It's always weird going to a Novus Ordo Catholic parish (like I did today due to weather) while accustomed to the Traditional Latin Mass: * Lady starts us off: "Good morning! Welcome to Mass!" * Girl altar boy wearing bell-bottom jeans and athletic shoes * All prayers said while facing us * We jump Communion lines to avoid the unnecessary lady extraordinary minister of Holy Communion * It's a logistical challenge to return to our original seating where our belongings are * Plenty of piano recitals during Mass * Gay-sounding showtunes * Priest ends with "I'm sorry I don't have any dad jokes for you today to close us out" * When it's over we file past the priest near the front door who frequently administers high fives instead of handshakes I should have weathered the longer drive in the snowstorm.
Why do some say that when Christians go to heaven, they are no longer concerned about earthly affairs and therefore don't pray for us? Jesus was a man. He is now at the right hand of the Father in heaven, where he still cares about us and continues to intercede for us. It's OK -- it's good -- to ask the #saints in heaven to pray for us, with us, in Jesus. #CommunionOfSaints
Through careful theologizing and precise explanations, Catholics and Protestants can find a way to agree that we are "saved by faith alone." But that doesn't settle the matter. Select theologians agreeing on how it's possible to use the same words does not make the actual disagreement go away in real life. Similarly, Christians and Muslims can rationalize that both worship the same God, but that doesn't translate into anything meaningful. Whatever words might make us feel good, it still stands that obedience in the Christian life -- what we do -- is critical; and worshiping Jesus is critical.
God is not old. He just always is.
"Therefore, you correct little by little those who trespass, and remind and warn them of the things wherein they sin, that they may be freed from wickedness and put their trust in you, O Lord." -- Wisdom 12:2
I tried to explain Christmas was pagan to my first grade teacher. I've come a long way. image
Baptism does not take the place of grace. It IS grace -- and a channel OF grace.
How can the Christian be assured of eternal life? My old quasi-Christian church taught we needed to "qualify for entrance into God's kingdom" through a life of obedience. But what was the standard for passing the qualification test? I never knew. It was disconcerting. Now I know the plain truth. In the simplest terms: repent, be baptized, and believe the gospel; then be sure not to die in the state of mortal sin. That doesn't necessarily make it easy, but it makes it clear.
If we as Christians have eternal security (i.e., are "once saved always saved"), then why should we ask for God's forgiveness when we commit a new sin? Isn't it already forgiven? What happens if we don't ask God to forgive us our trespasses from today? Truth: The #eternalsecurity doctrine ends up nullifying the importance of daily repentance. It would be a legalistic view of God if we think we can choose to turn away from him through intentional serious sin, but then say it doesn't really matter because I "accepted Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior" when I was 14. We have to name and claim our sins whenever we commit them so we can offer them to God -- so he can heal us and forgive us. Not just in the past, but now. Right now. Jesus never tells us we no longer need to ask, seek, and knock. It's not one and done. He says we need to endure to the end.
I still reflect on how shallow my former religion was: πŸ—“οΈ We emphasized that Saturday (definitely not Sunday) was the true day of worship. πŸ₯© Real Christians don't eat pork. ✝️ Easter is pagan, and you can't even fit 72 hours between Good Friday and Sunday morning. πŸŽ„ Christmas is pagan, and December 25 was not Jesus' birthday anyhow. πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ πŸ‡¬πŸ‡§ You can't understand the Bible if you don't know the promises to Abraham are fulfilled in the Unites States and British Commonwealth. ☘️ The Trinity is false -- there are two God Beings: the Father and the Son. 🌫️ No one goes to heaven. πŸ”₯ There is no everlasting hell. πŸ“– You would believe as we do if you just let the Bible interpret itself. There were many more, but it was these kinds of things that made us stand out. These were the things true Christians believed; others were "counterfeit Christians." It's extra sad when I see friends and family growing old with this kind of malnourished, non-salvific, false faith. God have mercy on us all.