken to heal the historic breach between the Roman and Orthodox churches, along with overtures from Rome to the Muslim world, who also venerate Mary.

If that doesn't worry you, look at Europe. The European Union is a reincarnation of the Holy Roman Empire (962-1806), which was centred on Germany. All it needs to be complete is political union (which won't be long in coming due to the crisis with the Euro), a common leader and a common religion. No prizes for guessing what that religion will be. If you are still not convinced, take a look at this article and the Vatican article which it references. (The Vatican article is a bit hard-going but do read the last 20 or so lines, which are scary enough even without the rest of it.)

All I can say is that thank God there are still some churches, the FCC included, which have not succumbed to the wiles of Rome. Would that there were more like them!